In Sermon Illustrations: "Followers"

Did You Hear About The Police Chief Who Gave ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Did you hear about the police chief who gave himself a ticket for a traffic violation? Police chief Richard Knoebel issued himself a $235 ticket complete with a four-point penalty against his license after he realized he had failed to stop for a school bus with its lights flashing. Knoebel said ...read more

Tags: Faith

Armor That Holds Up

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 27, 2011

ARMOR THAT HOLDS UP I came across what I thought was a rather interesting story this week as I was preparing for this message. It was a story detailing a class action law suit aimed at a company called Second Chance Body Armor. Second Chance manufactures bullet proof vests for police officers and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20

Tags: Security

The Lost Son

Contributed by Brent Kirby on May 27, 2011

THE LOST SON A young boy, around the age of eight, lived in Alaska with his parents. His dad was the Boy Scout leader of the area. The troop of the young boy decided to go mountain climbing up a two mile high mountain called Bald Eagle. The boy loved to climb and made a competition with the other ...read more

Tags: Parable Prodigal Son

Denomination: Wesleyan

The Persuasion Of A Changed Life

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 18, 2011

THE PERSUASION OF A CHANGED LIFE The power of your changed life can be very persuasive even to those who refuse to be persuaded by the word itself. Just a few years ago, Decision magazine told the story of Rick and Shawna Pilat, a Winnipeg couple who had recently come to faith in Christ. For ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:1-2

Tags: Character

Small Things With Great Love

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 8, 2011

SMALL THINGS WITH GREAT LOVE Gary Morsch is the founder of Heart to Heart in Kansas City. As a physician, he has done magnificient work around the world taking medical supplies to low income people. Several years ago, he took a trip to Calcutta and Mother Teresa's House for the Destitute Dying. He ...read more

Tags: Pride

Denomination: Methodist

Sending The Very Best  PRO

Contributed by Perry Greene on Nov 18, 2011

SENDING THE VERY BEST Someone has composed the following list of "Cards You'll Never See at Hallmark": "Looking back over the years that we've been together, I can't help but wonder.... What was I thinking?!" "I've always wanted to have someone to hold, someone to love.... After having ...read more

Scripture: James 1:19-25, Philippians 1:3-30, Matthew 25:31-46

Tags: Joy, Friendship General

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Simple Solutions

Contributed by Perry Greene on Dec 1, 2011

SIMPLE SOLUTIONS A toothpaste factory had a problem: they sometimes shipped empty boxes, without the tube inside. This was due to the way the production line was set up, and people with experience in designing production lines will tell you how difficult it is to have everything happen with ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 9:10

Tags: Ambition

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Circle Maker

Contributed by Antonio Silveira on Dec 4, 2011

THE CIRCLE MAKER Pastor Mark Batterson wrote a book called "The Circle Maker". He tells the following. The Book of Legends, is a collection of stories from the Jewish Talmud, when I discovered the true legend of Honi the Circle Maker. It forever changed the way I pray. I pray more. I pray with ...read more

Tags: Prayer General

Denomination: Baptist

One Man Who Learned To Experience The Peace Of ...

Contributed by Paul Barreca on Dec 31, 2011

One man who learned to experience the peace of God was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. For the famous American poet and author, life was well. After the death of his first wife, he met Francis Appleton. He courted her for seven years! She finally said yes! Longfellow experienced fame and success. ...read more

Tags: Christmas, Fear And Worry

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

We Crave The Light

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Feb 2, 2012

WE CRAVE THE LIGHT A few years ago I was sitting in the doctor's office and picked up the Oct. 2001 edition of the National Geographic. It had an amazing article on the "Power of Light". The articles introduction caught my attention: "Light reveals the world to us. Body and soul crave it. Light ...read more

Tags: Jesus Teachings

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Don't Give Up—the Case Of Mrs. Ruth Ertel

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 8, 2012

DON’T GIVE UP--THE CASE OF MRS. RUTH ERTEL In 1965 a divorced mother of two, found a classified ad offering a restaurant for sale. She mortgaged her house to purchase the restaurant, the original Chris’s steakhouse. In 1976 a fire forced her to relocate. Under the original purchase agreement, the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:3-5

Tags: Endurance

Bible Readers Change The World  PRO

Contributed by Hal Seed on Nov 9, 2012

BIBLE READERS CHANGE THE WORLD If you’ve read anything by Charles Dickens, you know how terrible conditions were in 18th century England. There were no child labor laws, so children as young as age four were put to work up to 12 hours a day in dangerous factories and sent into the corners of coal ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 1:8

Tags: Bible Influence

Denomination: Baptist

Forgiveness - Emanuel Ame Church And Renee Napier Stories

Contributed by Kerry Haynes on Aug 19, 2018

Christians of all people should lead the way in forgiveness. And some do. On June 17, 2015, Dylann Roof entered a Bible study group at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. Even though he was white, he received a warm welcome from the all-black congregation. When the group closed ...read more

Tags: Moving Forward, Anger, Second Chance, Releasing To God, Forgiveness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Hold That Thought!

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jan 23, 2020

One church where I served as pastor has a ping-pong table in the fellowship hall, and sometimes a younger member or two asked me to join them in a game. Now, I was old enough to be their grandfather but that doesn’t stop them from asking! I did appreciate the fact that these youngsters, aged around ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:8

Tags: Children, Thoughts, Fun And Games

Denomination: Baptist

A Lesson From A Pair Of Mildewed Shoes

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Mar 22, 2020

A number of years ago I received a three-year assignment to Okinawa, Japan, as part of my Air Force experience. Hardly anybody I knew had much knowledge of that part of the world, so we really had no idea what to expect. We were in for a number of surprises! We lived in a motel, basically, for a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:33-34

Tags: Shoes, Life's Problems

Denomination: Baptist

Unsung Heroes-Those Who Made Copies Of The Scriptures

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Sep 30, 2021

Introduction: sometimes we forget, or take for granted, the easy availability of God’s Word. Retail stores (not just Christian bookstores) sometimes have copies of the whole Bible for a dollar per copy! Secondhand or thrift stores occasionally have donated Bibles and other portions for a very ...read more

Scripture: Daniel 9:1-2

Tags: Jeremiah, Word Of God, Scribes, Baruch, Daniel  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

What Forgiveness Is Not

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 31, 2021

WHAT FORGIVENESS IS NOT by Dr. Larry Petton (excerpt from my book, "I CAN'T FORGIVE"). Text: Ephesians chapter 4 Ruth Bell Graham described a successful marriage as the "union of two great forgivers." Forgiveness has been described as, “Me not hurting you, because you ...read more

Tags: Forgive Them, Father, Forgiveness, Bitterness, Unforgiveness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Pound Of The Eternal

Contributed by David Parks on Jan 14, 2022

A Pound Of The Eternal David E. Parks One of the most compelling quotes I have ever read comes from a book by Charles Swindoll, Improving Your Serve: The Art of Unselfish Living. Out of the hundreds of books that I have read over the decades, I know of no quote that has as frequently returned to ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:33

Tags: Faithfulness, Laodicea, Commitment

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Unexpected Journey

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 12, 2024

Let’s go back to Wednesday April 13th – I left after the scope with Dr. H. – I was in shock – I walked out to my truck into a severe storm – drove home in the storm! When I got home, I went and sat down in my chair in front of our bay window. I was looking at the raging storm as I sat there looking ...read more

Tags: Dove, Hope, Cancer

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cuckoo Birds Live In Cuckoo Clocks, Right?

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 12, 2024

One day they had a contestant o WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE who made it all the way to the last question. Her name was Debra. Debra has made it to the final plateau. If she answered the next question correctly, she would win $1,000,000. If she answered incorrectly, she would pocket only the ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 17:22

Tags: Clocks, Birds, Pastor's Wives, Sermon Introductions, Pastor Jokes  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational