In Sermon Illustrations: "Christmas Meaning"

The Carnival Ride

Contributed by Paul Steen on Dec 9, 2017

Some years ago, while our family was vacationing in the high Sierras, we decided to visit a small county fair near the town of Quincy. There weren't many people there that morning. In fact, we were about the only ones visiting the carnival rides. So when I climbed into the Tilt-O-Wheel with my ...read more

Scripture: James 1:14-15

Tags: Sin, Sin Cycle

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

A Lesson From A Damaged Lock

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Nov 20, 2019

Moving from one place to another is always a challenge, no matter how many times you’ve gone through this “process”! My wife and I recently made a move and learned a strange, but interesting lesson—one that was valuable for us, too. As sometimes happens, there is too much stuff and not enough ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-20

Tags: Theft, Possessions, Worldly Goods

Denomination: Baptist

A Drop Or Two Of Bluing?

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Dec 25, 2019

How many of you remember bluing solution? Way back in the early to mid ‘60’s, Mom and Grandma would never finish a load of wash (laundry, if you prefer!) without adding some bluing when they did the whites. Now, I never understood why they did this but one of the two explained it kind of like this: ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 1:18, Isaiah 64:6, Psalm 51:7, 1 John 1:7

Tags: Forgiveness, Cleansing From Sin

Denomination: Baptist

Thanksgiving Turkey

Contributed by Roy Fowler on Jun 19, 2020

We are celebrating this week; its Thanksgiving in our Country. I hope Americans truly understand why we have this great country and where the many blessings come from. I hope we are giving to God what is God's. 91% of Americans have turkey for Dinner. And so... I was thinking about Butterball ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 9:3

Tags: Turkeys, Cooking

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Any Believer Can Be A "Man Of God”

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jul 7, 2020

Any believer can be a “man of God” Text: 2 Tim 3:17 That the man of God (any believer in Jesus!) may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works. Thoughts: Only a few people were ever called a “man of God” in the Bible. Some were never known; at least four were never named, and one, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:14-17

Tags: Paul, Man Of God, Timothy

Denomination: Baptist

Tis The Season For ...

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

‘Tis the Season for Praise Psalm 118:1-4 says, “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good… Let Israel say… Let the house of Aaron say… Let those who fear the LORD say: ‘His love endures forever.’” The writer of this psalm is very careful to give recognition to the Lord and it is right that the whole ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 118:1-4

Tags: Thanksgiving Holiday

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

True ...

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

True Thanksgiving Psalm 100 “Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; Come before Him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; We are His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 100:1-6

Tags: Thanksgiving Holiday

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Keep Your Eyes On The Prize  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 22, 2008

Keep Your Eyes on the Prize The year Pete Rose was about to break Ty Cobb's all-time hits record in spring training, he was being interviewed. One reporter blurted out, "Pete, you only need 78 hits to break the record. How many at-bats do you think you'll need to get the 78 hits?" Without ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Tags: Character

The Wise ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 6, 2008

The Wise Fool There is an old, corny story about the young man who was the first in his family to go to college. In fact, he was the first in his small town to go to college. And so when he came home after his freshman year, he was the apple of his father’s eye. His dad, who had never in his life ...read more

Tags: Wisdom

M ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 6, 2008

Materialism Matthew Sleeth is a medical doctor who wrote a provocative book called "Serve God Save the Planet." Dr. Sleeth was a former emergency room doctor and chief of medical staff at a prominent hospital in the northeast. He writes about a colleague named Todd. I think Todd represents the ...read more

Tags: Materialism

Didn't You Get My Letters?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2008

DIDN'T YOU GET MY LETTERS? Let's play “Let's Pretend". Let's pretend that you work for me. In fact, you are my executive assistant in a company that is growing rapidly. I'm the owner and I’m interested in expanding overseas. To pull this off, I make plans to travel abroad and stay there until a ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Knowing Your Way To Heaven

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

KNOWING YOUR WAY TO HEAVEN The little church in the suburbs suddenly stopped buying from its regular office supply dealer. So, the dealer telephoned Deacon Brown to ask why. "I'll tell you why," said Deacon Brown, "Our church ordered some pencils from you to be used in the pews for visitors to ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

I Found A Story Called "Pushing The Rock" Told ...

Contributed by Anne Benefield on Jan 19, 2009

I found a story called “Pushing the Rock” told by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. It is the story of a weak, sickly man, who could not afford to go to the doctor and his condition seemed to grow worse. The man lived in the deep back woods in an old log cabin. Out in front of his cabin was a huge ...read more

Tags: Strength

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Zorthian's Fear

Contributed by Terry Blankenship on Jan 26, 2009

ZORTHIAN'S FEAR A mural artist named J.H. Zorthian read about a tiny boy who had been killed in traffic. His stomach churned as he thought of that ever happening to one of his three children. His worry became an inescapable anxiety. The more he imagined such a tragedy, the more fearful he became. ...read more

Tags: Anxiety

Denomination: Baptist

Unsung Heroines-Belshazzar's Grandmother; Daniel 5

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jun 28, 2022

Introduction: My late uncle preached a sermon on Daniel 5 many years ago. He began by saying, “When the little shot gets about half shot, he really thinks he’s a big shot!” That was certainly true for Belshazzar, who had the honor (??) of being Babylon’s last king. In the context, Belshazzar had ...read more

Scripture: Daniel 5:10-12

Tags: Daniel, Belshazzar, Unsung Heroines, Queens

Denomination: Baptist

Unsung Heroines-The "sinful Woman" At Simon's House

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Aug 4, 2022

Introduction: We don’t know her name, or much of anything else about her, except for one incident where she’s featured. What she did, and to whom, qualifies her to be an unsung heroine! Text: Luke 7:36-39, KJV: 36 And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into ...read more

Scripture: Luke 7:36-50

Tags: Forgiveness, Parables, Unsung Heroines

Denomination: Baptist

You Don't Love Me Any More!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 30, 2022

A married couple was reflecting on their 50th wedding anniversary and all of the great times they had been blessed to share together through the years. The husband was sitting in his recliner and the wife was sitting in her recliner. “You know something,” she said, “things have really changed ...read more

Tags: Affection, Husbands, Wives, Love, Marriage, Romance, Revival, Anniversary, Bride Of Christ  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

7 Ways That Eve Distorted The Word Of God

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 27, 2023

Let’s go back to Genesis 2:16-17 to review exactly what God said and then we’ll compare it to the distortion Eve came up with: “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in ...read more

Tags: Eve, Sin, Evil, Satan, Truth, Temptation, Word Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Unsearchable Riches In Christ

Contributed by Roger Hasselquist on Mar 6, 2023

There was a news story reported in July 2011 that a well known Hindu temple in southern India revealed vast treasures and hidden secrets. The temple itself was well known and previously unguarded. (The Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Trivandrum, India) The temple had been there for hundreds of ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:1-13

Tags: Gold, Diamond, Hidden Treasure, Unknown Riches, Mystery Revealed  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Thief On The Cross - Alistair Begg

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Dec 19, 2023

If you were to die tonight and you were getting entry into heaven, what would you say? If you answer that, and if I answer it in the first person, we've immediately gone wrong. “Because I believed”, “Because I have faith”, “Because I am his”. Loved ones the only proper answer is in the third ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 27:33-44, Luke 23:32-43

Tags: Pride, Arrogance, Thief On The Cross, Alistair Begg, Easter, Good Friday, Crucifixion, Salvation, Cross  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed