In Sermon Illustrations: "One Line Sermons"

The Visit

Contributed by Todd Leupold on Dec 9, 2008

THE VISIT As Dr. Charles B. Hardwick points out (in his sermon “The Promise”, 2nd Presbyterian Church, 12/24/07): "On that Silent Night, God kept His promise: the God of the universe became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood – moved into a stable, moved into a feeding trough.. . God ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Baptist

Watch Out For The Wise Guys Col. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

Watch out for the wise guys Col. 2:8-10 A college student was in a philosophy class which had a discussion about God’s existence. The professor presented the following logic: "Has anyone in this class heard God?" Nobody spoke. "Has anyone in this class touched God?" Again, nobody spoke. "Has anyone ...read more

Tags: Truth

Charles Swindoll Lists What He Calls The "Four ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

Charles Swindoll lists what he calls the "four spiritual flaws": Flaw #1: Because you are a Christian, all your problems are solved. (Please do tell non-Christian this.) Flaw # 2: All the problems you will ever have are addressed in the Bible. (When your computer crashes, please don’t go to the ...read more

Tags: Ot Characters

I Recently Read Of A Sign Which Hangs On The Wall ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 16, 2008

I recently read of a sign which hangs on the wall of Shishu Bhavan, a children’s home in Calcutta, which reads; People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered, love them anyway. If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives, be kind anyway. If you are successful, you ...read more

Tags: Love For God

Watch Out For The Wise Guys Col. ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 27, 2008

Watch out for the wise guys Col. 2:8-10 A college student was in a philosophy class which had a discussion about God’s existence. The professor presented the following logic: "Has anyone in this class heard God?" Nobody spoke. "Has anyone in this class touched God?" Again, nobody spoke. "Has ...read more

Tags: Truth

Charles Swindoll Lists What He Calls The "Four ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

Charles Swindoll lists what he calls the "four spiritual flaws": Flaw #1: Because you are a Christian, all your problems are solved. (Please do tell non-Christian this.) Flaw # 2: All the problems you will ever have are addressed in the Bible. (When your computer crashes, please don’t go to the ...read more

Tags: Ot Characters

Shirley Maclaine On Self

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

SHIRLEY MACLAINE ON SELF Actress Shirley MacLaine said one time, "The most pleasurable journey you take is through yourself...the only sustaining love involvement is with yourself... When you look back on your life and try to figure out where you've been and where you're going, when you look at ...read more

Tags: Self

Charles Simeon Devoted The Hours From Four Till ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 28, 2008

Charles Simeon devoted the hours from four till eight in the morning to God. John Wesley spent two hours daily in prayer. He began at four in the morning. Of him, one who knew him well wrote: "He thought prayer to be more his business than anything else." Martin Luther said: "If I fail to spend ...read more

Tags: Worship General

Two Stories Of Injustice

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 12, 2009

TWO STORIES OF INJUSTICE In 1984, James Ealy was convicted in the 1982 brutal murders of 33-year-old Christine Parker, her two children and one grandchild. Two years later, the Illinois Appellate Court overturned the conviction - even as justices acknowledged Ealy almost certainly was guilty. They ...read more

Tags: Justice

Give Me All, And I'll Give You ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 17, 2009

GIVE ME ALL, AND I’LL GIVE YOU ME In Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote: Christ says, "Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:25-33

Tags: Self

Finishing Well

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 17, 2009

FINISHING WELL Dr. J. Robert Clinton, professor at Fuller Seminary, did a study of male leadership in the Bible and determined that only 30% of them finished well. Wow! The odds are against us! Consider also this next example. The World Cup is over. Italy beat France in a shootout, 5-3, in the ...read more

Tags: Christian Witness

With My Last ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 17, 2009

WITH MY LAST SONG Louis Albert Banks tells of an elderly Christian man, a fine singer, who learned that he had cancer of the tongue and that surgery was required. In the hospital, after everything was ready for the operation, the man said to the doctor, "Are you sure I will never sing again?" The ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 150:1-6

Tags: Worship General

The Dangers Of Toying With Sin

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 12, 2023

Several years ago our family visited Niagara Falls. It was spring, and ice was rushing down the river. As I viewed the large blocks of ice flowing toward the falls, I could see that there were carcasses of dead fish embedded in the ice. Gulls by the score were riding down the river feeding on the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:23

Tags: Sin, Salvation, Temptation, Deceit, Sinners, Sin Nature  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Have You Ever Noticed In Life That A Good Start ...  PRO

Contributed by Steve Malone on Apr 3, 2001

Have you ever noticed in life that a good start isn’t always enough. Now there is nothing wrong with a good start mind you, but it is often not enough to get us to the finish line, or to the winners circle. And if you don’t believe me, ask the Atlanta Braves who won the first 2 games of the ...read more

Tags: Endurance

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Missing The Circus  PRO

Contributed by Ryan Johnson on Mar 6, 2002

MISSING THE CIRCUS A little boy who lived far out in the country in the late 1800s had reached the age of twelve and had never in all his life seen a circus. You can imagine his excitement, when one day a poster went up at school announcing that on the next Saturday a traveling circus was coming ...read more

Scripture: John 10:1-10

Tags: Fulfillment, Abundant, Lukewarm, Life, Risk  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Living On The Mountain  PRO

Contributed by Darren Ethier on Mar 22, 2002

LIVING ON THE MOUNTAIN Listen to one man’s remarkable discovery at Smokey Mountain near the Philippine capital of Manila: "A gigantic man-made mound, perhaps 100 feet high, ran on before us for a mile or more. Wisps of smoke rose from fissures all over the sides and top of this municipal dump and ...read more

Tags: Fulfillment, Christian Disciplines, Love Of The Disciples

Denomination: Pentecostal

The Little Boy And The Circus  PRO

Contributed by Ely Lambert on Aug 26, 2002

The Little Boy and the Circus A little boy who lived far out in the country in the late 1800s had reached the age of twelve and had never in all his life seen a circus. You can imagine his excitement, when one day a poster went up at school announcing that on the next Saturday a traveling circus ...read more

Tags: Growth In Christ, Church Purpose Of, Holy Spirit Attributes

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Location, Location, Location

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Apr 15, 2010

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION Back in 1991, I did an internship as a hospital chaplain in Philadelphia. At that time, AIDS was a new thing, and honestly, the hospital wasn’t sure how to handle people with AIDS, they were not sure what precautions to take when treating AIDS patients, so they took ...read more

Tags: Affliction

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Julie Hadden: Precious To God

Contributed by Davon Huss on Mar 12, 2013

JULIE HADDEN: PRECIOUS TO GOD Julie Hadden, Winner of Season 4 of the TV show the Biggest Loser, told her story in a 2009 issue of Guideposts: I went to the auditions and made it on the show. Our first challenge was a race across California's Mojave Desert. First two contestants to get to the ...read more

Tags: God's Love, Human Life

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

A Dear Lady In The Church I Serve Shared With Me ...

Contributed by Russell Brownworth on May 14, 2007

A dear lady in the church I serve shared with me a poem she cut out of a magazine over 60 years ago. It has the spirit of what Dr. Graham’s mother felt about being a mother: A Mother’s Prayer Sing me no eulogy of praise, Give me no hallowed stool; Just let me be my children’s friend, ...read more

Denomination: United Methodist