In Sermon Illustrations: "Turn The Lights On"

We Were Just One

Contributed by Bruce Howell on Nov 24, 2008

WE WERE JUST ONE During World War II, Hitler commanded all religious groups to unite so that he could control them. Among the Brethren assemblies, half complied and half refused. Those who went along with the order had a much easier time. Those who did not, faced harsh persecution. In almost every ...read more

Tags: God's Love

Denomination: Wesleyan

The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 10, 2009

THE PUSH A man and his wife are awakened at 3 o’clock in the morning by a loud pounding on their door. The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger in the pouring rain is asking for a push. "Not a chance!" says the husband. "It’s three o’clock in the morning!" He slams the door ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:9

Tags: Servanthood

Amazed By Jesus

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 9, 2009

AMAZED BY JESUS Many years ago – in the confines of a barracks room, a young sailor decided not to go out partying with his friends. He invested that evening reading the Bible - very specifically – reading the Gospel of John. The room was mostly dark except for the light of the little study desk ...read more

Tags: Apologetics Jesus

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand By Thomas ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 1, 2009

Hymn Story: Precious Lord, Take My Hand by Thomas Dorsey Thomas Dorsey was a black jazz musician from Atlanta who was known in the early 1920’s for the suggestive lyrics he combined with original music. Then God touched his life and in 1926 he gave up the suggestive music and began to write ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Tags: Death

Climate At Church Compared To Jewelry Store Grand ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 11, 2009

Climate at Church compared to Jewelry Store Grand Opening John Bisagno former Pastor of Houston’s First Baptist Church tells the story of his coming as a candidate for the position of pastor many years ago. He said that as he entered the auditorium it was dimly lit, with just a few people huddled ...read more

Scripture: Luke 4:14-30

Tags: Pastors

My Parents Had A Grapevine In The Backyard. They ...

Contributed by Sean Harder on Dec 4, 2009

My parents had a grapevine in the backyard. They just let it grow and some of the branches grew up and intertwined around this big evergreen tree about 20 feet in the air, others grew through the cedar hedge that was beside it. Some of these branches must have been forty feet long, but they never ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

A Revealing Exchange Was Captured On The Fox ...

Contributed by Davon Huss on Jan 18, 2010

A revealing exchange was captured on the Fox News Channel. Bill O’Reily was interviewing Dan Rather, longtime anchorman at CBS. O’Reilly: I want to ask you flat out. Do you think bill Clinton’s an honest man? Rather: Yes, I think he’s an honest man. O’Reilly: Do you really? Rather: I do. ...read more

Tags: Truth Absolute

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Waiting Vs. Watching For Him

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 23, 2011

WAITING VS. WATCHING FOR HIM The Lord told us not only to wait for him but to watch for him, and he has pronounced a special blessing on those who watch. The difference between waiting and watching is illustrated in a story told of a Scotch fishing village. After days at sea, the skipper of a ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:1-13

Tags: Second Coming

Not Pure Enough

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Feb 6, 2011

NOT PURE ENOUGH Back in the 1600's a man named Roger Williams who left England and came over to join the Puritans. He was a very gifted preacher and many churches asked him to come fill their pulpits. But Williams had one major flaw - an overwhelming desire to have purist doctrine he could manage. ...read more

Tags: Purity

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Ortberg On God's Presence

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Mar 7, 2011

ORTBERG ON GOD'S PRESENCE John Ortberg’s quote about God’s Presence: "Now let us bring God into the picture. The reality with God is that we are never speaking or acting in his absence. The psalmist said, 'Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go to the ...read more

Tags: God's Omnipotence

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Deceiver  PRO

Contributed by Michael Walther on May 25, 2011

DECEIVER Ephesians 6.10-12 Especially, "schemes of the devil..." Here Paul explains the realities of evil in this world. How different this is from popular ideas about evil. There is a comical view of evil -- the character who wears a red suit and carries a pitch fork. Then there is the ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-12

Tags: Satan

Denomination: Lutheran

The Best Thing For Her

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 11, 2011

THE BEST THING FOR HER Ida M. Clark writes that she was still overwhelmed with grief as she approached the church on the Sunday morning after her mother had died. Just outside the door, a 7-year-old boy met her. He stopped, planted his feet solidly on the path in front of her, and with tearful ...read more

Scripture: John 15:7

Tags: Prayer Answered

Words Leave A Lasting Impression

Contributed by Dennis Davidson on Jul 7, 2011

WORDS LEAVE A LASTING IMPRESSION As bad as it is to hear foul words, it is worse to speak them. A nobleman went to see how Josiah Wedgwood made his SUPERB POTTERY. A young apprentice was told to give the guest a tour of the factory. As they walked through the plant, the visitor began to use ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 121:1-21

Tags: Heaven, Message, Giving, Words, Tithing, Churches, Scroll  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

Edison Couldn't Make Life

Contributed by Josh Hunt on Mar 15, 2012

EDISON COULDN'T MAKE LIFE Are you extremely proud of your lifetime accomplishments? It was on November 21 of 1877 that Thomas Edison announced to the world that he had invented the phonograph. Edison's accomplishments are often forgotten. In his Menlo Park, New Jersey fix-it shop he designed the ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 9:23-24

Tags: Pride

Denomination: Baptist

God's Taking My Picture  PRO

Contributed by Lalachan Abraham on Jan 23, 2013

GOD'S TAKING MY PICTURE I heard a story of a little girl who walked to and from school daily. The weather one morning was questionable and clouds were forming, yet she made her daily trek to the elementary school. As the afternoon progressed, the winds whipped up, along with thunder and ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:1-5

Tags: God Brings Hope

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Totally Submerged In The Plan

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Mar 22, 2019

WE NEED TO BELIEVE GOD TO BE CALLED OUT, SET ASIDE, TO HEAR THE CALL OF GOD TO BE FAITHFUL, A PECULIAR PEOPLE… 1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 2:9

Tags: Plan, Called Out, Submerged

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Hymns For Each Business

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Oct 15, 2019

The Weatherman's Hymn - There Shall Be Showers Of Blessings. The Contractor's Hymn - The Church's One Foundation. The Tailor's Hymn - Holy, Holy, Holy. The Politician's Hymn - Standing On The Promises. The Optometrist's Hymn - Open My Eyes That I May See. The ...read more

Scripture: John 10:9-10

Tags: Humor, Laughter, Jokes

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Slow And Steady

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 26, 2022

The power of the Holy Spirit is not just for salvation, but for sanctification, a process that is slow and gradual. The difference might look like this: You can take ten gallons of gasoline and release a tremendous amount of power and energy by just dropping a lighted match into it. It makes a ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 1:7-8

Tags: Holy Spirit, Energy, Fuel

Daniel In The Lion's Den

Contributed by Davon Huss on Sep 13, 2022

Need this picture displayed for illustration: https://www.freebibleimages.org/illustrations/moody-daniel-lions/ Charles Stanley tells of a time when he was struggling with much opposition. In the midst of the turmoil, an elderly member of his church invited him to her apartment for lunch. He ...read more

Tags: Fear, Almighty, Powerful

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Four Descriptions Of A Life Without Christ

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 2, 2023

Satan hates God and everything and everyone in the Kingdom of God. He fights the Kingdom on a daily basis and will continue to try to stop the Gospel from spreading (I Thess. 2:18, Ephesians 6:11-12). Paul described the condition of all of those who are unbelievers and living in the Kingdom of ...read more

Scripture: Luke 19:10, 2 Corinthians 3:12-18, Acts 16:31, 1 Corinthians 1:23, 2 Corinthians 4:1-4  (view more)  (view less)

Tags: Satan, Salvation, Gospel, Lost, Unsaved, Spiritual Blindness, Unbelievers, Perishing  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational