In Sermon Illustrations: "Wants"

Dr. Paul Tripp Tells Of A Night In Which He Got ...

Contributed by Glenn Durham on Sep 17, 2008

Dr. Paul Tripp tells of a night in which he got home late from work after counseling all day and teaching an evening class at Westminster Seminary. He was tired and desperately wanted some relaxation time to read the paper, drink a diet coke and hit the remote control. Tripp had a plan for the ...read more

Tags: Dead To Sin

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Give It To The Cat ----Years Ago I Received A ...

Contributed by Peter Loughman on Oct 16, 2008

GIVE IT TO THE CAT ----Years ago I received a call from a member to stop on by her house. I could tell by the call that she was fairly shaken up. She was a lady who was quite advanced in years, and was quite wealthy, well, she was phenomenally wealthy. It turns out that granddaughter had stopped by ...read more

Tags: Money

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Dr. Kenneth Mcfarland Was The Dean Of American ...

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Nov 13, 2008

Dr. Kenneth McFarland was the dean of American speakers. Here’s my favorite passage of all I have heard from him: Folks sometimes ask me where I went to school. They think I will tell them about Stanford University or Columbia University. But I usually say, “I went to school to Miss Georgia Brown ...read more

Tags: School

Denomination: Pentecostal

I Don't Remember  PRO

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Dec 31, 2008

"I DON'T REMEMBER." Some will accept that they are going to heaven but not that they are forgiven while they still live on this earth. Bruce Larson tells the true story of a Catholic priest living in the Philippines, a much-loved man of God who once carried a secret burden of long-past sin buried ...read more

Tags: Inconsistency, Forgiveness General, Expectation

Denomination: Pentecostal

Andrew Jackson Needs To ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 12, 2009

ANDREW JACKSON NEEDS TO REPENT I heard about a famous preacher by the name of Peter Cartwright. He became one of the leaders of what we now refer to as the 2nd Great Awakening. Cartwright personally baptized over 12,000 people during his ministry. He was a Circuit rider and spent most of his ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:38

Tags: Revival

Basement People Vs. Balcony People

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 3, 2009

BASEMENT PEOPLE VS. BALCONY PEOPLE Keith Miller, in his book Passionate People, which he co-authored with Bruce Larson, describes two kinds of people -- "basement people" and "balcony people." "Basement people" are the discouragers in our lives. They may be people from our past, or present, but ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 10:23-25

Tags: Encouragement

1950's Game,

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 5, 2009

1950’s Game, "Going To Jerusalem," Misrepresented the Christian Life Mark 8:33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter – same word. “Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” (NIV) Peter’s attitude was not only ...read more

Scripture: Mark 8:34-38

Tags: Discipleship, Playing Games

D.l. Moody's Thoughts Before His Death Illustrate ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 15, 2009

D.L. Moody’s Thoughts Before His Death Illustrate an Important Habit--Begin with the End in Mind Steven Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, states that one of those habits is to “Begin with the end in mind”; for the final days and hours of a man are often some of the most ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 7:1-2

Tags: Death Nearness

Common-Ism In The Church  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 16, 2009

COMMON-ISM IN THE CHURCH Years ago I ran across this following definition of the various forms of government. They compared capitalism (the economic model we try to follow in our country) with communism and socialism, and they used a simple illustration to drive their point home. In a capitalist ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:42-48

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Pain And Regret: A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 16, 2009

PAIN AND REGRET: A GIFT? In 1999, Dr Paul Brand and Philip Yancey co-wrote a book called Pain: the Gift Nobody Wants. Dr Brand was born in India to missionary parents, and has spent most of his life caring for people with leprosy. One of Dr Brand’s greatest discoveries was that people with leprosy ...read more

Scripture: Acts 3:19

Tags: Repentance

No-Cut Auditions

Contributed by Anne Benefield on Mar 5, 2009

NO-CUT AUDITIONS Dick Sanderson is kind enough to give me a subscription to Leadership, Real Ministry in a Complex World. It is an exceptional magazine. This quarter there was an insert that carried a story called "A Cast of Thousands" by Lillian Daniel. She writes: "At my daughter’s ...read more

Tags: Church Body Of Christ

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Amazing Forgiveness

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 31, 2022

A policeman recounted an incident when he and other officers shot an eighteen-year-old boy and burned the body. Eight years later the policeman returned to the same house and seized the boy's father. The wife was forced to watch as policemen bound her husband on a woodpile, poured gasoline over ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 65:3

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness

When C.i. Scofield Met Jesus

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Mar 14, 2023

Many years ago in St. Louis, a lawyer visited a Christian to transact some business. Before the two parted, his client said to him, "I've often wanted to ask you a question, but I've been afraid to do so." "What do you want to know?" asked the lawyer. The man replied, ...read more

Scripture: Romans 3:23

Tags: Evangelism, Sin, Salvation, Gospel, Alcohol, Adam, Witnessing, Drunkenness, Sinful Nature, Sinners  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Object Lesson  PRO

Contributed by Shawn Drake on Oct 25, 2001

Object Lesson Supplies Needed: One large pumpkin with the facial features cut out. When you cut out the features save them because you will need them during this object lesson. You will also need to save some of the slime and seeds from the inside. You will also need a candle. Lesson: Could I ...read more

Tags: Repentance, God's Forgiveness

Denomination: Baptist

A Wealthy Man And His Son Loved To Collect Rare ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 26, 2007

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while ...read more

Tags: What Is Evangelism?

A Wealthy Man And His Son Loved To Collect Rare ...

Contributed by John Shearhart on Apr 10, 2007

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while ...read more

Tags: Aging

Forgiving When You Can't

Contributed by Davon Huss on Feb 15, 2010

FORGIVING WHEN YOU CAN'T by Jeannette Williams Her car had killed my husband, a school crossing guard. She had struck Tom down while he was on duty, helping the children. The investigating officer and witnesses had told me it was a "no fault" accident. I didn't want to believe them. In the ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

History And Purpose Of Memorial ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 29, 2010

History and Purpose of Memorial Day We set aside time in America each year to remember some of the important dates of our history. Tomorrow is one of those days: Memorial Day. On May 30, 1868, our country observed the first day memorializing those who had fallen in battle during the Civil War. It ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

Tags: Holidays Civic

Admirer Or Follower?  PRO

Contributed by Ty Tamasaka on Jul 19, 2011

ADMIRER OR FOLLOWER? Recently I heard that in Scotland, a voluntary survey was given to law enforcement officers of their religious affiliations. That may not sound very interesting, but what caught my attention was that 8 of the officers claimed their religious affiliation to be "Jedi". I ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 14:13-21

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Other

Power And Discipline  PRO

Contributed by Jeff Strite on May 5, 2013

POWER AND DISCIPLINE Over here is a wall socket. There is power in that socket. Because of that power, I can plug lamps, fans, microwaves and phone chargers into it and magically empower those devises. I can even plug a car charger into a wall socket and revive a dead car battery (like I’ve had to ...read more

Tags: Experience

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ