In Sermon Illustrations: "New Identity"

Following The Terrible Mexico City Earthquake Of ...

Contributed by Donnie Martin on Mar 10, 2010

Following the terrible Mexico City earthquake of 1985, live satellite coverage carried the news of Mexico’s anguish to a watching world. A pastor was sitting in front of his television set stunned by the extent of the damage. Mountains of broken concrete filled the screen. Rescue workers dug ...read more

Tags: Sin General

Denomination: Baptist

Change

Contributed by Larry Wilson on Aug 7, 2010

Bound by Tradition Warren Wiersbe tells us, “Over the years I have seen churches . . . flounder and almost destroy themselves in futile attempts to embalm the past and escape the future. Their theme song was, ‘As it was in the beginning, so shall it ever be, world without end, Amen.’ Often I’ve ...read more

Tags: Church, Change

Denomination: Baptist

What Is Culture?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 13, 2010

WHAT IS CULTURE? What is culture? It is the ways of thinking, living, and behaving that define a people and underlie its achievements. It is a nation’s collective mind, its sense of right and wrong, the way it perceives reality, and its definition of self. Culture is the morals and habits a mother ...read more

Tags: Culture

Michael Jackson's Funeral

Contributed by Fran Van Hoven on Nov 13, 2010

MICHAEL JACKSON'S FUNERAL On July 7, 2009 a private service was held at Forest Lawn cemetery at 8 a.m. for Michael Jackson also called the "King of Pop." The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) blocked all traffic as the motorcade proceeded from Forest Lawn to the Staples Center where the public ...read more

Tags: Christian Disciplines

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Sometimes Newspaper Editors State The Obvious

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Jan 2, 2011

Sometimes newspaper editors state the obvious: * 'If strike isn't settled quickly it may last a while'. * 'War dims hope for peace' * 'Cold wave linked to temperatures' * 'Child's death ruins couple's holiday' * 'Blind woman gets new kidney from dad she hasn't seen in years' * 'Man is fatally ...read more

Tags: Mistakes

Denomination: Brethren

Noah Legends

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Jul 25, 2011

NOAH LEGENDS One website I visited examined different flood stories from such diverse nations as · East Africa · Argentina · Australia · Bolivia · Borneo · Burma · Cuba (original natives) · Fiji · Egypt (Book of the Dead) · Iceland · India · Mexico · New Zealand · Russia- Vogul · Vietnam- ...read more

Tags: Noah

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Is There A Doctor?

Contributed by Perry Greene on Nov 29, 2011

IS THERE A DOCTOR? I heard on the news of a woman who was on an overseas flight. She called flight attendant over to her and told her she was having a heart attack. The flight attendant asked, "Is there a doctor on board?" At that point, 67 heart doctors stood up. They were all headed to a ...read more

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Knowing Where You're Going

Contributed by Larry Allen on Jan 9, 2012

KNOWING WHERE YOU'RE GOING Remember Alice in Wonderland when she comes up to the fork in the road and asks the Cheshire cat which way to go. He asks her, "Where are you going?" Then she replies, "I don’t know," at which he replies, "If you don’t know where you are going, what difference does it ...read more

Tags: Preparation

Denomination: Nazarene

101-Year-Old Grandmother Sets Paragliding Record ...

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Mar 26, 2012

101-year-old Grandmother Sets Paragliding Record (WATCH) By Good News Network Thursday, March 22, 2012 Not wanting to be outdone by her 75-year-old paragliding son, Mary Allen Hardison of Ogden, Utah, took flight on her birthday, becoming the "Oldest Female to Paraglide Tandem" -- an achievement ...read more

Tags: Aging

Denomination: Independent/Bible

A Desperate Situation

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 5, 2012

A DESPERATE SITUATION The old preacher Vance Havner used to say, "The tragedy of our time is that the situation is desperate but the saints are not." Three weeks before President John Kennedy was assassinated, he said, "Almost all presidents leave office feeling that their work is unfinished. I ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 9:35-38

Tags: Evangelism Urgency

Statistics On Alcohol Use

Contributed by Davon Huss on Sep 24, 2012

STATISTICS ON ALCOHOL USE The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports that per capita consumption of alcohol by Americans age 14 and older has dropped from 2.75 gallons in 1980 to 2.31 in 2007. Good news but consider the number who are addicted to drugs. Drug abuse continues ...read more

Tags: Alcohol

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Christian Man Displays Cross

Contributed by Matthew Oliver on Oct 20, 2012

Christian man Carl Behr of Baldwin, Pennsylvania received a notice on Monday ordering him to remove the 24-foot high illuminated cross he has installed in his front yard and kept lit day and night. But Behr plans to fight the order at a municipal meeting. “It’s all about my faith, and some people ...read more

Tags: Cross, Sin Deceptive, Obey God

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Your Sin Will Find You Out

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 4, 2013

YOUR SIN WILL FIND YOU OUT ORANGE CITY, Fla., Jan. 31 (UPI) -- Authorities in Florida said they arrested a man who accidentally called 911 while allegedly talking about selling drugs. The Volusia County Sheriff's Office said dispatchers contacted deputies around 9:42 p.m. Tuesday and told them an ...read more

Tags: Sin Exposed

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Hell's Gate

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Apr 18, 2017

A man was looking for a place in New York City to party late one night. He stopped a police officer and said, "I am looking for a night club named Hell’s Gate. Do you know how to get there?" The officer said, "Sir, just keep going down this street and will you pass Calvary Church on your right. ...read more

Scripture: John 3:16

Tags: Hell, Salvation, Witnessing, Calvary

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Expectations Of The Messiah

Contributed by Tim Smith on Aug 13, 2017

Reza Aslan writes in his book “Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth”: “The Jews of Jesus’ time had conflicting views about the role and function of the messiah….Some believed the messiah would be a restorative figure who would return the Jews to their previous position of power and ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 3:1

Tags: Messiah, Expectations

Denomination: Methodist

Value Of The Old Testament

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 24, 2019

. “Marcion preached that the god who sent Jesus into the world was a different, higher deity than the creator god of Judaism. He considered himself a follower of Paul the Apostle, who he believed to have been the only true apostle of Jesus Christ. Church Fathers such as Justin Martyr… and ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:1-7

Tags: Old Testament, Profitable Old Testament

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Propitiation

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 30, 2019

The New Testament Greek word "hilasterion" (translated “propitiation” or “sacrifice of atonement”) suggests three related but nuanced concepts: (1) expiation – the legal removal of sin by means of the sacrifice; (2) propitiation – the removal of God's wrath toward the sinner (wrath ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:21-31

Tags: Expiation, Forgiveness Of Sin, Penal Atonement, Atonement, Propitiation  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Example Of Extreme Forgiveness

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 17, 2020

Twenty years ago, Rwanda experienced a horrible genocide as one tribal group attacked and massacred another over tribal rivalry. Here is one story of forgiveness from that horrid era. “He killed my father and three brothers. He did these killings with other people, but he came alone to me and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 17:3-4

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness, Reconciliation, Restitution, Apology  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

They Did Not Deny That Faith Was An Essential ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

They did not deny that faith was an essential part of salvation, but they added to it (works, circumcision, & other rituals). Many do the same thing today they believe salvation is by grace + … Franklin D. Roosevelt, Jr., was ill with a staff infection of the throat. A new medicine called ...read more

Scripture: Luke 24:13-35, 2 Timothy 4:1-6, Galatians 5:1-12

Tags: Doubt

Forbes Magazine (Feb. 12, 1996, P. 28) Once ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Forbes Magazine (Feb. 12, 1996, p. 28) once reported these names that showed up on police blotters: Sentenced for assault in St. Joseph, MO - Jesse James; cited for speeding in Parma, Ohio - Maelia A. Earhart; and jailed in Des Moines, Iowa, was Shannon Cooper, who police said went out bar-hopping, ...read more

Tags: God's Omnipotence