In Sermon Illustrations: "The Cross"

There's A Story Of A Man Who Carried A Small Can ...

Contributed by Andy Anquoe on Feb 15, 2007

There’s a story of a man who carried a small can of oil with him wherever he went. He wanted to go through life lubricating all the hard places and make it easier for those who came behind him. Whenever he came a cross a squeaky door, he poured some oil on the hinges. Whenever he came across a gate ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Submitting Totally To God's Plan For Us And Our ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Brunner on Mar 7, 2006

Submitting totally to God’s plan for us and our loved ones, is difficult to do. But, it is a must for any Christian seeking the “whatever it takes” solution to the difficult problems in life. In 1878, when William Booth’s Salvation Army was beginning to make its mark, men and women from all over ...read more

Scripture: John 2:5

Tags: God In The Hardships

Denomination: Lutheran

There Was A Little Boy Who Built A Sailboat. He ...

Contributed by John Shearhart on May 14, 2006

There was a little boy who built a sailboat. He built the sail and had it all fixed up, tarred and painted. He took it to the lake and pushed it in hoping it would sail. Sure enough a wisp of breeze filled the little sail and it billowed and went rippling along the waves. Suddenly before the little ...read more

Tags: God's Forgiveness

One Day The Reformer Martin Luther Was Feeling ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

One day the reformer Martin Luther was feeling rather down. The Pope was after him. His colleagues were bickering among themselves. He felt the heavy pressure that came with being a professor, pastor, and father. And he was in excruciating pain from kidney stones. As he moped around the house ...read more

Scripture: Numbers 14:27, John 16:32-33

Tags: God's Provision

During One Summer While I Was In Seminary, I ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

During one summer while I was in seminary, I worked as a chaplain at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, MD. I discovered while I was there that there were one group of people who were really open to prayer and to hearing about the need for Christ in their lives. Who were they? Men in the cardiac ...read more

Tags: Endurance

Just Before General Eisenhower Died, Billy ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

Just before General Eisenhower died, Billy Graham was invited to visit him at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC He was told he could stay thirty minutes. When he went in, the general was wearing his usual big smile, even though he knew he didn’t have long to live. Later Billy Graham told what ...read more

Tags: Parable Ten Virgins

As A Boy, Larry Crabb Stuttered But Now He Is A ...

Contributed by Mark Eberly on Feb 19, 2008

As a boy, Larry Crabb stuttered but now he is a popular speaker and psychologist. He recalls one time as a young man when felt pressure by expectation to pray out loud because that was the tradition of his church. In a terribly confused prayer, he recalled “thanking the Father for hanging on the ...read more

Denomination: Church Of God

In All Of Human History There Never Has Been ...

Contributed by Dave Kinney on Jun 2, 2008

In all of human history there never has been anyone like Jesus Christ! More than 2000 years ago, there was man born contrary to the laws of life. This man lived in poverty and was reared in obscurity. Only once did He cross the boundaries in which He lived. As an infant he startled a king, and in ...read more

Tags: Jesus Christ

Denomination: Baptist

Everybody Smells Us  PRO

Contributed by Brian Harvison on Nov 12, 2008

EVERYBODY SMELLS US You ever met someone that had no sense of smell? I have, and actually, an estimated 2.7 million people in the United States have an impaired or absent sense of smell. It's known as chronic olfactory dysfunction. Most people I know can smell when there is a certain powerful ...read more

Tags: Christian Witness

Denomination: Baptist

God Is Looking For People With Conviciton

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 11, 2008

GOD IS LOOKING FOR PEOPLE WITH CONVICITON DEF: an unshakable belief in something without need for proof or evidence In the events of the bridge collaple here in Minneapolis this past week, you have probably heard of countless examples of people acting with conviction. * Ed Nelson M.P.D. - when you ...read more

Tags: Becoming A Christian

The Worst Industrial Accident In History ...

Contributed by Wayne Presnell on Feb 10, 2009

"The worst industrial accident in history occurred on April 26, 1986, in the town of Chernobyl in north central Ukraine of the former Soviet Union. It was caused by two electrical engineers who were playing around with one of the nuclear reactors. They were conducting an unauthorized experiment ...read more

Tags: Warning, Sin Wages Of

Denomination: Baptist

Joanie Yoder Wrote,

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Jun 8, 2009

Joanie Yoder wrote, " When my husband and I first went out as missionaries, I recall being concerned about the growth of materialism in our society. It never crossed my mind that I myself could be materialistic. After all, hadn’t we gone overseas with almost nothing? Weren’t we choosing to live in ...read more

Tags: Materialism

Denomination: Independent/Bible

General Douglas Macarthur Unique Signature At The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 22, 2009

General Douglas MacArthur Unique Signature at the Japanese Surrender Ending World War II We need to understand not just the pain, but the power to come. We need to appreciate not just the hard times, but the victory ahead. We need to grasp not just the cross, but the crown to follow. On ...read more

Scripture: Mark 9:2-10

Tags: War

It Interests Me That God Tests Me By Allowing Me ...

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Dec 27, 2009

"It interests me that God tests me by allowing me to go through difficult situations in order to prove the quality of my character, the genuineness of my worship and the motivations of my service. What is your Marah? I can sing praises easily when things are working out well for me. Throughout my ...read more

Tags: Suffering Joy In

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

As A Young Boy, Theologian Alister Mcgrath ...

Contributed by Bobby Mcdaniel on Apr 17, 2010

As a young boy, theologian Alister McGrath enjoyed experimenting with chemicals in his school's laboratory. He liked to drop a tarnished coin into a beaker of diluted nitric acid. He often used an old British penny bearing the image of Queen Victoria. Because of the accumulated grime, Her Majesty's ...read more

Tags: Change

The Important-Looking Lawyer  PRO

Contributed by John Perry on Jul 28, 2010

THE IMPORTANT-LOOKING LAWYER A young lawyer was setting himself up in his first private practice. As he sat in his office, which was basically bare except for his desk with a telephone on it and a book case filled with important-looking legal books, he wondered how long it would be before he got ...read more

Tags: Love, Hypocrisy, Hate

Denomination: Pentecostal

River Of God

Contributed by Jason Bonnicksen on Jun 5, 2011

RIVER OF GOD Ever since moving to the valley, my eyes have been drawn to the mountains and the river. There’s days in the summer months when I ride my bike to the river, and gaze at the its powerful flow. It’s fascinating for me to watch the river at different stages. Sometimes it looks ...read more

Tags: Revival

Denomination: Lutheran

The Right Name Opens Doors  PRO

Contributed by Mark Stepherson on Aug 15, 2011

THE RIGHT NAME OPENS DOORS Mark Roberts wrote of a time when he visited the Capitol as a guest of Congressman John Campbell. As long as he was with the congressman, he could walk freely around the Capitol, entering many areas that were reserved "for authorized personnel only," reserved for members ...read more

Scripture: John 15:16, John 16:23-24, John 14:13-14

Tags: Prayer How To

Denomination: Baptist

God Picks The Unlovable Ones

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 15, 2011

GOD PICKS THE UNLOVABLE ONES Anne Lamott described a time when a fellow church member told about adopting her son through an organization called A.S.K. -- Adopt Special Kids. Part of the adoption process included filling out a questionnaire checking "yes" or "no" for one's willingness to adopt ...read more

Scripture: John 4:1-42

Tags: Adoption

Robes Of Righteousness

Contributed by Suresh Manoharan on Feb 28, 2015

Dr Ravi Zacharias came up with a true witty story of a New Zealand Shepherd who was happy on a Christmas morning, sad in the afternoon but once again happy in the evening. What exactly contributed to his mood swings? Here goes…in the morning two of his ewes’ “A” and “B” gave birth to two lambs “a” ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 61:10

Tags: Grace, Gratitude, God's Righteousness, Grimy

Denomination: *other