In Sermon Illustrations: "Excited About Preaching"

2 Weeks Ago In Boston I Had Dinner In The Hotel ...

Contributed by Paul Searight on Oct 1, 2008

2 weeks ago in Boston I had dinner in the hotel with one of the other speakers at the conference I was at. He was from Los Angeles and I made a fairly instant judgement about him when he ordered a beer and then went outside to smoke while he waited on his food. In the course of the evening I told ...read more

Tags: Opportunity

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Hanging On For Money ----- I Once Was In A Church ...

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Oct 16, 2008

HANGING ON FOR MONEY ----- I once was in a church that had quite a few people who were very wealthy. Many of the members were older ladies who were widows who had outlived most of their peers and for one reason or another had in their possession a vast amount of wealth. Now, when you have a ...read more

Tags: Promises Of God

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Person God Blesses

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

THE PERSON GOD BLESSES First, what do we notice about the Person God blesses. A. The person God blesses has had a conversion to God's ways. Where do I get this concept? I get it from Abram’s name change. When we first meet him he is known as "Abram." After an encounter with God (Gen. 17:5) he is ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Dumpster-Diving God  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

DUMPSTER-DIVING GOD Being from the South, David Slaigle loves ribs. He remembered hearing about this particular restaurant that had amazing ribs, and a bunch of his friends and him drove 50 minutes to get there. The place was packed, and the food was great. It was "all you can eat rib night," and ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Jesus Stands ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 12, 2009

JESUS STANDS READY During the years of 1980s, I traveled quite a bit from Washington D.C. to New Jersey to go between my father and mother’s house. As a 10-year-old I traveled alone on planes, so news stories about planes and travels were on my radar, so to speak. So, in 1982 when January 13th ...read more

Tags: Sin General

Our Faith In Jesus Christ And Our Love For Him ...

Contributed by Larry East on Feb 13, 2009

Our faith in Jesus Christ and our love for Him shows how much we love God. Let me illustrate. Let’s say that you tell me that you love me and that you care about me. But one day, my car won’t start, and I’ve got a really important appointment that I can’t miss. Now let’s suppose that I send my ...read more

Tags: Love For God

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Today, According To The 2000 Census, 46% Of All ...

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Feb 26, 2009

Today, according to the 2000 census, 46% of all poor households in our country, own their own homes. 76% of poor households have air conditioning, while 30 years ago, only 36% of the entire US population enjoyed air conditioning. In 1973, the average new house had 1660 square feet. Today the ...read more

Tags: Poverty

Denomination: Baptist

The Homeless Man

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 13, 2009

THE HOMELESS MAN There is a big church in North Carolina that has classes every summer to help train people in different ministries. During one such period a few years ago, a young man appeared on campus where hundreds of others were. But this young man didn’t take part in any classes. He was ...read more

Tags: Evangelism The Lost

I Was Blind, But Now I Can See  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 8, 2009

I WAS BLIND, BUT NOW I CAN SEE There were two boys who grew up together. They were close friends as children, but as they entered their teen years their paths began to diverge, and they ended up in very different places. Ernie was always in trouble. He began by shoplifting small things from stores ...read more

Scripture: John 9:25

Tags: Holy Spirit In Believers

So What Does This Gentle Restoration Or ...

Contributed by Sean Harder on Dec 4, 2009

So what does this gentle restoration or correction look like? Well here’s what it doesn’t look like, from a real example I observed: “How could you be so stupid, did you grow up with wolves? You are going to pay for this buster, and you’re going to straight to hell where you belong.” I have left ...read more

Tags: Mercy

The Good Old ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2010

The Good Old Days A girl who went to college, but she just hated it. She told herself, “If I can ever get out of college, get married and have children, I know I’ll finally be able to enjoy life.” So she stuck with it. She went to classes every day and finally graduated from college. Then she got ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:15-17

Tags: Age, Aging

I Have Prayed For A Sick Lady Who Had Cancer, And ...

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Feb 26, 2010

I have prayed for a sick lady who had cancer, and she died. In fact more than one person I have prayed for has died and not been healed. Do you want someone like me to pray for you? Why weren't they healed? Not enough faith? I prayed for a wonderful Pastor who had cancer who was involved in doing ...read more

Tags: Jesus' Ministry

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

General Robert E. Lee Controls His ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 21, 2010

General Robert E. Lee controls His Tongue General Robert E. Lee was once asked what he thought of a fellow officer in the Confederate Army, an officer who had made some mean-spirited remarks about him. Lee thought for a moment, then rated him as being very satisfactory. The person who asked the ...read more

Scripture: James 3:1-12

Tags: Tongue

The Cry From The Cross  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 13, 2010

THE CRY FROM THE CROSS Mark's Gospel reveals the one cry recorded by Jesus at the crucifixion. Mark's Gospel is written from Peter's view point and it only emphasizes one agonizing lonely cry. Why would Peter only include in his account the one cry of Jesus on the cross? Could it be that Peter ...read more

Tags: Cross Agony

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Sanctity Of Human Life

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Dec 6, 2010

SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE There's plenty of evidence of blatant disregard for human life today. Terrorism and suicide bombers? Capital punishment? Human trafficking. Abortion? So what is God thinking when He asks Abraham to take his only son, the son he loves, and to sacrifice him as a burnt ...read more

Tags: Human Life

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Relationship With A Muslim

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 26, 2011

A RELATIONSHIP WITH A MUSLIM Bill Hybels was at a luncheon, sitting across from a black man, built like a football player, with a distinctively Muslim name. He told Pastor Hybels that he enjoyed reading one of his books. Bill Hybels looked a little puzzled so the Muslim explained to him how he ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:18-20

Tags: Evangelism How To

God's Word Has Power

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 3, 2011

GOD'S WORD HAS POWER In an interview about his book The Folly of Prayer (IVP, 2009), author and pastor Matt Woodley shared a story about his friend Theresa. She had married the man of her dreams, but soon after that dropped into the pit of a deep depression. Everything went dark in her mind and ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:26-27

Tags: Bible Influence

The Risk Of Fishing For Souls  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 3, 2011

THE RISK OF FISHING FOR SOULS A little more than 10 years ago (2000), a movie called The Perfect Storm was released, which graphically portrayed the dangers of the fishing industry even in modern times. The movie is about the crew of the Andrea Gail, a fishing boat out of Gloucester, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:14-39

Tags: Evangelism Fear Of

It All Started By One Man Wanting To Pray  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2011

IT ALL STARTED BY ONE MAN WANTING TO PRAY In 1857 there was a 46 year old man named Jeremiah Lamphere who lived in New York City. Jeremiah loved the Lord tremendously, but he didn’t feel that he could do much for the Lord until he began to feel a burden for the lost and accepted an invitation ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 85:1-7

Tags: Revival, Starting Over

The "Glue" Of Jesus

Contributed by Guy Mcgraw on Jun 22, 2011

THE "GLUE" OF JESUS The diameter of the Earth around the equator is 7,926.6 miles. The earth’s circumference is about 25,000 miles. It weighs an estimated 6,000 million, million, million tons. And it just hangs there in mid air. Not held up by anything visible. The earth is spinning 1,000 ...read more

Tags: Creation