In Sermon Illustrations: "Doers Of The Word"

Veto Power

Contributed by Tim Hinrichs on Feb 28, 2012

VETO POWER Before democracy arrived in Poland, the country was run by Lords and rich landowners – the nobility from all over the country. The senate filled with these noblemen would make decisions for the country but they always had a hard time getting much done – why? Because every member of the ...read more

Tags: Power

Denomination: Lutheran

You Gotta Look At It!  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 22, 2012

YOU GOTTA LOOK AT IT! A man was seated on a park bench when a little chap of about five sat down beside him and started winding what appeared to be a most prized possession--a watch. "My, what a pretty watch," remarked the man. "Does it tell you the time?" "No sir," replied the boy; "you gotta ...read more

Scripture: John 17:17

Tags: Hold, Bible Truth

God's Tnt

Contributed by Silas Eke on Feb 28, 2015

Once the great Evangelist Billy Graham sent his New Testament to a book-binder and instructed him to write on the edge of the book “The New Testament”; the book-binder after binding the New Testament felt that the edge was too little to contain the full words “The New Testament” so he wrote “TNT”. ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:16-17

Tags: Bible, Power Of God, Gospel Power, Tnt

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Vacation For Seniors!

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Jul 22, 2019

A number of years ago I attended a pastors gathering in Toronto. A retired Pastor, now crippled by a stroke, sat along the wall on a chair, all alone. In his prime he was a highly esteemed professor, author and preacher. Now, he sat alone and unnoticed. I walked across the room and lamented this ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:12-20

Tags: Loneliness, Community, Aging

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Giving

Contributed by Steve Malone on Oct 2, 2019

“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc, is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving ...read more

Scripture: 2 Samuel 24:24

Tags: Sacrifice, Giving

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Three Types Of People Spiritually

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Oct 15, 2019

(Joshua 1, I Corinth. 2:13-3:3) EGYPT (NATURAL) - unbelievers who are in bondage to sin. Christ is on the outside of their life. Those in Egypt were freed from their slavery by the blood of a sacrificial Lamb, a picture of Christ on the Cross, who sets us free from sin. WILDERNESS (CARNAL) – ...read more

Tags: Egypt, Canaan, The Wilderness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cruel Times Are Coming...

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 2, 2020

In 1988, evangelical philosopher and theologian Carl Henry made a stunning prediction in his book, Twilight of a Great Civilization. He said that as America progressively loses its Christian heritage, paganism would grow bolder. What we saw in the last half of the 20th-century was a kind of benign ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:1-3, 2 Peter 3:1-9

Tags: Persecution, America, Prophecy, Last Days, Humanism, Cruelty  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Funeral Illustration

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 4, 2021

I love that scene in The Pilgrim's Progress where Christian and Hopeful come to the final river of death. They are fearful that the water will be over their heads. But Hopeful goes first and calls back to Christian, “Be of good cheer, my brother; I feel the bottom, and it is good.” For every ...read more

Tags: Death, Heaven, Promises Of God, Valley Of The Shadow Of Death

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Never Throw Away Your Freedom

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Oct 23, 2022

Sitting on top of the United States capitol building is a 20-foot statue known as the “Freedom Lady”. She was sculpted by Italian artists in the city of Rome and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to her perch in Washington DC. During the delivery, the ship carrying the statue encountered a fierce ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:1-16

Tags: Patriotism, Freedom, America

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Free Indeed!

Contributed by Loyd C. Taylor on Sep 30, 2023

Once a pastor was speaking on the topic of Spiritual Freedom. He began to wax poetical in his delivery as he repeated over, and over this phrase… “I’m free! I’m free! Praise God I’m free indeed!” After service a little boy shook his hand and said, “Preacher, I’m free! I’m free! I’m free indeed!” ...read more

Scripture: John 8:32, John 8:36, John 8:21-36

Tags: Freedom, Sermons Of Jesus, Pastor Jokes, Laughter The Best Medicine

Denomination: Baptist

The Lights Along The Shore

Contributed by Sam Mccormick on Jul 9, 2017

The Lights Along the Shore To me, lighthouses are among the most charming of man-made structures. Their unique and essential purpose makes each one a thing of exquisite beauty. Seafarers seeking a haven on a stormy night find a beam from the shore as precious as life itself. Perhaps Philip ...read more

Scripture: John 1:3-7, John 8:12, Matthew 5:14-16, 2 Peter 1:19, Revelation 22:5, John 3:19-21, Malachi 4:2  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Harbor, Light And Darkness, Navigation, Light, Sea  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Unsung Heroes: Simeon Of Jerusalem

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Dec 27, 2020

Introduction: Mary and Joseph weren’t the only ones eagerly awaiting the birth of Jesus. Under the Law of Moses, every male child was to be circumcised. Joseph and Mary took Baby Jesus to the Temple where this surgery would be performed on the Baby. While they were in the Temple, they received ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:25-35

Tags: Unsung Heroes, Birth Of Christ, Simeon, Joseph And Mary

Denomination: Baptist

[037] A Message From A Poem – Calvary – Golgotha’s Skull

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Feb 26, 2025

[037] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – CALVARY – GOLGOTHA’S SKULL What does Calvary mean to you? To most people it means nothing except a casual thought at Easter perhaps. May we ask what does Calvary mean to a Christian? Here the answers are many and most of them would be simplistic which is fine. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:17-18, Luke 23:33

Tags: Calvary, The Cross, Golgotha, Sins, Place Of The Skull, Atonement, Easter, Crucifixion, Salvation, Redemption, Poetry  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[121]. A Message From A Poem – From Where Did God Originate?

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Jul 5, 2025

[121]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – FROM WHERE DID GOD ORIGINATE? The real title of this poem is HE IS BEFORE ALL THINGS, AND IN HIM ALL THINGS HOLD TOGETHER but the title is too long for SermonCentral to accept, so I changed the title. This is a dialogue poem. There are 4 speakers. Speaker 1 is a ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 1:16-17, Colossians 2:20-23

Tags: Rationalist, Christian Poetry, Christian Poems, Atheist, All Things, Agnostic, Gnostics, Gnosticism, Existence Of God, Christian, Creation, Jesus  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[237 C]. A Message From A Poem - Scenes From The Gospels - Part 3

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Nov 8, 2025

[237 C]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - SCENES FROM THE GOSPELS - PART 3 They are here to enjoy! Scenes from the Gospels are very special to me. I love them. They have taken a lot of effort, and many, many months revision to get them as correct as possible with the difficult word limitations. ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-2, Matthew 2:9-12, Luke 24:13-32, Matthew 14:25-33, Matthew 15:21-28, Matthew 23:23-33, Luke 1:1-4, Matthew 13:10-13  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Parables, Poetry Reading, On The Emmaus Road, The Canaanite Woman, Pharisees, Peter Walks On Water, Stories, The Magi, Christian Poetry, Christian Poems  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

But I Just Have To Give!  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 22, 2005

BUT I JUST HAVE TO GIVE! Eric Hulstrand writes in Leadership magazine: "While I was preaching one Sunday, an elderly woman, Mary, fainted and struck her head on the end of the pew. Immediately, an EMT in the congregation called an ambulance. As they strapped her to a stretcher and got ready to ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:41-43

Tags: Parable General

Recently, My Wife Complained The Vacuum Cleaner ...  PRO

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Feb 25, 2005

Recently, my wife complained the vacuum cleaner didn’t seem to be working. It made a lot of racket and the wheels rolled over the carpet. But it didn’t pick up anything. I looked and (sure enough) the bag was full of lint. In fact, the hose was full of lint. Everything was full to the brim. ...read more

Tags: Bible Influence

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

When Jesus First Sent Peter And The Others Out ...  PRO

Contributed by Tom Mccrossan on Mar 1, 2005

When Jesus first sent Peter and the others out to heal the sick, He gave them the necessary power to do it (see Matt. 10:1). The Greek word for this power is exousia, which carries with it the meaning that the power is not inherent but delegated by a higher authority. It is similar to the power an ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

A Noted Evangelist Was Coming To Town And The ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 6, 2005

A noted evangelist was coming to town and the organizers formed appropriate committees to prepare for the event. In its first meeting, the finance committee chair sadly announced that ’for lack of quorum’ the committee cannot transact business. He then suggested another meeting date and then asked ...read more

Tags: Prayer Adoration, Prayer Answered

Guiseppe Garibaldi Was An Italian Soldier Who ...  PRO

Contributed by Pat Cook on May 16, 2005

Guiseppe Garibaldi was an Italian soldier who lived during the 1800’s. His father dreamed of his entering the priesthood, but Guiseppe had dreams of being a sailor, and the Navy was the way to do it. His leadership abilities caused him to rise quickly in the ranks, and in time, he amassed a ...read more

Tags: Call Of The Disciples

Denomination: Baptist