In Sermon Illustrations: "Spiritual Resilience"

The Year I Thought I Killed The Vine

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Feb 20, 2026

Years ago, my wife and I moved into a new house in Michigan. There was a grapevine growing along the fence. We were getting into gardening, and I thought, “This is fantastic. We have a grapevine.” The first year, the vine looked amazing. It was long and healthy. It stretched along the fence, ...read more

Scripture: John 15:1-8

Tags: Spiritual Fruit, Spiritual Growth, Abiding In Christ, Pruning

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Buttprints In The Sand  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 22, 2004

Buttprints in the Sand One night, I had a wondrous dream; One set of footprints there was seen. The footprints of my precious Lord, But mine were not along the shore. But then some stranger prints appeared, And I asked the Lord, "What have we here?" "Those prints are large and round and neat, But, ...read more

Tags: Growth, Servanthood, Service, Spiritual

Superficiality: The Curse Of Our Age

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Oct 20, 2013

"Superficiality is the curse of our age. The doctrine of instant satisfaction is a primary spiritual problem. The desperate need today is not for a great number of intelligent ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Tags: Disciplines Meditation, Spiritual Discipline

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Gossip Test

Contributed by John Bright on Jun 1, 2021

Another basic concept – sin creates spiritual blindness. Let me illustrate with my favorite sin to talk about… GOSSIP. I’ll stop right here and make sure you know how I define gossip. Before you tell someone a story about another person (even disguised as a prayer request), it needs to pass all ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:37-45

Tags: Sin, Gossip, Spiritual Blindness

Denomination: Methodist

An Appetite For God

Contributed by Dr. Fred W. Penney on Mar 5, 2026

It is the desire for God which is the most fundamental appetite of all, and it is an appetite we can never eliminate. We may seek to disown it, but it will not go away. If we deny that it is there, we shall in fact only divert it to some other object or range of objects. And that will mean that we ...read more

Scripture: John 6:35, John 6:58

Tags: Faith, God, Spiritual Hunger

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Scratch Resistant

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Dec 6, 2022

I was emailing with a friend about the intense testing we all seemed to be experiencing when she emailed back to me: I think a very good analogy for the unending intense spiritual attacks is to liken it to how a diamond is formed… Diamonds are formed under extreme pressure and intense heat, ...read more

Scripture: Zechariah 13:9

Tags: Endurance, Fiery Trials, Spiritual Strength, Refining, Tests, Spiritual Attacks  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

A Game Of Redemption And Unity

Contributed by Jung Lee on Jan 16, 2024

In Korea, there's a popular game called "Ice or Free." The rules are simple: one person is 'it' and chases others. Players can freeze themselves if cornered by shouting "Ice," becoming immune to being tagged. They remain frozen until a teammate tags them, setting ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-2

Tags: Spiritual Support, Christian, Responsibility, Redemption, Unity, Cycle, Spiritual Growth, Community  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Going Beyond Our Teachers  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jul 9, 2013

A well-known Bible teacher gives this insight: "Someone on our staff informed me several months ago that a woman had called the ministry office to find out what my 'official position' was on a biblically gray area. When she was told that it's not my policy to make 'official' public statements ...read more

Scripture: Mark 7:1-23

Tags: Legalism, Opinion, Spiritual Growth, Debatable

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Hunting Mice

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 28, 2014

HUNTING MICE It is amazing how we can focus on things that don’t matter and neglect the most important things in life. We need to learn how to choose our battles better. Leonard Ravenhill said it ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:32-33

Tags: Spiritual Warfare, Priorities, Little Things

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Mammon

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Oct 2, 2014

The Blessed Life is a book written Robert Morris. He talks about a crucial weed that chokes out the truth of God, the teachings of God, the Word in our life – that weed or thorny vine is called mammon – greed – the love of money which supersedes the love of the Lord Jesus. It’s a real weed and it’s ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:24

Tags: Money, Greed, Riches, Spiritual Attack

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Commitment

Contributed by Tim Smith on May 28, 2015

Dave Hood tells the story of training to run a 5K run. Every time his wife and he would go running on their favorite trail, they’d walk a little faster, and with a little more gusto. One day, a half mile in and a young lady came at them sprinting towards them. They jumped out of the way so she ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:13-14

Tags: Commitment, Spiritual Growth, Running The Race

Denomination: Methodist

Augmented Reality Device Guides The Blind

Contributed by Matt Neace on Jun 19, 2018

In World magazine, Michael Cochrane shares about a new technology called “augmented reality” (AR). Using this “augmented reality” a group of researchers from Cal Tech developed an app for Microsoft’s HoloLens. This app enables blind people to navigate through buildings. According to the MIT ...read more

Tags: Direction, Call, Discipleship, Spiritual Blindness

Denomination: Baptist

Yuri Gagarin Did Not See God.

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 9, 2020

Do you know the name of Yuri Gagarin?? The year was 1961 and this Russian cosmonaut was the first human to travel into space. After circling the earth, the atheistic astronaut came back and declared that he looked outside his capsule and didn’t see God anywhere. To which Dr. W. A. Criswell ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12

Tags: Faith, Beatitudes, Atheism, Spiritual Vision

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Satan's Three-Fold Attack

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 9, 2020

Satan tempts us in three separate ways according to I John 2:15-16: "The lust of the flesh is the desire to DO something apart from the will of God. The lust of the eyes is the desire to HAVE something apart from the will of God. The pride of life is the desire to BE something apart from ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:1-12, 1 John 2:15-16

Tags: Lust, Satan, Spiritual Warfare, Temptation

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

If Ii Were Satan...

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 14, 2021

IF I WERE SATAN… I would delude their minds into thinking that they had come from man's effort, instead of God's blessings; I would promote an attitude of loving things and using people, instead of the other way around; I would convince people that character is not an issue when it comes ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:7-9

Tags: America, Satan, Spiritual Warfare, The Devil

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Fooled By Our Emotions

Contributed by Alison Bucklin on Jun 17, 2023

One of the most difficult things, all Christians must surely admit, is to differentiate between a truly spiritual fervor and a carnal, animal zeal and enthusiasm. Natural animal spirits and temperament may very well make one fervent and zealous.... There is nothing of which a preacher needs to be ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:21, Jeremiah 17:9

Tags: Spirituality, Enthusiasm, Martin Lloyd Jones

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

My Six-Eyed Mother

Contributed by Austin W. Duncan on Apr 17, 2026

I grew up in Amarillo, Texas. And I remember watching my mom navigate the wonderful world of vision changes as I got older. First she started holding the newspaper at arm's length, squinting like she was trying to read smoke signals. Then came the reading glasses. Those little drugstore ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:22-25

Tags: Faith, Spiritual Blindness, Seeking Jesus

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Swimming With The Sharks

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 4, 2024

A millionaire decides to throw a massive party for his fiftieth birthday. During the party he grabs the mic and he announces to his guests that down in the garden of his mansion he has a swimming pool with two great white sharks in it. “The man who dares to swim across that pool gets 1 MILLION ...read more

Scripture: James 1:1-8

Tags: Spiritual Battles, Abraham, Spiritual Maturity, Trials, Problems, Temptations, Tests Of Faith, Faith, Discipleship  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Devoting Yourself

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 21, 2014

DEVOTING YOURSELF When it says they "devoted themselves" it means they were steadfast or single minded in purpose or desire. They wanted it and they were going after it, so to speak. In 2008 Sanya Richards-Ross competed in the 400 Meter in Beijing. She started the race strong and built a ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:42-47

Tags: Devotion, Church Body Of Christ, Spiritual Discipline

Where Are You Leading?

Contributed by Davon Huss on Aug 18, 2014

David Wheeler tells of a funeral procession that illustrates a leader’s influence. David officiated at a funeral. In accordance with custom, after the funeral, the attenders filed out of the funeral home and into their waiting cars to form a processional to the cemetery. The hearse led the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 3:1-13

Tags: Funeral, Role Model, Spiritual Leadership, Outhouse

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ