In Sermon Illustrations: "Christian Unity"

Dwarfish Christianity

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 24, 2011

DWARFISH CHRISTIANITY Charles Spurgeon, the famed pastor of the Metropolitan Baptist Tabernacle in London made this observation in the late 1800’s when he came in contact with a community of small framed men. "There was once in London a club of small men, whose qualification for membership lay in ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 3:10-20, 1 Timothy 3:10-12

Tags: Growth In Christ

Cruel Christians

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 29, 2011

CRUEL CHRISTIANS During the Spanish conquest of Mexico under Hernando Cortez in the early 1500s, a resistance leader named Hatney was captured after a fierce battle and sentenced to be burned alive. After tying him to the stake, his captors urged him to become a Christian so that at his death his ...read more

Scripture: Titus 2:1-10

Tags: Christian Witness

Confined Christians

Contributed by Rodelio Mallari on Jan 10, 2012

CONFINED CHRISTIANS I met a young man not long ago who dives for exotic fish for aquariums. He told me that one of the most popular aquarium fish is the shark. He explained that if you catch a small shark and confine it, it will stay a size proportionate to the aquarium you put it in. Sharks can ...read more

Tags: Growth In Christ

Denomination: *other

Aristides On Christians

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2012

ARISTIDES ON CHRISTIANS Writing in about 125 AD, a Christian philosopher by the name of Aristides looked at Christianity and said this: "They walk in all humility and kindness, and falsehood is not found among them, and they love one another. They despise not the widow, and grieve not the ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:11-20

Tags: Christian Witness

True Christianity

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Aug 27, 2012

This past Wednesday, many across our country and others, went to their local churches to have ashes placed on their foreheads, as a sign of repentance. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, a 40-day period that many “give-up” something in preparation for the coming of Easter. In the ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Baptist

The Opposite Of A Christian

Contributed by Fr Mund Cargill Thompson on Jan 29, 2013

THE OPPOSITE OF A CHRISTIAN What would you say was the opposite of a Christian people? would it be an atheist people? a pagan people? Perhaps even a hypocritical people, an unforgiving people. What would be your answer? When the novelist George bernanos was asked this question "What is the ...read more

Tags: Joy

Denomination: Anglican

Christian Priesthood  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 1, 2013

From R. Paul Stevens: Christian priesthood is not a matter of being religious and Mr. Goody two shoes but of serving God and God’s purposes in the nitty gritty everydayness of life in the world, not a matter of sacred times and sacred places but ordinary times and ordinary places, not a matter ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:15-16

Tags: Everyday Life, Priestly

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Unchristian

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 21, 2014

In unChristian, David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, discusses some disheartening research concerning the failure of Christians in our day to remain distinct: "In virtually every study we conduct, representing thousands of interviews every year, born again Christians (talking about people ...read more

Scripture: Malachi 3:18

Tags: Transform, Holiness, Distinctiveness, Moral Living

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Impersonating A Christian

Contributed by Shawn Miller on Jan 16, 2015

In her recently published book “Dance with the Devil” Barbara Bentley shares her experience with former husband, John Perry, a mysterious man, whose father was supposedly portrayed by John Wayne in a World War II movie. She fell in love with him when He dazzled her and her friends with his heroic ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:21-23

Tags: Hypocrisy, Day Of Judgment, False Believer, Imposter

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Marks Of A Christian

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 6, 2022

Galatians 2:1-10 THE MARKS OF A CHRISTIAN BY THEODORE EPP Four marks of a Christian are set forth in Galatians 2:20: First, a Christian is one who has the living Christ living in him. "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 2:20

Tags: Christ, Holy Spirit, Resurrection, Discipleship, Christian Life  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Distorted Christianity

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jul 7, 2023

Q: What does the Church think of God the Father? A: He is omnipotent and holy. He created the world and imposed on mankind conditions impossible to fulfill; he is very angry if these are not carried out. He sometimes interferes in an arbitrary way with judgments and miracles, distributed with a ...read more

Scripture: Mark 6:1-6, 2 Corinthians 11:2-4, 2 Timothy 3:1-6

Tags: Distortion, Misconceptions, Ignorance, Slander, Dorothy Sayers  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

37% Of Christians Shop In Christian Stores. A New ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 16, 2006

37% of Christians shop in Christian stores. A new CBA-Barna survey reveals that 34% of adults have shopped in a store that specializes in Christian products in the last 6months, up from 30% in ’91. Close to 4 in 10 Christians (37% or roughly 6 million people) visit a Christian store in a typical ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

80% Of Christians And 69% Of Non-Christians Feel ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 20, 2007

80% of Christians and 69% of non-Christians feel they “are an outstanding role model for young ...read more

Tags: Wisdom

The Power Of Snowflakes  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 20, 2014

THE POWER OF SNOWFLAKES We can learn great lessons of unity and its power simply by observing the nature. For example a single snow flake that looks beautiful and innocent. If it remains on its own it can easily fly away or quickly melt away. On it's own it does no harm and poses no threat to any ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 11:1-9, Luke 10:38-42, Ephesians 4:13-14

Tags: Power, Unity, Power Of Unity

Christian Games: In Its 3rd Year, The Christian ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 20, 2006

Christian Games: In its 3rd year, the Christian Game Developers Conference drew record attendance over July 31-August 1, reflecting growth in the $100 million/year ...read more

Tags: Entertainment

Barna's Latest Survey Shows 11% Of The People Who ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 5, 2006

Barna’s latest survey shows 11% of the people who attend a Christian church at least once a month plan to change their place of worship in the coming year. If true, more than 15 million people will change their church home in the next 12 months. Barna concludes, "Despite their fascination with ...read more

Tags: Worship, Unity

Dealing With Divisive People  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 29, 2011

DEALING WITH DIVISIVE PEOPLE Ray Stedman said, "Some people for the sake of their point of view would destroy the unity of your church. How do you deal with them? Avoid them. We must keep our eye on them and turn away from them. In other words, we don’t listen to them. We’re never obligated to ...read more

Scripture: Romans 16:17-19

Tags: Unity, Courtesy

The Story Is Told That John Wesley, A Founder Of ...  PRO

Contributed by Glenn Durham on Feb 12, 2008

The story is told that John Wesley, a founder of Methodism, changed his view about church division after a dream in which he was first transported to the gates of Hell. He asked, “Are there any Presbyterians here?” “Yes,” was the reply. “Any Roman Catholics?” “Yes.” “Any Congregationalists?” “Yes.” ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:1-23

Tags: Unity, Divisions

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Three Kinds Of Christians  PRO

Contributed by Dan Cormie on Oct 25, 2002

There are three kinds of Christians: (1) Row-boat Christians—struggling in their own power; stop to rest for a while, only to find that the current has taken them back where they started. (2) Sail-boat Christians—let the wind do all the work; enjoy the high moments, But what happens ...read more

Tags: Basics Of Christianity

Denomination: Mennonite

Is It Wrong For A Christian To Declare ...  PRO

Contributed by Kevin Higgins on Feb 8, 2003

Is it wrong for a Christian to declare bankruptcy? To answer, we need to separate the moral from the ethical, or the biblical from the legal. Our legal system allows individuals and businesses to have some protection from creditors through the various bankruptcy laws. However, I don’t believe a ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 37:21, Psalm 37:23-28

Tags: Money

Denomination: Baptist