Sermons on God Of Surprises:

The God Of Great Turnarounds Series

Contributed by Duane Wente on May 22, 2023

The story of Esther and Mordecai is full of plot twists, unexpected outcomes, and surprise endings, all reminding us that we serve a God of great turnarounds. Do we have “Hamans” in our lives? From the story of Esther and Mordecai we can draw encouragement for our lives today.

Introduction Video Ill.: The Story of Esther - Second Look Films (segment 4) We are continuing our study today based loosely on Max Lucado’s book, You Were Made for This Moment. When we started, we saw that Esther and Mordecai just wanted to blend in — to be cosy in the Persian culture. Don’t ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 35:17, Jeremiah 12:1, Acts 17:31, Psalm 7:11, Mark 12:29-31, Matthew 5:43-45, Isaiah 58:6-9  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

When God’s Promises Seem Too Good To Be Real Series

Contributed by Jim Butcher on Oct 23, 2019

Mary's response to Gabriel's message is surprising. The message is unexpectedly encouraging, yet the Bible says she was deeply troubled. Are there times when God gives us good news but we don't treat it like good news?

THE ANGEL'S MESSAGE: Gabriel’s message was unexpectedly encouraging yet troubling to Mary. - Luke 1:28-29. - The message and the response don’t immediately line up. Let’s start with the response: v. 29 tells us that Mary was greatly troubled. Given that response, you would presume that the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:26-30

Denomination: Baptist

His Needs, Her Needs, Part 1 Series

Contributed by Alan Perkins on Apr 25, 2001

Men and women are different. Surprised?

[The "Rules"] 1. The Female always makes the Rules. 2. The Rules are subject to change at any time without prior notification. 3. No Male can possibly know all the Rules. 4. If the Female suspects the Male knows all the Rules, she must immediately change some or all of the Rules. 5. The Female is ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 2:4

Denomination: Baptist

If You Missed Easter ...

Contributed by Bob Joyce on Aug 3, 2007

Surprises related to the Easter story.

How many of you like surprises? If you are very young, your immediate response is, "Oh, boy! I love surprises!" If you are a little older, you’re probably a little more cautious. You have learned that not all surprises are happy ones. If you missed Easter, I have a surprise for you. I want us ...read more

Scripture: Mark 16:1-20

Denomination: Baptist

The Remnant Lives Series

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 24, 2021

The general purpose of Romans 9-11 is to explain Israel’s unbelief and the growing gentile population of the church; the great doctrines about God’s sovereignty are important, but the main point is this: God has temporarily set aside Israel to accommodate the church age.

The Remnant Lives Romans 10:13-11:12 1. It is not often that Valentine’s Day falls on a Sunday, so this means I am obligated to begin my sermon with a Valentine’s story, a true one. 2. “Every Valentine’s Day our campus newspaper has a section for student messages. Last year my roommate surprised ...read more

Denomination: Independent/Bible

If You Look For It, You Will Find It!

Contributed by David Nolte on Apr 21, 2021

Joseph's brothers hated him and gave him plenty of reason to hate them back. Instead he did a surprising thing.

They hated him. They despised him. They loathed the ground on which he walked. They had “good reasons,” to hear them tell it. • He was their father’s favorite. • He didn’t have to work hard as they did. • He dreamed that in the future his father, mother and 11 brothers would all bow before ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 45:1-14

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

God Knows

Contributed by Curtis E. Nester on May 31, 2016

God knows everything, both good and bad He knows everything about us but still loves us. God loves us as we are, but He loves us too much to leave us that way.

TITLE: God Knows TEXT: Psalm 139:1-6 INTRO: When we lived in NC, people had an expression they used when they didn't understand something, they would say, "God Knows." That's true, of course because God is Omniscient He knows everything, including some things you might wish He didn't know ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 139:1-6

Denomination: Baptist

The Living Lyrics Of The Lowly Life

Contributed by Bradley Boydston on Dec 21, 2002

One of the great surprises of Christmas is God’s propensity toward working thru the lowly.

- - - - - - - - - - Unless noted otherwise all scripture is quoted from the New Living Translation of the Bible. - - - - - - - - - - "Oh, how I praise the Lord. How I rejoice in God my Savior! For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and now generation after generation will call me blessed.” ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:46-56

Denomination: *other

August, My Month Of Uncommon Testimonies

Contributed by Rev. Samuel Arimoro on Jul 29, 2025

Uncommon testimonies are not fabricated stories; they are living proofs of divine intervention that turn mockery into amazement and trials into triumphs.

AUGUST, MY MONTH OF UNCOMMON TESTIMONIES By Rev. Samuel Arimoro Main Text: Psalm 126:1-3 Supporting Texts: Revelation 12:11, Luke 1:37, Job 5:9, Mark 5:25-34, John 11:40 INTRODUCTION: Every month carries a divine agenda, and August is prophetically ordained to be a month of uncommon ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 126:1-3

Denomination: Assembly Of God

The Future Of Israel (Romans 11) Series

Contributed by James Jackson on Sep 25, 2022

God has not rejected His people Israel. But He has allowed them to be blinded for a time. The reason may surprise you.

The Israel Trilogy, Part 3: The Future of Israel Romans 11 Good morning! Please turn to Romans 11. I want to warn you at the outset that this may be the most difficult part of Romans to wrap our heads around. Did you know that in 2 Peter 3:!6, the apostle Peter admits that sometimes Paul is hard ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Is This A Curve Ball? (Advent 2009)

Contributed by John Williams Iii on Dec 1, 2023

This sermon is about being surprised by tbd unexpected things much like Jesus seems to have surprised John the Baptist.

IS THIS A CURVE BALL? Text: Matthew 11:2-11 I read about someone’s recollection of a performance that he (Tom Wright) had been rehearsing for on stage at an earlier time in his life. He mentions that all had been going according to plan most of the time. “We had all rehearsed ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 11:2-11

Denomination: United Methodist

A View From The House Of The Potter

Contributed by Christopher Holdsworth on Jun 7, 2016

The surprise here is that the intention of God can be resisted, and if (we) turn He speaks of changing His mind.

A VIEW FROM THE POTTER'S HOUSE. Jeremiah 18:1-11. On one occasion I was taken to a pottery museum, where one could purchase wares and also see them being made. I had made one or two small pottery items while at school (one of which remained on my mother’s back doorstep long after I had left ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 18:1-11

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

To The Praise Of His Glory

Contributed by Clay Gentry on Sep 10, 2013

Why did God send Jesus to save us? It might surprise most Christians to learn it wasn't so we could go to heaven? So what was it? In this lesson we will explore why God saved us.

There is no doubt about, our God is a great God. Need proof of that? Let’s take a quick look through Ephesians 1-3 and learn how He has “blessed us with every spiritual blessing” through Jesus Christ (1:3): - God has blessed us by adopting us as His children (1:5, 2:19) - God has ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 1:5-6, Ephesians 1:11-12, Ephesians 1:13-14

Denomination: *other

How God Chooses A Servant-Leader Series

Contributed by Joel Santos on Oct 9, 2007

Let’s notice in this passage as we think about How God Chooses his Servant-Leader: I. GOD’S CHOICES ARE SOVEREIGN II. GOD’S CHOICES ARE SURPRISING III. GOD’S CHOICES ARE SPECIFIC

HOW GOD CHOOSES A SERVANT-LEADER 1 Samuel 16:1-13 This chapter opens with God reminding Samuel of the fact that He has rejected Saul as king of Israel. Saul was chosen as king because the people wanted to be like the other nations around them, 1 Sam. 8:1-5. Up to that point, God had ruled the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 16:1-13

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Power Of Earnest Prayer Series

Contributed by Carl Allen on Dec 6, 2007

The power of earnest prayer is amazing. We should not be surprised when God moves.

The Power of Earnest Prayer Acts 12:1-16 Acts 13:1-12 Intro Acts 12-13 offers interesting glimpses of two congregations at prayer. The Jerusalem church is described in Acts 12 and the Antioch church in Acts 13. These chapters show the relationship between prayer and come crucial concerns in the ...read more

Denomination: Baptist