In Sermon Illustrations: "Today"

One Of Many Options

Contributed by Eric Keller on Jan 31, 2011

ONE OF MANY OPTIONS Ask people to raise their hands if they remember a time when businesses were closed on Sunday morning. Note to the congregation that the younger ones (likely those under 40) do not have their hands raised. There is a difference in the generations. One generation remembers a ...read more

Tags: Culture

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Sin Of Omission

Contributed by Larry Wilson on Aug 25, 2011

SIN OF OMISSION We see sad events transpiring today: Mothers smothering children and fathers shaking babies. But if one did not do this and if they said, "I didn’t strike the baby, I just never fed the baby, I never changed a diaper. I never placed a warm blanket over the baby. I didn’t DO ...read more

Tags: Sin Hurtful To God

Denomination: Baptist

Service And Usefulness

Contributed by Gordon Curley on Jun 8, 2012

SERVICE AND USEFULNESS The great Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer, Niccolo Paganini willed his marvellous violin to city of Genoa on condition that it must never be played. The wood of such an instrument, while used and handled, wears only slightly. But set aside, it begins to ...read more

Tags: Servanthood

Denomination: Brethren

Words Can Kill

Contributed by Tim Smith on May 12, 2013

WORDS CAN KILL Matt Roush in USA Today writes, "The tongue has the power of life and death..." That may sound a bit extreme. I mean how can words kill anyone? But consider Karen Carpenter, the popular singer from the 1970’s who died in 1983 of heart failure as a result of complications with ...read more

Tags: Words, Tongue

Denomination: Methodist

Words Matter

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 23, 2014

WORDS MATTER The Book of James in the New Testament reminds us that words can direct, delight or destroy (ch. 3). Is this true? Look no further than to what happened in Germany in WWII. For every word in Hitler’s poisonous book, Mein Kampf, it cost the life of 125 people. Here are some words to ...read more

Scripture: James 3:1-15

Tags: Words, Tongue

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

John Maxwell Is An Expert In The Area Of ...

Contributed by Dale Harlow on Dec 17, 2007

John Maxwell is an expert in the area of leadership, especially Chistian leadership. In his book Today Matters he makes a statement that applies to growth. He says; The truth is, if we don’t take responsibility for our growth, it won’t happen. Growth is not automatic. If you believe it simply ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

To Be Like God Means That Love Translates Into ...

Contributed by Matthew Sullivan on Feb 18, 2008

To be like God means that love translates into action. So, who do you know that needs love today? Maybe, it’s the alcoholic family member that can’t seem to get a grip on life. Maybe, it’s the co-worker that was just fired from the company. Could it be the son or daughter going through a rebellious ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

An International Media Rights Group Has Called ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 14, 2008

An international media rights group has called on China to loosen controls on news and personal expression on the Internet, saying the country’s system of censorship is an insult to the spirit of online freedom. Sites that don’t comply are criticized, fined, forced to fire the employee responsible ...read more

Tags: Communication General

Nice Guys Do Finish First, According To A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 14, 2008

Nice Guys do finish first, according to a Harvard University study. The study involved college students playing a punishment-heavy version of the game Prisoner’s Dilemma over and over. The study found those who used punishments were the losers. Those who punished their opponents the least were the ...read more

Tags: Compassion

Margaret Mead, The Noted Anthropologist, Has Said ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 11, 2008

Margaret Mead, the noted anthropologist, has said a lot of controversial things, but you will find no authorities debating her statement in her article Grandparents and Educators. In it she said, "Somehow we have to get the older people, grandparents, widows and widowers, spinsters and bachelors, ...read more

Tags: Family

If God Has Promised Something To You Through His ...

Contributed by Dillon Burroughs on Mar 9, 2009

If God has promised something to you through His Word, it will come to pass. Dr. John Walvoord served as president at Dallas Seminary for 34 years and was known as an authority on the area of Bible prophecy. He calculated after an exhaustive study of the Scriptures that half of the prophecies of ...read more

Tags: Prophecy

Denomination: Baptist

A World In Turmoil

Contributed by Richard Goble on Nov 25, 2007

A World In Turmoil The Personnel Journal reported this incredible statistic: since the beginning of recorded history, the entire world has been at peace less than eight percent of the time! In its study, the periodical discovered that of 3530 years of recorded history, only 286 years saw peace. ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Stubborn

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Sep 19, 2021

.A customer walked into my clothing shop and asked to see the pants that were advertised in the paper that day. “We don’t have an ad in the paper today,” I told her. She insisted I was wrong, so I got a copy of the paper, and we went through it, eventually landing on an ad for pants from another ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:3

Tags: Ego, Stubborn, Admit, Nerve, Self Centered, Truth, Wrong, Pride, Confess, Arrogance  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Death

Contributed by David Tack on Apr 22, 2024

"An introduction to death means that one has finally succumbed to the fact of a pending loss of independence and now are now facing a total and final dependence on The Creator of your trinitarian being this is why death is so frightening! Even more reason to walk intimately with Him every day ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:55, John 3:16

Tags: Death, Sin

Denomination: Baptist

Brother Lawrence Was A French Monk Who Lived From ...  PRO

Contributed by Carla Powell on Feb 2, 2002

Brother Lawrence was a French monk who lived from 1611 to 1691. You might think that a man who was born nearly 400 years ago would have very little to say to today’s working people, but he had some great insights into our theme of ministry in daily life. Brother Lawrence (The Practice of the ...read more

Tags: Church Practices, Worship General

Denomination: Lutheran

Why Go To Church?  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 1, 2002

WHY GO TO CHURCH? A Churchgoer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I’ve gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can’t remember a single one ...read more

Tags: Impossible, Faith, Church Practices, Abide

Stone And Sand  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 7, 2002

STONE AND SAND A story tells that two friends were walking through the desert. During some point of the journey they had an argument, and one friend slapped the other one in the face. The one who got slapped was hurt, but without saying anything, wrote in the sand: "TODAY MY BEST FRIEND SLAPPED ME ...read more

Tags: Mercy, Relationships, Friendship, Forgiveness For Others, Forgiveness  (view more)  (view less)

A Young Man Approached The Foreman Of A Logging ...  PRO

Contributed by Guy Glass on Sep 2, 2003

A Young man approached the foreman of a logging crew and asked for a job. “That depends,” replied the foreman. “let’s see you fell this tree.” The young man stepped forward and skillfully felled a great ree. Impressed, the foreman said, “Start Monday.” Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30, Mark 6:46, Luke 5:15-16, Luke 6:12-13

Tags: Leadership General

Denomination: Baptist

I Just Read The Story Online Of A Guy Who Sold ...  PRO

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Apr 11, 2004

I just read the story online of a guy who sold everything in order to place a bet in Los Vegas. The article explains: “A British man who has sold all his possessions, including his clothes, will stand in a rented tuxedo on Sunday and bet everything on a single spin of the roulette wheel. If he ...read more

Tags: Easter Resurrection

Denomination: Methodist

Jim Cymbala Discusses The Importance Of Prayer In ...  PRO

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Jan 16, 2005

Jim Cymbala discusses the importance of prayer in his new book Break Through Prayer: He states, "Everywhere I travel, I keep hearing the defensive teaching that fervent prayer, heartfelt prayer is really overrated and not necessary today. Since God is love, some people reason, we just have to ...read more

Tags: Prayer Supplication, Prayer Adoration

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational