In Sermon Illustrations: "Hard Hearts"

The Wife Of Thomas Carlyle (A British Historian ...

Contributed by Philip Harrelson on Sep 7, 2006

The wife of Thomas Carlyle (a British historian and thinker) wrote in her diary of her hunger for a word of appreciation and love from her husband. After her death, Carlyle read the diary and with a broken heart, repeated over and over, “If I had only known! If I had only known!” That is ...read more

Denomination: Pentecostal

Love Is The Key  PRO

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Oct 29, 2003

“LOVE IS THE KEY” (copyrighted by John Gaughan) LOVE IS THE KEY, LOVE IS THE KEY THOUGH I SPEAK IN TONGUES OF ANGELS LOVE IS THE KEY LOVE IS PATIENT LOVE IS KIND, NOT SELF SEEKING LOVE IS BLIND, LOVE IS TRUTHFUL LOVE IS TRUST, TO LOVE YOUR BROTHER IS A MUST. LOVE CAN BREAK, BUT LOVE WILL ...read more

Tags: Love For God, Christian Love

Denomination: Anglican

Hudson Taylor, Missionary To Inland China, Wrote ...  PRO

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Aug 9, 2001

Hudson Taylor, missionary to inland China, wrote this while under intense pressure and difficulty: "It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies - whether it comes between you and God, or whether it presses you nearer His heart." Dr ...read more

Tags: God's Provision, God In The Hardships, Endurance

Denomination: Independent/Bible

It Is Good To Learn Early Enough That Suffering ...  PRO

Contributed by Paul Kuzma on Feb 19, 2002

It is good to learn early enough that suffering and God are not a contradiction but rather a unity, for the idea that God himself is suffering is one that has always been one of the most convincing teachings of Christianity. I think God is nearer to suffering than to happiness, and to find God in ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:27-33

Tags: Promises Of God, Descriptions Of God, Compassion

Denomination: Foursquare

It Has Been Said By One Of The Old Mystics ...  PRO

Contributed by Andrew Hamilton on Sep 29, 2002

It has been said by one of the old mystics (Julian of Norwich) ‘This is the reason why we have no ease of heart or soul, for we are seeking our rest in trivial things that cannot satisfy, and not seeking to know God, almighty, all-wise, all good. He is true rest. It is his will that ...read more

Tags: Fulfillment, God The Father

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Take Courage And Have Faith, God Is With Us, Is ...

Contributed by Richard Francis on May 19, 2007

Take courage and have faith, God is with us, is in control, he might shake the nations and bring disasters, but God is God, the silver is his, the gold is his and all the glory is his, rejoice and trust. Remember God loves us and whatever we do that will not change, he is there arms wide open ...read more

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

When A Surgeon Enters An Operating Theater, He ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

WHEN A SURGEON ENTERS AN OPERATING THEATER, HE IS CAREFUL TO WORK IN A STERILE ENVIRONMENT, BY SCRUBBING HIS HANDS; WEARING A STERILIZED GOWN AND MASK TO PROTECT THE PATIENT AND HIMSELF, FROM ANY GERMS OR BACTERIA. L. THE THEOLOGICAL IMPLICATION IS THAT WE SHOULD HATE SIN, BECAUSE THE ONLY WAY WE ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Ernest Hemingway, Said This About His Life: "I ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Ernest Hemingway, said this about his life: “I live in a vacuum that is as lonely as a radio tube when the batteries are dead, and there is no current to plug into.” Hemingway lived his life in a way that would be the envy of any person who has bought in to the values of this world. But on a Sunday ...read more

Tags: Ot Kings

A Poem By William Stidger

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

A poem by William Stidger says it well: "I saw God bare his soul one day Where all the earth might see The stark and naked heart of him On lonely Calvary. There was a crimson sky of blood And overhead a storm; When lightning slit the clouds and light engulfed his form. Beyond the storm ...read more

Tags: God In The Hardships

Quotes On Humility

Contributed by Billy Nale on Apr 13, 2011

QUOTES ON HUMILITY "To become truly great, one has to stand with people, not above them." -- Charles de Montesquieu "Modesty is a shining light; it prepares the mind to receive knowledge, and the heart for truth." -- Madame Guizot "None are so empty as those who are full of themselves." -- ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:8

Tags: Humility

Denomination: Baptist

Jesus Cared

Contributed by C. Philip Green on Jan 2, 2013

JESUS CARED Henri Nouwen once said, "What we see, and like to see, is cure and change. But what we do not see and do not want to see is care: the participation in the pain, the solidarity in the suffering, the sharing in the experience of brokenness. And still, cure without care is as ...read more

Scripture: John 11:35

Tags: Restoration, Caring Love

Denomination: Evangelical Free

One Moment's Believing

Contributed by Rickey Bennett on Aug 18, 2009

ONE MOMENT'S BELIEVING Octavius Winslow said it this way. "One moment’s believing, close contact with the cross will do more to break the heart for sin, deepen the conviction of its exceeding sinfulness, and disenthrall the soul from all its bondage and its fears, bringing it into a sense of ...read more

Tags: Cross

Denomination: *other

Early African Converts To Christianity Were ...

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Feb 22, 2010

Early African converts to Christianity were earnest and regular in private devotions. Each one reportedly had a separate spot in the thicket where he would pour out his heart to God. Over time the paths to these places became well worn. As a result, if one of these believers began to neglect ...read more

Tags: Prayer Persistence

Denomination: Pentecostal

I Like What S. D. Gordon Wrote: "It Is Startling ...

Contributed by Tony Abram on Feb 27, 2010

I like what S. D. Gordon wrote: "It is startling to think that Satan can actually come into the heart of a man in such close touch with Jesus as Judas was. And more--he is cunningly trying to do it today. Yet he can get in only through a door opened from the ...read more

Tags: Antichrist

Principles Of Materialism  PRO

Contributed by Derrick Tuper on May 8, 2010

PRINCIPLES OF MATERIALISM In Randy Alcorn’s book: God, Money and Possessions, we find some worthwhile principles: 1. God owns everything. 2. My heart always goes where I put my money. 3. Heaven, not earth, is my home. 4. Giving is the only antidote to materialism. ...read more

Tags: Giving General

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Conviction Of Sin

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Aug 28, 2023

“The new believer will often rest for days or months in the peace which follows the initial decision, but after a while they begin to become aware of “the ground of their heart, which God before would not disclose unto them lest the soul should fail before Him, and the spirit which He had made. Now ...read more

Scripture: Luke 5:8, Luke 5:27, Luke 19:8, Matthew 8:8

Tags: Repentance, Conviction, Conversion

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Death By Crucifixion

Contributed by John Bright on Apr 6, 2025

This a medical description of what happens: DEATH BY CRUCIFIXION: SLOW SUFFOCATION 1 - Shallowness of breathing causes small areas of lung collapse. 2 - Decreased oxygen and increased carbon dioxide cause acidic conditions in the tissues. 3 - Fluid builds up in the lungs. Makes the situation in ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 27:32-56

Tags: Crucifixion, Slow, Suffocation

Denomination: Methodist

From The Dining Room We Walked Into The Living ...

Contributed by Brian La Croix on Feb 20, 2008

“From the dining room we walked into the living room. This room was intimate and comfortable. I liked it. It had a fireplace, overstuffed chairs, a sofa, and a quiet atmosphere. He said, ‘This is indeed a delightful room. Let us come here often. It is secluded and quiet, and we can fellowship ...read more

Scripture: 3 John 38:15-16

Denomination: Wesleyan

Caterpillar Ugly, Butterfly Beautiful  PRO

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

Caterpillar Ugly, Butterfly Beautiful It is a well-known fact that a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. The butterfly can truthfully say as he looks at the caterpillar, "Such was I, but now I am changed." Every Christian has once been a sinner, living for self and the momentary pleasures ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:17, 1 Peter 4:7-11

Tags: Resurrection, Salvation, New Life, Born Again, Christian Witness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Those Of You Who Have Sat Close To Me Know That I ...

Contributed by David Thompson on Jul 30, 2005

Those of you who have sat close to me know that I can’t carry a tune, my tones are off. It makes my mind wander and probably yours too, if you sit very close to me. I have to remind myself that it’s not the sound that comes from my lips, it’s ...read more

Tags: Gifts General

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ