In Sermon Illustrations: "Ransom From Sin"

Targums

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Dec 13, 2010

TARGUMS More than 500 years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the Jews returned to Judea from their long time of captivity Babylon. About that time, Jewish religious leaders began to write commentaries on various Bible books that they called "Targums." One of these Targums dealt with the ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

World Hunger Compared To American Diet

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 10, 2011

WORLD HUNGER COMPARED TO AMERICAN DIET Most of us have no idea what it is like to be really hungry. We might use the expression "I’m starving!" But the truth is far from that. • People who starve to death each year in the world: 11 million • Overweight U.S. adults: 34 million • Average calories ...read more

Scripture: Ezekiel 16:49-50

Tags: Food

We Will Remain Christians

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 27, 2011

"WE WILL REMAIN CHRISTIANS" An American journalist in 1993 interviewed a group of children from a Sunday school in southern Sudan where Arab Muslims regularly raided their village and slaughtered Christians. Many of their relatives had already been killed. The journalist asked, "Would you turn to ...read more

Scripture: Acts 7:51-60

Tags: Persecution

Passionate Counseling

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2012

PASSIONATE COUNSELING A distraught man brought his wife to see the pastor. The woman was listless and unresponsive. After about thirty minutes of futile attempts to counsel them, the pastor walked over to the woman, pulled her from the chair, wrapped his arms around her and gave her a passionate ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:19

Tags: Marriage Struggle

You Gotta Look At It!  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 22, 2012

YOU GOTTA LOOK AT IT! A man was seated on a park bench when a little chap of about five sat down beside him and started winding what appeared to be a most prized possession--a watch. "My, what a pretty watch," remarked the man. "Does it tell you the time?" "No sir," replied the boy; "you gotta ...read more

Scripture: John 17:17

Tags: Hold, Bible Truth

Accused

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Oct 29, 2012

ACCUSED A Louisiana man has been released from death row, becoming the 300th prisoner nationwide to be freed after DNA evidence showed he was innocent. Of those 300 prisoners, 18 had been on death row, according to lawyers from the New York-based Innocence Project. [source: Good News Network]. It ...read more

Tags: False Teaching

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Tozer On Ambition To Lead  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 8, 2013

A. W. Tozer said, "A true and safe leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead, but is forced into a position of leadership by the inward pressure of the Holy Spirit and the press of the external situation." He continued to elaborate, "I think there was hardly a great leader from Paul to ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 3:1-13

Tags: Leadership General

Don't Play It Safe!

Contributed by Trae Durden on Nov 11, 2014

“Life was no cakewalk for Jesus, and he didn’t promise it would be any easier for his followers. We shouldn’t be surprised by resistance and persecution. Yet most of us play it safe. We pursue comfort. We spend ourselves to get more stuff. And we prefer to be entertained. We are all tempted by the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:34-38

Tags: Comfort, Risk, Life In Christ, John Piper

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Church Without The Holy Spirit

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 19, 2022

David Platt in his book, Radical, has a chapter entitled, "Beginning at the End of Ourselves -- The Importance of Relying on God's Power (Subsection entitled - “Dependent on Ourselves or Desperate for His Spirit?”). This is where I am most convicted as a pastor that I am part of a system ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:11

Tags: Church, Holy Spirit, Pentecost, Power, Pastors, Programs  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Blind Bartimaeus

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 11, 2025

John MacArthur points out two pieces of information that help set the context for today’s narrative. i. Before modern medicine, many babies would become blind from eye infection. Venereal diseases also cause infants to go blind, which is why perhaps the disciples asked whose fault it is if a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 20:29-34, Mark 10:46-52

Tags: Healing, Blind, Bartimaeus

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Charlie Peace

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Jun 3, 2026

Story: Charlie Peace was a notorious English criminal who lived in the 1800’s. He was eventually captured and sentenced to death by hanging When he was being taken to the gallows, a priest followed him reading about heaven and hell. At the mention of hell, Peace reportedly said: “Sir, if I ...read more

Scripture: Luke 16:19-31

Tags: Hell, Salvation By Walking On Glass

Denomination: Anglican

Be Assured, If You Walk With Him And Look To Him, ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 20, 2002

Be assured, if you walk with Him and look to Him, and expect help from Him, He will never ...read more

Tags: God's Omniscience, God's Provision, Promises Of God

One Must Always Maintain One's Connection To The ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 20, 2002

One must always maintain one’s connection to the past and yet ceaselessly pull away from ...read more

Tags: Growth In Christ, Forgiveness General, Forgiveness For Others

Nothing In Life Creates More Deep Seated ...  PRO

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Apr 27, 2002

Nothing in life creates more deep seated anxieties than the false assumption that life should be ...read more

Tags: Guilt, Peace

Denomination: Assembly Of God

George Macdonald Wrote, "Half The Misery In The ...

Contributed by Robert Leroe on Jul 11, 2002

George Macdonald wrote, “Half the misery in the world comes from trying to look, instead of ...read more

Tags: Leadership General, Faith, Giving Yourself

Denomination: Congregational

An Ad Appeared In A Newspaper That Read: "Farmer ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2005

An ad appeared in a newspaper that read: “Farmer wants to marry woman, 35, with tractor. Send ...read more

Tags: Women

The Creation Of Something New Is Not ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 11, 2007

The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The ...read more

Tags: Art

Brotherhood Doesnt Come In A Package. It Is Not ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 11, 2007

Brotherhood doesnt come in a package. It is not a commodity to be taken down from the shelf with one hand it is an ...read more

Tags: Family

The Individual Who Learns To Practice ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"The individual who learns to practice thanksgiving activates within himself, and around himself, ...read more

Tags: Joy

As J. Oswald Sanders Comments, "The Master ...

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Mar 1, 2008

As J. Oswald Sanders comments, “The Master expects from His disciples such conduct as can be explained ...read more

Denomination: Other