In Sermon Illustrations: "Wise Man"

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

Do Whatever The Champion Does

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 24, 2011

DO WHATEVER THE CHAMPION DOES In 1976, Finland’s Lasse Viren made Olympic history when he became the first man to win both the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races in successive Olympiads. After his victory, his coach decided to take on the record of the legendary Emil Zatopek. Earlier in the century at ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:1-5

Tags: Discipleship

God, Send Us Bigger Rattlesnakes  PRO

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Mar 26, 2012

GOD, SEND US BIGGER RATTLESNAKES There was a farmer who had three sons: Jim, John, and Sam. No one in the family ever attended church or had time for God. The pastor and church members tried for years to interest the family in the things of God, but to no avail. Then one day, a rattlesnake bit ...read more

Tags: Prayer Supplication

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Refuse Good Advice And Watch Your Plans ...  PRO

Contributed by Bruce Emmert on May 22, 2001

“Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail; take good counsel and watch them succeed” (Proverbs 3:21). We can say it another way: Heed wise counsel, or watch your hopes be cancelled. The hard won truth of this proverb is evident in an experience that riveted my generation. In January of 1985 ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 1:1

Tags: Leadership General, God's Forgiveness, God's Omniscience

Denomination: United Methodist

Predestination  PRO

Contributed by Chuck Sligh on Mar 19, 2012

PREDESTINATION Rather than predetermining a person’s FATE, predestination predetermines a believer’s FOCUS—that is, God’s eternal purposes, goals and privileges for him. Every instance of the word “predestinate” in the New Testament refers to some purpose, goal or privilege that God has ...read more

Tags: Election

Denomination: Baptist

Lord Use My Time  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 23, 2002

LORD USE MY TIME Lord I have time I have plenty of time All the time that you give me The years of my life The days of my years The hours of my days They are all mine Mine to fill, quietly, calmly, But to fill completely, up to the brim, To offer them to you, that of their insipid water You may ...read more

Tags: Giving Yourself, New Year's Day

A Woman Who Was A Very Devout Christian For Many ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jun 18, 2007

A woman who was a very devout Christian for many years had a husband who was not a Christian. He liked to go to bars and accused her of not wanting to be with him. He objected to her going to church. She decided to start going to the bars with him. She made this choice at a little fork in the road. ...read more

Tags: Salvation

More Than The Sum Of Their Parts

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 23, 2008

MORE THAN THE SUM OF THEIR PARTS I once read the story is told of a horse pulling contest in Canada. The winning horse in the contest pulled 9,000 pounds The runner up pulled 8,000. Together you’d expect them to pull 17,000 lbs. but not so! When teamed together, they pulled 30,000 lbs – nearly ...read more

Tags: Church Purpose Of

D.

Contributed by Brian Matherlee on Oct 6, 2009

“A human being has to work to live but has an insatiable appetite for more. This is common to both wise and foolish. Today the business world contains many clever people who work hard because they are obsessed with piling up money, while on the other side there are those who are ever alert for a ...read more

Tags: Contentment, Christian Values

Denomination: Wesleyan

Message To Garcia  PRO

Contributed by Mitchell Skelton on Nov 16, 2002

Message to Garcia Article Excerpts In all this Cuban business there is one man who stands out on the horizon of my memory. When war broke out between Spain and the United States, it was very necessary to communicate quickly with the leader of the insurgents. Garcia was somewhere in the ...read more

Tags: Great Commission, Evangelism Urgency

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

There Was A Art Contest Held In A Local School ...  PRO

Contributed by Kyle Meador on Dec 18, 2000

There was a art contest held in a local school one Christmas season a few years ago in East Texas. One of the prize winners was a picture drawn by a nine year old boy showing three men, offering gifts to the baby Jesus in his manger. What made the picture unique is how the three gift presenters ...read more

Scripture: John 1:14-18, Matthew 2:1-2

Tags: Christmas, Communication General, Communication, Birth Of Jesus

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

What Children Hear  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 24, 2002

WHAT CHILDREN HEAR I was reading the story of Jesus’ birth to my day-care children one morning. As usual, I stopped to see if they understood. "What do we call the three wise men?" I asked. "The three maggots," replied a bright 5-year-old. "What gift did the MAGI bring baby Jesus?" ...read more

Tags: Birth Of Jesus, Christmas

He Gave The ...

Contributed by Donnie Martin on May 24, 2010

He GAVE the Blood! Ed Freeman, quoting Herb Cain, told in the San Francisco Chronicle about a poster for a blood bank. The poster read, “Be a volunteer Blood Donor.” Someone had wisely printed on the poster these words: “That’s the best kind.” If someone is taking your blood, and you are not a ...read more

Tags: Blood Of Christ, Christ's Sacrifice

Denomination: Baptist

God's Strange Answers

Contributed by Bill Butsko on Jul 9, 2010

GOD'S STRANGE ANSWERS He was a Christian, and he prayed. He asked for strength to do greater things, but he was given infirmity that he might do better things. He asked for riches that he might be happy; he was given poverty that he might be wise. He asked for power that he might have the ...read more

Tags: Desire

Denomination: Christian Church

Engraved On A Cathedral In Germany

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Apr 2, 2022

These words are engraved on a cathedral in Lubeck, Germany: You call Me master and obey Me not, You call Me light and see Me not, You call Me the way and walk Me not, You call Me life and live Me not, You call Me wise and follow Me not, You call Me fair and love Me not, You call Me rich ...read more

Tags: Servant, Obedience, Lordship Of Christ, Lord, Jesus  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Understanding Isn’t Faith

Contributed by David Dunn on Oct 16, 2025

The universe is vast. God is infinitely wise. We will never master every “why.” Years ago, I told a friend how much the problem of evil troubled me. “I want to understand how God could permit it.” He listened, then asked—bluntly—“Why do you think you’ll solve what the greatest minds haven’t? Who ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 3:5-6, Isaiah 55:8-9

Tags: Trust, Mystery

Denomination: Seventh-Day Adventist

Listen To This Reality Check From Greg Gibson ...

Contributed by Michael Mccartney on Jun 26, 2007

Listen to this reality check from Greg Gibson from his website Jesussaidfollowme.org: Our Finite, Human Brains Can’t Fully Understand the Supernatural, Divine, Infinite, Omniscient Mind of God If we could fully understand God with our finite, human brains, then He would have to be like us, and ...read more

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Persian Legend — Pour Water Into Basket

Contributed by Christian Cheong on Aug 29, 2007

Persian Legend - Pour Water into Basket A certain king had a task to accomplish. He called two of his servants. They were given the same wages and told to fill a basket with water from a nearby well, saying that he would come in the evening to inspect their work. After dumping one or two ...read more

Denomination: Independent/Bible

3 Temptations Satan Uses Against Us

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 27, 2023

Eve’s descent into depravity is an illustration of James 1:14-15: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” This is the Bible’s description of sin’s slippery ...read more

Scripture: James 1:14-15

Tags: Eve, Sin, Satan, Temptation, Garden Of Eden, Backsliding  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Severely Injured Christian Learned To Read Braille Bible With Tongue

Contributed by Rick Crandall on Sep 28, 2025

Severely Injured Christian Learned to Read Braille Bible with Tongue In the middle of Psalm 37:3 David reminds us that we should trust God enough to follow Him and walk in His ways. Or as David simply said: "Do good." *"Do good." This is God's simple and sure command for ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 37:1-11

Tags: Horrible Times, Righteousness, Rejoice, Shelter, Rest, Hardships, Cast Your Cares, Pain, Peace, Evil, Suffering, Trusting God  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist