In Sermon Illustrations: "Looking Ahead"

Man-Speak  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2010

MAN-SPEAK Men don't always say what they mean. When a man says "IT WOULD TAKE TOO LONG TO EXPLAIN." He means: "I have no idea how it works." When a man says "TAKE A BREAK, HONEY. YOU ARE WORKING TOO HARD." He means: "I can't hear the game over the vacuum cleaner." When a man says "THAT'S ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 16:23

Tags: Father's Day, Interpretation

When I Was In High School, My Thoughts Were; To ...

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Aug 30, 2010

When I was in high school, my thoughts were; to graduate, get a really good job and make lots of money and then live happily ever after. So, you can imagine what ran through my mind when I saw my ideal job being advertised in the paper. The ad read something like this: I need one young man who is ...read more

Tags: Evangelism, Zeal

Denomination: *other

Keep Waiting

Contributed by Warner Pidgeon on Oct 20, 2010

There’s a story from the 1800’s of a young couple, William & Elizabeth, madly in love, and engaged to be married. Elizabeth enjoys planning for their future. William on the other hand knows that it’s only a matter of time before he is called away to sea to fight various enemies in far-off lands. ...read more

Tags: Second Coming

Denomination: Anglican

A Good Name I Never Met

Contributed by Davon Huss on Feb 14, 2011

A GOOD NAME I NEVER MET In his book, I Almost Missed The Sunset, Bill Gaither writes: Gloria and I had been married a couple of years. We were teaching school in Alexandria, Indiana, where I had grown up, and we wanted a piece of land where we could build a house. I noticed the parcel south of ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 22:1

Tags: Character, Armor Of God

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Armor That Holds Up

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 27, 2011

ARMOR THAT HOLDS UP I came across what I thought was a rather interesting story this week as I was preparing for this message. It was a story detailing a class action law suit aimed at a company called Second Chance Body Armor. Second Chance manufactures bullet proof vests for police officers and ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20

Tags: Security

Community: A Lost Art  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 14, 2011

COMMUNITY: A LOST ART I inherited an old trunk that sat in my grandma’s basement. It had belonged to the generation before, who had used it to bring their possessions across the sea from Sweden. It sits in my dining room. It smells a little musty, but I treasure it as a link to my heritage. I was ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:42-47

Tags: Hospitality

The Disease Of "Me"

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 8, 2011

THE DISEASE OF "ME" Basketball coach Pat Riley in his book The Winner Within tells about the 1980 World Championship Los Angeles Lakers. They won the NBA Championship that year, and they were recognized as the best basketball team in the world. They began their 1980-1981 season considered likely ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 16:18

Tags: Pride

Faster And Faster  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 15, 2011

FASTER AND FASTER Does anyone here know who "Million Dollar Bill" is? If you guessed Bill Gates, then you would be wrong. Another nickname is "Awesome Bill from Dawsonville." In the year 1987, at Talladega Motor Speedway, Bill Elliot set the fastest recorded speed for a qualifying lap at 212.809 ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 3:3-9, John 20:1-11

Tags: Forgiveness, Patience, Time

The Persuasion Of A Changed Life

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 18, 2011

THE PERSUASION OF A CHANGED LIFE The power of your changed life can be very persuasive even to those who refuse to be persuaded by the word itself. Just a few years ago, Decision magazine told the story of Rick and Shawna Pilat, a Winnipeg couple who had recently come to faith in Christ. For ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:1-2

Tags: Character

Facing Down A Mountain Lion  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 14, 2011

FACING DOWN A MOUNTAIN LION Did you know that in the United States, mountain lions are the number one predator of human beings? So says author and naturalist, Craig Childs. On one occasion, he was doing research on the lions in Arizona’s Blue Range Wilderness. As he approached a water hole from ...read more

Scripture: James 4:7

Tags: Satan

Doctor And Patient Saved From Hell

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Oct 13, 2012

In Beyond Death’s Door, Rawlings shares how his view of the afterlife forever changed on the day one of his heart patients “died” in his office. During a routine stress test on a treadmill, the man’s heart stopped and he collapsed. Immediately, Rawlings and his staff began emergency resuscitation ...read more

Scripture: Luke 16:22-31

Tags: Hell

Denomination: Baptist

Make Your Reservation

Contributed by Thomas Cash on Jan 29, 2013

MAKE YOUR RESERVATION Is your name written in the book of life? Ruthanna Metzgar, a professional singer, tells a story that illustrates the importance of having our names written in the book of life. Several years ago, she was asked to sing at the wedding of a very wealthy man. According to the ...read more

Tags: Assurance Of Salvation

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

He Told Me So

Contributed by C. Scott Ghan on Jun 3, 2013

"HE TOLD ME SO" If you have ever clung to a child near death you know the dramatic fork in the road. You either give in almost totally to despair, fear, hopelessness, knowing death is eminent, realizing no miracle cure is coming, you are fighting a losing battle. --Or...you believe there is a ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 55:11

Tags: Prayer Answered

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Keen Eye For Stray Coins

Contributed by Manny Salva Cruz on May 29, 2015

A KEEN EYE FOR STRAY COINS There was a story from the Week magazine regarding a 67 year man by the name of Roger Pasquier. He was a retired ornithologist who has a keen eye for spotting stray coins. In fact, he had found almost two thousand dollars’ worth of coins dropped onto New York City’s ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 4:29

Tags: Seeker, Passion For God, God's Accessibility, Earnestly

Denomination: Nazarene

God's Protection

Contributed by Don Berry-Graham on Mar 18, 2016

Nadin Khoury was thirteen years old, five foot two, and weighed, soaking wet, probably a hundred pounds. His attackers were teenagers, larger than Nadin, and outnumbered him seven to one. For thirty minutes they hit, kicked, and beat him. He never stood a chance. Khoury’s mom had recently moved the ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 17:1-15

Tags: Protection, Divine Protection, Daily Protection

Denomination: Baptist

In His Book, "Leadership Pain: God’s Classroo...

Contributed by Tim Smith on Sep 25, 2016

In his book, “Leadership Pain: God’s Classroom for Growth,” Sam Chand writes, “Pain isn’t the enemy. The inability or unwillingness to face pain is a far greater danger.” He then tells the story of Dr. Paul Brand who was treating a four year old named Tanya at the national leprosy hospital in ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:25-32

Tags: Pain, Thankful For Pain

Denomination: Methodist

A Lesson From A Damaged Lock

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Nov 20, 2019

Moving from one place to another is always a challenge, no matter how many times you’ve gone through this “process”! My wife and I recently made a move and learned a strange, but interesting lesson—one that was valuable for us, too. As sometimes happens, there is too much stuff and not enough ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-20

Tags: Theft, Possessions, Worldly Goods

Denomination: Baptist

We Are Not A Political Kingdom

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 15, 2020

Various groups of people expected the Messiah to come, but they did not anticipate His coming humbly and meekly. Yet those were the very attitudes that Jesus, the one whom John the Baptist had announced as the Messiah, was both teaching and practicing. The idea of a meek Messiah leading meek people ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Humility, Prayer, Politics, Meekness, Righteousness, Beatitudes, Government, Brokenness, Sovereignty Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Weeping Over Others

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 15, 2020

Do you weep for your family, friends, church, nation and world? 1) Jesus did- Jesus wept over the sins of others, over their bitter consequences in judgment and death, and over Jerusalem which would not receive him. Jesus was a Man of Sorrows (Isaiah 53). Why? Because he took our sins upon ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Intercession, Beatitudes, Lost, Weeping, Mourning, Evangelism, Prayer  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Hold That Thought!

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jan 23, 2020

One church where I served as pastor has a ping-pong table in the fellowship hall, and sometimes a younger member or two asked me to join them in a game. Now, I was old enough to be their grandfather but that doesn’t stop them from asking! I did appreciate the fact that these youngsters, aged around ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:8

Tags: Children, Thoughts, Fun And Games

Denomination: Baptist