In Sermon Illustrations: "Clergy Appreciation Month"

Paraphrase Of Part Of The Fatwa From Osma Bin ...

Contributed by John Donnelly on Aug 30, 2006

Paraphrase of part of the fatwa from Osma Bin Laden, 1998. ”Praise be to God, who revealed the Book, controls the clouds, defeats factionalism, and says in His Book "But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the pagans wherever ye find them, seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in ...read more

Tags: War

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Church For Fanatics

Contributed by Paul Wallace on Sep 20, 2006

Church For Fanatics One man wrote "I was a supply preacher for a small town Texas Church, coming in early Sunday, preaching a sermon to the congregation, and then leaving after lunch. Arriving early one Sunday I sat down at a local donut shop, opened my Bible and went over my sermon notes. " A man ...read more

Denomination: Wesleyan

Noel Coward, A Well Known British Playwright And ...

Contributed by D. Greg Ebie on Nov 16, 2006

Noel Coward, a well known British playwright and comedian in the 20th century, once played a prank on ten famous men in London. He sent each of these distinguished men the same note which read: “We know what you have done. If you don’t want to be exposed, leave town.” Within six months all ten ...read more

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Another Young Man Was Looking Through The ...

Contributed by Jerry Caddell on Feb 16, 2007

Another young man was looking through the classifieds in search of a used car when he came upon an ad for a brand new Jaguar being sold for only $50. Surely he thought this was typo, but calling the number listed he was assured that $50 was correct. The next day he went by to see the car and to his ...read more

Tags: Marriage General

Denomination: Methodist

A Middle Aged Woman Had A Heart Attack And Was ...

Contributed by David Rumley on Apr 16, 2009

A middle aged woman had a heart attack and was taken to the hospital. While on the operating table she had a near death experience. Seeing God, she asked "Is my time up?" God said, "No, you have another 43 years, 2 months and 8 days to live." Upon recovery, the woman decided to stay in the hospital ...read more

Tags: Change

Denomination: Pentecostal

On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln's ...

Contributed by Tim White on Apr 25, 2009

On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln’s Proclamation of Emancipation was made official and came into law. It proclaimed all slaves in the United States free men. However, not all slaves were living free on January 2nd. In the North and Midwest, Irish slaves were set free soon after this date. ...read more

Tags: Sin Bondage To

Denomination: Baptist

Childlike Forgiveness

Contributed by Ramon Canals on Jun 5, 2009

CHILDLIKE FORGIVENESS A few months ago, I was in El Paso holding an evangelistic meeting, and the young people were serving dinner to the mothers being that it was Mother’s Day. I was seating in a chair watching what was going on, and right in front a four-year-old girl pushed a two-year-old boy, ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Adventist

Two-Year-Old Boy Addicted To Smoking In ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 8, 2010

Two-Year-Old Boy Addicted to Smoking in Indonesia An Indonesian father claims his two-year-old son is addicted to cigarettes, a newspaper reported. Mohammad Rizal, from the Southeast Asian country’s Musi Banyuasin province, said his son Rizal is hooked on tobacco after having his first cigarette at ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 6:1-9

Tags: Parenting

Arranging Your Departure

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Dec 2, 2010

ARRANGING YOUR DEPARTURE A young man works as a photographer for a magazine. In 1981 he was flown into an Alaskan wilderness to photograph the natural beauty and some rare flowers. He had everything prepared - photo equipment, 500 rolls of film, and several days of provisions. He kept a diary ...read more

Tags: Preparation

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Abolishing Slavery: Wilberforce And Moses

Contributed by Ken Pell on Mar 21, 2011

ABOLISHING SLAVERY: WILBERFORCE AND MOSES I found myself reading William Wilberforce’s speeches to the British Parliament the other day, particularly his speeches to abolish the slave trade. I was struck by the tenacity, patience, and confidence that he showed. He was convinced that this evil ...read more

Tags: Endurance

Denomination: Nazarene

Are You Planting The Right Seed?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2011

ARE YOU PLANTING THE RIGHT SEED? Some time ago "Reader’s Digest" told the story about a company who mailed out some special advertising business post cards with a mustard seed glued to it with the following caption that went something like this: "If you have faith as small as this mustard seed in ...read more

Scripture: Mark 4:16-34

Tags: Kingdom Of God

Unaware Of The King's Presence  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 4, 2012

UNAWARE OF THE KING’S PRESENCE Steve Brown tells the frustrating story of some British social scientists. Following the end of British rule in India in the 1940s, a group of researchers wanted to study the impact of the end of British rule on the life of the nation. After six months, the British ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 21:1-16

Tags: Easter Palm Sunday

Where Will Our Jobs Go?

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Aug 13, 2012

WHERE WILL OUR JOBS GO? Futurist Thomas Frey blogs, "People are seriously worried. I've been in a number of conversations recently where people are very worried about our coming era of automation where fewer and fewer jobs will be left for people to do. A few months ago I predicted that over 2 ...read more

Tags: Future

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Billy Graham: Strong Statements

Contributed by Davon Huss on Aug 20, 2012

BILLY GRAHAM: STRONG STATEMENTS The preacher to the Presidents, Billy Graham, now 93 years old, has come out with some surprising statements in the past few months. Recently, Mr. Graham quotes his late wife Ruth as saying, "If God doesn't punish America, He'll have to apologize to Sodom and ...read more

Tags: Judgment

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Jaymalis Davis Was Highlighted In The ...

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012

Jaymalis Davis was highlighted in the Times-Picayne series entitled, “Louisiana Incarcerated.” He lives in central city surround by drugs, crime and unemployment. His mother is crack addicted and largely absent from his home and his father, who was in and out of jail for drugs and car theft and ...read more

Tags: Grace

Denomination: Methodist

C. Illustration: When I Think Of This, I Think ...

Contributed by Philip Cunningham Iii on Dec 29, 2007

c. ILLUSTRATION: When I think of this, I think about our desires to do great things. 1) We could go to a concert where a world-renowned musician plays a tune on a piano for 30 minutes straight. 2) It’s beautiful. It’s heavenly. It’s euphoric. 3) And what do we all say after an experience like ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Pony Express

Contributed by Eric Ferguson on May 27, 2008

PONY EXPRESS When it comes to being on the alert and ready at any moment to do the job, it's hard to beat the Pony Express. This historically famous mail service between St. Joseph, Missouri, and California depended on constant movement and readiness. Relay stations were established every ten ...read more

Tags: Endurance

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

We Need Light

Contributed by Brian Harvison on May 29, 2008

WE NEED LIGHT Do you realize there is a physical disorder caused by lack of light? It is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.) and it effects 1 in 5 of us. It is caused by lack of exposure to sunlight, which in turn alters a person’s brain chemistry. During the fall and winter months when ...read more

Tags: Basics Of Christianity

Denomination: Baptist

The Baby And The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 9, 2008

The Baby and the Window It was a really hot day in September in San Antonio, when a woman accidentally locked her 10-month-old baby niece inside a parked car. Frantically, the mother and aunt ran around the car in near hysteria while a neighbor attempted to unlock the car with a clothes hanger. ...read more

Tags: Principles

Lagos (Reuters) – A Father Took His 20-Year Old ...

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Oct 20, 2008

LAGOS (Reuters) – A father took his 20-year old son to an Islamic court in northern Nigeria for idleness, asking that he be sent to prison for refusing to engage in productive activities, state news agency NAN said Friday. "He is not listening to words and he is bringing shame to my family. I am ...read more

Tags: Obedience

Denomination: Independent/Bible