In Sermon Illustrations: "July 4"

Canadian Figure Skater - Joannie ...

Contributed by Brian Buriff on Mar 1, 2010

Canadian Figure Skater - Joannie Rochette 1. Her mother said these words 1 week before they traveled to Vancouver : "I always encouraged her to have confidence in herself, to believe in her dreams . . . The hurdles she faces motivate her to rise above them, Joannie has always been naturally ...read more

Tags: Sports

Denomination: Church Of God

The Impermanence Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 26, 2010

The Impermanence of Democracy About 200 years ago, as the United States was beginning its experiment, Alexander Fraser Tytler wrote: “A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves largesse from the public ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:1-7

Tags: Bondage, Politics

Themistocles Harnesses The Wind To Help Win The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 27, 2010

Themistocles harnesses the wind to help win the Greek naval battle at Salamis They shall mount up with wings as eagles.”] Themistocles, who led the Greeks in the famous naval battle of Salamis, for some reason unknown to his troops, delayed the engagement. It was expected that he would avail ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 40:27-31

Tags: God's Omnipotence

Ignorance Of One's ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 27, 2010

Ignorance of One’s Inheritance A Michigan factory worker, earning less than ten thousand dollars a year, was an unknowing heir to a half-million dollars. When located by an investigator some years after his benefactor’s death, the worker explained that he had neither returned home nor kept in touch ...read more

Scripture: John 6:1-13

Tags: Inheritance, Ignorance

The World Is Without Hope

Contributed by Ken Pell on Jun 5, 2011

THE WORLD IS WITHOUT HOPE In Kurt Vonnegut’s novel, Cat’s Cradle, an important book comes to light. It is titled, "What Can a Thoughtful Man Hope for Mankind on Earth, Given the Experience of the Past Million Years?" The chief character is anxious to read it. But when he does, he finds that it ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:12

Tags: God Brings Hope

Denomination: Nazarene

Marathon Finishers

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 11, 2011

MARATHON FINISHERS Charlie Engle, Ray Zahab, and Kevin Lin know endurance better than most. For 111 days, they ran the equivalent of two marathons a day in order to cross the entire Sahara Desert on foot. They touched the waters at Senegal and then made their way through Mauritania, Mali, Niger, ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:14-21, Psalm 42:1-11

Tags: Discipleship

John Piper's Reading Plan

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 14, 2011

JOHN PIPER'S READING PLAN John Piper is a well-known Christian author and pastor. He tells about a plan that he says has changed his life. Suppose you read about 250 words a minute, and you resolved to devote just 15 minutes a day to some serious theological reading to deepen your understanding ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 17:18-20

Tags: Learning

Loneliness And Belonging

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 16, 2011

LONELINESS AND BELONGING Chip Ingram notes: "In his landmark book Bowling Alone, Robert Putman makes the case that loneliness is America’s new epidemic. People are searching for a place to belong. In the 1970s, it wasn’t uncommon for someone to leave a job that paid well and go off into the woods ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:3-8

Tags: Suffering Loneliness

Cleaning Up Our Mess

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 2, 2011

CLEANING UP OUR MESS There is a story about President Ronald Reagan when he "...was in the hospital healing from when he had been shot. One day his Vice President walked in the room to find him on his hands and knees wiping up water. The Vice President said, 'Mr. President, they’ll take care of ...read more

Scripture: John 13:12-17

Tags: Humility

Which Do You Think He Believed?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2011

WHICH DO YOU THINK HE BELIEVED? A man sat down to supper with his family and said grace, thanking God for the food, for the hands which prepared it, and for the source of all life. But during the meal he complained about the freshness of the bread, the bitterness of the coffee, and the sharpness ...read more

Scripture: Acts 14:17

Tags: Hypocrisy

Tying Off The Tap Root  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2011

TYING OFF THE TAP ROOT The Japanese introduced a tree to the world that is called a Bonsai tree. It is measured in inches instead of feet as other trees are measured. It is not allowed to reach anywhere near its full growth potential but instead grows in a stunted miniature form. The reason for ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 2:1-7

Tags: Prayer General

Everything I Need To Know I Learned From Noah  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 4, 2011

EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED FROM NOAH In 1988, Robert Fulghum published his best-selling book, Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. Recently, somebody suggested another book title: Everything I Need to Know I Learned from Noah. For example... * Don't miss the boat. * Plan ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 11:7

Tags: Noah

The Inspiration Behind The Statue Of Liberty

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THE STATUE OF LIBERTY The Statue Of Liberty has towered above Bedlow Island, near the entrance to New York Harbor, as a symbol of freedom. The famous sculptor, Bartholdi, gave twenty years of devoted effort to the work, personally superintending the raising of the ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 31:10-31, Proverbs 31:1-27

Tags: Mother's Day

If We'd Only Joined Hands Sooner  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 30, 2011

IF WE'D ONLY JOINED HANDS SOONER A number of years ago in Canada, a little two-year-old girl wandered away from her neighborhood. It was a cold, winter day. Her parents alerted the neighbors and they saw some tracks in the snow, but there were a lot of other tracks, so for several hours the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:1-7

Tags: Unity

Understanding The Spiritual Gifts By Dr. Dale A. ...

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Oct 13, 2011

Understanding The Spiritual Gifts By Dr. Dale A. Robbins 1. The ministry of Spiritual Gifts originates in the New Testament, commissioned by our Lord Jesus Christ. After He established His church on the earth and ascended to Heaven, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to equip His church with power and ...read more

Tags: Gifts General

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Next Billy Graham

Contributed by Tim Hinrichs on Feb 7, 2012

THE NEXT BILLY GRAHAM Baptist author and leader Russell Moore said recently: "The next Jonathan Edwards might be the man driving in front of you with the Darwin Fish bumper decal. The next Charles Wesley might be a ... profanity-spewing hip-hop artist right now. The next Billy Graham might be ...read more

Tags: Evangelism The Lost

Denomination: Lutheran

Overcoming Evil With Good

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2012

OVERCOMING EVIL WITH GOOD Stuart Holden (1874-1934), the author of "Prevailing Intercessory Prayer", was in Egypt and met a sergeant in a Highland regiment. "How were you brought to Christ?" he asked this bright Christian. The sergeant responded: "There was a private in the same company as myself ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

Tags: Christian Witness

Aristides On Christians

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2012

ARISTIDES ON CHRISTIANS Writing in about 125 AD, a Christian philosopher by the name of Aristides looked at Christianity and said this: "They walk in all humility and kindness, and falsehood is not found among them, and they love one another. They despise not the widow, and grieve not the ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:11-20

Tags: Christian Witness

The 10 Tests Of Abraham

Contributed by Perry Greene on Nov 6, 2012

THE 10 TESTS OF ABRAHAM Ten Tests of Abraham according to Maimonides: 1. God tells him to leave his homeland to be a stranger in the land of Canaan. (12.1) 2. Immediately after his arrival in the Promised Land, he encounters a famine. (12.10) 3. The Egyptians capture his beloved wife, Sarah, and ...read more

Tags: Trials And Difficulties

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Blackaby: What Does A Calling Look Like?  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Jan 3, 2013

BLACKABY: WHAT DOES A CALLING LOOK LIKE? Henry Blackaby shares from his book "The Power of the Call" pages 10-14 a clear picture of what one looks like who is called by God into pastoral ministry: 1. The pastor is chosen 2. He is chosen by God 3. He is chosen by God to be His servant 4. He is ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-4, 1 John 4:7-10

Tags: Leadership General, Elder, Shepherd, Pastor

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational