Sermons on Ball:

A Loss Of Focus

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Mar 6, 2009

A message explaining why Martha felt sorry for herself, got angry at her sister, and why she questioned Jesus as to whether He cared for her or not.

How would you feel if your car only started once out of every two or three tries, would you consider it to be a good car? What if the mailman only came to your house a couple times a week, would you consider him to be reliable? What if the electricity only worked occasionally when you flipped the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:38-42

Denomination: *other

The Change That Comes With Church Growth

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Mar 10, 2009

A shorter midweek message that might help other churches in dealing with some of the potential problems they must deal with in growing from a very small to a medium sized church in a short period of time.

We all have choices in life. Some choices lead us into good times, while others will lead us into bad times. And considering that we are free to make whichever choice we want, we should be very careful and use much wisdom, because most choices, good or bad, have far reaching consequences that we ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 29:11

Denomination: *other

One Is Bad - One Is Good

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Mar 11, 2009

A message comparing the horrifying attributes of hell to the wondrous goodness of heaven.

I read a news article the other day that said over 50% of society believes in a heaven, but less than 40% believe in a hell. There is a discrepancy in those numbers because everyone wants to go someplace good, and we all recognize that heaven is a good place. Likewise, we do not want to go any ...read more

Scripture: John 14:3

Denomination: *other

Genesis 5-11

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Jan 10, 2007

An overview of the people and events from Adam to Noah.

As we continue our trip through GENESIS, let’s recap … LAST WEEK’S MESSAGE In Chapter 1, the first thing we learned was God is. Not that God is this, or God is that, but simply that God IS, and that God is eternal. We also discovered that, even though we act like we are the creators, He is ...read more

Denomination: *other

What Is Hurting Today's Church?

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Jan 27, 2007

A sermon calling the church to focus on building God’s kingdom rather than focus on our comfort. This was given after a short message from a Gideon speaker.

Back in the first part of the last century, Cumberland College of Kentucky was playing football with a rival, and they were totally out of their league. They were losing miserably because the opposing team was bigger, stronger, and more intimidating than they were. One of their players fumbled ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:19-20

Denomination: *other

Belief + Trust + Faith

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Sep 25, 2006

Just knowing about Jesus will not benefit us. We must know Him. This sermon explains that to know Him we must have belief, trust, and faith.

How much do we really know about God? How much do we think we need to know? One morning, right after school had started, the teachers were called into the teacher’s lounge for a quick meeting. This left all the classrooms empty. Mr. Miles knew that he had an especially unruly class, so he ...read more

Scripture: John 14:13-14

Denomination: *other

Priorities For Today's Church

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Oct 2, 2006

To have an impact for Jesus, we must have our priorities straight; both as individual Christians and as a church.

A policeman in Los Angeles responded to a call of a burglary in process. It was around midnight when he got there. He saw a young man standing near the front door of the business and when he yelled for him to get down on the ground, the young man raised a gun and pointed at the policeman. The ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 7:7-8

Denomination: *other

Why A New Church?

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Oct 20, 2006

A message explaining why we decided to plant a church. This can be adapted to show why we need to change formats, names, etc.

An old fisherman used to amaze all the locals with how many fish he was able to catch. It didn’t matter what the weather was like, or how much other fishermen were able to catch, he always caught more than anyone else. The stories became legend, and soon reached the local game warden. He showed ...read more

Scripture: 1 Kings 19:20-21

Denomination: *other

Given To Testify

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Oct 23, 2006

A sermon that wraps up a morning of personal testimonies - giving biblical references on how to testify and why we must testify.

We all have a sphere of influence in our lives. That sphere is made up of those people in our lives that we have some influence over. And one of the strongest ways we can influence someone is through a personal testimony. That is when you tell someone else how something, or somebody, has ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 25:14-30

Denomination: *other

From The Old To The New

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Aug 21, 2006

A sermon designed to lift the spirits of a church plant congregation after having been verbally attacked by their former church. Focuses on love and the new frontier of a job to be done!

The Israelites were kept as slaves in Egypt for over 400 years. Their oppressors mistreated them and there is no doubt they suffered mentally and spiritually, as well as physically. Those generations of Israelites must have felt a hurt that would have be unimaginable to us today. The Bible ...read more

Scripture: Luke 6:37-38

Denomination: *other

Pray Like Jabez

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Sep 12, 2006

A 4-point sermon explaining how and why we need to apply this short prayer to our lives, both as Christians and as the body of Christ.

Everybody wants to know what purpose they have. Does God really have a plan for each one of us? The Bible says God knew us even before we were born and that He has a unique and distinct plan for each one of us. JEREMIAH 29:11 says, ‘I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. Plans to ...read more

Scripture: 1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Denomination: *other

Get Right - Or Get Left

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Sep 21, 2006

A sermon about the necessity of being properly prepared for the End Times, no matter when they might occur.

GET RIGHT – OR GET LEFT Pastor Bruce Ball As Christians, we are not supposed to know when the end will occur. However, we are supposed to be aware of the season and of the signs. Today, I want to paint a quick picture of what the Bible tells us of the ending, and then see if there is anything ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:19-20

Denomination: *other

Who Stole Christmas?

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Dec 11, 2006

We need to put our focus on Jesus at this time of year, and to help others do the same; by sharing the Lord with them; by loving them; and by actually leading them to Christ just as someone else led us to Christ.

Christmas is a wonderful time of year. It is a time that we look forward to with joy in our hearts and eagerly anticipate what is about to happen. And, it was meant for us to feel that way. But, in the last few years, something terrible has happened. Somebody has stolen Christmas! Not only ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12

Denomination: *other

The Meaning Of Christmas

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Dec 17, 2006

This sermon depicts the true meaning of what Christmas really is; through God’s forgiveness; His help in our storms; and the hope He gives us for our future.

Last week, I talked about how Christmas is a time of love. God loved us enough to send His Son to be our sacrifice. Jesus loved us enough to be that sacrifice. And now, God wants us to love Jesus enough to sacrifice our will to Him. I explained that love is the willingness to sacrifice ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:8-14

Denomination: *other

Time To Take Down The Tree

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Dec 24, 2006

A message to remind us 1) what God has done for us 2) what He has promised us, and 3) where He is taking us. We must make the decision whether or not to take God into the New Year with us.

So, all the presents have been unwrapped and even some of the gifts have been exchanged. The leftover turkey is all but gone and we have had to let our belts out a notch or two. All seems well and we are happy as can be – or are we? Many people find themselves depressed during the weeks ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:68-79

Denomination: *other