In Sermon Illustrations: "Finding Common Ground"

I Remember As A Boy Going With My Grand Dad To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

. I REMEMBER AS A BOY GOING WITH MY GRAND DAD TO AN OLD GRIST MILL ON THEN SALADO CREEK, WITH A BIG WATERWHEEL THAT TURNED WITH THE WATER FROM THE CREEK. I. GRAND DAD WENT THERE TO HAVE HIS CORN GROUND INTO CORN MEAL AND ONE MORNING WE DROVE TO THE MILL AND THE WATERWHEEL WAS NOT TURNING BECAUSE ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

General Robert E. Lee Was A Devout ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Illustration: General Robert E. Lee was a devout follower of Jesus Christ. Although he was raised in the south where prejudice was a daily way of life, Lee seldom practiced it or revealed it in his life. Although his family owned slaves at one juncture, the slaves were always treated with respect ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 3:26-29

Tags: Grace, Love, Creation, Belief, Trust, Fruit, Preparation, Religion, Testing, Changed Life  (view more)  (view less)

Part Of The Kingdom

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

John Hess Yoder writes in Leadership magazine: While serving as a missionary in Laos, I discovered an illustration of the kingdom of God. Before the colonialists imposed national boundaries, the kings of Laos and Vietnam reached an agreement on taxation in the border areas. Those who ate ...read more

Tags: Heaven

A.d. 110. Ignatius, Overseer Of The Church In ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 31, 2008

A.D. 110. Ignatius, overseer of the church in Antioch, was arrested and sent to Rome for preaching Christ. Facing martyrdom, he wrote this to the church at Rome. “Now I begin to be a disciple. I care for nothing of visible or invisible things so that I may but win Christ. Let fire and the cross, ...read more

Imperial ...

Contributed by Eric Ferguson on May 16, 2008

ILLUSTRATION: Imperial Hotel Years ago, Frank Lloyd Wright was given the impossible task of building the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. No comparable construction job ever before had been undertaken. With patience he laid plans for the immense building in this land of earthquakes and terrible ...read more

Tags: Preparation

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Twelve-Time Award Winner, Philip Yancey Writes In ...

Contributed by Dale Pilgrim on Aug 27, 2008

Twelve-time award winner, Philip Yancey writes in Rumors of Another World: "Those who believe only in the visible world have a single proving ground of worth, and for this reason they celebrate beauty, success, wealth, talent and the values on prominent display at the magazine rack. The winners ...read more

Tags: Worldliness

Denomination: Salvation Army

In 1786, Thomas Jefferson And John Adams Went To ...

Contributed by Jesse Bennett on Oct 4, 2008

In 1786, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams went to negotiate with Tripoli’s envoy to London, Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdrahaman or (Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja). Upon inquiring "concerning the ground of the pretensions to make war upon nations who had done them no injury", the ambassador replied: "It ...read more

Tags: Islam

Denomination: Baptist

Bearing Fruit  PRO

Contributed by C Jordan on Oct 24, 2008

BEARING FRUIT I once read of a little boy who used to escape his bedroom after being punished. He would crawl out of his bedroom window down an old fruit tree to the ground. One day, his father told him that he was going to chop down the fruit tree, because it hadn’t borne any fruit for a number ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 10:1-36

Tags: Fruit, Fruit Of The Spirit

Denomination: *other

In December 1903, After A Series Of Failed ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

In December 1903, after a series of failed attempts, the Wright brothers were finally successful in getting their "flying machine" off the ground. Thrilled by the feat, they sent this telegraph to their sister: "We have actually flown 120 feet. We'll be home for Christmas." Katherine hurried to ...read more

Tags: Giving General

Trust ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 11, 2009

TRUST PLATFORM Several years ago I went with a group of men to an obstacle course in Northport. Some people call these a "ropes" course. The goal is for your group to move through a series of obstacles as you build trust and a spirit of teamwork. For me the most challenging obstacle is the "trust" ...read more

Tags: Trust

Here I Speak Of A Special Type Of Giving, The ...  PRO

Contributed by Philip Makari on Jan 17, 2001

Here I speak of a special type of giving, the giving of our total selves first to God. It is the giving of body, soul and spirit for God’s use that we may achieve, for ourselves and for others, the higher ends of God. This is not, as you can see, charity giving. This is dedication giving. It is ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:1-16

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Discipleship, Servanthood

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Beauty's True Source  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Feb 27, 2004

[Beauty’s True Source, Citation: Jim Congdon] A jarring TV commercial didn’t say a word. It simply shows a series of people who have one thing in common—a nasty injury or scar. There’s a cowboy with a huge scar around his eye, and something wrong with the eye itself; a fellow with a bulbous ...read more

Tags: God's Love

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Star Wars Episode I

Contributed by Troy Borst on Feb 16, 2005

ILLUSTRATION... Star Wars Episode I The Trade Federation is angling to take over the planet of Naboo, placing Queen Amidala, its ruler, in peril. The incursion sets off a galactic political struggle. One of the pivotal points in the movie comes when the Queen seeks out the other inhabitants of ...read more

Tags: Humility

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

What Did King Nebuchadnezzar Of Ancient Babylon ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 20, 2005

What did King Nebuchadnezzar of ancient Babylon and Nikolai Ceausescu of present-day Romania have in common? Both were ruthless dictators who fell after boldly exalting themselves. Nebuchadnezzar brazenly declared that he had built the great city of Babylon by his own power and for the honor of ...read more

Tags: Daniel

Anytime We Are Engaged In A Work For God, We Are ...  PRO

Contributed by Warren Lamb on Oct 22, 2006

Anytime we are engaged in a work for God, we are likely to encounter the poison-tipped arrows of ridicule. A barrage of truth mingled with lies, innuendo, malicious gossip and implied threats is the normal experience of leaders. Malice arises from fear, and fear is a common response to someone ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:24-31

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Jesus Was Not Just Another Rabbi Among Thousands. ...

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Apr 27, 2009

Jesus was not just another rabbi among thousands. He was unique in so many ways, And here in Matthew’s gospel he reveals his ability to cut through the fog of legalism to give the essence of all law by boiling everything down to its most basic parts. He was able to take the Decalogue (10 ...read more

Tags: Law

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

I Remember When I Was A Kid And This Is True For ...

Contributed by Andrew Moffatt on Sep 1, 2009

I remember when I was a kid and this is true for the vast majority of boys and quite a few girls, getting covered in mud, a rugby game, a decent sized puddle, a building site, mud fights, mud pies any excuse was an opportunity for a wallow. I thought it was great, my mates thought it was great ...read more

Tags: Change

Denomination: Salvation Army

Active Vs. Passive Hardening Of The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 13, 2010

ACTIVE VS. PASSIVE HARDENING OF THE HEART We have to distinguish between active hardening and passive hardening (of the heart). What we have in this verse is an example of God’s punitive judgment against a wicked man. Pharaoh was already wicked. Pharaoh already had an evil heart, out of which came ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:24-28

Tags: Hard Heart, Sin General

The Century Plant

Contributed by Johnny A. Palmer Jr. on Feb 10, 2012

THE CENTURY PLANT Abraham has now reached the Century mark! He is 100 years old and Sarah is 90. A common sight in America's Southwest desert is the century plant. It's unique. The century plant (Agave Americana) thrives in rocky, mountainous, desert sites. It has dramatic, splayed leaves that ...read more

Tags: Growth In Christ

Denomination: Baptist

Emptiness

Contributed by Richard Goble on Nov 23, 2007

Emptiness One of the most common refrains we hear from those who have reached the pinnacle of success is that of the emptiness that still stalks their lives, all their successes notwithstanding. That sort of confession is at least one reason the question of meaning is so central in life’s pursuit. ...read more

Denomination: Baptist