In Sermon Illustrations: "Never Quit"

Wise Men Came From Afar

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Dec 5, 2010

WISE MEN CAME FROM AFAR Most people know that Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, but they really do not understand as much as we think they do. In a small Southern town there was a "Nativity Scene" that showed great skill and talent had gone into creating it. One small feature ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Capture And Control  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 7, 2011

CAPTURE AND CONTROL Craig Larson talks about being at a lunch party on a warm, Chicago day in early September with a dozen of his fellow workers. The windows were left open, and soon a bee found its way in. After buzzing around for a while, it landed on some food on the table. Then someone took an ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:26, John 8:1-11

Tags: Satan

9/11: A Sense Of Ownership

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 22, 2011

9/11: A SENSE OF OWNERSHIP David Frum, one of President George W. Bush’s speechwriters, wrote in his book The Right Man that when he drove home on the evening of September 11, 2001 after the tragic attack on our nation by Muslim terrorists that something grew within him. He wrote that a sudden ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:1-3

Tags: Father's Day

When Does The Size Of A House Become Sinful?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 4, 2011

WHEN DOES THE SIZE OF A HOUSE BECOME SINFUL? Several years ago, Millard Fuller of Habitat for Humanity addressed the National Press Club on public radio, on which he recalled a workshop he conducted at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary with 200 pastors in attendance. The assembled pastors quickly ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 6:6-10, Daniel 1:5-16

Tags: Greed

People Matter

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 10, 2011

PEOPLE MATTER One woman told the time her professor in nursing school gave a pop quiz. She said "I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, until I read the last one: 'What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?'" She thought: "Surely this was some kind ...read more

Scripture: John 10:14

Tags: Christian Values

What's The Demand?

Contributed by Scott Jensen on Feb 5, 2012

WHAT'S THE DEMAND? The magazine, Christianity Today, reported in its April 4, 1986 issue of a tool company that manufactured drill bits. Faced with financial losses, company executives gathered to discuss the problem: a declining demand for drill bits. The CEO challenged his men: "How can we ...read more

Scripture: Mark 1:29-39

Tags: Truth

Denomination: Lutheran

My Son Peter Was Born In Poland And Has A Polish ...

Contributed by Tim Hinrichs on Aug 3, 2012

My son Peter was born in Poland and has a Polish passport and yet since he’s my son, he also has an American passport. Depending on the situation, he can use whichever passport he wants and claims he is a citizen of both countries. Some people think that they can do the same with their life here ...read more

Tags: Kingdom Of God

Denomination: Lutheran

Nathan Barlow--Missionary ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2012

NATHAN BARLOW--MISSIONARY DOCTOR Nathan Barlow was a missionary Doctor to Ethiopia. He served there for over 60 years primarily helping people with an affliction called Mossy Foot. This caused swelling and ulcers in the feet and lower legs and caused people to become social outcasts. When Nathan’s ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:8-13

Tags: Missions

Love Your Enemies  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 22, 2012

LOVE YOUR ENEMIES An Armenian nurse had been held captive along with her brother by the Turks. Her brother was slain by a Turkish soldier before her eyes. Somehow she escaped and later became a nurse in a military hospital. One day she was stunned to find that the same man who had killed her ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:38-48

Tags: Christian Witness

Going Beyond Our Teachers  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jul 9, 2013

A well-known Bible teacher gives this insight: "Someone on our staff informed me several months ago that a woman had called the ministry office to find out what my 'official position' was on a biblically gray area. When she was told that it's not my policy to make 'official' public statements ...read more

Scripture: Mark 7:1-23

Tags: Legalism, Opinion, Spiritual Growth, Debatable

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Orphans

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 24, 2014

Rubel Shelly tells of his friends Rich and Patty White, who traveled to a 3rd world country to adopt a little girl named Olona. After 2 years of effort and paperwork, the Whites stood before a judge who read words from an official document: “Inasmuch as Olona Morgan is orphaned and unwanted by ...read more

Scripture: John 14:18

Tags: Chosen By God, Orphan, Unwanted

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Leadership

Contributed by Don Berry-Graham on Mar 1, 2016

I remember hearing a story about a famous film producer. As a child, he had a fight with another boy and lost. While his mother was bathing his black eye, he told her how it was entirely the fault of the other boy. It was the other boy who had started the fight, he claimed. His mother said ...read more

Scripture: John 13:2-17

Tags: God Is Love, Giving In Love, Jesus Leadership

Denomination: Baptist

Happiness Is Not Found In More Things....

Contributed by Garris Hudson on May 19, 2016

HAPPINESS IS NOT FOUND IN MORE THINGS... If having more would make us happy, we would never need the Tenth Commandment - "You shall not COVET.’ It is written especially for unhappy people who think that happiness is found in more things. Have you heard the story about the king who fell into a ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:1-17

Tags: Happiness, Materialism, Ten Commandments, Coveting

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Let Our Faith Be In God And Not In The Things Of This World.

Contributed by Greg Burcham on Sep 2, 2016

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Revelation 3:20 NKJV What a beautiful verse! Jesus declares His desire to be your Savior and friend. This verse comes at the end of Christ’s rebuke of ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:20

Tags: Laodicea, Open Door, God Cares For You

Denomination: Baptist

Legalism, Rules And Judging Others

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Nov 12, 2018

Charles Price (pastor of The Peoples Church in Toronto) tells the story of a friend of his who went to the Netherlands to share the gospel with Dutch people and became friends with many Dutch Christians. He was amazed to find out how distressed Dutch Christians were with the state of American ...read more

Scripture: Romans 6:1

Tags: Rules, Legalism Vs Liberty

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

When George Washington Prayed For America

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Dec 2, 2020

When George Washington was inaugurated in New York City in front of the Federal Hall, he walked to the St. Paul Church and prayed for our country in front of the church. He declared, "The propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order ...read more

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 7:14, Jeremiah 33:3

Tags: America, Prayer, Revival, Judgment, Repentance, George Washington  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

When Unity Comes

Contributed by Dr. Ronald Shultz on Dec 17, 2020

Psalms 133:1 A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! Ephesians 4:3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Ephesians 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 133:1, Ephesians 4:3, Ephesians 4:13

Tags: Unity, Maturity

Denomination: Baptist

Janis Joplin Died Of Loneliness.

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 1, 2021

On the 4th October 1970, the famed rock star Janis Joplin, at the age of 27 was found dead in her Los Angeles hotel room. Questions arose as to whether the cause of her tragic death was suicide or an accident. Later police reported that they located a small quantity of heroin in the rock singer’s ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:10

Tags: Fear, Drugs, Alone, Alcohol, Depression, Lost, Loneliness, Fame, Emptiness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Irony

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on May 3, 2021

One definition of the word irony is, “a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result.” • It is ironic, for example, that the most shop-lifted book is the Bible. • Every year ABC cuts down A Charlie Brown Christmas—a movie about ...read more

Tags: Sibling Rivalry, Humble Pie, Family Strife, Leadership, Rejection, Irony, Pedigree  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Seven Life Lessons From Samson

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 13, 2022

Certainly the story of Samson and the prostitute of Gaza stands as a cautionary tale to all of us. Here are some of the obvious lessons: 1) Just because we think we have conquered a certain sin doesn’t mean it will stay conquered forever. 2) The price of long-term spiritual victory is continued ...read more

Tags: Sin, Temptation, Judgment, Samson, Brokenness, Backslidden  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational