In Sermon Illustrations: "Music"

This Past Week Our Family Went To See The Movie ...

Contributed by David Ward on Dec 30, 2007

This past week our family went to see the movie “Enchanted,” which is a Disney musical/fantasy/romantic comedy. It’s about a princess who has to choose between two men to be her true love. 3/4 of the way through, my six-year-old son squirmed in his seat and whispered to me "this movie is ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Cleaning Is Hard Work

Contributed by Dale Pilgrim on Jun 20, 2009

CLEANING IS HARD WORK When I was in Bible College. Fridays were not fun. Those were the nights we had "work sections." You heard me -- "work sections." We changed out of our holy threads to work-clothes and started cleaning the College, from scrubbing potatoes to scrubbing floors. And none of this ...read more

Tags: Atonement

Denomination: Salvation Army

Two Kinds Of Giving

Contributed by T D on Dec 28, 2010

TWO KINDS OF GIVING I have witnessed in my years of ministry people come to church and when they do not like a decision of the leadership or the minister, they decide to stop giving as a protest or decide to shift their giving to missions in order to inflict pain on the ministry of the church. ...read more

Tags: Giving General

Denomination: Evangelical Free

Second Fiddle

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 30, 2010

SECOND FIDDLE One of the first conductors born and educated in the United States to receive worldwide acclaim was Leonard Bernstein. He directed the New York Philharmonic, conducted concerts by some of the world's leading orchestras, wrote symphonies, and music for Broadway hits such as West Side ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 2:3-4

Tags: Humility

The Destiny Of Materialism

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 26, 2011

THE DESTINY OF MATERIALISM The lure of wealth, or what we might call the magnetism of materialism. “Finns [people from Finland] who can’t get enough of winter swarmed to the northern town of Kemi for the opening of a sprawling ice castle that features a theatre, a playground, an art gallery, and ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 2:15-17

Tags: Materialism

Parents Are Taking A More Active Role In The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 10, 2008

Parents are taking a more active role in the lives of their children than they did 10 years ago, reports the Census Bureau. In '04, 47% of teens had restrictions on TV viewing, up from 40% in '94. 68% of 3-5-year-olds had TV viewing limits in '04 vs. 54% in '94. Kids' 6-11 viewing restrictions grew ...read more

Tags: Parenting

Works Of Thy Hands

Contributed by Brian Harvison on May 29, 2008

WORKS OF THY HANDS How about a cheetah? The smallest of the big cats, it has amazing speed and stealth, while lacking climbing skills. It is the fastest land animal reaching speeds between 70 and 75 mph in short bursts covering distances up to 500 yards. The cheetah can accelerate from 0-68 mph in ...read more

Tags: Creation

Denomination: Baptist

Don't Just Entertain

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 14, 2014

Timothy Paul Jones- With high hopes we had moved to a new youth ministry position. On my first Wednesday evening at this church, I received my first hint that this task might be more difficult than I’d imagined. After a couple of games, I gathered the students for some worship songs. Worship ...read more

Tags: Bible Influence, Delight In God's Word, Neglect Of The Word

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Truth About The Wizard Of Oz

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 14, 2021

Did you know that “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” was written, not about the mythical Land of Oz but it was about Israel, the homeland of the Jewish people. The lyrics were written by Yip Harburg, the youngest of four children born to Russian-Jewish immigrants. His real name was Isidore Hochberg, ...read more

Tags: Israel, Jewish, Wizard Of Oz

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

God With Us

Contributed by Edward Hardee on Dec 2, 2024

I started out by describing a song that I had been singing all week long. (I used Leaning on the Everlasting Arms but you can use any song). I spent about 5 - 7 minutes giving all the details of the song. The author, the beat, where it is used at, who sung the song, etc. I keep the title ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:23, Philippians 2:5-11

Tags: Emmanuel, Immanuel, God With Us

Denomination: Church Of God

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

A Guest Preacher Was Speaking About "Seeing Jesus ...

Contributed by Mark Eberly on Aug 4, 2008

A guest preacher was speaking about “seeing Jesus in others” when God used Meghan as a living illustration of someone who had surrendered everything to Jesus as part of her community of faith. During the worship set, Meghan spontaneously went to the front of the church and began dancing…wildly. ...read more

Tags: Unity

Denomination: Church Of God

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

Bob Russell Shared That Several Months Before ...  PRO

Contributed by Michael Demastus on Oct 22, 2001

*Bob Russell shared that several months before they moved into their new church building in 1998, their ministry staff met at the new site for a special staff meeting. Most of the building still wasn’t carpeted, and some of the rooms still had no drywall. They handed out hard hats, magic markers, ...read more

Scripture: Nehemiah 1:1-11

Tags: Bible Influence

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

I Sure Do Miss St. Sanity

Contributed by James Snyder on Aug 17, 2019

The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and me recently celebrated our 48th wedding anniversary. It sure does not seem we have been married that long. I guess, as you get older, according to my grandmother, time goes faster. If that is true, I must be getting older. We met in September, became ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:6

Tags: Politics, Humor, Sanity

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

A Recent Gallup Poll Revealed That A Nationwide ...  PRO

Contributed by James Wilson on Nov 23, 2000

A recent Gallup Poll revealed that a nationwide survey of parents of children ages 7-12 that family time has decreased since 1976. The percentage of respondents who engaged frequently in attending religious services together decreased from 38 percent in 1976 to 29 percent in 1997. The percentage ...read more

Tags: Children, Parenting

Denomination: Baptist

Shouting The Good News?  PRO

Contributed by Brian La Croix on Mar 31, 2003

SHOUTING THE GOOD NEWS? It’s amazing how many people try to share the good news with a sense of rage and hatred. Example: ranting and raving about a particular social ill, polarizing people, and focusing more on judgment and God’s wrath than on the hope that Christ offers. People rant about ...read more

Tags: Evangelism Urgency, What Is Evangelism?, Sharing My Testimony

Denomination: Wesleyan

Beauty's True Source  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Feb 27, 2004

[Beauty’s True Source, Citation: Jim Congdon] A jarring TV commercial didn’t say a word. It simply shows a series of people who have one thing in common—a nasty injury or scar. There’s a cowboy with a huge scar around his eye, and something wrong with the eye itself; a fellow with a bulbous ...read more

Tags: God's Love

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

But The Question On The Floor Is "What If". What ...  PRO

Contributed by Michael Dascoli on Dec 14, 2005

But the question on the floor is “What if”. What If Jesus Never Came? What’s the big deal? Toward the end of the Christmas classic It’s a Wonderful Life, George Bailey cries out, “I want to live again! I want to live again!" Immediately he’s flashed from the previous scene and finds himself ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Holiness

Diverse Methods Of Worship Are Also On The Rise. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 18, 2006

Diverse Methods Of Worship are also on the rise. New Ellison Research data reports U.S. Protestant churches worship in a more contemporary manner than 5 years ago. Over the past 5 years 44% report no significant change, 15% have moved in much more contemporary direction, while another 36% have ...read more

Tags: Church Practices