In Sermon Illustrations: "New Years"

Grace: Jean Valjean From Les Miserables

Contributed by N A on Feb 5, 2013

GRACE: JEAN VALJEAN FROM LES MISERABLES The story of Jean Valjean in Les Misérables is a great example of grace. * I read the book many years ago. Liza and I just saw the movie adaptation of the musical. * "Les Misérables is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that ...read more

Scripture: John 1:1

Tags: Grace

Denomination: *other

Mr. Holland’s Opus": Leaving A Legacy, ...  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Jun 15, 2001

["Mr. Holland’s Opus": Leaving a Legacy, Citation: Mr. Holland’s Opus, (Hollywood Pictures, 1995), rated PG, written by Patrick Sheane Duncan, directed by Stephen Herek; submitted by Greg Asimakoupoulos, Naperville, Illinois] Mr. Holland’s Opus is a movie about a frustrated composer in Portland, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:2-3

Tags: Family, David, Fulfillment, Gifts General, Jonathan, Legacy, Leadership General  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

To Say The Least, I Was At First Shocked To Read ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 26, 2001

To say the least, I was at first shocked to read the headline, Baby Ate Cocaine Dad Left Nearby. According to the Associated Press a father from Ravenna, Ohio was sentenced to one year in prison for endangering his daughter, who was six-months-old at the time of the incident. He evidently stashed ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 127:1

Tags: Father's Day, Children, Parenting

Last Week I Read In The Advice Column In The ...  PRO

Contributed by Larry Thompson on Jun 6, 2002

Last week I read in the advice column in the paper about a couple who was celebrating 50 years of marriage. The husband wrote that someone commented, ¡§Ken, 50 years is a long time.¡¨ He immediately responded: ¡§Not nearly as long as it would have been without her.¡¨ I couldn¡¦t get the man¡¦s ...read more

Tags: Unity

Denomination: Baptist

Staring Down The Critic's Barrel!" Proverbs 9: ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Jan 17, 2005

“Staring Down the Critic’s Barrel!” Proverbs 9: 7-10 Key verse(s): 8b:“. . . rebuke a wise man and he will love you.” The Bible tells us that “rebuke a wise man and he will love you.” Love? What happened to getting the emotional revenge that is so satisfying? There doesn’t seem to be a lot of ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 9:7-10, Psalm 82:3-4, Philippians 2:13-14

Tags: Grace, Leadership General

Denomination: Lutheran

Backing Out Of Life's Garage!" Exodus 20:18-21 ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Feb 20, 2005

“Backing Out of Life’s Garage!” Exodus 20:18-21 Key verse(s): 20:“Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning’.” Graduating from a reel mower to a power mower, was a very big step in my life. I began ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:18-21

Tags: Fear And Worry

Denomination: Lutheran

It's An Ongoing Battle At The Twitchell ...

Contributed by Jonathan Twitchell on Dec 7, 2006

It’s an ongoing battle at the Twitchell household. We have a great number of beautiful songbirds that come to our birdfeeders in the front yard: goldfinches, house finches, red-winged blackbirds, orioles, and cardinals are accompanied by chickadees, mourning doves, blue jays. We tolerate the ...read more

Denomination: Nazarene

The Name Auschwitz Brings Terror And Grief To The ...  PRO

Contributed by Fred Sigle on Mar 12, 2007

The name AUSCHWITZ brings terror and grief to the hearts of many people. It is the sight of an infamous NAZI DEATH CAMP where 4 million Jews died during World War II. A half-ton of hair is still PRESERVED. The SHOWERS that once sprayed POISON GAS still stand. Maximillian Kolbe, a Franciscan ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Fear And The Deceits Of The Heart  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 3, 2010

FEAR AND THE DECEITS OF THE HEART I think Edward Welch chose brilliantly the title for his book on overcoming the fear of man: When People are Big and God is Small. Maybe you can relate to his personal awakening to this problem when he was a high-school senior: "I had always been shy and ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 51:11-13, Isaiah 51:12-16

Tags: Ransom, Fear And Worry

Example Of Hospitality

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Jun 29, 2010

EXAMPLE OF HOSPITALITY Jan and Darryl have always been openly generous people. They make you feel as if they are honoured to have you in their home and nothing is too much trouble for them. Which is just as well because they are our connect group leaders. Every fortnight people in our Connect ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 13:5-15

Tags: Hospitality

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Who Are You Rescuing?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 28, 2010

WHO ARE YOU RESCUING? Jesus, help us to control our desires. May a thirst for knowing You and a longing to please You become our strongest passion, like it was for Mary Frances Housley. Let me tell you a true story. MARY FRANCES HOUSLEY was born October 12, 1926 in Knoxville, Tennessee. She grew ...read more

Scripture: John 15:12-13

Tags: Evangelism Urgency

The Invisible Enemy

Contributed by Sermon Central on Sep 7, 2011

THE INVISIBLE ENEMY "Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite" has been spoken by loving mothers to their children for decades as they gently tucked their little ones to sleep and wished them a good night. The phrase itself carries within it the gentle reminder of a younger age and ...read more

Scripture: James 1:19-27

Tags: Sin Bondage To

Counterfeit ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

COUNTERFEIT CHRISTIANITY Several years ago in Kentucky a man walked into a Dairy Queen, placed his order and then paid for it with a $200 bill. The cashier gave him $198 in change and he drove away. Some time later in the day I guess the manager noticed that something didn’t seem right about this ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:25-33

Tags: Discipleship

Grandma's Hands

Contributed by Jerry Cosper on Mar 23, 2016

Grandma’s Hands When I stand at the graveside for an elderly person, I think about the life they have lived, that dash between the birth date and date of death. I think about all they have seen, all they have experienced. And I think about this story that is told: Grandma, some 90+ years, sat ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:8

Tags: Hands, Graveside

Denomination: Baptist

A Brief History Of The Jewish People And Israel.

Contributed by Gordon Mcculloch on Jul 22, 2018

1. Introduction Ephesians 2 verse 19, it says … “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints, and also members of the household of God”. There is a lot in that verse … but I will start by focusing on the phrase, “members of the household of God” … so ...read more

Tags: The Jews, The History Of The Jews, The History Of Israel

Denomination: Episcopal

Mothers Of ...

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

Mothers of Influence It is a great privilege and responsibility to be a mother. No one has a more profound and enduring influence upon those around them than a mother raising her children in the fear and wisdom of the Lord. Timothy, was one such young man who was greatly influenced by ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:5

Tags: Mother's Day

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Wise Man Vs. The ...

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Aug 11, 2008

The Wise Man vs. the Fool The Bible says Jesus was one who taught with authority. That amazed the crowds because their own teachers did not. (Matt. 7 : 28) The Lord’s parable of the “The Wise and Foolish Builders” found in Luke 6: 46-49 is specifically directed to those who profess to ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:49

Tags: Wisdom

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The First Mongolian ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 28, 2009

THE FIRST MONGOLIAN CHURCH The Christian authors, Bill and Amy Stearns, in their book entitled "20/20 Vision: Amazing Stories of What God Is Doing Around the World," describe how the Gospel of Jesus, the Christ, came to Mongolia. "In the 1870’s Swedish missionaries arrived in Mongolia - what was ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:8

Tags: Missions

George Mueller Was A Man Of Faith. He Was A ...

Contributed by Sean Harder on Dec 4, 2009

George Mueller was a man of faith. He was a prayer warrior who financially supported missionary operations, especially orphanages in 26 different countries. Near the end of his life he admitted to reading the entire Bible about 200 times; 100 times on his knees. Apparently if you went to his house ...read more

Tags: Prayer Persistence

Covering Up A Hole

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Mar 18, 2010

COVERING UP A HOLE Katie and I had arrived in Oklahoma and were getting about the task of settling in. We were living in a cramped two-room apartment and desperately looking for a house to buy. We were looking to purchase our first house ever. As we looked at houses around town, there always ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational