In Sermon Illustrations: "Go Forth Meeting Christ"

Traders Vs. ...

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Jun 8, 2009

Traders vs. Investors We all have seen the effect of those who have given up on the economy. In his newspaper column called “Market Report,” Bill Barnhart once explained the difference between investors and traders in the stock market. “A trader in a stock,” writes Barnhart, “is making ...read more

Tags: Kingdom Of God

Denomination: Other

God With Us

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 24, 2009

GOD WITH US Count Zinzendorf, the founder of the Moravians, was converted in an art gallery in Dusseldorf while contemplating a painting of Christ on the cross which had the inscription, "I did this for thee. What hast thou done for me?" This picture had been painted by an artist three hundred ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:23

Tags: Christmas Advent

Sphere Of Influence

Contributed by Bill Sullivan on Feb 15, 2010

SPHERE OF INFLUENCE There's another interesting definition I want to look at -- it relates to astrodynamics A sphere of influence (SOI) in astrodynamics and astronomy is the spherical region around a celestial body where the primary gravitational influence on an orbiting object is that body. ...read more

Tags: Worldliness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Self-Centered Christianity  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 6, 2011

SELF-CENTERED CHRISTIANITY John Koessler pastored for years before becoming a professor in the pastoral studies department at Moody Bible Institute. In 2007 he wrote, A Stranger In The House of God, chronicling his experience in various churches. "Most of the Christians I know are disappointed ...read more

Scripture: Titus 1:1-9

Tags: Church Practices

He Keeps Knocking On The Door

Contributed by Chuck Sligh on Oct 28, 2011

HE KEEPS KNOCKING ON THE DOOR Despite their self-sufficiency, and despite their self-deception and despite their lukewarmness, Jesus is patiently knocking on the door of the Laodicean church anyway--knocking on a door of people who made Him sick! Isn’t that amazing? I remember a lady in our ...read more

Tags: Lukewarm

Denomination: Baptist

Is Your Light Shining

Contributed by Steve Kinnard on Feb 15, 2019

IS YOUR LIGHT SHINING? Many years a missionary employed a Chinese scholar to translate the New Testament into the Chinese language. The scholar was a Confucian and had never heard of Christianity until the missionary had hired him. The scholar was a painstaking person and wanted to produce a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16

Tags: Reputation, Complacent

Denomination: Pentecostal

The Importance Of Children's Ministry

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 21, 2020

Children can surely come to know the Lord Jesus Christ as amply testified by the following well known believers... Polycarp, the great church father, was nine when he was saved. Matthew Henry was eleven. Jonathan Edwards, America’s greatest theologian, was seven. Hymn writer, Isaac Watts, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:14, 2 Timothy 3:14-16

Tags: Call Of God, Ministers, Evangelism, Children, Salvation, Missions  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Husband Is Advised By A Psychiatrist To Assert ...  PRO

Contributed by Andrew Chan on Apr 26, 2002

A husband is advised by a psychiatrist to assert himself. "You don’t have to let your wife henpeck you. Go home and show her you’re the boss." The husband takes the doctor’s advice. He rushes home, slams the door, shakes his fist in his wife’s face, and growls, "From now on, you’re taking orders ...read more

Tags: Romantic Love, Marriage Obligations

Denomination: Evangelical Free

A. Linda Down Discovered Real Power And She ...  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 25, 2004

A. Linda Down discovered real power and she needed it. She had dealt with the limitations of cerebral palsy all her life. One day, she got this crazy idea of running the New York Marathon. But Linda walked with difficulty, so running seemed out of the question? She used canes with arm clamps to ...read more

Tags: God's Omnipotence

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

No Record

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 28, 2009

"NO RECORD" Several years ago Bob Sheffield of the Navigators told a moving story picturing the essence of what it means to receive God’s forgiveness. Before he became a Christian, Bob played professional hockey in Canada. He was tough, loved to fight and found himself in jail one night after a ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 103:1-22

Tags: Atonement

The Secret Of Happiness

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 25, 2009

THE SECRET OF HAPPINESS Christopher Parkening is regarded as the world’s greatest classical guitarist, and he’s played guitar with orchestras the world over, even for several presidents in the White House. He’s also a world-class fly-fishing champion. By his own testimony, he writes, "By age 30, ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:31

Tags: Joy

Dr. Meier Refuses Materialism And God Blesses His ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 30, 2009

Dr. Meier Refuses Materialism and God Blesses his Ministry In the mid – 1970’s, while Dr. Meier was a professor of pastoral counseling at Trinity Seminary near Chicago, he was offered a high-paying opportunity to leave his seminary position and become the administrator of a psychiatric clinic. “I ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 6:3-10

Tags: Materialism

This Baby Is For You

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 17, 2011

THIS BABY IS FOR YOU Pastor and author Richard Foster writes about genuine, joyous giving. "Giving with a glad and generous heart has a way of rooting out the tough old miser within us. Just the very act of letting go of money or some other treasure does something great within us."1 Such genuine, ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 9:2-7

Tags: Birth Of Jesus

[145]. A Message From A Poem – In The World But Not Of It

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Jul 27, 2025

[145]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – IN THE WORLD BUT NOT OF IT We are citizens of this world but we are not bound to that, for as Christians, we have a higher citizenship which is in heaven – {{Philippians 3:20 “OUR CITIZENSHIP IS IN HEAVEN from which also we eagerly wait for a Saviour, the Lord ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 2:15-17, Philippians 3:20, Hebrews 11:13-14

Tags: Living In The World, Christian Poems, In The World But Not Of It, Citizens Of The World, Strangers, Heavenly Citizenship, Pilgrims, The World, Exiles  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Baby's Hug  PRO

Contributed by Warren Lamb on Nov 11, 2006

A Baby’s Hug We were the only family with children in the restaurant. I sat Erik in a highchair and noticed everyone was quietly sitting and talking. Suddenly, Erik squealed glee and said, "Hi." He pounded his fat baby hands on the high chair tray. His eyes were crinkled in laughter and his mouth ...read more

Tags: Judgment

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Healing The Wounds Of War: The Kim Phuc Story

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 4, 2010

HEALING THE WOUNDS OF WAR: THE KIM PHUC STORY Probably one of the most well-known pictures to come out of the Vietnam War was Nick Ut’s Pulitzer Prize-winning photo (show picture) of Phan Thi Kim Phuc (pronounced "fuke"). On June 8, 1972, a napalm bomb was dropped on her village, and Kim, who was ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:21-35

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

I Don’t Believe In Karma

Contributed by James Snyder on Oct 2, 2021

Some people believe in karma, but I don’t. Some people believe what you do will come back on you some way or the other. I do believe that everything you do does have consequences. Sometimes those consequences are small and insignificant and sometimes rather large and unbearing. Recently, my truck ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7

Tags: Reaping, Karma, Sowing

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

If I’m Not Crazy Nobody Is

Contributed by James Snyder on Feb 18, 2023

Last Sunday, we were driving to our Sunday morning church service and encountered a lot of crazy drivers. As The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage was driving, I kept my cool and, more importantly, my mouth closed. Every once in a while, she would say, “What’s wrong with these crazy drivers?” I ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 3:5-6

Tags: Crazy, Drivers, Apple Fritter

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

A Young Girl Grows Up On A Cherry Orchard Just ...  PRO

Contributed by Rick Stacy on Mar 10, 2002

A young girl grows up on a cherry orchard just above Traverse City, Michigan. Her parents, a bit old-fashioned, tend to overreact to her nose ring, the music she listens to, and the length of her skirts. They ground her a few times, and she seethes inside. "I hate you!" she screams at her father ...read more

Scripture: Luke 15:1-32

Tags: God's Love, God's Forgiveness, Forgiveness, Welcome Home, Parable Prodigal Son, New Life  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

[178 ]. A Message From A Poem – Lost Three Things - Lost One Sheep

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Aug 26, 2025

[178 ]. A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – LOST THREE THINGS - LOST ONE SHEEP What are the best-known parables the Lord Jesus gave? I suppose there could be some debate about that but for me, I think The Prodigal Son, The Sower and The Good Samaritan. The Lost Sheep is near the top. Two of those I have ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 23:1, Psalm 23:4, Luke 15:3-7, John 10:11, John 10:14  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Shepherding, The Lost Sheep, The Shepherd Psalm, One Sheep Lost, Sheep, Search, The Good Shepherd  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational