In Sermon Illustrations: "Making Excuses"

There Is A Fable Of A Kite Which Once Said To ...

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jun 29, 2010

There is a fable of a kite which once said to itself, “If I could just get rid of that man who is holding me back, then I could fly above the clouds and kiss the stars.” One day the string broke. Now, at last, the kite was free to soar higher than it had ever gone before. But much to its surprise ...read more

Tags: Law

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Hundred-Dollar Word

Contributed by Sajeev Painunkal, Sj on Oct 10, 2010

THE HUNDRED-DOLLAR WORD I’m sure you have all heard of Rudyard Kipling. He is the author of famous books like The Jungle Book and Captain Courageous. His writings not only made him famous but also brought him a fortune. A newspaper reporter came up to him once and said, "Mr. Kipling, I just ...read more

Tags: Gratitude

Denomination: Catholic

Heroic Failure

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 14, 2010

HEROIC FAILURE The Book of Heroic Failures, was written by Stephen Pile in 1979. It is a book written in celebration of human inadequacy in all its forms. My favourite story took part in 1978. During the fireman’s strike in England, the British army took over emergency fire-fighting and drove the ...read more

Tags: Mistakes

Denomination: Brethren

Know Where You Stand

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jan 14, 2011

KNOW WHERE YOU STAND The Johnson and Johnson company once had in their mission statement that employees would “operate with honesty and integrity” Several weeks before a major incident involving Tylenol, the president of Johnson and Johnson sent a memo to all the presidents of divisions in the ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Buy Less, Love More

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

BUY LESS, LOVE MORE Shane Claiborne writes: I am incredibly hopeful this Advent, because there are so many signs of Christians who are longing for new ways to celebrate our Savior that are not cluttered with the noise of shopping and infected with the myth that happiness must be purchased. On the ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Methodist

We Require Loving

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 20, 2011

WE REQUIRE LOVING A little girl was making but poor progress toward recovery, though the ailment had been checked and there seemed to be no reason why she should not rapidly improve. But it didn’t happen, and the doctor in charge was keenly interested to know why. She was a very sensitive child, ...read more

Scripture: John 13:34-35

Tags: Christian Love

The Post-It Note

Contributed by Paul Barreca on May 23, 2011

THE POST-IT NOTE In his book, "Built to Last," Jim Collins describes how 3M employee Art Fry invented the Post-It Note: "One day in 1974, while I was singing in the church choir, I had one of those creative moments. To make it easier to find the songs we were going to sing at each Sunday’s ...read more

Tags: Tenacity

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Wisdom Literature

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on May 23, 2011

WISDOM LITERATURE Wisdom not valued much in modern society, so wisdom literature not popular in our culture; In the past, Aesop's fables--which are amazing--used to be a common resource for popular wisdom. But in the ancient near east, wisdom literature abounded. Shortly before Solomon, an ...read more

Tags: Wisdom

Denomination: Independent/Bible

No Faith, No Power

Contributed by Ken Pell on Jun 5, 2011

NO FAITH, NO POWER When I was growing up in Oklahoma, there was a lake my family and I frequented a lot called Keystone Lake. Keystone was not a natural lake; prior to its creation in 1962, there were towns located there, one of which gives the lake its name. The town was to be flooded to make a ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:3

Tags: God Brings Hope

Denomination: Nazarene

Harry Potter: Temptation

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Jul 30, 2011

HARRY POTTER: TEMPTATION Every great story has great characters. And in truly great stories, the characters go through significant change. This change is called a character arc. For example, if you’re familiar with the Harry Potter series, you know that Harry starts off in the story as an ...read more

Tags: Temptation General

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

How Were The Old Testament Saints Saved?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 3, 2011

HOW WERE THE OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS SAVED? H. A. Ironside was traveling and dropped in on a Sunday school class. The unprepared teacher asked how Old Testament saints were saved and somebody answered, "By keeping the law." The teacher said, "Correct!" Ironside raised his hand and said, "Romans ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 3:6-9

Tags: Faith

You Have Value

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Jan 9, 2012

YOU HAVE VALUE I have a here a $20 bill -- how much is it worth? (WHO WANTS IT?) What if I tear it? What if I crumple it up? What if I throw it on the floor and stomp on it? Why? Because it's still a $20 bill. It has intrinsic value that makes it worth $20. But WHY is it worth $20? Is the ...read more

Tags: God Brings Purpose

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Flotsam And Jetsam

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Jan 19, 2012

FLOTSAM AND JETSAM Flotsam and jetsam are commonly used terms. They are used to describe the wreckage and debris that floats in the water after a shipwreck. What isn't so well known is that there is a difference between flotsam and jetsam. Flotsam is anything that ends up in the water resulting ...read more

Tags: Sin General

Denomination: Brethren

No King But Jesus

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 3, 2012

NO KING BUT JESUS Did you know that the colonialists wanted to make George Washington a king? But he refused. Because George and many of the colonists believed that there was only one king, and it was not King George III. On April 22, 1774, before the Revolutionary War, a report was sent to King ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 27:37

Tags: Jesus Christ

Worship Warrior  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 17, 2012

WORSHIP WARRIOR I like the way songwriter and worship leader, Brian Doerksen, puts it. He says, "Becoming a worshipper means becoming a warrior... And by toning that down...we have sent men and women away from the church in droves. It's time to call them back," Doerksen says, "as worshiping ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-2

Tags: Worship Definition

The Exxon Valdez Is An Oil Tanker That Was On Its ...

Contributed by Gaylon Clark on Nov 14, 2012

The Exxon Valdez is an oil tanker that was on its way to Long Beach, California. Instead, it crashed into a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska. The crash resulted in the second largest oil spill in US History. Between 25-32 million gallons of oil spilled into the Ocean. Over 250,000 members of ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7-10

Tags: Good Deeds, God's Purposes, Fatigue, Rest, Commandments Sabbath  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Singing

Contributed by Davon Huss on Aug 18, 2014

Do not neglect your gift. Susan Boyle, age 48, of Blackburn, West Lothian, Scotland. REMEMBER HER? She thrilled England and the world when she stood on that stage competing in the Britain’s Got Talent contest on April 11, 2009, and sang, “I Dreamed A Dream.” That was the most watched youtube clip ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:14

Tags: Spiritual Gifts, Using Talents, Gifts Talents

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Several Years Ago I Read A Story Written By A...

Contributed by Davon Huss on Aug 11, 2015

Several years ago I read a story written by a preacher in the Philippine Islands. One day he was passing a large church on Good Friday when he spotted many selling incense, candles, veils and rosaries. He also saw several small boys who were running about selling crosses. He heard them calling, ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:23

Tags: Take Up Your Cross, Carrying Your Cross, Message Of The Cross, Cheap Grace

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Billionaire’s Happiness

Contributed by Jim Butcher on Apr 11, 2018

Jack Ma has a lot to be happy about. He is the founder and executive chairman of the Alibaba Group, a tech company in China. Among the things going his way: - His company went public in September 2014 and its worth shot up to $25 billion. - He is the richest man in China. - His company is the ...read more

Tags: Money, Wealth, Contentment, China

Denomination: Baptist

A Wrist Watch And A Big Bang

Contributed by Ron Freeman, Evangelist on Mar 24, 2019

Shake it together! If we placed the parts of a wrist watch in a bag and began to shake it; how long do you think it would be, before it came together, and function properly? Both the world and the watch had a creator, designer, and maker. The world did not begin as a result of a big bang. God ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 1:1, Hebrews 1:10, John 1:1-3, Psalm 14:1, Psalm 53:1  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Big Bang, Darwins Theory, Evolution Theory, Wrist Watch Created, Creation, God Created  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ