In Sermon Illustrations: "Sitting On The Fence"

One Of My Favorite Stories Is About Chippie The ...  PRO

Contributed by Tim Bond on Apr 30, 2003

One of my favorite stories is about Chippie the parakeet. Chippie was a happy little bird, content every day to sit on his perch, swinging and singing to his little heart’s content. One day Chippie’s owner took the initiative to clean out his cage. She took off the attachment from the end of the ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Jesus Met The Man In The Tombs, Healed Him, Cast ...  PRO

Contributed by Charles R. Swindoll on Nov 18, 2004

Jesus met the man in the tombs, healed him, cast the demons out. Now he is a sane man. Now he can take his place in society. I can imagine him coming home that evening after he met Jesus. His children look out the window and the cry out, "Mother, father is coming." She runs and locks the door. She ...read more

Scripture: Mark 5:1-20

Tags: Joy

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Touching In Church

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 6, 2005

Touching in Church What is all this touching in church? It used to be a person could come to church and sit in the pew and not be bothered by all this friendliness and certainly not by touching. I used to come to church and leave untouched. Now I have to be nervous about what is expected of me. I ...read more

Tags: Compassion, Christian Love

Denomination: Independent/Bible

A Lot Of People Think They Are Self-Acclaimed ...  PRO

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 5, 2007

A lot of people think they are self-acclaimed experts. Take this health food advice: Q: I’ve heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true? A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that’s it... don’t waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding ...read more

Tags: Finding Fulfillment

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Chippee The Parakeet

Contributed by Brian Matherlee on Oct 8, 2008

Chippee the Parakeet One of my favorite stories is about Chippie the parakeet. Chippie was a happy little bird, content every day to sit on his perch, swinging and singing to his little heart’s content. One day Chippie’s owner took the initiative to clean out his cage. She took off the ...read more

Tags: Hardship Of Life

Denomination: Wesleyan

Transparency And Real ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 17, 2009

TRANSPARENCY AND REAL LIFE I can right off the top of my head think of at least three falsehoods that many people still call the truth today: 1. "Every day in every way our world is getting better, better, better." I sure would like to meet the person who first wrote those words, wouldn’t you? ...read more

Tags: Truth

In The Movie Unforgiven, Clint Eastwood Plays ...

Contributed by Bret Toman on May 20, 2010

In the movie Unforgiven, Clint Eastwood plays the part of an aging gunfighter who lost his taste for killing many years before. He and his old partner, played by Morgan Freeman, are lured by the rumor of a bounty of gold being offered for the arrest of some cowboys who had disfigured a young ...read more

Tags: Depravity, Sin General

Denomination: Baptist

Come Down Off The Chair

Contributed by Michael Milton on Sep 11, 2011

COME DOWN OFF THE CHAIR There is a pastor who was once a professor--a very creative professor--at RTS in Jackson, Mississippi. One day he had the responsibility of leading the chapel service. Most of us prepare for chapel messages by Bible study and prayer. This professor prepared by not only ...read more

Tags: Pride

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Evangelism And Football  PRO

Contributed by Paul Dietz on Sep 28, 2008

Evangelism and Football We are now in the midst of one the hottest seasons of the year. No, I'm not talking about the weather and its accompanying temperatures. After all we have just finished having summer this past week and autumn is upon us. And also some trees up on the mountains in Grant and ...read more

Tags: Youth Day, Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: *other

Last Month Charlie Summers, The Pastor Of Seigle ...  PRO

Contributed by Jacob Golden, Jr. on Apr 20, 2002

Last month Charlie Summers, the pastor of Seigle Avenue Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, wrote an op–ed piece for The Observer that I wish I’d written. Charlie stands in an interesting place. He’s got one foot planted among the poorest folks in Charlotte, for Seigle Avenue is in the heart of ...read more

Tags: Giving General, Poverty

Denomination: Methodist

That's Why Paul Tells Us To Rejoice In The Lord. ...  PRO

Contributed by Kent Lenard on May 30, 2004

That’s why Paul tells us to rejoice IN the Lord. He is cautioning us about what we fixate on in life. Because what the we focus on will determine what our life is like. There is a story about a man had fixation for the power of ‘CRAZY GLUE’: While visiting the Eagle’s Rock African Safari Zoo ...read more

Tags: Character

Denomination: Baptist

Introduction: You May Not Recognize The Name But ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Introduction: You may not recognize the name but Vinko Bogataj, but in a few minutes those of you over the age of 35 will remember him, and those of you who are younger than that will be able to identify with him more than you might think. On March 21st, 1970, Bogataj was competing at the World ...read more

Tags: God In The Hardships

Who Should Get The Credit?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 12, 2011

WHO SHOULD GET THE CREDIT? I had the pleasure of coaching Little League for about 5 years and did so during the time my 3 boys played, so I coached the team they played on. On one occasion we were two runs behind in the final inning with a runner on 2nd. And who was coming to bat? Brian. Brian was ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:7

Tags: Pride

What Is Great Learning?

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 21, 2012

WHAT IS GREAT LEARNING? Thomas Fuller was born in Africa about 1710. He was sold as a slave in Virginia in 1724. There is some disagreement about whether someone taught him to count to 100 or if he taught himself. He never had a day of formal education. He taught himself to figure in his head how ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:17-25

Tags: Learning

[039] A Message From A Poem – Can We Understand His Goodness?

Contributed by Ron Ferguson on Feb 28, 2025

[039] A MESSAGE FROM A POEM – CAN WE UNDERSTAND HIS GOODNESS? This poem is one of my absolute top favourites. It just flowed and I attribute it to the Lord’s presence when I wrote it. I think it came to me late one night as a happy rhythm and flowed quite well so that it was written quicker ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:9-10, 2 Corinthians 6:2, Malachi 3:2-4

Tags: Love, Salvation, Goodness, Poetry, Understand  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Oscar Cervantes Is A Dramatic Example Of ...  PRO

Contributed by Kenneth Henes on Oct 27, 2000

Oscar Cervantes is a dramatic example of Christ’s power to transform lives. As a child, Oscar began to get into trouble. Then as he got older, he was jailed 17 times for brutal crimes. Prison psychiatrists said he was beyond help. But they were wrong! During a brief interval of freedom, Oscar met ...read more

Tags: God The Father, Lordship Of Christ, Sin Bondage To

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Several Years Ago One Of The Elders Of The ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 29, 2001

Several years ago one of the Elders of the congregation I preached for baptized a particularly large woman. He was concerned about how he would completely immerse her into the water and decided to explain to her how she could help him. He explained, "Now, when we get down into the water this is ...read more

Tags: Holy Spirit Baptism, Baptism

A Video Clip From The Movie "Dead Man Walking" ...  PRO

Contributed by Jim Luthy on Jul 13, 2001

A video clip from the movie "Dead Man Walking" might give us a better understanding of what mercy really is. In the video, Sister Helen Prejean sits with convicted killer Matthew Poncelet in his cell. When he confesses that he has indeed killed a man, Sister Prejean teaches him that he can become ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General, God's Forgiveness, Gifts Mercy

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Roof Of The Church Hall Of A Little Swiss ...  PRO

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Aug 8, 2001

The roof of the church hall of a little Swiss church, at the turn of the 20th century, was falling down. So the members of the church held regular prayer meetings in the hall after the service to pray for funds to repair the roof . There was an old man, known to be very tight with his money, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:5-13

Tags: Church Practices, Humor, Giving General, Spiritual Warfare, Warfare  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Anglican

I Remember Hearing A Story About A Man Who Had ...  PRO

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Sep 30, 2001

I remember hearing a story about a man who had missed church for a number of weeks. The preacher had often called him and asked where he was, but the man kept putting the preacher off. Finally, one day, the preacher stopped by for a visit on a cold winter day. The man was sitting in front of his ...read more

Tags: Church Small Groups, Church Body Of Christ, Growth In Christ

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ