In Sermon Illustrations: "Other Religions"

What Is Our Tradition?

Contributed by Perry Greene on May 20, 2013

WHAT IS OUR TRADITION? It is said that during a service at an old synagogue in Eastern Europe, when the Shema prayer was said, half the congregants stood up and half remained sitting. The half that was seated started yelling at those standing to sit down, and the ones standing yelled at the ones ...read more

Tags: Pentecost, Tradition

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Pushing The Outhouse  PRO

Contributed by Perry Greene on Dec 10, 2013

PUSHING THE OUTHOUSE A young boy lived in the country. His family had to use an outhouse, which the young boy hated. It was hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and always smelly. The outhouse was located near the creek so the boy decided that he would push it into the water. After a spring ...read more

Scripture: Luke 18:9-14, John 8:1-11

Tags: Repentance, Discipline, Consequences, Outhouse

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Is Evangelism Too Hard?

Contributed by Tim Smith on May 11, 2014

Jenn Hopkins writes of attending a funeral several years ago. "There he lay, dead. He was gone and unsaved. Lived a life and then, in the flash of an eye, he was in Hell. Someone I loved and respected was gone and so was my opportunity to share the Gospel with him. His funeral was in a church, one ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 3:8-13

Tags: Evangelism, Hell

Denomination: Methodist

Clean Conscience

Contributed by Shine Thomas on Aug 1, 2017

Martin Luther who brought the protestant reformation out of the Catholic church questioned the doctrine and practices of the Catholic church in a thesis called ‘The Ninety-Five Theses’ in October of 1517. The Roman Catholic church wanted Martin Luther to recant his view. The Diet of Worms of 1521 ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 119:11

Tags: Conscience, Clean Conscience, Pure Conscience

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Get In The Barrel

Contributed by Ron Freeman, Evangelist on Oct 18, 2017

A man was type rope walking across Niagara Falls. As he made his first attempt, it seemed like the draft from the falls would pull him down. With some struggle, he got to the other side and returned. A crowd began to gather. He asked: "how many of you believe I can take this wheel barrel across and ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:1-4, Exodus 14:29-30

Tags: Faith, Obedience, Red Sea, Dry Land, Lord Saved Israel, Lord Destroyed Egypt, True Faith Trust God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Wrong Reasons For Study Of Bible

Contributed by Tony Abram on Jan 21, 2018

At the village church in Kalonovka, Russia, attendance at Sunday school picked up after the priest started handing out candy to the peasant children. One of the most faithful was a pug-nosed, lad who recited his Scriptures with proper piety, pocketed his reward, then fled into the fields to munch ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-3

Tags: Holy, Sanctification

Gun Laws

Contributed by Terry Laughlin on Mar 18, 2018

Gun Laws Laws - "are sent by Him to punish those who do wrong and commend those who do right." 2 Peter 2:14 - Keeping this truth in the context of guns. Nothing wrong with making sure there are laws which make it hard for wicked or mentally ill people from getting guns. Those (mentally ill or ...read more

Tags: Laws, Gun Laws, Guns

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Sabbath Sympathy

Contributed by Nickolas Kooi on Jun 1, 2018

Never one to back down from a fight, Jesus takes the bait, and summons the man. He literally says, “Rise in the midst of the group.” And there are two reasons for this request. He wants everyone to see and witness this event. He wants him up and in the middle. The second is this. As a ...read more

Scripture: Mark 3:3-5

Tags: Sabbath, Pharisees, Sympathy, Sabbath Controversy, Healing By Jesus  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Lutheran

Perpetual Babyhood

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Jul 18, 2018

WE HAVE AN IMPERATIVE COMMAND: 2 Peter 3:18 But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen. PERPETUAL OR ETERNAL BABYHOOD… From LIVING WITH JESUS TODAY by Juan Carlos Orte We have a phenomenon in the church today which I ...read more

Tags: Babyhood, Diaper Changes

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Eating The Wrong Cookies - Assumptions

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Sep 30, 2019

A traveller, between flights at an airport, went to a lounge and bought a small package of cookies. Then she sat down and began reading a newspaper. Gradually, she became aware of a rustling noise. From behind her paper, she was flabbergasted to see a neatly dressed man helping himself to her ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 9:1-14

Tags: Deception, Assumptions, Satan's Craftiness

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

8 Lies Addicted Gamblers Tell Themselves

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Oct 15, 2019

8 Lies Addictive Gamblers Tell Themselves 1. "One more trip to gamble won't hurt anything." 2. "I need to go gamble to see my friends." 3. "I'm a loser, so who cares if I gamble." 4. "I deserve to gamble, because I have had a hard week." 5. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 3:12

Tags: Excuses, Gambling, Work

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Bible. God's Manual For Life

Contributed by Jesse Crooks on Mar 10, 2020

The Bible God’s manual for living Joshua 1:8 Psalm 119: 11 Last year we finally traded vans. We drive one until it falls apart in the road. Our van would no longer go in reverse, and it would have been too expensive to replace the transmission. The new one didn’t have the owner’s manual, ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 1:8, Psalm 119:11

Tags: Bible, Manuel

Inventing Our Own Words

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Dec 8, 2020

The right word can make a difference. Sometimes the right word needs to be invented. 2. Here are some suggested new words: CARPETUATION (kar pet' u a shun)n. The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string or a piece of lint at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 25:11

Tags: Vocabulary, Thesaurus, Words, Creativity, Language, Terminology  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

An Outline Of Joseph's Life

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 13, 2022

The story of Joseph’s life can be outlined by several key events in Genesis:   1. REJECTION (37:1-36) – Jacob selected Joseph as the favored son and he was despised by his brothers. They threw him into a pit and left him for dead.   2. REFINEMENT (38:1 – 40:23) – Traders came by and ...read more

Tags: Faith, Temptation, Rejection, Joseph, Will Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Christmas Traditions Around The World

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 19, 2022

As Americans, we pride ourselves in "doing Christmas up big." Tons of gifts, big holiday feasts, huge trees, Lights on the houses. Here are some of the other ways people prepare for the celebration of Christmas: * In Italy they have no Christmas trees, instead they decorate small ...read more

Tags: Christmas, Birth Of Christ, Customs, Traditions

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Patience With Those Who Reject Our Savior

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 5, 2023

According to a traditional Hebrew story, Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted him, and then invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man's feet and gave him food and ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

Tags: Endurance, Patience, Forbearance, Fruit Of The Spirit, Waiting On God, Evangelism, Grace, Holy Spirit  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Do You Have Enough Points To Get To Heaven?

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 12, 2023

I heard a story the other day about a guy who died and stood before the gates of heaven. An angel met him and said, “We have a new plan for getting into heaven. We’re now using a point system and you need 1,000 to enter.” The man told the angel that this would be no problem as he started rattling ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:23

Tags: Justification, Sinners, Evangelism, Grace, Forgiveness, Sin, Heaven, Salvation  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Man Does Not Always Mean What He Says (Humor)

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Mar 13, 2023

Many of you are aware ... that there are times ...when we men ....do not always say what we mean, ... So, please allow me to translate ......for your future benefit: When a man says, IT WOULD TAKE TOO LONG TO EXPLAIN Well .... He generally means: ... I have no idea ... how it works. When a man ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:1-18

Tags: Father, Father's Day, Say

Denomination: Anglican

Larry Norman Funeral Was A Going Away Party

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Mar 25, 2024

What a gathering! Over 500 poured into a church this morning to pay our respects to Larry Norman. As we entered, we were handed ‘circus programs’ (instead of a boring pamphlet) that read: "Larry Norman Presents: A Going Away Party." It was a gathering of friends, family and fans ...read more

Tags: Funerals, Christian Music, Death, Celebration, Heaven, Mourning  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cookies Vs Brownies - Truth Is Subjective

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Apr 13, 2024

Cookies versus brownies Alisa’s Childers gave the following example in her book, “Live Your Truth and Other Lies”. What is the best dessert? Pie? Ice cream? Brownies? Cookies? Cake? If you choose cake with ice cream, you would be correct. Well, actually, it just means that you’re probably a really ...read more

Scripture: John 18:38, John 14:6

Tags: Tolerance, Truth, Objective Truth, Subjective Truth

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed