In Sermon Illustrations: "Wrong"

A Forever Family

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 10, 2009

A FOREVER FAMILY Author Keith Miller tells of an outgoing 40-year-old woman who was part of a sharing group he led. Here is her story: "When I was a tiny little girl, my parents died and I was put in an orphanage. I was not pretty at all and no one seemed to want me. But I longed to be adopted ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 1:3-14

Tags: Adoption

Different Views Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Nov 2, 2009

Different Views of Time You may not realize it, but your appreciation of time this morning goes well beyond the challenges of adjusting to daylight-savings time. There was a time when time was a relatively simple thing. People were born, grew up, grew old and died. Days, seasons and years past. ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 5:15-16

Tags: Time

The Devil Made Me Do It

Contributed by Russell Brownworth on Feb 19, 2010

THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT When I served a church in Greenville, Florida, one of our men was Joe Ball Reams; about 6'4" and a man's man! He farmed tobacco, corn and cotton to pay the bills. One of his entrepreneurial ventures is a 600 acre hunting club on family land. He has entertained Southern ...read more

Tags: Temptation General

Denomination: United Methodist

Make Your Home In Me

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 13, 2010

MAKE YOUR HOME IN ME If I’m not abiding in Jesus, then where is it that I abide? I once asked myself. I began to notice that when I was tired or anxious, there were certain sentences I would say in my head that led me to a familiar place. The journey to this place would often start with me walking ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 4:6-7

Tags: Anxiety

I Remember Something That Happened Just After I ...

Contributed by K. Edward Skidmore on Sep 4, 2010

I remember something that happened just after I moved to Texas from New Mexico in 1974. I was driving down a street in Alvin and was pulled over by a city policeman. He asked me if I was aware that I was driving over the speed limit in a school zone. Having just moved to Texas, I didn’t know ...read more

Tags: Law

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

A Harvest Of Service

Contributed by Ross Cochrane on Feb 4, 2011

A HARVEST OF SERVICE Vehicles being thrown around like toys in the rushing waters and heartbreaking stories of lives lost have filled the news reports. The damage to bumper harvests was also devastating, probably in the billions of dollars, as the states of Queensland, NSW and Victoria in ...read more

Tags: Servanthood

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

What Really Matters  PRO

Contributed by Ronnie Miller on Jul 28, 2011

What Really Matters It was two weeks before Christmas and it began to start. Everyone was scrambling and rushing to get to Wal-Mart. Their credit cards were in the orange and checking account in the red in hopes that their rich uncle would soon be dead. Old Saint Nick sitting high on a mountain ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-40

Tags: Christmas, Tree, Poem, Santa Claus

Denomination: Baptist

The Golden Rule: Is It Original?

Contributed by Jeff Strite on Dec 12, 2011

THE GOLDEN RULE: IS IT ORIGINAL? There are people in this world who think Jesus’ Golden Rule was nice but not original. They try to say that Jesus merely borrowed the idea from others. I once saw a poster that tried to say that. * Confucius (some 500 years before Jesus) said: "DO NOT unto ...read more

Tags: Discipleship

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Idol Of Sexual ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jul 27, 2012

THE IDOL OF SEXUAL IMMORALITY -The next idol hasn’t just slipped in the door, it has kicked in the door. It is the Eros problem, our society has overdosed on immoral sexual behavior. Kids in my generation had to seek out things that had sexual overtones and it was usually pretty difficult to find ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:9-20

Tags: Immorality

Treat Each Other Like The Answer To A Prayer  PRO

Contributed by Dave Clark on Dec 11, 2012

TREAT EACH OTHER LIKE THE ANSWER TO A PRAYER I can still see one of the great provokers in my life. I met her on a work trip to Kentucky. Our youth group was working on a woman’s house, but it wasn’t very much fun. We hated where we were. Porches and front yards littered with old cars, sofas ...read more

Scripture: Luke 8:43-48, Acts 10:30-33

Tags: Prayer Of Faith

Denomination: Disciples Of Christ

Gossip: Opie's Newspaper

Contributed by Davon Huss on May 7, 2014

"Opie's Newspaper" is an episode on the Andy Griffith Show. Opie's friend, Howie, received a small printing press as a gift, and the boys decide to go into the newspaper business. They work hard and produce an initial issue of what they call the Mayberry Sun. The boys soon find that business is ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:31-32

Tags: Gossip, Slander, Sins Of Tongue, Control Tongue

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Solomon Discovered The Emptiness Of ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 12, 2008

Solomon discovered the emptiness of stuff. Illus. A young banker was driving his BMW, in the mountains, during a snowstorm. As he rounded a turn the vehicle slid out of control and toward a cliff. At the last moment he unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped from the car. Though he escaped with his ...read more

Tags: Ot Kings

A Young Banker Was Driving His Bmw, In The ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 27, 2008

A young banker was driving his BMW, in the mountains, during a snowstorm. As he rounded a turn the vehicle slid out of control and toward a cliff. At the last moment he unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped from the car. Though he escaped with his life, his left arm was caught near the hinge of the ...read more

Tags: Ot Characters

You're Not Home Yet!

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Feb 25, 2023

An old missionary couple had been working in Africa for years, and they were returning to New York City to retire. They had no pension; their health was broken; they were defeated, discouraged, and afraid. They discovered they were booked on the same ship as President Teddy Roosevelt, who was ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23

Tags: Missionaries, Rewards, Spiritual Fruit, Fruit Of The Spirit, Faithfulness, Heaven  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Epiphany

Contributed by Richard L. Brown on Jan 11, 2025

When I was in High School, I had a teacher named Miss Mary Bartram. She taught English and Literature. One day she read a poem to us by Robert Frost, entitled “The Road Not Taken”. She read it with such commitment and passion that I believe she changed a lot of lives that day, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12

Tags: Faith, Choice

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Grace  PRO

Contributed by Donnie Martin on Aug 18, 2004

Grace The boy stood defiantly. “Go ahead, give it to me.” The principal looked at the young rebel and asked, “How many times have you been here?” The child sneered rebelliously, “Apparently not enough.” “And you have been punished each time?” the principal responded. “Yeah, I been ...read more

Tags: Chosen, E, God The Father, Grace, Set Apart  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Baptist

The Impact Of Divorce

Contributed by Sermon Central on Oct 23, 2010

THE IMPACT OF DIVORCE Today, there is a generation of children of divorce that has grown up. Elizabeth Marquardt is author of Between Two Worlds: The Inner Lives of Children of Divorce. This scholar, a child of divorce herself, drew from her own experiences and also surveyed 1500 adult children ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 7:10-16

Tags: Divorce

A Good Name: The Case Of Butch O'hare

Contributed by Sermon Central on May 9, 2011

A GOOD NAME: THE CASE OF BUTCH O'HARE His name was Butch O'Hare, one of the heroes of World War II. He was a fighter pilot assigned to an aircraft carrier in the South Pacific. One day his entire squadron was sent on a mission. After he was airborne, he looked at his fuel gauge and realized that ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 22:1

Tags: Character

Bitter And Resentful

Contributed by Glynda Lomax on Dec 27, 2014

"Bitterness is like taking poison, and waiting for the other person to die." - Malachy McCourt I once knew a woman whose heart had been broken by disappointing relationships. She became very sarcastic towards the opposite sex and could often be overheard making disparaging remarks about ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:31

Tags: Resentment, Bitterness, Bitter Root

Denomination: Charismatic

Truly Amazing Grace

Contributed by Tim Smith on Aug 13, 2017

Timothy Paul Jones in his book, Proof writes about his middle daughter who had been previously adopted by another family. He was sure this couple had the best of intentions, but they never quite integrated the adopted child into their family of biological children. For one reason or another, ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 6:1-8

Tags: Grace, Sin, Chosen, Rebellion, Adoption  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Methodist