In Sermon Illustrations: "Hope After Grave"

A Message Delivered But Not Received

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Feb 25, 2009

A MESSAGE DELIVERED BUT NOT RECEIVED Back in April of 1865, a telegraph office was thrown into consternation by hearing the paperboys outside the office crying out the news that President Lincoln had been shot. After a few angry words, the telegraphers realized that the only way news could have ...read more

Tags: Easter Resurrection

Denomination: Pentecostal

.significant Differences In Law (That Is, ...

Contributed by Grant Sisson on Mar 5, 2009

...significant differences in law (that is, approved behavior) exist where fundamental values are different. I met a young woman from the Middle East who came to work for a time at The Center for Families. She had come to America with her family, and after they had been here only a couple of ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

Getting The Gospel Right!

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Jul 18, 2022

Martin Niemoeller was a German Pastor during the Nazi era and was imprisoned multiple times for his opposition to Hitler. Niemoeller understood that Hitler was distorting the gospel to serve his political agenda. In April 1945 American forces liberated northern Italy where Niemoeller had been ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 1:9, Romans 1:16, 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, Ephesians 2:8-9

Tags: Faith, Salvation, Gospel

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Funny Letter To God!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 5, 2023

A little boy named Johnny wrote a letter to God asking for one hundred dollars. The local post office didn't know where to send the letter, so they sent it to the White House. The President had a secretary that saw the letter and so she sent the little boy five dollars, thinking that would ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:1-7, James 4:1-2

Tags: Pastors, Tithing, Churches, Children, God, Prayer  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Honesty Or Dishonest Gain

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Jan 23, 2024

1 Peter 5:1-3 warns against dishonest gain - "Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care...not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve." In January 2024 a USA pastor and his wife were charged after hundreds of Christians invested in their cryptocurrency scheme. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-3, 1 Timothy 3:1-10, Titus 1:5-9

Tags: Money, Deception, Greed, Pastor, Integrity, Service  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

False Prophets And The Second Coming

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Apr 6, 2024

Harold Camping made multiple false predictions of the return of Christ. He would have been in trouble if he had lived during Old Testament times. Among the most prolific modern predictors of end times, Harold Camping publicly predicted the end of the world as many as 12 ...read more

Tags: Deception, End Times, Prophecy, Second Coming, Last Days, Rapture, False Teaching, Confusion, False Prophets, Return Of Christ  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

God Is Left-Handed!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 12, 2024

Little Philip was spending the weekend with his grandmother after a particularly trying week in infant school. His grandmother decided to take him to the park on Saturday morning. It had been snowing all night and everything was beautiful. His grandmother commented, 'Doesn't it look like ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:34, Colossians 3:1

Tags: Grandmother, Throne Of God, Father, Jesus, Children, Sunday School  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Mockery Of The Church

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 22, 2025

New Zealand, Feb. 26 [2016] (UPI) -- Members of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, otherwise known as Pastafarians, registered their first official marriage celebrant in New Zealand. The group announced the news on its Facebook page, although the first couple that was set to be married by ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7, 1 Timothy 3:15

Tags: Mocking The Church, Mocking Christianity, Ridiculous, Religion, Mockers, Mocking  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Dr. William Sloan Coffin Of New York’s ...  PRO

Contributed by Tim Zingale on Dec 11, 2000

Dr. William Sloan Coffin of New York’s Riverside Church said this in the April 20,1984 Lutheran Standard after the death of his son, Alex."The night after Alex died, I was sitting in the living room of my sister’s house outside of Boston, when a middle-aged lady came in, shook her head when she saw ...read more

Tags: Faith, God The Father

Denomination: Lutheran

A Young Boy By The Name Of James Had A Desire To ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2001

A young boy by the name of James had a desire to be the most famous manufacturer and salesman of cheese in the world. He planned on becoming rich and famous by making and selling cheese and began with a little buggy pulled by a pony named Paddy. After making his cheese, he would load his wagon and ...read more

Tags: Call Of The Disciples, Finding Fulfillment, Focus, Priorities

A Story From Sports Illustrated. Oklahoma State ...  PRO

Contributed by Andrew Chan on Apr 23, 2002

A story from Sports Illustrated. Oklahoma State Football Coach Bob Simmons, a Coach of the year, who brought a team that was mired in defeat back from the brink, to the place of respectability. But at age 49, his kidneys were failing. By the fall of 1997, his health took a turn for the worst, he ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:1-6

Tags: Marriage Commitment

Denomination: Evangelical Free

The Courage Of Shannon Wray  PRO

Contributed by Paul Fritz on Jun 11, 2002

THE COURAGE OF SHANNON WRAY After winning a hard fought battle over an attempt to censor religious references from her speech, Shannon Wray delivered her non-censored salutatorian speech on Friday during the Hollidaysburg Area High School graduation ceremony. Shannon was represented by Mat ...read more

Tags: Humility, Endurance

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

One Day While Working In The Oilfield We Were ...  PRO

Contributed by Larry Schoonover on Mar 13, 2003

One day while working in the oilfield we were "breaking out" and removing old, abandoned pipelines. These were old "flow lines" and "gas lines". Natural gas has a tendency to dry out the threads of pipe and this, coupled with their age, make screwing the pipe apart very difficult. It was necessary ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Baptist

At The End Of Wwii The Japanese Government Faced ...  PRO

Contributed by D. Greg Ebie on May 7, 2003

At the end of WWII the Japanese government faced a similar problem with thousands of soldiers who were hiding in the jungles and mountains in the South Pacific. Although the treaty with the U.S. had been signed and the war was over, thousands of Japanese soldiers living in the mountains and ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 4:18

Tags: Fear And Worry

Denomination: Assembly Of God

More Than One Hundred And Thirty Years Ago, God ...  PRO

Contributed by James O. Davis on Nov 2, 2003

More than one hundred and thirty years ago, God called a man named John Williams to go to the South Pacific Island of Aramonda as a missionary. John Williams, and his friend Mr. Harris, set sail one day to take the Gospel message to a cannibalistic tribe that had never heard about Jesus Christ as ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 53:5

Tags: Faith, Evangelism How To, Christian Disciplines

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Every Once In A While My Daughter Starts ...

Contributed by Joel Pankow on Apr 30, 2004

Every once in a while my daughter starts crying. From then on in, the battle begins. My wife and I have an ignorance contest. Who can lay the stillest for the longest without getting up? The trick to winning this battle is to learn how to tune it out. If I can somehow stay in a sort of ...read more

Scripture: John 10:27

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Faith

Denomination: Lutheran

Pastor Kevin Higgins Tells An Old Story That ...  PRO

Contributed by Jim Kane on May 25, 2004

Pastor Kevin Higgins tells an old story that recounts the return of Jesus to glory after His time on earth. Even in heaven, goes the story; He bore the marks of His earthly pilgrimage with its cruel cross and shameful death. The angel Gabriel approached Him and said, "Master, you must have ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

Denomination: Church Of God

Thank God, Not Everyone Lets The Negatives Of ...  PRO

Contributed by Donnie Martin on Jun 19, 2004

Thank God, not everyone lets the negatives of life keep them from accomplishing what God wants them to do. On June 18, 1999 Gary and Gloria Sloan, Southern Baptist missionaries, who had been on the field of Mexico only six months, were enjoying a birthday celebration for their daughter, Carla, at ...read more

Tags: Examples Of Faith

Denomination: Baptist

C.s. Lewis Is Portrayed In The Movie Shadowlands ...

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Apr 19, 2005

C.S. Lewis is portrayed in the movie Shadowlands as a man struggling with doubts about God. Shadowlands is about his life and reveals the awful ordeal he had to go through with his wife dying of cancer: I discovered these thoughts on the internet about this movie: 1. Jack’s grief was intense. His ...read more

Tags: Assurance Of Salvation

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Most Of Us Love Happy Endings! My Girls When They ...  PRO

Contributed by Peter Bines on Sep 22, 2005

Most of us love happy endings! My girls when they were little loved Disney’s, ‘Beauty and the Beast.’ In the closing scenes the beast lies dying from a wound inflicted during combat with Gaston his enemy. Belle the beauty finally confesses her love for the beast and just in time gives him the kiss ...read more

Tags: Jonah

Denomination: Independent/Bible