In Sermon Illustrations: "Faith And Obedience" showing 4,621-4,640 of 5,669

Wishing Vs. Hoping  PRO

Contributed by Thomas Clawser on Dec 3, 2011

WISHING VS. HOPING Eugene Peterson (Living the Message: Daily Help for Living the God-Centered Life) points out that what a lot of people call hope is in reality something different. It's wishing, not hoping: and wishing and hoping are not the same thing. "Wishing," Peterson says, "is something ...read more

Tags: Christmas Advent

Denomination: Other

A Sacrifice Of Praise Hurts!

Contributed by Mark Stepherson on Mar 1, 2012

A SACRIFICE OF PRAISE HURTS! Several years ago, there was a song on Christian radio that said, "We bring a sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord." It had a happy, upbeat tune. Listening to it, I had the feeling that the singers were intrigued by the words but had not personally ...read more

Tags: Prayer Adoration

Denomination: Baptist

God, Send Us Bigger Rattlesnakes  PRO

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Mar 26, 2012

GOD, SEND US BIGGER RATTLESNAKES There was a farmer who had three sons: Jim, John, and Sam. No one in the family ever attended church or had time for God. The pastor and church members tried for years to interest the family in the things of God, but to no avail. Then one day, a rattlesnake bit ...read more

Tags: Prayer Supplication

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Straightest Path  PRO

Contributed by Perry Greene on Apr 12, 2012

THE STRAIGHTEST PATH Two boys were playing in the snow one day, when one said to the other, "Let us see who can make the straightest path in the snow." His companion readily accepted the proposition, and they started. One boy fixed his eyes on a tree, and walked along without taking his eyes off ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:13-15

Tags: Jesus Christ

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Journey Of Jonathan Aitken

Contributed by Warner Pidgeon on Nov 5, 2012

THE JOURNEY OF JONATHAN AITKEN Jonathan Aitken was a British war correspondent in Viet Nam, Chief-Executive of TV-AM, and for 23 years an MP including time as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and a Defence Minister. Jonathan Aitken's life fell apart after he was caught telling a lie under oath in ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Tags: Trials And Difficulties

Denomination: Anglican

Last Lap Of The Race

Contributed by Shawn Miller on Jul 4, 2014

May 29, 2011 it looked like it was destiny, the day Dale Earnhardt Jr. was rounding the last lap of the Charlotte Motor Speedway. You could just imagine the script that was being set; it was memorial day, he was being sponsored by the national guard, and He was going to finally win for the first ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:7

Tags: Perseverance, Endurance, Finish The Race, Gas Tank

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Novelist Herman Wouk Has Written Of A Meeting...

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 17, 2016

Novelist Herman Wouk has written of a meeting he had with David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first president. Ben Gurion urged him to move to the newly established nation. This was 1955, and terrorists were still bringing regular bloodshed to the citizens. Ben Gurion had left office and had begun his ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:1

Tags: Freedom, Free To Serve, Stop Playing It Safe, Freedom From Fear

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Jumping The Grand Canyon

Contributed by Daniel King, D. Min. on Jul 25, 2018

Main Idea: No matter how good you are, you cannot make it to heaven through your own effort. Verse: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV). Illustration: Once, two men had ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-9

Tags: Sin, Need For Christ, Need For Salvation

Denomination: Charismatic

Totally Submerged In The Plan

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Mar 22, 2019

WE NEED TO BELIEVE GOD TO BE CALLED OUT, SET ASIDE, TO HEAR THE CALL OF GOD TO BE FAITHFUL, A PECULIAR PEOPLE… 1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:9

Tags: Plan, Called Out, Submerged

Denomination: Assembly Of God

President Leslie Lynch King????

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Aug 12, 2019

Leslie Lynch King, Jr. was born on Monday, July 14, 1913 in Omaha, Nebraska. His parents separated sixteen days after his birth and were divorced the following December. His father was abusive and had a drinking problem. His mother took her baby and moved back to her parents’ home in Grand Rapids, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Tags: Salvation, New Life, Adoption Into God's Family

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Take Me Home

Contributed by Dr. Ronald Shultz on Sep 23, 2019

Take Me Home I've been everything that I want to be. I've seen everything that I want to see. All over this world I did roam. Now, I'm asking you, Jesus, please take me home. I can hear my spirit within me groan. I wan to be sitting at the foot of Your throne. I've had my fill ...read more

Scripture: 1 Kings 19:13-14, Philippians 1:23-24

Tags: Success, Failure, Loneliness, Sorrow, Despair, Homesick  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Verse 14 (Where The Psalmist Calls God Awesome ...

Contributed by Johnny Wilson on Jun 4, 2009

Verse 14 (where the psalmist calls God awesome and says he needs to fall down to the ground in adoration of God) is often misunderstood, though. There is a scene in a very cynical, satirical movie that applies to the world’s misunderstanding of praise. It is a scene from a Python film called "The ...read more

Tags: Prayer, Prayer Adoration

Denomination: *other

Silence: Taking Your Soul With You  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 25, 2009

SILENCE: TAKING YOUR SOUL WITH YOU Author Kathleen Norris used to play a game with elementary-school children in which she would make a deal with them. "First you get to make noise," she would bargain, "and then you’ll make silence." The time of noise was always predictably chaotic -- shouting, ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 46:10

Tags: Maturity, Disciplines Silence

Don't Get Tangled ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 10, 2009

DON’T GET TANGLED UP A few years ago, at the 2002 Winter Olympics, there were five finalists for the Men’s 1000 Meter Speed Skating Race. During the final lap, the American and Chinese were out front with the Canadian and Korean skaters hot on their heels. Australia trailed behind obviously ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:8-10

Tags: Temptation, Temptation Resisting

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand By Thomas ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2009

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand by Thomas Dorsey Thomas Dorsey was a black jazz musician from Atlanta who was known in the early 1920’s for the suggestive lyrics he combined with original music. Then God touched his life and in 1926 he gave up the suggestive music and began to write ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Tags: Death

In 1988, Wally Magdangal Was Pastoring An ...

Contributed by Ajai Prakash on Nov 6, 2009

In 1988, Wally Magdangal was pastoring an underground church in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He was a Filipino lay pastor of Christian foreign workers wishing to gather for worship. In 1992, soon after the conclusion of the Gulf War, the house church had grown to over three hundred worshipers, the largest ...read more

Tags: Persecution

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Zoo Attendent Cleans Cage Of Wildcat Without ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 6, 2009

Zoo Attendent Cleans Cage of Wildcat Without Fear Writing in Moody Monthly, Carl Armerding recounted his experience of watching a wildcat in a zoo. "As I stood there, " he said, "an attendant entered the cage through a door on the opposite side. He had nothing in his hands but a broom. Carefully ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 43:2-3

Tags: Confidence

When Church Is Miraculously Moved (Illustration: ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 10, 2009

When Church Is Miraculously Moved (Illustration: 7606) The faith that moves mountains is borne out by the church that was moved by the Hand of God. Such a church stands to this day in the village of Swan Quarter, North Carolina. Before it was built in 1874 the congregation eyed with longing a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 17:20-21

Tags: Miracles General

I Guess I've Always Liked Good News. When I Was ...

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Dec 23, 2009

I guess I’ve always liked good news. When I was a student at Central College in Iowa, I worshiped at our Campus Church. Each week there was a pretty heavy prayer of confession that was usually preceded by recounting some really bad news stories of the previous week. Eventually a group of us ...read more

Tags: Culture

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Ten Rules For Improving The Church

Contributed by David Parks on Jun 3, 2022

TEN RULES FOR IMPROVING THE CHURCH 1. Tell yourself over and over that since you are not perfect you would not fit into a perfect congregation, if one existed. 2. Instead of picking out the worldly members to point to, pick out the sincere, dedicated, spiritual members and thank God for them. You ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-2, 1 Peter 4:8, Matthew 7:1-5

Tags: Church, Encouragement, Judgementalism

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ