In Sermon Illustrations: "Pastoral"

The Church: We Need One Another

Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009

THE CHURCH: WE NEED ONE ANOTHER A pastor received a call from a chronic alcoholic. He just couldn't seem to stay sober. He had tried several other churches, but they didn't seem to have anything to help him. Finally he called this pastor whose church had a reputation for not giving up on people. ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Church Of God

The Reason Behind An Unusual Hymn Singing ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 8, 2009

The Reason Behind an Unusual Hymn Singing Practice is Discovered Sometime in the last decade of twentieth century, a young pastor who was a fresh graduate from a renowned seminary was assigned to shepherd an old church in a remote village. The church was founded and built sometime in the late ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:3-8

Tags: Church Practices

Size Of Congregation Doesn't Guarantee ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 1, 2010

Size of Congregation Doesn’t Guarantee Fruitfulness It is important to note that large crowds do not necessarily mean that a teacher has a fruitful ministry. He may have a “successful” ministry, in the sense that the world measures success: by buildings, budgets, and bodies. But a “successful” ...read more

Scripture: Jude 1:12-13

Tags: Fruit Of The Spirit

70 Funerals In One Day

Contributed by Gregg Bitter on Nov 24, 2010

70 FUNERALS IN ONE DAY During a forty-year ministry, I would guess that many pastors do seventy or more burials. But this wasn't over the full span of his ministry. In fact, it wasn't even a full year. In one day, Pastor Rinkart did burial rites for up to seventy people and did the same the next ...read more

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Denomination: Lutheran

In The Secret Service  PRO

Contributed by Abraham Shanklin on May 19, 2003

In the Secret Service A gentleman was in front of a preacher coming out of the church one day. The preacher grabbed him by the hand, pulled him aside and said to him, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!" The man replied, "I’m already in the Army of the Lord, Pastor." The Pastor questioned, ...read more

Tags: Easter Resurrection

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Recent Lutheran Brotherhood Poll Reveals Adults ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 5, 2006

A recent Lutheran Brotherhood poll reveals adults spend about the same amount time shopping in December as they do attending religious services. Men spend an average 12.7% of their time shopping vs. 13.6% attending religious services, while women spend 19.1% and ...read more

Tags: Worship Purpose

Spiritual Superstition More Than 30% Of Americans ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 3, 2006

Spiritual Superstition More than 30% of Americans believe in astrology and over half believe in ghosts. However, many of the same folks say they believe in God, the resurrection of Christ and the virgin birth. A recent Harris Poll finds the trend is strong among the young, with 60% of those under ...read more

Tags: Paranormal

Religion Outranks Politics In Importance To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 3, 2006

Religion Outranks Politics in importance to individuals, and people think politics, not religion, fuels violence, according to a poll by Zogby International and the University of Rochester. The survey, a first-ever worldwide poll of 4,388 people on religious beliefs, revealed, “the majority of ...read more

Tags: Faith

One Old Minister Heard Some Ask In A Service ...

Contributed by Tony Abram on Jul 7, 2008

One old minister heard some ask in a service "Pastor did not Peter say the devil walk about as a roaring lion?" The pastor answered saying "The reason the devil is roaring is that Jesus pulled all his teeth and all the devil can do is make noise because he is ...read more

Tags: Satan

Porn Statistics

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jul 11, 2011

PORN STATISTICS • A 2003 survey from Internet Filter Review reported that 47 percent of Christians admit pornography is a major problem in their homes. • An internet survey conducted by Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in 2002 found 30 percent of 6,000 pastors had viewed internet porn in the last ...read more

Tags: Pornography

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Glory To God First

Contributed by Ken Henson on Jun 25, 2012

GLORY TO GOD FIRST A man came to Pastor Chuck, the church that I went to for several years while in California, and he said to the pastor that he wanted to make a large donation - about one million dollar donation. The pastor said to that, "Wow -- that is a lot of money. Let me go first and pray ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 15:21-39

Tags: Principles

Denomination: *other

Too Often Our Gratitude Is Dependent Upon The ...  PRO

Contributed by John Roy on Jan 29, 2001

Too often our gratitude is dependent upon the circumstances of life. A beautiful hymn was written by Martin Rinkart during the thirty-year war to help us look beyond our circumstances and see the hand of God. Rinkart was a pastor in Saxony, Germany as the turbulent years of the war dragged on. For ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:4-7

Tags: Joy, Thanksgiving Holiday

Denomination: *other

Was That Somebody You?  PRO

Contributed by Jun Tadena on Aug 25, 2006

"Was That Somebody You?" Tom Carter, the evangelist, told this in one of his messages: While he was holding meetings in a Pennsylvania town, a young man who had formerly lived next door to the parsonage committed a murder. The whole community was stirred. Mr. Carter and the pastor obtained ...read more

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Grudges And Pride Keep Us From Reconciling With ...  PRO

Contributed by Russell Brownworth on May 21, 2007

Grudges and pride keep us from reconciling with each other. They destroy the thought of forgiveness. The pastor and his wife were going to give a mid-morning garden party. They invited everyone with engraved invitations. The delightful back yard of the parsonage was manicured, tables decorated ...read more

Denomination: United Methodist

Preacher Focuses On Baptism Regardless Of Sermon ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 26, 2009

Preacher Focuses On Baptism Regardless of Sermon Text The story is told of a pastor who had just starting serving a new congregation. For eight Sundays in a row he preached about baptism. Finally, the chairman of the elders approached him and said, “Preacher, we get the point about baptism and so ...read more

Scripture: Romans 6:1-4

Tags: Baptism

Picking The Wrong Door

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 31, 2011

PICKING THE WRONG DOOR Stuart Briscoe, in his book Everyday Discipleship for Ordinary People, tells the story about a fellow pastor who was officiating at the funeral of a war veteran. The dead man’s military friends wanted to have a part in the service at the funeral home, so they requested that ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-5

Tags: Leadership General

The Dead Rat

Contributed by Paul Steen on Dec 11, 2017

A boy ran into his house to tell his mom something. He had a dead rat in his hand. But he didn't notice that the pastor of their church was talking to his mom. The boy said, “Mom, you'll never guess what! I was out behind the garage and there was this rat. I picked up a rock and threw it and hit ...read more

Tags: Excuses, Making Excuses

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

The Holy Spirit Had A Monopoly On Moody

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Nov 13, 2022

Dwight L. Moody was a shoe salesman from Chicago who fell in love with Jesus and started sharing his faith with everyone he met. Even though he was never ordained or had formal training, God used him to reach thousands for Christ as an evangelist. There was a group of British pastors who were ...read more

Tags: Holy Spirit, Preaching, Revival, Jealousy, Moody, Critical Spirit, Preachers  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Cheating

Contributed by David Parks on Jan 23, 2023

Cheating now more common Once upon a time in a tiny French village, the townspeople decided to honor their parish priest by each bringing a bottle of wine the following Sunday for the pastor’s empty wine barrel. The pastor was delighted, and he asked all in attendance to join him for a glass of ...read more

Scripture: James 5:12, Matthew 5:37

Tags: Truth, Integrity, Honesty, Cheating, Lying  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

We Believe: According To A Recent Newsweek Poll, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 27, 2006

We Believe: According to a recent Newsweek Poll, 78% of Americans believe that Jesus rose from the dead after the crucifixion, and 75% believe He was sent to earth to absolve mankind of sin. The article, From Jesus to Christ, also reports that Christianity is now the world’s largest faith, with two ...read more

Tags: Becoming A Christian