In Sermon Illustrations: "Crucified Life"

Ministry During Black Plague

Contributed by Dr. Nicholas M. Muteti on Jun 20, 2011

MINISTRY DURING BLACK PLAGUE Many years ago, in Europe, there was a great plague that killed one third of the population. It was called the black plague. Tens of thousands were killed each and every month and the population was terrified by the thought of facing death in their families and homes, ...read more

Tags: Sacrifices

Denomination: Baptist

Separation From Your Love

Contributed by Michael Buckingham on Jun 24, 2011

SEPARATION FROM YOUR LOVE I remember once there was girl I loved so much in my youth, I thought that we would be together forever, and I thought that I could never live without her! But now I hardly ever think about her... the truth is that I really can live without her. So what changed between ...read more

Tags: Prayer General

Denomination: Baptist

False Hope In A Gold Coin

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2011

FALSE HOPE IN A GOLD COIN George Dixon was a lieutenant in the Confederate Army who carried around a $20 gold piece that his fiancée had given him in the early days of the war. During the battle of Shiloh, a union musket ball struck him--actually it struck the gold coin, which saved his life. From ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:1-7

Tags: Easter Resurrection

Aiming At The Right Target  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 4, 2011

AIMING AT THE RIGHT TARGET Some of our deeds are of great value, especially those done in dependence upon God for His glory and honor. Some of our deeds are worthless. They accomplish nothing of eternal value and will be quickly forgotten after we are gone. Matt Emmons had the gold medal in ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 3:1-16

Tags: Goals

Mom's Church  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

MOM'S CHURCH Four scholars were arguing over Bible translations. One said he preferred the King James Version because of its beauty, eloquent old English. Another said he preferred the American Standard Bible for its literalism, the way it moves the reader from passage to passage with confident ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:5

Tags: Mother's Day

Walking On Water In Los Angeles  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 9, 2011

WALKING ON WATER IN LOS ANGELES [James Bryan Smith, The Good and Beautiful Life (InterVarsity Press, 2010), pp. 131-132 | posted 7/05/2010] In the early 1990s, gang violence erupted in Boyle Heights, a section of East Los Angeles. Eight gangs were in conflict in the parish around the Dolores ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:9

Tags: Christian Witness

What Occupies Your Heart?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 12, 2011

WHAT OCCUPIES YOUR HEART? I squirmed a bit as I forced myself to listen to my friend cataloging her problems. After three hours, I interrupted her gently to ask, "If you were to draw a circle to represent your life, what would be in the center?" She thought a moment, then said, "My problems." My ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 26:3

Tags: Death Nearness

Spiritual Consumerism

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 15, 2011

SPIRITUAL CONSUMERISM In February 27 2009 article from the website “Slate” titled, “Why American churchgoers like to shop around” also caught my attention. That article cited statistics from a Barna Group survey that revealed that one in seven adults changes churches each year, and another one in ...read more

Scripture: John 4:19-24

Tags: Church Practices

Yogi Berra: Determination And Direction

Contributed by Perry Greene on Sep 20, 2011

YOGI BERRA: DETERMINATION AND DIRECTION My favorite sports quotations, though, come from Yogi Berra: "Nobody goes to that restaurant any more -- it's too crowded." "If people don't want to come out to the ball park, nobody's going to stop them." Someone asked Yogi what time it was; he said, ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

God's Promises And Urban Legends  PRO

Contributed by Scott Carson on Nov 20, 2011

GOD'S PROMISES AND URBAN LEGENDS Do you really believe that being godly is great gain and not financial gain, but something that really matters and lasts? If you believed that, wouldn’t it change your life? Most people believe that if you smoke, you’ll get lung cancer. Many of you quit smoking ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

Denomination: Independent/Bible

A Bad Day  PRO

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jan 17, 2012

A BAD DAY Mr. Insured had just purchased a new 7509cc Honda motorcycle. After a few leisurely trips around the block to become acquainted with this powerful new machine, he parked the cycle in front of his home to show it off to his neighbors. It started to rain, however, and not wanting to get ...read more

Tags: Trials And Difficulties

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

First Phil And First Phyllis

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Feb 11, 2012

FIRST PHIL AND FIRST PHYLLIS Some years ago, I asked the leaders of our church to do a little exercise with me. I fabricated two imaginary people, one a man and the other a woman. Since this is First Presbyterian Church, I named the man "First Phil" and the woman "First Phyllis." I suggested that ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Two Women Praying

Contributed by Robert Sickler on Mar 6, 2012

TWO WOMEN PRAYING There were two widow women, each with only a single son. The two young men both got involved in drugs and they both ended up in prison. The women were devout Christians and both had been in constant prayer for many years. When their two boys were sent to prison the one woman ...read more

Tags: Prayer Answered

Denomination: Christian Church

Kyle Idleman: I Cheapened The Gospel  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 15, 2012

KYLE IDLEMAN: I CHEAPENED THE GOSPEL "Many of the fans turn to go home. I was struck by the fact that Jesus doesn't chase after them. He doesn't soften his message to make it more appealing. He doesn't send the disciples chasing after them with a creative handout inviting them to come back for a ...read more

Scripture: John 6:60-69

Tags: Easter Palm Sunday

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A King's Ransom

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 7, 2012

A KING'S RANSOM I Timothy 2:6 says Jesus "gave himself as a ransom." A ransom is a price paid to purchase someone's freedom. In 1193, the English King Richard I, also known as Richard the Lionheart, was returning from leading a Crusade to the Holy Land. As he returned through Europe, Leopold V ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:1-7

Tags: Salvation

An Honors Student In Fort Worth, Texas, Was Sent ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 17, 2012

An honors student in Fort Worth, Texas, was sent to the principal's office and punished for telling a classmate that he believes homosexuality is wrong. Holly Pope said she was "absolutely stunned" when she received a telephone call from an assistant principal at Western Hills High School ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:10-16

Tags: Persecution

The Focus Of The Prayer Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 9, 2012

THE FOCUS OF THE PRAYER OF JABEZ In the year 2000, Bruce Wilkinson of Walk Through the Bible Ministries turned the obscure character in 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 into an international phenomenon with his little book, The Prayer of Jabez. Not only did it become a runaway hit and a longtime New York Times ...read more

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Tags: Prayer General

What Kind Of Heart Do You Have?  PRO

Contributed by Ken Henson on Sep 23, 2012

WHAT KIND OF HEART DO YOU HAVE? I was reading this week an article by Bryan Doyle. It talks about hummingbirds. Hummingbirds have race car hearts that eat oxygen at an eye-popping rate. Their hearts are built of thinner, leaner fibers than ours. Their arteries are stiffer and more taut. Their ...read more

Tags: Heart

Denomination: *other

H: The Aspirate Word

Contributed by Suresh Manoharan on Jan 22, 2013

H: THE ASPIRATE WORD When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him.....No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be AbraHam, for I have made you a father of many Nations.- Genesis 17:5 God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her ...read more

Tags: Restoration

Denomination: *other

Spurgeon On Experiencing Fullness In Heaven

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 8, 2013

SPURGEON ON EXPERIENCING FULLNESS IN HEAVEN The renowned 19th-century English preacher C. H. Spurgeon told this story about King Cyrus, the man who conquered Babylon and freed the Jews from captivity: A visitor who was admiring Cyrus' gardens said it gave him much pleasure. "Ah," said Cyrus, ...read more

Scripture: John 4:34-38

Tags: Evangelism Urgency, Husbands Love