In Sermon Illustrations: "Excited About Preaching"

Pope Francis: Fulfilling His Role

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Apr 4, 2013

POPE FRANCIS: FULFILLING HIS ROLE A wonderful story of a religious leader who really does "get it" is the new Pontiff of Rome, Pope Francis. It is the story of role fulfillment. One reporter wrote: "Last night, in a break from tradition the Pope, Pope Francis, did not celebrate what is called ...read more

Tags: Humility

Denomination: Methodist

If He Had Different Gods  PRO

Contributed by Perry Greene on Jul 1, 2013

IF HE HAD DIFFERENT GODS James Michener, writing in his book, The Source, tells the story of a man named Urbaal, who, was a farmer living about 2200 B.C. He worshiped two gods, one a god of death, the other a goddess of fertility. One day, the temple priests tell Urbaal to bring his young son to ...read more

Scripture: Numbers 25:1-18

Tags: Idol, Other Gods

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Devoting Yourself

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 21, 2014

DEVOTING YOURSELF When it says they "devoted themselves" it means they were steadfast or single minded in purpose or desire. They wanted it and they were going after it, so to speak. In 2008 Sanya Richards-Ross competed in the 400 Meter in Beijing. She started the race strong and built a ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:42-47

Tags: Devotion, Church Body Of Christ, Spiritual Discipline

Leadership

Contributed by Don Berry-Graham on Mar 1, 2016

I remember hearing a story about a famous film producer. As a child, he had a fight with another boy and lost. While his mother was bathing his black eye, he told her how it was entirely the fault of the other boy. It was the other boy who had started the fight, he claimed. His mother said ...read more

Scripture: John 13:2-17

Tags: God Is Love, Giving In Love, Jesus Leadership

Denomination: Baptist

Happiness Is Not Found In More Things....

Contributed by Garris Hudson on May 19, 2016

HAPPINESS IS NOT FOUND IN MORE THINGS... If having more would make us happy, we would never need the Tenth Commandment - "You shall not COVET.’ It is written especially for unhappy people who think that happiness is found in more things. Have you heard the story about the king who fell into a ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:1-17

Tags: Happiness, Materialism, Ten Commandments, Coveting

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Let Our Faith Be In God And Not In The Things Of This World.

Contributed by Greg Burcham on Sep 2, 2016

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Revelation 3:20 NKJV What a beautiful verse! Jesus declares His desire to be your Savior and friend. This verse comes at the end of Christ’s rebuke of ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:20

Tags: Laodicea, Open Door, God Cares For You

Denomination: Baptist

Just My Type

Contributed by Jim Butcher on Apr 11, 2018

It all started when Stanley Morison complained. What made it worse was that he wasn’t complaining to just anyone – he was complaining to London’s esteemed The Times newspaper. His complaint was that their newspaper was not as easy to read as it should be because of the typeface that they used. ...read more

Tags: Whining, Solutions, Church Splits, Complaints

Denomination: Baptist

Somebody’s Happy Somewhere.

Contributed by Roy Fowler on Sep 13, 2020

A grumpy old man and his wife . . . While on a road trip, an elderly couple stopped at a roadside restaurant for lunch. After finishing their meal, they left the restaurant, and resumed their trip. When leaving, the elderly woman unknowingly left her glasses on the table, and she didn't miss ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Happy, Not Happy

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Irony

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on May 3, 2021

One definition of the word irony is, “a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.” • It is ironic, for example, that the most shop-lifted book is the Bible. • Every year ABC cuts down A Charlie Brown Christmas—a movie about ...read more

Tags: Sibling Rivalry, Humble Pie, Family Strife, Leadership, Rejection, Irony, Pedigree  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Never Despair (What A Hilarious Story!)

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 14, 2021

Robert Morgan has the following humorous illustration to encourage us to emulate Paul and "never despair". I read about a man whose route to work every day took him through a particular park in the city, and every day he saw an old fellow sitting on the park bench. This fellow was an ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Tags: Humor, Discouragement, Depression, Despair

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Our Professor Has No Brain!

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 13, 2022

A college student was in a philosophy class, which had a discussion about God's existence. The professor presented the following logic: "Has anyone in this class heard God?" Nobody spoke. "Has anyone in this class touched God?" Again, nobody spoke. "Has anyone in ...read more

Tags: Evolution, Apologetics, Science, God, Atheists, Bible, Genesis  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Putting God First

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Mar 18, 2022

I woke up this one morning recently around 7am which is fairly late for me, still very tired, and about 10 minutes into reading the Word trying to drink my coffee to wake up, I knew I would not be able to stay awake through all my prayers at that level of fatigue. But I was trying to make sure in ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:16, Psalm 63:1

Tags: Word Of God, Priorities, God First, Seek God Early

Denomination: Charismatic

The Death Of The Pillsbury Doughboy

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 22, 2022

Veteran Pillsbury spokesman, Pop N. Fresh, the Pillsbury Doughboy, died yesterday of a severe yeast infection. He was 71. Known to friends as Brown-n-Serve, Fresh was an avid gardener and tennis player. Fresh was buried in one of the largest funeral ceremonies in recent years. Dozens of ...read more

Tags: Death, Jokes, Funerals, Puns, Obituaries, Dad Jokes  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Who Are We Here For??

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 9, 2023

The story has often been told about the message the founder of the Salvation Army sent to their international convention. General William Booth was unable to attend personally because of ill health, so he cabled the delegates a message containing one word: "OTHERS!" In the popular comic ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-10

Tags: Service, Ministry, Selflessness, Others, Bearing Burdens, One Another  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Census At The Birth Of Jesus

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Dec 9, 2023

Historians have been puzzled about the census. The one taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria. While all this begins to explain why Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem, Luke is making a point. The birth of this little boy is the beginning of a confrontation between the kingdom of God - in all its ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-2

Tags: Mary And Joseph, Quirinus, Caeser Agustus, Bethlehem, Birth, Census  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Purifying The Heart

Contributed by Jung Lee on Jan 16, 2024

A woman puts a spoonful of dirt into a cup of water, muddying it. She initially tries to remove the dirt with a spoon but realizes it's ineffective. Instead, she starts pouring fresh, clean water into the cup continuously. As the cup overflows, the dirty water is gradually replaced by clean ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:8

Tags: Good, Impact, Spiritual Renewal, Godly Thoughts, Evil, Overcome, Transformation  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Worship Is Showing Up

Contributed by Rob Roy on May 22, 2024

How does Jesus know we love him, what is the proof? By your witness, your gifts, your tithes, your prayers or presence. Did you know I joined twitter? I think the day I did I read several tweets, but never tweeted, and that was long before the 2020 election, and long before I came to Mt. ...read more

Scripture: John 21:15-19

Tags: Worship, Showing Love

See The Lamb Of God

Contributed by Samuel M on Mar 19, 2025

When we are going through difficult times( or testing) and still remain obedient to God’s word, we will find, see (the lamb of God) and receive a greater (or deeper) revelation of the lamb of God. When Abraham was about to offer his only son as a sacrifice, he saw the ram caught in the thicket. ...read more

Tags: Faith, Hope

Be Found Faithful

Contributed by Roger Hasselquist on Mar 31, 2025

Remember the movie, Ben Hur? It came out in 1959. The movie won 11 Oscars and was over three and a half hours long. The most memorable scene in the film is the chariot race. Charlton Heston was trained for five weeks before the shooting of that scene. Heston was grateful for the trainer's ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:1-2

Tags: Chariot Race, Charles Heston, Faithfulness, Ben Hur

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

When Life Sucks You In

Contributed by David Dunn on Nov 6, 2025

Chippie the parakeet never saw it coming. One moment, he was perched in his cage singing his little heart out. The next, his whole world collapsed. It started when his owner decided to clean his cage with a vacuum cleaner. She took the nozzle off, stuck the hose inside, and at that very moment the ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 40:2, Romans 8:28

Tags: Faith, Resilience

Denomination: Seventh-Day Adventist