In Sermon Illustrations: "James The Less"

What We Can Learn From The "Lesser Knowns"

Contributed by Tom Mccrossan on Jan 21, 2004

What We Can Learn From the "Lesser Knowns" The media makes note of the well-known celebrities who die, and this year there is quite a long, sad list: John Ritter. Fred Rogers. Johnny Cash. June Carter Cash. Bob Hope. David Brinkley. Gregory Peck. Katharine Hepburn. Buddy Hackett. Buddy Ebsen. But ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines, Funerals Christian, Forgiveness General

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Meanest Mother  PRO

Contributed by Philip Harrelson on Sep 27, 2004

The Meanest Mother We had the meanest mother in the whole world! While other kids ate candy for breakfast, we had to have cereal, eggs, and toast. When others had a Pepsi and a Twinkie for lunch, we had to eat sandwiches. And you can guess our mother fixed us a dinner that was different from other ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1-4

Tags: Parenting, Children

Denomination: Pentecostal

A Bruise Is Better Than A Bite!" 1 Samuel 1:1-8 ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Jan 13, 2005

“A Bruise Is Better than A Bite!” 1 Samuel 1:1-8 Key verse(s): 8:“Elkanah here husband would say to her, ‘Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?’” “Constructive criticism is when I criticize you. Destructive criticism is ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 1:1-8, John 12:4-8, John 12:4-8

Tags: Emotions, Criticism

Denomination: Lutheran

Normally The Flight From Nassau To Miami Took ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Hensley on May 3, 2001

Normally the flight from Nassau to Miami took Walter Wyatt, Jr., only sixty-five minutes. But on December 5, 1986, he attempted it after thieves had looted the navigational equipment in his Beechcraft. With only a compass and a hand-held radio, Walter flew into skies blackened by storm clouds. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20

Tags: Forgiveness In Jesus, Evangelism How To, Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: Baptist

When I Was About 4th Grade, I Was Playing Little ...

Contributed by Scott Bradford on Apr 16, 2007

When I was about 4th Grade, I was playing Little Leauge Baseball…Well, mostly I played “benchwarmer” for the Reds. The two coaches were Methodist… Members of the church my father pastored. You think that would help. Sometimes, if the Reds were ahead…I’d get in for just a little bit. But, mostly we ...read more

Denomination: United Methodist

The Apostles Were A Great Example Of The ...

Contributed by Austin Mansfield on Jun 3, 2007

The apostles were a great example of the difficulties of loving one another, and Jesus knew it. There’s a scene in the epic Franco Zefferelli movie, Jesus of Nazareth, in which Jesus arrives at the house of Matthew, the tax collector, for dinner as he told Matthew he would. Peter and the other ...read more

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

The Year Was 1992. A Man Was On Parole For Child ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

The year was 1992. A man was on parole for child molesting. His fellow apartment renters complained of odors and chainsaw noises. When the police searched his apartment, they found it full of skulls, headless torsos and body parts. He would murder, mutilate and sometimes cannibalized boys and men. ...read more

Tags: Cross Agony

The People Of God

Contributed by Lonnie Erwin on Sep 24, 2007

The people of God: Individuals, and in a state of distinctness from all the nations amongst which, in their calamitous dispersion, they are scattered; but they have no national existence -- no king, no country, no organization, no government, no political being. Just so the great community of ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

I Have To Close This By Telling You Earl's Story: ...

Contributed by Scott Bradford on Jun 2, 2008

I have to close this by telling you Earl’s story: He was sixty-eight years old and had moved to Junction, TX from Michigan to be near his wife’s family. Many people thought of him as being obnoxious, or a curmudgeon, or a host of other words I cannot repeat this morning. I had breakfast with him ...read more

Tags: Baptism

Denomination: United Methodist

Pastor John R Ramsey Once Wrote, "For Some Time I ...

Contributed by Bruce Howell on Aug 1, 2008

Pastor John R Ramsey once wrote, “For some time I have had a person provide me with a rose boutonniere to pin on the lapel of my suit every Sunday. Because I always got a flower on Sunday morning, I really did not think much of it. It was a nice gesture that I appreciated, but it became routine. ...read more

Tags: Kindness

Denomination: Wesleyan

Questions On ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2008

QUESTIONS ON SUFFERING Steven Curtis Chapman is one of the best known singer-songwriters of contemporary Christian music. Over the last 15 or 20 years, his songs have blessed millions of people. Recently tragedy struck the Chapman home, and Michelle Malkin wrote about it: “Steven Curtis Chapman’s ...read more

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Above The Circumstances

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2008

ABOVE THE CIRCUMSTANCES David and Becky Guinn have been on my mind this past week. In 1997, the Lord blessed me to go with David on a mission trip to Ukraine. It was a life-changing experience for me. David and Becky deeply love the Lord. They have faithfully served the Lord for years in college ...read more

Tags: Endurance

The More Precious Gift

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 2, 2011

THE MORE PRECIOUS GIFT It is not easy always for people to understand the significance of a gift, or the sacrifices that went behind it. Two students shared a room in college. After returning from the Christmas' winter break, Andrew asked his roommate what presents he has received for ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Tags: Christmas

Why Worry?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 12, 2011

WHY WORRY? In a 2006 article in Time magazine called "Why We Worry About the Things We Shouldn’t" Jeffrey Kluger, writes: As human beings, we pride ourselves on being the only species that understands the concept of risk. Yet we have a confounding habit of worrying about mere possibilities while ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:6-8

Tags: Worry

Sin: Prison Without Bars

Contributed by Johnny A. Palmer Jr. on Dec 15, 2011

SIN: PRISON WITHOUT BARS It's easy to live in denial--to live in sin and think everything is going our way. So sooner or later God gets our attention. In 1989, Pete Rose, baseball's all-time hit leader, was banished from baseball by Major League Commissioner. [Bart Giamatti]. The ...read more

Tags: Sin Exposed

Denomination: Baptist

The Story Of The Gipper

Contributed by Charlie Roberts on Feb 2, 2012

THE STORY OF THE GIPPER It was halftime of the 1928 Army vs. Notre Dame Game that legendary head coach Knute Rockne gave his "win one for the Gipper" speech to his beleaguered players. Notre Dame was having one of its worst seasons on record and Rockne was trying to salvage what he could of the ...read more

Tags: Encouragement

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Humility: The Balloon Game  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Nov 26, 2012

HUMILITY: THE BALLOON GAME Robert Roberts writes about a fourth grade class in which the teacher introduced a game called "balloon stomp." A balloon was tied to every child's leg, and the object of the game was to pop everyone else's balloon while protecting one's own. The last person with an ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:5

Tags: Humility

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

You Promised Me  PRO

Contributed by Ken Pell on May 6, 2013

"YOU PROMISED ME" Love always perseveres. Love never Fails. In 1989, an 8.2 earthquake almost flattened Armenia, killing over 30,000 people in less than four minutes. Surprisingly, such tragedies often bring out the best in people. Let me show you the loving heart of a father. In the midst of ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, Leviticus 6:12-13

Tags: God's Love, Bearing God's Image

Denomination: Nazarene

The Only Thing Left Was The Sign

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jan 14, 2020

A number of years ago, I drove by a small shopping center in a Midwestern city. The display of signs stated there was everything from a bookstore to a pet shop to—my favorite—a hobby shop! I’ve been interested in model trains and aircraft for many years, and thought this would be a good place to ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 2:5

Tags: Forsaken Things, Closed Churches

Denomination: Baptist

Speaking Of Abuse… Have You Seen Those Energy ...

Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 21, 2009

Speaking of abuse… have you seen those energy drinks that are out there. This may not always hold true but it seems to me that these often are marketed to promote the potential abuse of caffeine. Caffeine isn’t that bad, you may say. It isn’t like a narcotic. But I wonder if we abuse something less ...read more

Tags: Christian Values

Denomination: Church Of God