Sermons on Metaphorical Cave:

The Grief Gauge Series

Contributed by Timothy Smith on Oct 15, 2005

5th in 5 part series on overcoming the obstacles and difficulties of life using five different Psalms. We used a "journey" or "road" metaphor in terms of the bumps of success, fear, guilt, the religious rut and grief, etc.

THE GRIEF GAUGE Navigating the Bumps of Life - Week 6 PSALM 116:1-8 INTRODUCTION: Paul Harvey tells the true story of a lady who went to a newspaper to report the death of her husband. She took a glowing four page report to the obituary counter. Upon seeing it, the news clerk said, "Ma’am, ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 116:1-8

Denomination: Christian Church

Pentecostal Fire Or Hell Fire

Contributed by Ernie Arnold on May 20, 2015

The Bible shares with us two different fires - the Fire of the Holy Spirit and the Fire of Hell. This sermon shares four different ways they are both similar and yet vastly different. It is a way to use the metaphor of fire in a sermon on Pentecost.

Scripture: Acts 1:1-13 and Luke 16:19-31 Theme: Pentecostal Fire or Hell Fire? INTRO: Good morning! A few years ago, the story goes that a certain pastor asked his congregation as rather particular question on Pentecost Sunday. He asked all those sitting in the sanctuary, “How ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:1-13

Denomination: Nazarene

Bond Slave Of Christ

Contributed by John Gaston on Dec 4, 2017

The more deeply a person surrenders to Christ and becomes dependent on Him daily, the more likely they are to finish the spiritual race in victory. Early Christians described it with the metaphor "bond-slave." It's what we're supposed to be!

BOND SLAVE OF CHRIST 1 Cor. 6:19-20 INTRODUCTION A. HUMOR: A SURE-FIRE SOLUTION 1. "I could sure do with your help, Steve," Isaac said to his best friend. “All right, so what's your problem?" replied Steve. 2. "Whenever I talk to my wife," replied Isaac, "she never seems to be interested in ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Soldiers For Christ

Contributed by Chuck Sligh on Nov 9, 2014

A Veteran's Day sermon. The Bible often uses warfare as a metaphor for the Christian life. This sermon examines how Paul likens the Christian life to warfare and what this teaches us about how to win the battle in the Christian life.

Soldiers for Christ Veteran’s Day Sermon November 9, 2014 TEXT: Please turn in your Bibles to 2 Timothy 2:3-4 INTRODUCTION Illus. – For a long time I didn’t understand my father-in-law, Sydney Robertson. He was the quietist man I ever met; almost unnervingly so. Having ...read more

Scripture: 2 Timothy 2:3-4

Denomination: Baptist

Splash Of Colour -A Night To Remember Christmas Eve...2

Contributed by John Gullick on Dec 23, 2015

2nd sermon of this title by me ten years apart. This one is for Christmas 2015 - uses a metaphor that Christmas eve is a splash of colour on a black backdrop of history. I will probably do a painting as I preach it.

Christmas eve. A night to remember LK 2:8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:8-20

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Transformed By Truth: Building On A Firm Foundation 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 Series

Contributed by Dean Courtier on Jun 18, 2024

1 Corinthians 3:10-11 speaks about the importance of building our lives on a solid foundation. The Apostle Paul uses the metaphor of a builder to convey a powerful truth about our faith and the centrality of Jesus Christ.

Transformed by Truth: Building on a Firm Foundation 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 (NLT): "Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:10-11, Isaiah 28:16, 1 Corinthians 3:10, Ephesians 2:19-20, Colossians 2:6-7  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Pentecostal

The Armor Of God Series

Contributed by Matthew Kratz on Nov 7, 2020

1) The Belt of Truth (Ephesians 6:14a) , 2) The Breastplate of Righteousness (Ephesians 6:14b), and 3) Feet prepared with the Gospel (Ephesians 6:15) These are metaphors for the spiritual resources given to those in Christ.

Ephesians 6:14-15 [14] Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, [15] and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. (ESV). The retailer “Whole Foods” raised great hostility this week when they ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-15

Denomination: Other

Sermon On A Journey To The Light

Contributed by William Meakin on Aug 31, 2025

A "journey to the light" has multi-faceted definitions which describe a metaphorical, spiritual, or personal process of growth, healing, and transformation, moving from a state of darkness, ignorance, or despair towards knowledge, hope, and enlightenment.

Lao Tzu, a Chinese philosopher and writer once remarked: "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step". John 8:12 reminds us: Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” A ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 1:5-7, Ephesians 5:8, Psalm 119:105, 2 Corinthians 4:6

Revival Through The Whisper Of Water SermonCentral

Contributed by SermonCentral on Sep 9, 2023

A sermon inspired by the metaphorical language of Job 14:7-9, illustrating how a seemingly dead tree can spring back to life at the mere 'whisper of water'. God calls us to be carriers of this life-giving water.

Today, I want to share a message inspired by the poetic language found in Job 14:7-9. In this passage, Job speaks of a tree that appears dead and without hope, but miraculously comes back to life at the "scent of water." This imagery reminds us that God wants us to be like water carriers, bringing ...read more

Scripture: Job 14:7-9

Topics: Encouragement, Hope, Revival

The Gentle Whisper - Part 1 Series

Contributed by Stephen Belokur on Jan 15, 2016

Elijah! What a story! What a life! Talk about a ministry with ups and downs; Elijah had them! This sermon takes us from Elijah's first encounter with Ahab to the Lord's first question to him in the cave on Mount Moriah. "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

Elijah - a fascinating story Explain who Elijah was and where he fell in the history of Israel. Explain the spiritual state of Israel at the time of Elijah. (This is a different kind of sermon intended to be part one of two. In order to deliver this message I will read 1 Kings 17:1 - 1 Kings ...read more

Denomination: Nazarene

Easter 2016: Empty Promises

Contributed by Scott Bayles on Dec 22, 2020

On the first Easter Sunday, instead of promises full of emptiness, God gave us emptiness that is full of promise. There are at least three of them—an empty cross, empty clothes, and an empty cave. It is the very fact that each of these is empty that assures us that God’s promises are not.

EASTER: EMPTY PROMISES Scott Bayles, pastor Blooming Grove Christian Church: 3/27/2016 I just want to take a moment to thank everyone for choosing to spend Easter morning with us here at the Grove. Whether you’ve been coming to the Grove all your life, or this is your first time visiting, or you ...read more

Scripture: Romans 6:8-10, Romans 6:23, Colossians 3:13-14, John 20:5-7, Matthew 28:5-6  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian Church

Washing Off The Grime Of Guilt Series

Contributed by Timothy Smith on Oct 8, 2005

3nd in 5 part series on overcoming the obstacles and difficulties of life using 5 different Psalms. We used a "journey" or "road" metaphor, i.e.,bumps of success, fear, guilt, the religious rut and grief, etc.

WASHING OFF THE GRIME OF GUILT Navigating the Bumps of Life - Week 3 PSALM 32 INTRODUCTION: The story is told that Noel Coward, the well known playwright, as a prank, once sent an identical anonymous letter to 10 notable men in London. The note said, "We know what you have done. If you don’t ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 32:1-11

Denomination: Christian Church

Christ - Our New Ark Of The Covenant

Contributed by William Akehurst on Apr 7, 2012

Jesus is the NEW ARK of the NEW COVENANT See the correlation of the Ark of the Covenant in Exodus and CHRIST as the NEW ARK of the COVENANT as desribed in John 20:12 Metaphorically, Noah was saved by the Ark, We are saved by the ARK who is CHRIST JESUS.

2014.04.07.Sermon.The New Covenant Arose Symbolic Events of Resurrection Day The New Covenant, Napkin, Ascension and anticipation for His Return Scriptures: Exodus 25:10-22 Jeremiah 31:31-33 Matthew 26:28 John 20:1-29 Acts 1:4-11 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 Summary: Christ is our ARK Noah and the ...read more

Scripture: John 20:1-29

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

No Reserve, No Retreat, And No Regret

Contributed by Davon Huss on Oct 27, 2018

Let’s discuss these 3 metaphors from Philippians 2:14-18 (Title and outline adapted from Stephen Davey at: http://www.wisdomonline.org/files/2405/Humility%20Part%209.pdf)

HoHum: In 1904 William Borden graduated from a Chicago high school. As heir to the Borden Dairy estate, he was already a millionaire. For his high school graduation present, his parents gave him a trip around the world. Now William’s mother had a profound influence on his life. In fact, she had ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 2:14-18

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

How Often I Would, But You Would Not

Contributed by John Gaston on May 3, 2023

God uses the metaphor of a hen to describe His love for us. We look at why He wants to gather us, the means He uses to do so, and the dangers of ignoring His call. Missed opportunities become judgments!

HOW OFTEN I WOULD, BUT YOU WOULD NOT Matt. 23:37-38 INTRODUCTION A. HUMOR 1. Here’s an early Mother’s Day joke. A pastor was talking to a teenage boy; “I want to teach you about a higher power.” 2. The teen answered, “You mean, my Dad?” The pastor laughed, “Haha! No! Much higher than that!” ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 23:37-38

Denomination: Assembly Of God