In Sermon Illustrations: "Why Christ Came"

Paul And Kelly ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Feb 11, 2009

PAUL AND KELLY BENITEZ In 1967, Paul Benitez and his fiancée Debra were married. In 1968, they had a baby boy and named him Kelly. Paul was drafted into the Army in 1969. While he was overseas, Debra moved away and changed her name. Paul was never able to find his wife nor his baby boy. He would ...read more

Tags: Sin Separates From God

People Will Ask You

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Mar 4, 2009

PEOPLE WILL ASK YOU If you commit yourself to taking advantage of opportunities that come your way, you will find that sharing your faith is going to happen naturally. For one thing, People WILL ask you about your connection to God. We had two examples of this just in the last few weeks from ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Message Never Got ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 17, 2009

THE MESSAGE NEVER GOT DELIVERED George Sweeting, in his book, The No-Guilt Guide for Witnessing, tells of a man by the name of John Currier who in 1949 was found guilty of murder and sentenced to life in prison. Later he was transferred and paroled to work on a farm near Nashville, Tennessee. In ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 10:25

Tags: Evangelism Urgency

Get Back In The Game!

Contributed by John Bright on Mar 19, 2021

What if God started telling your church to do something we had never done before? How hard would you work against it - unwilling to change? There is an old saying – do you know what they put on the tombstone in front of a closed church? “WE NEVER DID IT THAT WAY BEFORE” If that’s the case, we ...read more

Scripture: Luke 5:12-26, Ephesians 4:11-12

Tags: Sports, Pastor, Basketball, Laity

Denomination: Methodist

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

Ten Rules For Improving The Church

Contributed by David Parks on Jun 3, 2022

TEN RULES FOR IMPROVING THE CHURCH 1. Tell yourself over and over that since you are not perfect you would not fit into a perfect congregation, if one existed. 2. Instead of picking out the worldly members to point to, pick out the sincere, dedicated, spiritual members and thank God for them. You ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-2, 1 Peter 4:8, Matthew 7:1-5

Tags: Encouragement, Judgementalism, Church

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

An Illustration About Ephesians 2:9

Contributed by Jonathan Spurlock on Jun 30, 2022

The author of this illustration is G. M. Landis. I have no idea who this person is or was. I had bought a Bible at a thrift store and the piece of paper with this illustration was inside the front cover (this was a hardcover Bible). The illustration itself appears to have been written for a daily ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:9

Tags: Grace, Salvation, Works, G M Landis

Denomination: Baptist

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

Three Levels Of Fruit Bearing

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Feb 2, 2023

Galatians 5:19-23 describes the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit described by Paul in Galatians 5 is not something that is a goal for Christian living produced by the ability of the believer. No, it is the very character of Christ produced within us by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. In ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:19-23

Tags: Holy Spirit, Fruit Of The Spirit, Spiritual Maturity, Leaders, Spirit Filled Life, Fruit Bearing  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Never Alone

Contributed by Jerry Cosper on Feb 13, 2023

I'm not sure if I am the only one that does this or not. Growing up, if I was ever walking down a dark country road by myself, I found myself whistling, or singing, or humming an old familiar gospel song. It seemed like it made everything safer. It made me feel protected as I drew myself ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:9-17

Tags: Alone, God's Presence

Denomination: Baptist

Moving Story Of A Godly Father

Contributed by J Jeffrey Smead on Mar 13, 2023

Hear our Lords Words: BIBLE Be merciful ... even as your Father (in Heaven) is merciful. END (Luke 6:36) Some time ago ... I heard a touching story .... about a humble, ... consecrated pastor ... whose young son had become.... Extremely ill. After the boy had undergone an exhaustive series of ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:36, Proverbs 1:8, Matthew 6:1-18

Tags: Father, Father's Day, Salvation, Godly

Denomination: Anglican

The Angel Of Music

Contributed by Garris Hudson 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

Churches In Competition Against Each Other

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Aug 5, 2023

Three churches, located on different corners of the same intersection, didn't get along together. One Sunday each of them opened their meeting with a rousing song service. It was a warm day and all the doors and windows were wide open. One congregation began singing the old hymn, "Will ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-7, Philippians 2:5-11

Tags: Critical Spirit, Hymns, Enemies, Division, Church, Worship, Competition, Rivalry  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

It Is Well With My Soul

Contributed by Garris Hudson on Apr 10, 2024

in 1871, Spafford’s 4-year-old son died of Scarlet fever. Two years later, business demands kept Spafford from joining his wife and four daughters on a family vacation in England where his friend D. L. Moody would be preaching. On November 22, 1873, while crossing the Atlantic on the steamship ...read more

Tags: God's Will, Hymns, Sovereignty Of God, Worship, Praise, Peace, Suffering  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

How Can We Know That We Are Truly Saved

Contributed by Hylton Davidson on Aug 13, 2025

Having assurance that one is saved is linked to the process called regeneration. Regeneration is not something a person initiates; it is a sovereign act of God. A person is born again when the Holy Spirit imparts spiritual life, enabling them to repent and believe in the gospel. This transformation ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-9

Tags: Assurance, Saved

Denomination: Christian Church

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: Prayer, Spiritual Disciplines, Richard Foster, Prayer Forms

Denomination: Methodist

Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Death

Contributed by Revd. Martin Dale on Oct 24, 2025

Paul writing from a prison cell and probably knowing that he would soon die by the sword writes to the Philippians, “I give thanks to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor imprisoned in 1943 for his political and Christian opposition to the Nazi regime, was ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 1:3

Tags: Death, Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Denomination: Anglican

Grateful Allen, An ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 8, 2009

Grateful Allen, An Outsider We all know about the good Samaritan, but how many of us have heard of the grateful Samaritan? We are going to meet him today, but firstly I want to tell you about my friend Allen. Allen was quite different from most people. To have called him unconventional would have ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:30-37

Tags: Parable Good Samaritan

About 25 Years Ago, Cruz And Debbe Santiago Met ...  PRO

Contributed by Clyde Grimes on Dec 28, 2002

About 25 years ago, Cruz and Debbe Santiago met at Coney Island beach in New York City. They were homeless. They were addicted to drugs. They were experimenting with witchcraft. They were involved in gangs. They lived in the meager shelter underneath the Coney Island boardwalk. That was their ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To, Evangelism Fear Of

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Many Years Ago C.s. Lewis Wrote The Screwtape ...  PRO

Contributed by Tim Zingale on Dec 4, 2003

Many years ago C.S. Lewis wrote the Screwtape Letters. Screwtape was an assistant devil writing to his nephew Wormwood. Screwtape was telling his nephew how to make the "patient" leave the camp of the arch enemy, the Prince of Peace, and dwell in the camp of the real boss, the prince of darkness. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:4, Matthew 3:1-12

Tags: Temptation Pride

Denomination: Lutheran