In Sermon Illustrations: "Use Faith"

Le Crocodile

Contributed by Rodelio Mallari on Dec 12, 2010

LE CROCODILE Rene Lacoste, the world's top tennis player in the late 1920s, won seven major singles titles during his career, including multiple victories at Wimbledon, the US Open, and the French Open. His friends called him "Le Crocodile," an apt term for his tenacious play on the court. ...read more

Tags: Cross

Denomination: *other

An Audacious Rescue

Contributed by Warner Pidgeon on Dec 16, 2010

AN AUDACIOUS RESCUE On 5th August this year the San Jose copper mine, in the Atacama Desert in Chile collapsed. 33 men were trapped in darkness. The world and their relatives feared that there was no hope. The depth of the mine, the lack of food and water, and the absence of any signs of life all ...read more

Tags: Salvation

Denomination: Anglican

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

Engaging God's Power

Contributed by David Owens on Mar 14, 2011

ENGAGING GOD'S POWER Spiritual growth and success is a partnership with God. Paul captured this idea in Philippians 2:12-13, where he wrote: "continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose." We work ...read more

Tags: God's Provision

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

De-Sanctified Churches

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 19, 2011

DE-SANCTIFIED CHURCHES Not too long ago, a real estate listing in Dallas had the simple headline: "Converted Church." In other words, what had once been a church facility is now somebody's house. The listing under the heading had this description: "The altar has been adapted for use as a granite ...read more

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 1:3-4

Tags: Church Purpose Of

The Stress-Free Life Of The Bedouins

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 4, 2011

THE STRESS-FREE LIFE OF THE BEDOUINS The Bedouin shepherd lives in shabby box tents that dot the hillsides throughout Israel. When compared to our lives saturated with modern conveniences it seems as though they live a very difficult life. However, an interesting fact is that their average life ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:1-5

Tags: Stress

Built Out Of Junk

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 8, 2011

BUILT OUT OF JUNK Did you hear about the homeless man in Brazil who built his own car out of junk? Orismar de Souza is a homeless man in Brazil who decided to build the car using junk, spare parts and a hammer and chisel. Four years later, the "shrimpmobile" has him back on his feet. Souza, 35, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:16-21

Tags: Born Again

Hit By A Rock

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 28, 2011

HIT BY A ROCK Corrective suffering is tribulation or affliction God allows in our lives to chasten us for unforsaken sin in order to turn us back to Him. In the city of Pottsville, Pennsylvania, the broken end of a high voltage wire was lying on the pavement, along which the engineer was walking, ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:1-12

Tags: Trials And Difficulties

Precious Stone

Contributed by Ronnie Miller on Jul 31, 2011

PRECIOUS STONE Peter says that Jesus is a living stone rejected by men, but chosen by God and precious. He also says that we are living stones...so we are precious to God also. We are precious to God because of what Jesus has done for us. If we are precious to God and he calls us a living stone, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 2:1-3

Tags: Atonement, Persecution, Troubles, Trial

Denomination: Baptist

Orel Hershiser, Singer

Contributed by Jimmy Haile on Sep 29, 2011

OREL HERSHISER, SINGER A number of years ago Orel Hershiser was pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers. They had just won the World Series, and Orel had been named the most valuable player of the series. One of the TV shows about the series showed him in the dugout just before the ninth inning ...read more

Tags: Worship General

Denomination: Baptist

Two Faces

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Oct 5, 2011

TWO FACES WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — Frank and Louie the cat was born with two faces, two mouths, two noses, three eyes — and lots of doubts about his future. Now, 12 years after Marty Stevens rescued him from being euthanized because of his condition, the exotic blue-eyed rag doll cat is not only ...read more

Tags: Dealing With Conflicts

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Lamb Over Me

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 8, 2011

"LAMB OVER ME" In his book “Eternity in their Hearts”, Don Richardson a Missionary writes of cultural compasses in other cultures and their language that point to one and only one person, Jesus, preparing the way for the Gospel to be heard. He tells the story of Robert Morrison who landed in ...read more

Tags: Jesus Christ

Denomination: Methodist

The Selfish King  PRO

Contributed by James Lloyd on Dec 4, 2011

THE SELFISH KING Once upon a time there was a king who lived in a beautiful kingdom. He was happy and so were his people. They worked together to improve the kingdom and brought the king many gifts. The king, in turn, was generous to his people. People all over the world heard of this kingdom and ...read more

Tags: Kingdom Of God

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Filled  PRO

Contributed by Davon Huss on Apr 16, 2013

FILLED In his best selling book called, "Into Thin Air," Jon Krakauer relates the hazards that plagued some climbers as they attempted to reach the summit of Mount Everest. Andy Harris, one of the expedition leaders stayed at the peak too long and on his descent, he became in dire need of oxygen. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:18, Matthew 4:4, Zechariah 12:10

Tags: Evangelism The Lost

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Emporer's Clothes

Contributed by Isaac Butterworth on Dec 19, 2014

Do you remember the story of the emperor’s clothes? If I am recalling it right, someone persuaded the emperor to buy a suit of clothes that only people with the most exquisite taste in fashion could see. Of course, the emperor could not see the clothes, nor could anyone else – because the peddler ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:10-11

Tags: Flattery, Self Deception

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

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

The Angel Of Music

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jun 14, 2023

In Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical The Phantom of the Opera, a young chorus girl named Christine Daae receives voice training from a mysterious musician she calls the “Angel of Music.” Christine believes this is the angel her dying father had promised to send to complete her musical training. As ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 3:8, 1 John 4:4

Tags: Evil, Satan, Spiritual Warfare, Temptation, Armor Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Seeing The Light, Reflecting The Light.

Contributed by Andrew Moffatt on Jan 24, 2025

Did anyone else see the comet during the week, Comet Atlas 3G? Janaki and I went out to Titahi Bay to see it, thankfully we had another dad and daughter park near us who could point it out, otherwise we might not have seen it. The power of their witness was in instructing us where to look. ...read more

Scripture: John 8:12, Matthew 5:14-16

Tags: Witness, Testimony, Salt, Salt And Light, The Light Of God, The Light Of The World, Reflecting Jesus  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Salvation Army

Is He Welcome

Contributed by Dr. Ronald Shultz on Feb 21, 2025

John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. Sadly, there are many buildings with church on the sign that Jesus is knocking on the door to get in. Some He has never been in and others He had been in but they turned Him by denying the Scriptures. Many people in those buildings ...read more

Scripture: John 1:11

Tags: Service, Wash, Salvation, Confession, Presence, Apostasy  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Discipline Of Prayer

Contributed by John Bright on Sep 24, 2025

We refer to many of the practices that aid in our ongoing sanctification as Spiritual Disciplines. These include prayer, Bible reading/study, tithing/generosity, fasting, silence, and worship. This is not a complete list. All Spiritual Disciplines have the same goal – increasing your intimacy ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 4:7, John 15:4, Ephesians 6:18, Colossians 4:2

Tags: Richard Foster, Prayer Forms, Prayer, Spiritual Disciplines

Denomination: Methodist