In Sermon Illustrations: "Valentines Day"

Dream Center

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012

DREAM CENTER At age 16, Matthew Barnett dreamed of a church that would be open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year serving the inner-city’s physical and spiritual needs and bringing a message of hope to the hopeless. In 1994 at the age of 20, he moved from Phoenix to Los Angeles to pastor a small ...read more

Tags: God Brings Purpose

Denomination: Methodist

Angels Of Reconciliation  PRO

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 26, 2012

ANGELS OF RECONCILIATION With his life in disarray, Steven Lavaggi sat on his bedroom’s wooden floor, and began searching his Bible for answers. His wife had just left him to marry a writer for The Rolling Stone Magazine. Ten days later, Steven discovered his son was stricken with Juvenile ...read more

Scripture: 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17, James 2:15-20

Tags: God Brings Purpose

Denomination: Methodist

Impact Of Scripture Memorization: Psalm 119

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 30, 2012

IMPACT OF SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION: PSALM 119 Scripture memorization is a great challenge to a modern day saints. But in the old days, many of the saints of God would memorize large portions of Scripture because they were devoted to God. One such man was John Ruskin. He lived in the nineteenth ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 119:1-176

Tags: Bible Influence

Artist, Steven Lavaggi

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 21, 2012

With his life in disarray, Steven Lavaggi sat on his bedroom’s wooden floor, and began searching his Bible for answers. His wife had just left him to marry a writer for The Rolling Stone Magazine. Ten days later, Steven discovered his son was stricken with Juvenile Diabetes. Then he lost his ...read more

Tags: Gifts Discernment

Denomination: Methodist

Testimony Of Astronaut Charles Duke

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 21, 2013

TESTIMONY OF ASTRONAUT CHARLES DUKE Through the years, I’ve heard people say, "I wasn’t looking for God when He found me." Let me give you a modern example of this process. Astronaut Charles Duke is one of only twelve men who have left footprints on the moon. He was the lunar module pilot for ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 3:1-6

Tags: Becoming A Christian

God Gave Her A Flying Cat!  PRO

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 1, 2014

GOD GAVE HER A FLYING CAT! Have you heard the story about the pastor who had a kitten that climbed up a tree in his backyard and then was afraid to come down. The pastor coaxed, offered warm milk, etc., but the kitty would not come down. The tree was not sturdy enough to climb, so the pastor ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 33:3

Tags: Prayer, Miracles, Prayer Answered

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

On The Pharisees

Contributed by Tim Smith on May 11, 2014

Who are the Pharisees? In 332 BC, Alexander the Great conquered the Middle East, bringing Greek culture and philosophy to Israel. By 200 BC, Greek philosophy and its worldview called Helenism were significantly impacting Jewish young men. More and more of them were abandoning the Hebrew faith and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 15:1-2

Tags: Pharisees

Denomination: Methodist

It Felt Like Abuse...but, Lesson Learned

Contributed by Pastor Randall Timblin on Jan 18, 2017

So there I am. I’m sitting on the couch...with my eyes closed...attempting to nap. I hadn’t felt good all day. Because my wife is out of town visiting her elderly parents, our dog, who is lovesick for her, spends his entire day and night in our bedroom, in some doggie blankets, placed on the ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 73:28

Tags: Relationship To God, Great Expectations

Denomination: *other

Igdaliah, A Man Of God

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jun 21, 2020

Text: Jeremiah. 35:4, KJV: And I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which (was) by the chamber of the princes, which (was) above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door: Thoughts: Igdaliah ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 35:4

Tags: Man Of God, Men Of God, Igdaliah

Denomination: Baptist

My Life: Crazier Than It Has To Be

Contributed by Todd Catteau on Nov 18, 2020

Last Friday was a crazy day. But I made it crazier than it had to be. High winds blew through the region the night before leaving hundreds without power including the church building – well, sort of. One of our assistants called me when she got in the office and said the lights were out, which ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 33:20

Tags: Faith, Trust, Hope, Worry, Wait, Waiting  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Faith Of Stonewall Jackson

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Jan 8, 2021

There is a scene in the Civil War motion picture Gods and Generals that is telling. The movie follows the rise and fall of Civil War hero General Thomas Jackson, and does not try to hide his Christianity. Throughout the picture, Jackson's dependence on God is shown, but never more strikingly ...read more

Tags: Courage, Will Of God, Civil War, Sovereignty Of God, Faith  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Cost Of Redemption - Hosea Buys Back Gomer

Contributed by Martin Spoelstra on Feb 27, 2022

One man started the bidding: “12 pieces of silver!” “13!” Said Hosea. “14 pieces of silver!” Hosea’s bid was “15!” The low bidders were beginning to drop out, but one man continued bidding: “15 pieces of silver and five bushels of barley!” Hosea said, “15 pieces of silver, 5 bushels of barley and a ...read more

Scripture: Hosea 3:1-5, 1 Peter 1:18-19, Romans 8:38

Tags: Hosea, Redemption, Covenant Love

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Evidence For The Resurrection Is Reliable And True

Contributed by Timothy Lueking on Apr 3, 2023

It was the middle of the 1800s and a man by the name of Simon Greenleaf was teaching a class on evidence of law at Harvard University. Greenleaf was considered by many to be the greatest expert on evidence of law the world has ever known. He had been praised for his knowledge and when it comes to ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, 1 Corinthians 15:12-20, Matthew 28:1-10, 1 Peter 1:3

Tags: Easter, Resurrection, Evidence, Reliability Of Truth, Jesus The Risen Savior  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

How To Get Rid Of Your Pastor!

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Aug 9, 2023

What a blessing it is to have a pastor who loves the Lord, who teaches the Word, and who leads his "flock" aright. I thank God we have a man like that in the church which I attend. In these days of apostasy, when there is such a tragic departure from an emphasis on the Word, how we ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-11

Tags: Ministry, Pastors, Apostasy, Man Of God, Churches, Division, Preachers  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Dying For Treasure

Contributed by Dr. Bradford Reaves on Aug 11, 2023

Have you ever heard about a man named Forrest Fenn? Forrest Fenn was a pilot in the US Air Force, earning the rank of Major and awarded the Silver Star for his sermon in Vietnam, which flew 328 combat missions within a year. After his service to his country, he ran an art gallery where he made his ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-24

Tags: Money, Treasure

Denomination: Brethren

Fake News Or Truth?

Contributed by Roger Hasselquist on Sep 30, 2024

Donald Trump has often spoken of what he calls, “fake news” when describing what he considers biased reporting. And it is true that most reporting about Trump is negative, while his opponents receive more favorable treatment. But did you know that the phrase “fake news” was first coined by ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 5:6-12

Tags: Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, Fake News, Sure Witness, Jesus Is Son Of God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

A Sovereign God Has Fixed The Time For My Death

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Nov 10, 2024

There is a scene in the Civil War motion picture, "Gods and Generals", that is telling. The movie follows the rise and fall of Civil War hero General Thomas Jackson, and does not try to hide his Christianity. Throughout the picture, Jackson's dependence on God is shown, but never ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 21:1

Tags: Death, Chosen, Election, Free Will, Calling, Sovereignty Of God, Man's Choice  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Portfolio For Nobody

Contributed by Austin W. Duncan on Apr 17, 2026

It was 2017. I had just left a software development company. Cassy was working as a pharmacy technician at Walgreens, and we were living in Lubbock, Texas. I started doing freelance graphic design, photography, videography, motion graphics, all of that. But the whole time I felt like I needed to be ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 6:2, Proverbs 3:5-6

Tags: Faith, Calling

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Little Boy Was Eagerly Looking Forward To The ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Hensley on Oct 18, 2000

A little boy was eagerly looking forward to the birthday party of a friend who lived only a few blocks away. When the day finally arrived, a blizzard made the sidewalks and roads nearly impassable. The lad’s father, sensing the danger, hesitated to let his son go. The youngster reacted tearfully. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 24:13-35

Tags: God's Provision, Philippians

Denomination: Baptist

Then, Psalm 91:4 States, He Will Cover You With ...  PRO

Contributed by Rita Sims on Mar 10, 2001

Then, Psalm 91:4 states, He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge." There was a woman who took particular comfort in Psalm 91:4. One day as she was getting in her car, a man came up to her with a gun and ordered, "Get in the car!" She got in her car and he did ...read more

Tags: God's Provision

Denomination: United Methodist