In Sermon Illustrations: "Going Home"

Mother Teresa's Feet

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Feb 10, 2012

MOTHER TERESA'S FEET Shane Claiborne, who spent a summer in the slums of Calcutta with Mother Teresa, wrote the following about one of his experiences: People often ask me what Mother Teresa was like. Did she glow in the dark or have a halo? She was short, wrinkled, and precious, maybe even a ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

Tags: Compassion

Denomination: Baptist

Who Influences Whom?

Contributed by Perry Greene on Feb 15, 2012

WHO INFLUENCES WHOM? I heard a joke about Bill and Hillary Clinton recently. It seems they were on vacation one weekend, and decided to go for a drive to see the beautiful countryside. After a while, they needed to stop for gas. They pulled into a tiny gas station, and out walked a man to help ...read more

Tags: Worldliness

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

What Kind Of Example Are You?

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 11, 2012

WHAT KIND OF EXAMPLE ARE YOU? It is said that for many years Monterey, a California coast town, was a pelican’s paradise. As the fishermen cleaned their fish, they flung the innards to the pelicans. The birds grew fat, lazy, and contented. Eventually, however the innards were utilized, and there ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:11-16

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Donald Trump's Thoughts About Death

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 4, 2012

DONALD TRUMP'S THOUGHTS ABOUT DEATH Billionaire Donald Trump was asked one time, "What about death?" the writer asked. "Don't you worry about dying?" Trump said, "No. I'm fatalistic and I protect myself as well as anybody can. I prepare for things." This time, however, as Trump started walking up ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:18-30

Tags: Death

To Martin Luther's Shame

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Jun 21, 2012

TO MARTIN LUTHER'S SHAME One of the blots on the career of the great German Reformer, Martin Luther, was his acquiescence to the bigamous marriage of Philip of Hess. In 1530, at the height of the Reformation in Germany and where the Protestant cause was at its most vulnerable, Philip of Hesse ...read more

Tags: Betrayal

Denomination: Anglican

The Wedding Cake On The First ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 5, 2012

THE WEDDING CAKE ON THE FIRST ANNIVERSARY One of the many pieces of advice we received before our wedding was to save the top tier of your wedding cake and eat and eat it on your first anniversary. We had a tiny little freezer. For one full year, this box of wedding cake sat in our freezer, denying ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 23:25-28

Tags: Character

Ironside Teaches On Assurance Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 24, 2012

IRONSIDE TEACHES ON ASSURANCE OF SALVATION An elderly man said to Harry A. Ironside, "I will not go on unless I know I’m saved, or else know it’s hopeless to seek to be sure of it. I want a definite witness, something I can’t be mistaken about!" Ironside replied, "Suppose you had a vision of an ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 5:6-15

Tags: Assurance Of Salvation

One Letter By James Armstrong Of Casselberry ...

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Aug 27, 2012

One letter by James Armstrong of Casselberry said: “Thomas is a fundamentalist Christian who believes in a literal interpretation of the Bible. He used to work for the moral Majority. From his narrow, myopic vantage point, he self-righteously presumes to judge the human family. What about ...read more

Tags: Apostasy, Apologetics General

Denomination: Baptist

The Truth Of The Book  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Oct 23, 2012

THE TRUTH OF THE BOOK John Ortberg states "It’s a strange thing: the book has never been so accessible. According to Guinness Book of Records, L. Ron Hubbard’s writings of scientology have been translated into 65 languages; the Koran is supposed to be read in Arabic so it hasn’t been translated ...read more

Scripture: John 3:16-17, 1 Corinthians 13:1-7

Tags: Bible Truth

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

One Body To The Death

Contributed by Bret Toman on Oct 31, 2012

ONE BODY TO THE DEATH On February 19, 1945, near the end of WWII, 800 American ships amassed to assault the island of Iwo Jima with its two strategic air strips 600 miles south of Tokyo. The Marines had fought a total of 43 months in the Pacific in World War II and in this one-month assault on Iwo ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Baptist

The Umpire's Revenge  PRO

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Mar 6, 2013

THE UMPIRE'S REVENGE Forgiveness begins when we give up the quest to get even. This is difficult, because getting even is the natural obsession of the wounded soul. Stories about getting even always capture our attention. It wouldn’t surprise me if revenge is the theme of as many as half the ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:32

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Baptist

Is There Anyone Up There?

Contributed by Darrin Fish on May 15, 2013

IS THERE ANYONE UP THERE? There once was a tourist who came too close to the edge of the Grand Canyon, lost his footing and plunged over the side, clawing and scratching to save himself. After he disappeared out of sight; and, just before he fell into open space, he stumbled upon a scrubby bush ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 4:1-13

Tags: Faith

Denomination: Christian Church

Where The Pharisees Went Wrong

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jul 9, 2013

WHERE THE PHARISEES WENT WRONG Robert Coleman talks about where the Pharisees went wrong: "The Pharisees had so much respect for the original set of scriptures and wanted to protect them so desperately that they started adding to them. Then, after a while, it not only seemed helpful to make ...read more

Scripture: Mark 7:1-23

Tags: Tradition, Man Made Rules, Pharisees, Fast

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Unchristian

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 21, 2014

In unChristian, David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, discusses some disheartening research concerning the failure of Christians in our day to remain distinct: "In virtually every study we conduct, representing thousands of interviews every year, born again Christians (talking about people ...read more

Scripture: Malachi 3:18

Tags: Transform, Holiness, Distinctiveness, Moral Living

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Last Lap Of The Race

Contributed by Shawn Miller on Jul 4, 2014

May 29, 2011 it looked like it was destiny, the day Dale Earnhardt Jr. was rounding the last lap of the Charlotte Motor Speedway. You could just imagine the script that was being set; it was memorial day, he was being sponsored by the national guard, and He was going to finally win for the first ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:7

Tags: Perseverance, Endurance, Finish The Race, Gas Tank

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Depression

Contributed by Suresh Manoharan on Aug 14, 2014

The World woke up to the shocking News on August 13th 2014. The King of Comedy-Robin Williams- who lit so many smiles in many a countenance of his “global audience” had apparently committed suicide due to severe depression. For some time now his apparently happy face had masked a heavy heart ...read more

Scripture: John 10:10

Tags: Depression, Individual, Invigorating

Denomination: *other

10th Birthday

Contributed by Davon Huss on Nov 16, 2014

Donald Whitney tells us of his 10th birthday. He invited 8 friends. They played football and basketball, enjoyed hot dogs and hamburgers, then devoured ice cream and cake. “The climax was a gift from me to them. Nothing was too good for my friends. I was going to pay their way to the most ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:28

Tags: Right Worship, Casual Worship, Insincere Worship, Unacceptable Worship

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

If I Have Seen Everything....  PRO

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 23, 2016

IF I HAVE SEEN EVERYTHING.... Evangelist Jack Taylor was alone in his hotel room in Houston, Texas after a Southern Baptist Convention meeting. He felt exhausted in ministry. He cried out to God in prayer, "Lord, if I have seen everything You have for me in my ministry.......then take my life ...read more

Scripture: John 15:1-5

Tags: Pastoral Ministry, Total Surrender, Burnt Out

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

No Tents In Heaven!

Contributed by Dr. David Hallum on Jun 24, 2016

I am not a camper. I spent one miserable weekend as a kid in an old, smelly canvas tent. It was designed to sleep 10, but 2 adults and 2 kids kicked, punched and threw sand all over one another all night. And that was while we were asleep. As I said, it was a miserable weekend. When I became ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 9:1-7

Tags: Camp, Tabernacle

Denomination: Baptist

Billy Graham's Conversion

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jul 18, 2017

In an interview on October 15, 2013 Billy Graham said, “There are two basic needs that all people have: the need for hope and the need for salvation. It should not be surprising if people believe easily in a God who makes no demands, but this is not the God of the Bible. Satan has cleverly misled ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 1:8-9, Matthew 5:17-18

Tags: Salvation, Repentance, Billy Graham, Easy Believism

Denomination: Charismatic