In Sermon Illustrations: "Receiving Christ"

Leo Tolstoy Once Wrote A Story About A Successful ...

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Mar 9, 2010

Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For $1000, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his ...read more

Tags: Greed, Parable Rich Fool

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Thirst ---- Believe It Or Not I Played Football ...

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Apr 3, 2010

THIRST ---- Believe it or not I played football in high school. Football started in August where I grew up, and in August the daily temperatures were usually 100 - 120 degrees. That’s hot. Of course our brilliant coaches insisted we wear full padding for practice. Further, some einstein purchased ...read more

Tags: Stress

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

How Much Is A Body Worth?

Contributed by Rodelio Mallari on Nov 20, 2010

HOW MUCH IS A BODY WORTH? When biochemist Harold J. Morowitz of Yale University received a humorous birthday card from his daughter that read: "According to biochemists, the materials that make up the human body are worth only ninety-eight cents," he reached for a catalog of a supply company ...read more

Tags: Human Body

Denomination: *other

Beholden To Money

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 13, 2011

BEHOLDEN TO MONEY In his book How Much Is Enough? Hungering For God In An Affluent Culture author and Founder of Bread for the World: Arthur Simon writes about Bryce and Ellen, "a couple in their mid-thirties. They have two sons and a daughter, and on Sundays the family attends church more often ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-34

Tags: Money

God Will Lift Up Your Head

Contributed by Ken Pell on Jun 12, 2011

GOD WILL LIFT UP YOUR HEAD During the Thirty Years' War in the 17th century, German pastor Paul Gerhardt and his family were forced to flee from their home. One night as they stayed in a small village inn, homeless and afraid, his wife broke down and cried openly in despair. To comfort her, ...read more

Tags: God Brings Hope

Denomination: Nazarene

Mom's Church  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 6, 2011

MOM'S CHURCH Four scholars were arguing over Bible translations. One said he preferred the King James Version because of its beauty, eloquent old English. Another said he preferred the American Standard Bible for its literalism, the way it moves the reader from passage to passage with confident ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 1:5

Tags: Mother's Day

Repentance In The White House  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 10, 2011

REPENTANCE IN THE WHITE HOUSE In 2001, Tim Goeglein started running the White House Office of Public Liaison, providing him almost daily access to then President George Bush for seven years. Then it all ended abruptly on February 29, 2008. A well-known blogger revealed the startling fact that 27 ...read more

Scripture: Romans 2:4

Tags: Compassion, Repentance

God Knows

Contributed by Brad Henry on Oct 7, 2011

GOD KNOWS The receiving line at the memorial was very long as Jim and Steph had many family members that came from Texas and Georgia. Halfway through the line, I was introduced to Jim's sister, brother and nephew. They said "Are you the Brad Henry that wrote the devotional about my brother?" I ...read more

Tags: Miracles General

An Honors Student In Fort Worth, Texas, Was Sent ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 17, 2012

An honors student in Fort Worth, Texas, was sent to the principal's office and punished for telling a classmate that he believes homosexuality is wrong. Holly Pope said she was "absolutely stunned" when she received a telephone call from an assistant principal at Western Hills High School ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:10-16

Tags: Persecution

We Are The World Was A Benefit Single For Victims ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 23, 2012

We are the World was a benefit single for victims of famine in Africa. It raised over $63 million, which was distributed to Ethiopia, Sudan, and other impoverished countries. On the morning of April 5, 1985 (Good Friday of that year), "We Are the World" received worldwide coverage. At 10:25 am, ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-58

Tags: Easter Good Friday

Coffee Doesn't Trust Me  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 25, 2014

My pet finch Coffee runs into a serious problem once in a while. Her claws grow so long she loses the ability to control them. They get stuck in the nest and she can’t get them out. Once we found her nearly dead, hanging for hours upside down with one claw ensnared in her wicker home. Carol rescued ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:28

Tags: Surrender, Trust In God, Rest In God, Pruning, God's Care  (view more)  (view less)

Circuit Riders

Contributed by Roy Fowler on Jun 19, 2020

In the early years, Circuit riders were most often lay preachers without formal education. They were young, poor, and, for the most part, single. Traveling thousands of miles a year. Though circuit riders eventually represented many different denominations but none were more aggressive or ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 9:35

Tags: Personal Sacrifice, Teaching And Preaching

Denomination: Independent/Bible

An Admission Of Guilt

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on May 14, 2023

There once was a governor of the state of Texas who received an invitation to speak at one of the penitentiaries in that state. He spoke to the assembled prisoners and afterwards said that he would be around for a while to listen to anything any of the convicts might wish to tell him. He could take ...read more

Scripture: John 3:1-26

Tags: Confession, Testimony, Guilt, Pardon

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Did Jesus Really Die On The Cross?

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 25, 2024

One lady sent in a letter to a religious question and answer forum. "Dear Sirs, Our preacher said on Easter, that Jesus just swooned on the cross and that the disciples nursed Him back to health because he just fainted on Good Friday. He didn't really die and he wasn't really raised ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:8, 1 John 2:1-2

Tags: Resurrection, Son Of Man, Cross, Son Of God, Empty Grave, Easter, Crucifixion  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Don't Let The Sun Confuse You

Contributed by Tim White on Mar 10, 2025

When Laura and I were blessed with a gift of a cruise, we had a blast. On the way back from the western Caribbean, we opened the cabin curtains to watch another sunset. But, there was no sun. I checked the television station that had mapped our trek and displayed our current location. The cruise ...read more

Scripture: John 12:46

Tags: Confusion, Direction, Guidance

Denomination: Baptist

Mr. Rogers Cardigan

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Apr 13, 2025

We learn how God so loved the world. God sent His Son. He didn’t just say, “I love you.” He showed it. He gave something deeply personal. Something costly. Something that met our greatest need. And in a much smaller, but still powerful way, Fred Rogers—yes, Mister Rogers—modeled that kind of ...read more

Scripture: John 13:34

Tags: Love, Give, God Gave, Love Gives, Love Costs  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Polycarp, The Bishop Of Smyrna Was Brought ...  PRO

Contributed by Owen Bourgaize on Oct 18, 2000

Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna was brought before the Roman authorities and told to curse Christ and he would be released. He replied, "Eighty-six years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong: how then can I blaspheme my king who saved me?" The Roman officer replied, "Unless you change ...read more

Tags: Hell, Discipleship, Faith

Denomination: Baptist

One Day I Was Seeking To Emphasize To A Christian ...  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Apr 23, 2001

One day I was seeking to emphasize to a Christian Brother the intimacy of this union. We happened to be drinking tea together, so I took a lump of sugar and stirred it into my tea. A couple of minutes later I asked, “Can you tell me where the sugar is now, and where’s the tea?” “No,” he said, ...read more

Tags: Discipleship, Parable General

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Father Wants Us To Be Filled Only With ...  PRO

Contributed by Paul Wallace on Sep 8, 2001

“The Father wants us to be filled only with His Christ. Will you let Him deal so thoroughly in His love, until you are consumed with Him, having to continually depend upon Him, instead of anything of yourself? For God to take you deeper into Himself, He must expose all in you that is not of ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 3:19

Tags: Discipleship, Christian Disciplines

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The New York Times Reported A Study About The ...  PRO

Contributed by Christopher Roberts on Dec 6, 2001

The New York Times reported a study about the diminishing belief in the devil among Americans. Two-thirds of Americans do not believe in the devil as a living entity. In a randomly selected survey of over 1,000 Americans, pollsters asked whether they agreed that Satan is “not a living being, but ...read more

Tags: Apologetics The Bible, Satan, Sin Fall Of Man, Poll

Denomination: Methodist