In Sermon Illustrations: "Never Quit"

Leaders Are Born And Made

Contributed by Tim White on May 7, 2011

LEADERS ARE BORN AND MADE J. Oswald Sanders in his classic “Spiritual Leadership” believes that leaders are both born and made. “While conversion does not normally make leaders of people who would never become such otherwise, Church history teaches that in the hour of full surrender the Holy ...read more

Tags: Leadership General

Denomination: Baptist

The Bill Always Comes Due

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 12, 2011

THE BILL ALWAYS COMES DUE Bob Harris, weatherman for NY TV station WPIX-TV and the nationally syndicated independent Network news, had to weather a public storm of his own making in 1979. Though he had studied math, physics and geology at three colleges, he left school without a degree but with a ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 19:5

Tags: Lies

The Bells Toll For Someone Else

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jun 22, 2011

THE BELLS TOLL FOR SOMEONE ELSE We began the week with the story of the Chicago nightclub fire in which 21 people were killed as they rushed to the exit. The club had already been cited for overcrowding and other safety violations--like not enough doors and windows. What happened was that a ...read more

Tags: Second Coming

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

A Reggie Jackson Perspective

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 2, 2011

A REGGIE JACKSON PERSPECTIVE Dave Bosewell tells the story of Earl Weaver who was the manager of the Baltimore Orioles and how he handled slugger Reggie Jackson. Weaver had a rule that no one could steal a base unless the steal sign was given. This upset Jackson because he knew pitchers and ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 11:2

Tags: Arrogance

The Rug: Making And Keeping Good Boys

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

THE RUG: MAKING AND KEEPING GOOD BOYS A preacher tells how he was once entertained by a teacher and his wife who had two boys in their middle teens. He writes, "Immediately on entering, I felt the home atmosphere. They were evidently a fine Christian family. However, I noticed that the carpet in ...read more

Scripture: Titus 2:1-6

Tags: Mother's Day

Navy Seals

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 9, 2011

NAVY SEALS I don’t know much about the army but here is something I read recently about those Navy Seals who shot Osama Bin Laden. It’s good to be a Navy SEAL right now. The elite sailors are being showered with praise for their successful operation in Pakistan that resulted in the killing of ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:3

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Where Can I Get A Heart Like Yours?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 12, 2011

WHERE CAN I GET A HEART LIKE YOURS? Bill White of Paramount, California talks about being in Compton, California, working with volunteers from several different churches on a Saturday doing projects to serve the city. At lunch time, he was headed down a narrow side street when he saw dozens of ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:11-12

Tags: Christian Witness

Roots And Fruits

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Oct 10, 2011

ROOTS AND FRUITS How many of you have been to a funeral? As you approach the casket you'll see numerous floral arrangements, and these floral displays use two different kinds of flowers. First there are the bouquets of cut flowers, and there are planters. There's generally more bouquets than ...read more

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Second Pilgrim Winter

Contributed by Paul Barreca on Nov 19, 2011

THE SECOND PILGRIM WINTER After the first Thanksgiving with Massosiat and the Indians, the Pilgrims were excited that another ship arrived with 35 new colonists. Quoting again from William Bradford, “they were all landed; but there was not so much as bisket-cake or any other victialls [AO] for ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18

Tags: Thanksgiving Holiday

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

William Borden: No Reserves, Retreats, Regrets

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Jan 23, 2012

WILLIAM BORDEN: NO RESERVES, RETREATS, REGRETS In 1903, a young, bright man named William Borden graduated from high school – a millionaire. He was the heir to the Borden Dairy fortune. Following graduation, William traveled around the world. Everywhere he went he was touched by the needs of ...read more

Tags: Commitment To Christ

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Billy Graham: Growing Old Has Been A Surprise  PRO

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Feb 7, 2012

BILLY GRAHAM: GROWING OLD HAS BEEN A SURPRISE Billy Graham, in his book "Nearing Home: Life, Faith, and Finishing Well" (pp. 1-2, Thomas Nelson), he writes: Growing old has been the greatest surprise of my life. The young live for the here and now. Thinking ahead seems to be in the form of dreams ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 16:31

Tags: Aging

Denomination: Baptist

Billy Graham's Arena Dreams

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Feb 7, 2012

BILLY GRAHAM'S ARENA DREAMS Billy Graham, in his book "Nearing Home: Life, Faith, and Finishing Well" (pp. 2-3, Thomas Nelson) writes: I have remained a baseball fan, not necessarily of one team over another but of the game itself--the teamwork, the strategy, and the challenge of defeating the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:28

Tags: Dreams

Denomination: Baptist

Worship: It Takes Time To Warm Up

Contributed by Tim Smith on Jul 1, 2012

WORSHIP: IT TAKES TIME TO WARM UP When I was a kid in Kansas City, we lived next door to a family who owned a publishing company. They had an old 4 door Mercedes that they would let their son drive to school. He was 3 years older than me and also named Tim. On those winter mornings when the ...read more

Tags: Worship General

Denomination: Methodist

So Many People Believe They Can Be Right With ...

Contributed by Bret Toman on Dec 10, 2012

So many people believe they can be right with God, they can have peace with God, they can deflect God’s anger from them by being good and doing good. They rightfully understand there’s a debt that they owe. But they don’t understand it’s a debt they could never repay. And to try to repay it does ...read more

Tags: Righteousness, Assurance Of Salvation

Denomination: Baptist

Finish Strong

Contributed by Jeffrey Rowe on Dec 29, 2012

In 2 Tim 4:7 Paul said that death was like finishing the race. Like crossing the finish line. That all of life is really about one thing – finishing well. Accomplishing the dreams and goals that God has for your life. I ran cross country in high school. We’d go out to these golf courses and ...read more

Tags: Death, Running The Race

Denomination: Holiness

The Final Play Of The Game  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 7, 2013

THE FINAL PLAY OF THE GAME It's never too late to trust Jesus. Oops, I need to qualify that. There IS a time when it's too late to trust Jesus. If you die without putting your faith in Jesus, then it's too late. Someone observed about the thief on the cross that there is one deathbed conversion in ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:39-43

Tags: Salvation, Becoming A Christian

Husband Doesn't Get It

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Jun 19, 2013

TWICE A WEEK After just a few years of marriage filled with disagreements and arguments, a young man and his wife decided the only way to save their marriage was to try counseling. Things had slipped from bad to worse as the months passed, turning their marriage into a marathon of misery. They had ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:19

Tags: Communication, Marriage, Husband, Relationships

Denomination: Baptist

When Your Sin Finds You Out.  PRO

Contributed by Larry Turner on Sep 16, 2013

I was 18 years old when I stole my first and only item. I was a bagger at a local grocery store. The store had some small battery operated record players that played 45s. (For those too young to remember what 45s were, they looked like bid CDs with a hole in the middle.) A lot of the record players ...read more

Scripture: Numbers 32:23

Tags: Truth, Unconfessed Sin

Denomination: Foursquare

Sleepless Dads!

Contributed by Eduardo Quintana on Oct 4, 2015

You’ll probably not get six continuous hours of good sleep ever again. And if you do, you’ll never admit it because it will make your wife mad for the broken-up sleep she got when she got up and took care of the teething child. Dads, there is nothing more comforting to your little one than to have ...read more

Scripture: Malachi 4:6

Tags: Fatherhood, Sleeplessness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Human Ingenuity And The Genius Of God

Contributed by Jerry Stephens on Mar 26, 2016

Recently, I was watching a documentary about the top 101 inventions of all time. Pretty cool stuff. Human ingenuity is pretty amazing. We’ve figured out how to do all kinds of things. What are some of the best things human imagination has come up with? I have to tell you, they may not be very ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:18-29

Tags: Faith, Trusting God, Eternal Life, Human Wisdom

Denomination: Vineyard