In Sermon Illustrations: "Gifts General"

Throwing A Life Away?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 26, 2004

THROWING A LIFE AWAY? Lost behind the story of Seabiscuit, the most celebrated racehorse of the 20th century, and the jockey played by Spiderman’s Tobey Macguire was the story of its peculiar trainer, Tom Smith. When the rich man played by Jeff Bridges decided to turn to horse racing, he needed ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Tags: Parable Good Samaritan, Forgiveness General, Compassion

Defining A Neighbor  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 26, 2004

DEFINING A NEIGHBOR It’s been said, "One cannot define one’s neighbor; one can only be a neighbor." Haddon Robinson said, "Your neighbor is anyone whose need you see, whose need you are able to meet." A neighbor is someone who says, "What is mine is God’s and what is God’s belongs to my ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Tags: Compassion, Forgiveness General, Parable Good Samaritan

The Compassionate Catch  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 26, 2004

THE COMPASSIONATE CATCH On Aug. 8, 2004, the Vietnamese community of Westminster, California, celebrated one of the kindest and bravest acts performed by a stranger on them. On Nov. 13, 1985, ninety-six Vietnamese refugees despaired for their lives and their families' lives when the engine of the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Tags: Parable Good Samaritan, Forgiveness General, Compassion

God's Pledge Of Allegiance: The Apostle's Creed ...  PRO

Contributed by Eric Vertein on Oct 27, 2004

GOD’S PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: The Apostle’s Creed is not a pledge of allegiance, which we speak before God. We are remembering the gospel. We are remembering God’s pledge to us. The Creeds are nothing different from the 23rd Psalm. They simply explain how our Good Shepherd has ‘restored my soul,’ ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 23:1-6, Psalm 23:1-6

Tags: Love, Death, Faith General, Equal, Eternity  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Lutheran

16,743 Yards Of Persistence  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2004

16,743 YARDS OF PERSISTENCE God has always honored persistence. I have always appreciated Emmitt Smith. I was glad to see him set the NFL rushing record last Sunday. He isn’t as flashy as Walter Payton or Barry Sanders, and he never possessed true break-away speed. But his strength lies in his ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:1, Luke 20:27-38, Luke 18:1-8

Tags: Prayer General, Prayer Persistence, Parable Widow

The Quitters Club  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2004

THE QUITTERS CLUB One of the largest organizations in America is the Quitters Club. The reason you’ve never heard of the Quitters Club is because they never meet–the members quit coming. There are no dues–the members quit paying them. The Quitters Club is comprised of people who faced a tough ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:1-8, Luke 18:1-8

Tags: Parable Widow, Prayer Persistence, Prayer General

The Stats On Prayer  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2004

THE STATS ON PRAYER A Newsweek poll several years ago titled "Is God Listening?" indicated that 54% of those the magazine surveyed prayed on a daily basis - 25% said they pray to God once a day and 29% more than once a day. 87% believed that God answers their prayers at least some of the time. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:1-8

Tags: Parable Widow, Prayer Persistence, Prayer General

The Story Is Told Of W. H. Auden, Who In The ...

Contributed by William Norman on Nov 4, 2002

The story is told of W. H. Auden, who in the 1930’s believed there was no such thing as God or absolute truth. But in the aftermath of Hitler’s invasion of Poland, Auden saw a documentary report. He then knew two things. One was that Hitler was an evil human being. And the second was that he needed ...read more

Tags: God's Love, Apologetics General, Truth Absolute

Denomination: Baptist

Hope And A Prayer  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 5, 2002

HOPE AND A PRAYER 50 Christian truckers got together to pray to pray that somehow the sniper terrorizing the Washington, DC area would be caught. Ron Lantz would be retiring as a driver in a few days and didn’t even live in the area, but he felt sure that God would answer their prayers. In fact, ...read more

Tags: Prayer Of Faith, Prayer Answered, Prayer General

Eye Of The Needle  PRO

Contributed by Dan Cormie on Nov 23, 2002

Ill. – Eye of the needle Jesus was not saying that it is impossible for the rich to be saved. In those days cities were walled and had huge gates, which were open in the day light hours but barred shut at night. If a trader arrived at the city after dark he would not be able to get into the city ...read more

Tags: Becoming A Christian, Kingdom Of God, Parable General

Denomination: Mennonite

Susanna Wesley Told Her Young Son, John, "If You ...  PRO

Contributed by Jeff Armbrester on Dec 17, 2002

Susanna Wesley told her young son, John, "If you would judge of the lawfulness or the unlawfulness of pleasure, then take this simple rule: Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your ...read more

Tags: Sin Separates From God, Sin General

Denomination: Methodist

Giving To Missions  PRO

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Jun 26, 2001

GIVING TO MISSIONS Americans give $700 million per year to mission agencies. However, they pay as much for pet food every 52 days. A person must overeat by at least $1.50 worth of food per month to maintain one excess pound of flesh. Yet $1.50 per month is more than what 90 percent of all ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Forgiveness General, Evangelism Urgency

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Matter Of Building  PRO

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Oct 18, 2000

A MATTER OF BUILDING Life is a matter of building. Each of us has the opportunity to build something -- a secure family, a good reputation, a career, a relationship to God. But some of those things can disappear almost overnight due to financial losses, natural disasters and other unforeseen ...read more

Tags: Christian Values, Finding Fulfillment, Leadership General

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Hungry For Peace  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 6, 2003

HUNGRY FOR PEACE Much, if not most, of the social turmoil of our culture is due to a hunger for peace, which is sought for in all the wrong places. According to Ronald Hutchcraft, the Director of Youth for Christ in New York and New Jersey, in the next thirty minutes- 57 kids will run away from ...read more

Tags: God Brings Hope, Sin General, Peace

What God Can Do  PRO

Contributed by Dana Chau on Jan 6, 2003

WHAT GOD CAN DO "When we depend upon organizations, we get what organizations can do; when we depend upon education, we get what education can do; when we depend upon man, we get what man can do; but ...read more

Tags: Prayer Adoration, Prayer General, God's Omnipotence

Denomination: *other

I Was Taking A Shower When My 2-Year-Old Son Came ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 12, 2003

I was taking a shower when my 2-year-old son came into the bathroom and wrapped himself in toilet paper. Although he made a mess, he looked adorable, so I ran for my camera and took a few shots. They came out so well that I had copies made and included one with each of our Christmas cards. Days ...read more

Tags: Leadership General, Humility, Wisdom, Truth, Faith  (view more)  (view less)

A Religion True To Its Nature Must Also Be ...  PRO

Contributed by Mike Wilkins on Jan 20, 2003

"A religion true to its nature must also be concerned about man’s social conditions. Religion deals with both earth and heaven, both time and eternity. Religion operates not only on the vertical plane but also on the horizontal. It seeks not only to integrate men with God but to integrate men with ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General, Christian Disciplines, Basics Of Christianity

Denomination: *other

Life Magazine Did A Photo Essay A Few Years Ago ...  PRO

Contributed by Mike Wilkins on Feb 4, 2003

Life Magazine did a photo essay a few years ago – they took people from all walks of life, from street people to fortune 500 executives and photographed them each undressed except for a bath towel – the amazing thing was you really could not tell who was who: they basically looked the same! This ...read more

Tags: Becoming A Christian, Kingdom Of God, Sin General

Denomination: *other

There Are Some People That We Might Consider To ...  PRO

Contributed by John Williams Iii on Feb 10, 2003

There are some people that we might consider to be a freak because of their disfigured appearance. Consider the story of John Merrick who was known more by his disfigured appearance and labeled as the "Elephant man". "John Merrick was born in Leicester, England in 1862. He suffered from a severe ...read more

Tags: Friendship New Friends, Forgiveness General, Compassion

Denomination: United Methodist

One Of The Aboriginal Tribes Of The South Seas ...  PRO

Contributed by John Williams Iii on Mar 5, 2003

"One of the aboriginal tribes of the South Seas has a rite of passage from boyhood to manhood called a "walkabout." A boy coming to puberty is sent into the jungle for six weeks without food, shelter or weapons. During this time, he must test all of the survival skills he has learned during ...read more

Tags: Temptation Of Christ, Temptation General, Jesus Temptation

Denomination: United Methodist