In Sermon Illustrations: "Esteem Him"

Watches Over Us

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 24, 2009

WATCHES OVER US An engineer, after doing his internship with NASA in Houston, made a startling decision to change course and study medicine. Two decades removed from college, he shared his testimony in our church thanksgiving service: "Passing the Oral Board is the culmination of 10 years of ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:28

Tags: God's Provision

Moses And The Bush Joke  PRO

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Mar 30, 2009

MOSES AND THE BUSH JOKE We all know that our past President from TX is now a private citizen, back in his home state. I heard that recently George W. Bush was waiting in an airport lobby when he noticed a man in a long flowing white robe with a long flowing white beard and flowing white hair. The ...read more

Tags: Anxiety

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Enemy Of Anger: Itself

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 25, 2009

THE ENEMY OF ANGER: ITSELF Anger is its own worst enemy. Some people criticize the Bible and reject it as a bunch of dos and don’ts. The Bible is a common sense book that is given for our good. Anger is one such example. It causes high blood pressure, sleeplessness, stomach problems, and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:26-27

Tags: Anger

I Am His!

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 13, 2009

"I AM HIS!" President Theodore Roosevelt, was a charismatic figure who made quite an impression on people. One journalist, William Allen White, wrote of his first meeting with Roosevelt in 1897: "He sounded in my heart the first trumpet call of the new time that was to be... I had never known ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:20

Tags: Discipleship

Because You're My ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 13, 2009

"BECAUSE YOU’RE MY DAD!" Author Tim Hansel writes: One day, while my son Zac and I were out in the country, climbing around in some cliffs, I heard a voice from above me yell, "Hey Dad! Catch me!" I turned around to see Zac joyfully jumping off a rock straight at me. He had jumped and then yelled ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 20:7

Tags: Trust

63 Year-Old Man Went To School His Whole Life But ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 30, 2009

63 year-old Man Went to School His Whole Life but Never Worked Richard DeHaan shares this illustration: "I read about a man in New York City who died at the age of 63 without ever having had a job. He spent his entire adult life in college. He had acquired so many academic degrees that they looked ...read more

Scripture: James 1:22-25

Tags: Learning

God's Provision: The Holy Spirit  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 7, 2009

GOD'S PROVISION: THE HOLY SPIRIT Without the Holy Spirit the church could not exist. It is He who inspired the writers of Scripture, and He who dwells in every Christian, giving us life in Christ. All our efforts are dust and ashes apart from Him. A young man asked an old rich man how he made his ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:16-25

Tags: God's Provision

Renoir On Suffering: The Beauty Remains, The Pain ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 10, 2009

Renoir on Suffering: The Beauty Remains, The Pain Passes Our greatest battles are not won on the mountain tops of life but during the tough times while we are in the valleys. Among the famous painters of the French impressionist school, Henri Matisse and August Renoir were the closest friends. ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:1-3

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Eight Year-Old Boy On Johnny Carson Show Talks ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 6, 2010

Eight Year-old Boy On Johnny Carson Show Talks About What He Learned In Sunday School Some years ago when Johnny Carson was the host of the The Tonight Show he interviewed an eight year old boy. The boy was asked to appear because he had rescued two friends in a coalmine outside his hometown in ...read more

Tags: Miracles Of Jesus

G. Campbell Morgan Personalizes Jesus' Word To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 22, 2010

G. Campbell Morgan Personalizes Jesus’ Word to Jairus Dr. G. Campbell Morgan, that great preacher of 19th century spoke powerfully on this passage from his own experience. He said, “I can hardly speak of this matter without becoming personal and reminiscent, remembering a time forty years ago when ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:40-56

Tags: Death

A Man Came Back From A Weekend Retreat Experience ...

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Apr 28, 2010

A man came back from a weekend retreat experience and, when a friend asked him how it was, he said, "I died!" The friend asked him what he meant. "You see," the man answered, "I went to this thing not knowing what to expect. But in the process of that long weekend, I discovered that I had spent ...read more

Tags: Change

Denomination: Pentecostal

Jim Went To Church On Sunday Morning. He Heard ...

Contributed by Derrick Tuper on Jun 11, 2010

Jim went to church on Sunday morning. He heard the organist miss a note during the prelude, and he winced. He saw a teenager talking when everybody was supposed to bow in prayer. He felt like the usher was watching to see what he put in the offering plate and it made him boil. He noticed the ...read more

Tags: Attitude General, Attending Church

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Needing A Push  PRO

Contributed by Sean Harder on Sep 30, 2010

NEEDING A PUSH A man and his wife are awakened at 3 o'clock in the morning by a loud pounding on the back door. The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger, standing in the pouring rain, is asking for a push. "Not a chance," says the husband, "It is three o'clock in the ...read more

Scripture: John 13:1-17

Tags: Service, Compassion, Giving, Servanthood

Disciplines: The Decathlon

Contributed by Rodelio Mallari on Dec 12, 2010

DISCIPLINES: THE DECATHLON The Olympic decathlon is internationally recognized as the most demanding test of individual athletic ability there is. It is the event that determines the world's greatest all-around athlete. Originating in a contest held at the 708 B.C. Olympiad to single out Greece's ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines

Denomination: *other

Outlived His Children

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Dec 15, 2010

OUTLIVED HIS CHILDREN His weather worn face looked like ancient parchment stretched over a wire mesh skeleton and his eyes, haunted with memories, looked straight through me into my soul. As I gave my devotion that day I could tell that he understood the anguish Abraham must have felt as God said, ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Limited Understanding

Contributed by Bret Toman on Jan 4, 2011

LIMITED UNDERSTANDING Suppose I take my 2 year old to the doctor and he gets a shot in the arm and it really hurts. He doesn’t understand that the shot is to help him get better. All he knows is that shot hurt. And daddy just stood there. Doesn’t dad know how bad a shot hurts? Was he unable to ...read more

Tags: Humility

Denomination: Baptist

What The Cross Displayed  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2011

WHAT THE CROSS DISPLAYED Author Henri Nouwen tells the story of a family he knew in Paraguay. The father, a doctor, spoke out against the military regime there and its human rights abuses. Local police took their revenge on him by arresting his teenage son and torturing him to death. Enraged ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 52:13-15

Tags: Cross

No Fear  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 7, 2011

NO FEAR Brian Simo is a race car driver, and most of you have probably never heard of him. However there is one thing about him with which you are probably familiar. In 1985 he created the "No Fear" clothing line and found an idea that appealed to many Americans. We have a lot of respect for ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 14:22-33

Tags: Fear And Worry

Longing

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Jan 15, 2012

LONGING In his book The Spiritual Life of Children, the famous Harvard psychiatrist Robert Coles tells the story of Alice, a ten-year-old girl who came from a family that did not believe in God. She expressed her doubts to him with these words: "I remember... I saw the people next door coming ...read more

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Methodist

Do You Fear What You Need Not Fear?

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 11, 2012

DO YOU FEAR WHAT YOU NEED NOT FEAR? A friend told me a story of some hunting dogs that he had. They were good hunting dogs that he used when he went to hunt pigs in the mountains. He shared however, that the dogs, as tough as they were, were deathly afraid of chickens. I couldn’t believe it, so I ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 2:14-18

Tags: Satan