In Sermon Illustrations: "Finish Well"

My Dad Used To Tell A Story About An Old Georgia ...

Contributed by David Swinney on May 31, 2010

My dad used to tell a story about an old Georgia redneck who would routinely head out into the swamp and return with a boat full of fish—more than anyone could conceivably catch, even in a long day of fishing with rod and reel. Well, in the course of time, his exceptional good luck caught the ...read more

Tags: Power

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Christina Recently Gave Birth To Our First ...

Contributed by Chris Surber on Jun 17, 2010

Christina recently gave birth to our first daughter. After three sons I am very pleased to have a little girl. Recently I was speaking to the academic dean of the seminary where I am pursuing doctoral studies. The school had asked for individual and family photos of students like me who are ...read more

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Denomination: Christian Church

Gift Of Honor  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 12, 2011

GIFT OF HONOR Football practice was over, and Denny was sore from head to toe. Slowly he climbed the graffiti-laden stairway of the aging apartment building. Suddenly, his mother’s chilling screams pierced the cold, still air. He had heard the sound many times before. Still, a sickening knot ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:12

Tags: Power Source, Forgiveness For Others

Speaking The Same Language

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Jun 10, 2011

SPEAKING THE SAME LANGUAGE Back in 1991, I went on a mission trip to the former Soviet Union. Twenty-or-so of us arrived on a snowy November day in Samara, a city of more than a million people located on the Volga River. We were there for about ten days, and our mission was to help start a ...read more

Tags: Preaching

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Steering By Mother's Light

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

STEERING BY MOTHER'S LIGHT To illustrate the great influence of a Godly mother, let me tell you the story of Susannah Prentice. This story goes back to 1950. Susannah and her husband, Miles, lived in a 2-story house located on the coast of Maine. Miles and Susannah had 2 sons and a daughter. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:5

Tags: Mother's Day

The Clarence Principle

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 7, 2011

THE CLARENCE PRINCIPLE That's what spiritual maturity is--It's not just being a Christian for a little while. It's being able to discern the difference between right and wrong, because you have practiced applying the principles of God's Word in your every-day life. It's being able to discern the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-4

Tags: Leadership General

Fire In The Hole

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 7, 2011

FIRE IN THE HOLE Centralia was a small mining town in the eastern part of Pennsylvania with about 1000 residents making their income off of the coal dug just underneath the crust. The town had existed the same way for over a century when pre-Civil War settlers moved out to dig up the anthracite ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:21-30

Tags: Hell

Mothers Live For Others  PRO

Contributed by Fr Mund Cargill Thompson on Sep 29, 2011

MOTHERS LIVE FOR OTHERS We've got all sorts of people here this morning. One thing we have got a lot of is mothers. Some of you, your children are long grown up. But you have the experience of having been a mother. So? Well, every mother lives her life for another. And that is what the church ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Tags: Mother's Day

Denomination: Anglican

Grace And George Williams

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

GRACE AND GEORGE WILLIAMS Max Ellerbusch tells the story of the Friday six days before Christmas. He was working feverishly in his instrument repair shop so he could have all of the Christmas holiday at home with the family when the call came. His 5-year-old Craig had been fatally struck by a car. ...read more

Tags: Grace

Denomination: Methodist

Testimony About God's Comfort After A Suicide

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Jun 26, 2012

Mot Richey was one of the precious senior adults at McClendon Baptist Church in West Monroe. She went home to be with the Lord in 2006. Mot was a lovely Christian lady. She was also a wonderful singer, wife and cook. In my whole life, I never met a more loving couple than Jack and Mot Richey. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:1-4, John 16:33, John 14:1-6

Tags: Grief, Suicide, God's Comfort

Denomination: Baptist

The Parable Of Water  PRO

Contributed by Andrew Moffatt on Sep 21, 2012

The Parable of Water There are a lot of things I could compare when it comes to living in the world, sexual sin, the lust we have for objects that are shiny; but, I’ve decided that I’m not going to. I’ve decided to discuss two different liquids. One of them is water and the other is Coca Cola. ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 106:1-12, James 1:16-19

Tags: God's Goodness, Kingdom Of God, Temptation General

Denomination: Salvation Army

Our Greatest Need

Contributed by Ed Sasnett on Dec 20, 2012

If we were to go out on the streets and ask people at random, “What is your greatest need?” we would probably get a number of different responses. We wouldn’t be surprised in this economy if we got several answers of people needing a job so they could provide for their home and family. If people ...read more

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Baptist

The Message Of The Straight Jacket

Contributed by Christopher Roberts (Barrister) on Jan 22, 2013

THE MESSAGE OF THE STRAIGHT JACKET Satan employs a number of tactics against us, which most often God uses for our greater good. One of those tactics is to place a straight jacket of circumstance upon us, something that we are unable to deal with ourselves. Such a straight jacket might relate to a ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Christian Church

Ministry Meltdown

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 3, 2013

MINISTRY MELTDOWN My dear friends, when life seems overwhelming, don't get busy; get help! Otherwise, you'll just wear yourself out and those around you. That's what Bob Merritt, pastor of the Eagle Brook Church in Minnesota, was doing. In a recent issue of Leadership Journal he writes about ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30

Tags: Stress

Ears To Hear

Contributed by Todd Catteau on May 27, 2015

I’ve done a lot of funerals in my twenty plus years of ministry, far more than I thought I would ever do. Every service touches me in a unique way and with each funeral I seem to come away with a life-lesson I needed to hear. Recently I was taught a valuable lesson as I eulogized a certain man. ...read more

Scripture: James 1:19-25

Tags: Communication, Listen, Ears, Hearing

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Being Ready

Contributed by Richard L. Brown on Oct 1, 2016

Being Ready Luke 12: 32-38 This illustration is about not being afraid for the return of the Master. When I was a young boy in the Fourth Grade at Yost Elementary School, our teacher, Mrs. Conley, would periodically leave the room and say, “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Just work quietly at ...read more

Scripture: Luke 12:32-38

Tags: Following Directions, Being Prepared

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

A New Perspective On Ugly Sweaters

Contributed by Todd Catteau on Nov 5, 2019

I am not stylish. I will never be named “best dressed” minister. I do not enjoy clothes shopping. Yet, even though shopping is a task, there are occasions when I do need to pick up an item or two and even though I don’t have an eye for what’s fashionable I can sense when something is absolutely ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:10

Tags: Goodness, Humanity, Dignity, Image Of God, Love Neighbor  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Payment For The Parts

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Feb 20, 2020

One of the worst things that could happen to anybody is a car accident. My oldest son had this happen recently. He was okay, just a few bruises, but the car was totaled. Not good. A day or so later, he and I went to the garage where the car had been towed. We took turns removing his personal ...read more

Scripture: Romans 6:23

Tags: Salvage, Accidents, Recycling

Denomination: Baptist

A Collector’s Item?

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Feb 23, 2020

Hard to believe, but I may have a collector’s item! In my own house! Now, before you start sending me “Can I see it?” types of emails, maybe I should explain just what this “collector’s item” really is. Really, it wasn’t that much of a collectible, even from a couple of years ago. It’s only ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-20, Colossians 3:2

Tags: Stewardship, Collector's Items

Denomination: Baptist

They Took It Away!

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Mar 3, 2020

My parents used to operate a true “Mom and Pop” grocery store before I started school. I still remember some of the good times—and some of the bad times, too, unfortunately—from those days gone by. Some of the items they had for sale were plastic models. These were mostly Revell, Lindberg, or ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:22, 1 John 5:18

Tags: The Will Of God, Take It Or Leave It

Denomination: Baptist