In Sermon Illustrations: "Matthew 5 1720"

The Harp String Of Hope

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 17, 2011

THE HARP STRING OF HOPE G.F. Watt has a famous painting entitled Hope. It pictures a poor woman against the world. Her eyes are bandaged so that she cannot see ahead. In her hands is a harp, but all the strings are broken save one. Those broken strings represent her shattered expectations, her ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 42:1-11

Tags: God Brings Hope

How God Calls It  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 2, 2011

HOW GOD CALLS IT A major league baseball player hit the ball far out in left field. Bases were loaded. The one who was on 2nd base made it all the way to home plate and he collided with the catcher. Immediately, the one team yelled, "He's safe, he's safe, he's safe." The other team yelled, "He's ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 127:3-5

Tags: Abortion

A Thunderclap In The Debate

Contributed by Michael Walther on Jul 11, 2011

A THUNDERCLAP IN THE DEBATE A group of college students were debating this issue one day. Some said a mother has the right to do what she wants with her own body. Others pointed out the scientific fact that an unborn child is not part of the mother's body and has its own distinct DNA, blood type, ...read more

Tags: Abortion

Denomination: Lutheran

Loyalty And The Promotional Bottleneck

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 8, 2011

LOYALTY AND THE PROMOTIONAL BOTTLENECK Peter Drucker gave this warning to those who would push back this principle, "Contrary to popular legend, subordinates do not, as a rule, rise to position and prominence over the prostrate bodies of incompetent bosses. If their boss is not promoted, they will ...read more

Scripture: Mark 3:13-19

Tags: Leadership General

If You Want It Bad Enough

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 10, 2011

IF YOU WANT IT BAD ENOUGH When a person first comes to faith in Christ and gets a taste of His grace, they can’t get enough of the Bible. Pat Summerall, the well-known sports announcer, trusted Christ with his life and overcame alcohol in the late 60’s. As he describes his life with Christ, he ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:2-3

Tags: Growth In Christ

Disposable Guilt Bags

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 12, 2011

DISPOSABLE GUILT BAGS Several years ago a new product called "Disposable Guilt Bags" appeared in the supermarkets. It consisted of a set of ten ordinary brown bags on which were printed the following instructions: "Place the bag securely over your mouth, take a deep breath and blow all your guilt ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 32:1-5

Tags: Guilt

Picking The Wrong Door

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 31, 2011

PICKING THE WRONG DOOR Stuart Briscoe, in his book Everyday Discipleship for Ordinary People, tells the story about a fellow pastor who was officiating at the funeral of a war veteran. The dead man’s military friends wanted to have a part in the service at the funeral home, so they requested that ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-5

Tags: Leadership General

First-Century Fire

Contributed by Suresh Manoharan on May 16, 2012

FIRST-CENTURY FIRE Billy Graham, that great and uncompromising preacher, once in a Revival meeting held at Los Angeles, shared a passionate message on the Early Church, outlining what needs to be done for the Churches of modern era to become more effective. While many were moved by it, some ...read more

Tags: Pentecost

Denomination: *other

The Impact Of Mothers On Conscience

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2012

THE IMPACT OF MOTHERS ON CONSCIENCE According to research published in Psychological Science (October 2004 issue), children who have the good fortune to interact with their mothers a lot develop healthier consciences. These researchers conducts a couple of experiments where they encouraged ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 6:20-23

Tags: Mother's Day

Billy Graham: Can Money Buy Happiness?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2012

BILLY GRAHAM: CAN MONEY BUY HAPPINESS? Rev. Billy Graham: "The Bible warns that money cannot buy happiness. Money cannot buy true pleasure. Money cannot buy peace of heart. And money cannot buy entrance into the Kingdom of God. If God has given you more than your neighbors around about you, ...read more

Scripture: Luke 12:13-34

Tags: Money

The Wonder Of The Human Heart  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 1, 2012

THE WONDER OF THE HUMAN HEART Consider the power of your heart. It averages beating about eighty times a minute and the average cardiac output is about six liters of blood every minute. The next time you are in Walmart, go to the aisle where all the two liter drinks are and consider that every ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 139:13-16

Tags: Heart

Ali Kissed 'em!

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 16, 2012

"ALI KISSED 'EM!" Former boxing writer Harold Conrad visited a women's prison with heavyweight fighter Muhammad Ali. "All the inmates lined up," wrote Conrad. "They were ooh-ing and aah-ing as he went along. There were some good-looking ones. But he kissed only the ugly ones." After they left the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:7

Tags: Kindness

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

Approved Workers

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 2, 2020

In II Timothy 2:14-20, the Apostle Paul gives five characteristics of those in the Body of Christ who are "approved workers". When believers stand at the Judgment Seat of Christ, there will be only two types of people there: workers who are approved and workers who are not approved. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:14-20

Tags: Rewards, Bema, Judgment Seat Of Christ, Approved Workers

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

Easter Outline - 7 Fears Of Death

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 25, 2024

Seven fears related to death: 1) Fear of the process: But.....Jesus is with you. – Psalm 23:4 2) Fear of non-existence: But....You will be alive and well. – John 11:25-26 3) Fear of bodily decay: But....You will receive a new body. – 1 Corinthians 15:51-54; ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:1-4

Tags: Family, Heaven, Hope, Reunion, New Heaven, Death, Fear, Christ, Easter, Resurrection  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Direct Line To Heaven

Contributed by Rev. Duraimony Dickson on Aug 7, 2025

A tourist is in Rome, and he sees an old-fashioned telephone made from gold sitting on an ivory platform. “What's that?” he asks a passerby and is told, “That is a direct line to Heaven. You can talk to God from that phone!” “Amazing!” the guy says. “How much does it cost?” “Five thousand ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 33:3

Tags: Heaven, Direct, Phone Call

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Words Of Comfort

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

Words of Comfort Heaven Benjamin Franklin has often been quoted as saying, "In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes." Many have figured out ways to get out of paying taxes, legal or otherwise, but no one has yet been able to avoid the certainty of death. Sooner or later you are ...read more

Scripture: John 14:1-6

Tags: Heaven

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Trapped , Sabotage

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Jan 3, 2020

WHEN MY OWN THINKING AND MY OWN WORDS SABOTAGE MY LIFE AND MY FAMILY. There was this woman that went to the Old Wise Man in the community to seek advice about her future. She approached the wise man to seek answers about her life... She asked him: SIR, WHAT WILL MY FUTURE HOLD? The wise man ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:12

Tags: Words, Sabotage, Attitudes

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Prophecies Of The Messiah

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 21, 2020

The Bible Passes The Prophecy Test! There are literally thousands of prophetic predictions made in the Bible. Some of these prophecies are quite dramatic in nature. For instance, Isaiah mentions Cyrus the Persian King, by name, 125 years before he was born. Not a single one prophecy made in the ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:14-17, 2 Timothy 4:1-3

Tags: Bible, Messiah, Christmas, Jesus, Prophecy, Inspiration, Inerrancy  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational