In Sermon Illustrations: "Real Friend"

Psalm 47 And Rosh Hashanah

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 20, 2010

PSALM 47 AND ROSH HASHANAH When a brand new believer in 1974, my friend loaned his LP Album by Messianic Jewish group "Lamb." When I married Marylu in 1980, I married into Lamb albums. One of the songs was titled, "Clap Your Hands, All Ye People," and was a paraphrase of Psalm 47. Preparing this ...read more

Tags: Holidays

Denomination: Independent/Bible

No Record Anywhere

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Nov 27, 2010

NO RECORD ANYWHERE My friend Dr. Roy Gustafson has the finest illustration of justification I have ever heard. It seems that there was a man in England who put his Rolls-Royce on a boat and went across to the continent to go on a holiday. While he was driving around Europe, something happened to ...read more

Tags: Justification

Denomination: Brethren

Be Like Mike...?  PRO

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Jun 2, 2011

BE LIKE MIKE...? Gary Thomas, in his book Authentic Faith, describes a friend of his named Mike. He met Mike when he went to college. Mike was a leader among students. He had everything: a contagious personality, athletic ability, good looks, and natural appeal. And everybody wanted to be around ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 24:10-14

Tags: Christian Witness

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

King Henry Ii's Anger

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jun 10, 2011

KING HENRY II'S ANGER King Henry II of England, back in around 1200, had a lot of power. He put an end to a long and bloody civil war, and ruled both England and a large chunk of France for many years. He was so famous that a movie was made about him, about 25 yrs ago, starring Richard Burton and ...read more

Tags: Anger

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Hostile Heart

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 8, 2012

HOSTILE HEART Beware the hostile heart. That's the warning of Dr. Redford Williams from Duke University's Behavioral Medicine Research Center. He has been saying for years that having a hostile personalities can kill us--most often by heart disease but also by injuries and accidents. Anger speeds ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 4:20-27

Tags: Heart

John Newton's Self-Assessment  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 4, 2012

JOHN NEWTON'S SELF-ASSESSMENT Two or three years before the death of John Newton (former slave ship captain and eventual author of the song, "Amazing Grace"), when his sight was so dim that he was no longer able to read, a friend and brother in the ministry called to have breakfast with him. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 1:12-17

Tags: Grace

Henry Ford: The Bang On The Table  PRO

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Nov 26, 2012

HENRY FORD: THE BANG ON THE TABLE In 1896, Henry Ford attended a company event where Thomas Edison (the great inventor) was the guest of honour. His friend introduced him to Edison as "the man trying to make a car that runs on gasoline." Edison asked young Henry Ford a host of questions and when ...read more

Tags: Encouragement

Denomination: Independent/Bible

The Birth Of Jesus - An Ordinary Time But An Extraordinary Birth

Contributed by David Simpson on Jan 15, 2013

The Romans dominated the country. The Jewish people were captive to Roman law and Roman ways. That is what compelled Joseph to travel with his pregnant wife Mary from Nazareth to Bethlehem (some 80 miles). To return to his ancestral home for the purpose of registering for the Roman census. Just ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-7

Tags: Christmas, History, Birth Of Jesus

Denomination: Christian Church

Orphans

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 24, 2014

Rubel Shelly tells of his friends Rich and Patty White, who traveled to a 3rd world country to adopt a little girl named Olona. After 2 years of effort and paperwork, the Whites stood before a judge who read words from an official document: “Inasmuch as Olona Morgan is orphaned and unwanted by ...read more

Scripture: John 14:18

Tags: Chosen By God, Orphan, Unwanted

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Trust In The Lord To Fix It

Contributed by James Ledbetter on Feb 3, 2015

A friend pastor of mine once told me a story about trusting in the Lord to fix what is broken. A certain man and his pastor traveled to preach a sermon at another church. And when finished they went to a store to look around. The man bought a doll for his daughter and took it home and gave it to ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 40:1-4, Psalm 40:1-40

Tags: All-Powerful God, Book Of Psalms, Trust Jesus

Denomination: Apostolic

Let Our Faith Be In God And Not In The Things Of This World.

Contributed by Greg Burcham on Sep 2, 2016

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Revelation 3:20 NKJV What a beautiful verse! Jesus declares His desire to be your Savior and friend. This verse comes at the end of Christ’s rebuke of ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 3:20

Tags: Laodicea, Open Door, God Cares For You

Denomination: Baptist

Beatitudes For Marriage

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 30, 2020

We all know and love the Beatitudes for what they mean to our own personal lives, but recently I sensed the Lord leading me to write down how these guidelines for Kingdom citizens affected the lives of married couples. The results were received very powerfully by our amazing church family: Poor ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Marriage, Prayer, Beatitudes, Couples

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

People Are Special!

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Aug 17, 2020

Aug. 13, 2020 (UPI) -- A 95-year-old California man known to neighbors as "Bicycle Bob" was treated to a celebration after he logged his 100,000th mile of cycling… he took up cycling when he retired in the 1990s and has been logging his miles ever since. Mettauer logged his 100,000th ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 8:1-9

Tags: Man, Ability, Mankind, Human, Dignity Of Man  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Janis Joplin Died Of Loneliness.

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 1, 2021

On the 4th October 1970, the famed rock star Janis Joplin, at the age of 27 was found dead in her Los Angeles hotel room. Questions arose as to whether the cause of her tragic death was suicide or an accident. Later police reported that they located a small quantity of heroin in the rock singer’s ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 4:10

Tags: Fear, Drugs, Alone, Alcohol, Depression, Lost, Loneliness, Fame, Emptiness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Funny Church Feuds

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 31, 2022

Church feuds are not uncommon, especially among cliques in the congregation. But when the pastor and worship leader get into it, stand aside. In one church, the preacher preached one weekend on commitment, and how you should dedicate yourselves to service. The worship leader then led the choir in ...read more

Tags: Church, Unity, Hymns, Division, Church Fights  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Prodigal Son In The Key Of F

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 14, 2022

Feeling footloose and frisky, a foolish fellow forced his father to fork over his fourth of the family farthings and flew far to a foreign field where he fast frittered his father's fortune feasting foolishly with faithless friends. Fleeced by his fellows and folly, and facing famine he found ...read more

Tags: Humor, Repentance, Parables, Lost, Prodigal Son  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Paul's Persuasion

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jul 12, 2023

A pastor asked a dying man, "My friend, what persuasion are you?" The man replied, "I am of Paul’s persuasion." The pastor said, "I am afraid you didn’t understand me. Of what persuasion are you?" The man answered, "Oh, I understood you. I am of Paul’s ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:1-9, Romans 8:28-39, 1 John 5:1-13

Tags: Assurance, Pastors, Denominations, Faith, Death, Heaven, Salvation, Hope  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Great Christmas Story To Use!

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 28, 2023

Pastor Clifford S. Stewart of Louisville, Kentucky, sent his parents a microwave oven one Christmas when microwaves were a new thing for many Americans. Here's how he recalls the interesting experience: "They were excited that now they, too, could be a part of the instant generation. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-12, John 1:1-12

Tags: Witnessing, Birth Of Christ, Son Of God, Evangelism, Christmas, Jesus, Salvation, Gospel, Missions  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Pierced By The Word Of God - The Hell Fire Club

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Nov 19, 2025

When God wills it, ... his word can pierce anyone. As a certain Mr. Thorpe in 18th century Bristol ... found out. Thorpe was a part of a band of men who called themselves, ... the "Hell Fire Club." Their reason for existence ... was to mock and ridicule the work of the famed ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 4:12, Isaiah 55:11

Tags: Pierce, Word, Scripture, Sword

Denomination: Anglican

A Christmas Story  PRO

Contributed by A. Todd Coget on Dec 12, 2003

[A Christmas Story, unknown] I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma. I was just a kid. I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb: "There is no Santa Claus," she jeered. "Even dummies know that!" (Rejection!) My Grandma was not ...read more

Tags: Christmas

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational