In Sermon Illustrations: "Follow"

Integrity Meltdown

Contributed by Bruce Rzengota on Feb 2, 2009

INTEGRITY MELTDOWN What do the following people have in common? John Edwards David Duchovny Fast Eddie Johnson Winona Ryder Jeremiah Gunner Scott Karen Raborn Heather Johnston Amy Wilkins The all experienced some type of integrity meltdown. John Edwards -- Had and affair and fathered a child ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

They Sent Me To Finish  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 12, 2009

THEY SENT ME TO FINISH With all the pomp and prestige that the Chinese government went to in order to put their best foot forward, there was one person who they honored who stood out. He is now in his seventies, but China brought him to Bejing as an honored guest. Why? The odd thing is that John ...read more

Scripture: Acts 20:24

Tags: Endurance

Stand Strong

Contributed by Jerry Cosper on Feb 13, 2023

I want you all to think back with me as we begin this morning. Many of us looked forward to leaving high school behind with all of its challenges. Then we began to experience a whole new set of challenges in college or in the workplace. We began wondering what direction we were going to take in ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:1-14

Tags: Dedication, Loyalty

Denomination: Baptist

Each Child Is Different - I Learned That The Hard Way

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Mar 13, 2023

God the Father Loves His Children ... and He is also quick to .... encourage His children. (Long Pause) I learned that ...as a parent ... the hard way. As a father ... you want the best for your children ... you want them to succeed. To succeed ... at everything they do. Kristin ... our first ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Colossians 4:8, Proverbs 8:31, Proverbs 4:1

Tags: Example, Relationship, Fathers, Parent, Children, Father's Day, Encouragement, Parenting  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Anglican

A Drastic Decline Among Americans Who Live With A Biblical Worldview

Contributed by Timothy Lueking on Mar 30, 2023

The year was 1999 and George Barna just wrapped up his latest study on the status of the Worldview of American adults. He was shocked to discover that only 12% of American adults were living their life with a Biblical worldview. He knew that if this trend did not change then it would mean a rapid ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 2:6, Matthew 9:37-38

Tags: Evangelism, Harvest, Statistics, Biblical Worldview, American Adults  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Alex Navalny - Russian Dissident

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Feb 19, 2024

Russian opposition leader and outspoken Christian, Alexei Navalny. Navalny voluntarily returned to Russia - knowing he would be arrested and imprisoned. Navalny, 47, dies while serving a 19-year sentence in a penal colony north of the Arctic Circle. In Navalny’s closing statement during his 2021 ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:6

Tags: Righteousness, Sermon On The Mount, Sacrifice, Integrity

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Down's Syndrome Boy Teaches His Class About Easter

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 25, 2024

Little Philip, born with Down's syndrome, attended a third-grade Sunday School class with several eight-year-old boys and girls. Typical of that age, the children did not readily accept Philip with his differences, according to an article in Leadership Magazine. But because of a creative ...read more

Tags: Children, Easter, Resurrection, Empty Tomb, Special Needs Children, Jesus, Church  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Speed Limit

Contributed by John Bright on Feb 13, 2025

Let’s talk about following the speed limit. Why not? Maybe you don’t like being told what to do? That’s the definition of rebellion. Maybe you know better than everyone else. If so, those closest to you suffer the most! The starting point is safety. I have some family members that refuse to ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:15-16, Exodus 21:5-6

Tags: Submission, Rebellion, Speed Limit, Bond Servant

Denomination: Methodist

Max Lucado—"In The Grip Of Grace"  PRO

Contributed by Joel Ferren on Nov 27, 2001

Max Lucado— ”In the Grip of Grace” God has enlisted us in his navy and placed us on his ship. The boat has one purpose-to carry us safely to the other shore. This is no cruise ship; it is a battleship. We aren’t called to a life of leisure, we are called to a life of service. Each of ...read more

Tags: Commitment To Christ, Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Church Of God

The Red Neck Wedding

Contributed by Shawn Drake on Feb 22, 2003

The Red Neck Wedding In the Summer of 2000 a couple came to me and explained that they wanted me to perform their Wedding ceremony. The man was a farmer and the woman had grown up on a farm. They explained to me that this was both of their 2nd marriage and neither one of them had a Church ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 126:2

Tags: Wedding, Humorous Weddings

Denomination: Baptist

Cargo Cults

Contributed by Craig Sully on Apr 7, 2010

CARGO CULTS First noticed in the late 19th century, the concept of the cargo cult came to prominence in the years immediately following WWII. As the Japanese and American armies began to island hop their way to victory and defeat across the Pacific, they literally took over these small territories ...read more

Tags: Ignorance

Denomination: Pentecostal

Handel's Messiah-The Back Story

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Dec 9, 2023

George Frideric Handel's Messiah is one of the most beautiful musical renditions of Scripture ever created. What we don’t often hear about is the troubled back story during the writing of the Messiah. It was at this time that Handel was struggling financially because there was a shift in music, ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 9:1-7, Isaiah 53:3, 1 Timothy 6:15-16

Tags: Christmas, King Of Kings, Handel's Messiah, Rejected, Despised  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

[025] A Message From A Poem - Balance Of God’s Attributes

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Feb 9, 2025

[025] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - BALANCE OF GOD’S ATTRIBUTES One area where it takes deeper study to understand, is the attributes of God. The attributes are what is the completeness in God and they are many. It is what God is. We speak about love and mercy and compassion, but we also have ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 85:10-11, Exodus 34:5-7, Hebrews 2:17

Tags: Love, Forgiveness, Faithful, Judgment, Balance, Merciful, Attributes, Penalty, Poetry, Attributes Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[051]. Message From A Poem – Convention Hymn – From The Old To The New

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Mar 7, 2025

[051]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – CONVENTION HYMN (WRITTEN THEN) – FROM THE OLD TO THE NEW This was written during the Easter Keswick Convention at Atherton on the Atherton Tablelands in North Queensland, in the spare time I had there with all the organisation to do. These Conventions are ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 3:20-21, Romans 13:11-14, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:1-3

Tags: Salvation, Hymn, Hope, Redemption, Poetry, Poem  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

[324]. A Message From A Poem - Vanitas Vanitatum – Part 2 Of 3

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Mar 27, 2026

[324]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM - VANITAS VANITATUM – PART 2 of 3 PART 2 OF THE POEM IS HERE. This is a long poem and after speaking about the man who could not find fulfillment, I then move to the body of the poem, which is based on the book of Ecclesiastes. We take up the message of the ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 1:2-3, 1 Timothy 6:7, Ecclesiastes 1:14, Ecclesiastes 2:11, Ecclesiastes 10:1, Ecclesiastes 9:13-18, Ecclesiastes 3:1-2  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Vanity, Wisdom, Despair, Foolishness, Folly, Under The Sun, Appointed Time, Remember Your Creator, Vanity Of Vanities, Vanitas Vanitatum, Christian Poems, Under Heaven  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Voice Mail  PRO

Contributed by Dru Ashwell on Dec 20, 2001

VOICE MAIL While we have a direct access to our Heavenly Father, imagine if He had one of those computer-answering devices. It might be something like this: As we begin to pray we hear... Thank you for calling your Heavenly Father’s house. Your call may be monitored for quality assurance. Please ...read more

Tags: Ever, God's Omniscience, Illustration, Prayer Adoration, Prayer General  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Precious Blood  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 18, 2002

PRECIOUS BLOOD Several years ago in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, George and Vera Bajenksi’s lives were changed forever. February 16, 1989. A very normal Thursday morning. The phone rang at 9:15 a.m. "There’s been an accident..." It involved their son Ben. As they approached the intersection of ...read more

Scripture: John 18:28-40

Tags: Easter Good Friday, Blood, Lord's Supper, Jesus Christ

The Mysterious Formula For Coca-Cola  PRO

Contributed by Rick Stacy on Mar 11, 2002

The mysterious formula for Coca-Cola In 1925, the only written copy of its formula Coca-Cola admits to having was retrieved from a New York bank (where it had been held as collateral on a sugar loan) and reverently laid in safe deposit box in Woodruff’s Atlanta bank, the Trust Company of Georgia ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:1-13

Tags: Workplace

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Lights Of Home  PRO

Contributed by Frank Ellis on Apr 15, 2002

THE LIGHTS OF HOME In his memoirs, Chronicles of Wasted Time, Malcolm Muggeridge tells of events that took place in Africa in 1943. He was forty years old but his experience of those four decades had been of progressive disillusionment. After Cambridge he spent three years in India, which ...read more

Tags: God's Omniscience, Becoming A Christian

Denomination: Baptist

Almost Ten Years Ago, I Taught A Life Science ...  PRO

Contributed by Dana Chau on Apr 15, 2002

Almost ten years ago, I taught a Life Science class at Mission High School in San Francisco. The class was made up of students who didn’t want to take Biology and failed Life Science at least once before, some more than once. Many days, I would have students who came to class from the police ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Christian Love

Denomination: *other