In Sermon Illustrations: "Not Hearers Only"

How To Be A Servant  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

HOW TO BE A SERVANT You need to answer a very important question this morning. Are you more interested in being served or being a servant? A first grade teacher asked her students, "What do you do to help at home?" One little girl said, "I dry the dishes." One of the boys said, "I sweep the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 20:20-28

Tags: Servanthood

Guard Duty

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 15, 2011

GUARD DUTY When I was in the U.S. Army, I remember we had to pull guard duty many times. The purpose of guard duty was to ensure that other soldiers, equipment, or areas were protected from the enemy. I can recall that in basic training, or boot camp, we had to memorize three General Orders and ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 4:23

Tags: Heart

Safe Rooms

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 22, 2011

SAFE ROOMS Lynne and I and the family were moving to Tulsa from Missouri and were looking at potential homes. One thing we came across was a house with a 'safe room' or actually only a 'safe closet'. A closet, which served as a coat closet near the front door, was built with steel walls and a ...read more

Scripture: John 3:1-21

Tags: Unbelief

Perfect Day For Evil

Contributed by Brad Henry on Sep 13, 2011

PERFECT DAY FOR EVIL As I gave the opening prayer at Charlotte Motor Speedway to Honor 9/11, I met this man in a Fireman’s’ uniform with a New York accent. The Speedway had flown in three men who had been First Responders that day 10 years ago. This man gave me a chilling account of his day. His ...read more

Tags: Holidays Civic

Jehovah Is Still God

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Nov 14, 2011

JEHOVAH IS STILL GOD Gladys Aylward, missionary to China more than 50 years ago, was forced to flee when the Japanese invaded Yangcheng. But she couldn't leave her work behind. With only one assistant, she led a 100+ orphans over the mountains toward Free China. During Gladys's harrowing journey ...read more

Tags: Faith

Denomination: Independent/Bible

It

Contributed by Brad Henry on Dec 9, 2011

IT Each of us has an "IT" that is keeping us from joy and being free from worry. It isn't until we let go of that "IT" that we will be free. We can talk about all the steps to get out of addictions, the steps to curtail anger, animosity, jealousy, fear of death and a host of other worries and ...read more

Tags: Fear And Worry

How Corrie Ten Boom Got Started

Contributed by Johnny A. Palmer Jr. on Dec 13, 2011

HOW CORRIE TEN BOOM GOT STARTED Corrie Ten Boom following WW II, understood that God was leading her to come to America. She survived the Nazi death camps and wanted to tell her story. She arrived here with only 50 dollars; no friends; no place to stay; and no speaking invitations. She writes, ...read more

Tags: Promises Of God

Denomination: Baptist

Contaminated

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Feb 22, 2012

CONTAMINATED I'm all thumbs when it comes to band-aids. I know you're not supposed to touch the pad, the part that compresses the wound. If you do, then you contaminate it, and you run the risk of infection. And, of course, you don't want to do that. So, every time I use a band-aid, it's something ...read more

Tags: Sin Bondage To

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Object Lesson: Lego Bricks

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012

OBJECT LESSON: LEGO BRICKS When you came in you received Lego building blocks of differing sizes and shapes. I’ve got a challenge for you; I want you to build something with your Lego blocks but there is one condition, you cannot use anybody else’s Lego block. Now what can you build with one Lego ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

The Spirit Of Poverty

Contributed by Charles Jones on Jun 30, 2012

THE SPIRIT OF POVERTY If: You justify your lack and make excuses. You are afraid to give under the direction of the Holy Spirit. You govern your finances with a lack of trust and don't believe God is your source. Your are suspicious that those around you may take your money. When things ...read more

Tags: Poverty

Denomination: Pentecostal

The Three-Legged Chicken

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 4, 2012

THE THREE-LEGGED CHICKEN One day a traveller was driving down a back country road when he noticed that there was a three-legged chicken running alongside his car. He stepped on the gas but at 50 miles per hour, the chicken was still keeping up. After about a mile of running, the chicken ran up a ...read more

Tags: Divisions

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Kyle Idleman On Dying To Self

Contributed by Kevin Karhoff on Mar 18, 2013

What’s it look like to die every day? Well, dying to yourself today may mean spending your lunch hour serving food to the homeless at the shelter down the street from your office. It may mean the next time you talk to your neighbor, instead of playing it safe and keeping comfortable you bring ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:23

Tags: Surrender, Jesus Christ, Dying To Self, Commitment To Christ

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

No Atheists In The Water  PRO

Contributed by Paul Barreca on Mar 31, 2013

NO ATHEISTS IN THE WATER David Harrell wrote a book telling the story of his father, Edgar Harrell. Edgar was one of the 300 survivors of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, the last US ship sunk by enemy contact in WW2. 600 of the 900 men who survived the ship's sinking were stranded in the ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 2:15

Tags: Shipwreck, Death, Dying, Loneliness, Atheism  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Transformed Versus Conformed -- The Case Of The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 5, 2013

TRANSFORMED VERSUS CONFORMED -- THE CASE OF THE JAPANESE WATERMELON Farmers in Zentsuji, Japan, are preparing full-grown watermelons for shipment -- only these are no ordinary melons: they're square! They were placed in tempered-glass cubes while they were still growing. Why would anyone want a ...read more

Scripture: James 12:1-2

Tags: Sanctification

The Trouble Telescope  PRO

Contributed by Perry Greene on May 8, 2013

THE TROUBLE TELESCOPE Most of you have seen the wonderful images from the Hubble Space Telescope. From the far reaches of space, we're able to see God's most breathtaking creations. Do you remember that in the beginning the Hubble Space Telescope was not the wonderful machine that it is today. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:12

Tags: Self

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Forget The Gps!

Contributed by Robert Harmon on Oct 4, 2014

My brother Curtis had come home from Italy to visit us, and attended worship at the congregation where I served. Afterword, he wanted to go to Mammoth Cave and show his wife and son one of the natural wonders of the US. We tagged along, and I told him I knew the way. He said, “Naw, we’ll use the ...read more

Scripture: Acts 17:11-12

Tags: Direction, Apologetics, Bible Study, Bible Truth

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

This Was The Second Time That Someone Has Died For Me

Contributed by Tim Smith on Aug 13, 2017

James Harnish tells the story of a woman in Tampa who probably received the best Christmas present of anyone. It came the week before Christmas. In August she had been diagnosed with severe cardiomyopathy, a rare heart disorder which causes the muscels of the heart to become inflexible. In fact, ...read more

Scripture: Titus 3:4

Tags: Best Christmas Gift, Dying, Jesus Death

Denomination: Methodist

Forgetting What Is Past And Straining Toward The Future

Contributed by Kerry Haynes on Oct 8, 2017

Commentator Gordon Fee recalls the famous “miracle mile,” the first time two milers ran under four minutes in the same race. Roger Bannister and John Landy competed in Vancouver, B.C. in 1954. Landy had led all the way, but coming off the final turn toward the finish line he looked over his ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 3:13-14

Tags: Forgetting The Past, Heavenward Calling, Future Oriented

Denomination: Baptist

Awesome Achievement (Moffatt's Law)

Contributed by Andrew Moffatt on Jan 31, 2018

Awesome achievement And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - Paul. (1 Corinthians 13:13) Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians writes about love in chapter thirteen, but he finishes the chapter by mentioning two other powerful things, ...read more

Tags: Achievement, Confident Belief, Faith, Love, Law, Hope, Action  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Salvation Army

Disguised

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Aug 15, 2018

I live in Arkansas. I LOVE when autumn comes and fall leaves drift down on autumn breezes. But in Arkansas, you have to be careful about those leaves on the ground because some of them conceal SERPENTS. There are lots of Copperhead Snakes here. Copperheads are venomous Pit Vipers that strike you ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 11:14, Genesis 4:7, Genesis 3:1, Proverbs 23:27, Proverbs 22:14, Ecclesiastes 7:26  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Deceive, Disguise, Discerning, Affairs, Snares, Sin, Deception, Serpent, Adultery  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic