Sermons on Stay Close:

To Protect And To Serve

Contributed by Bruce Ball on Jan 7, 2015

We invited the local Chief of Police to speak to our congregation and to our youth. After his talk, this is the short message we gave to close the service.

TO PROTECT AND TO SERVE That motto is used to describe the original description of our federal government’s purpose. It is primarily to protect "we the people" from those in our society that would hurt us so that Americans can live in the pursuit of happiness. That being said, it would be ...read more

Scripture: Romans 13:4

Denomination: *other

In The Beginning..

Contributed by Segun Omole on Oct 5, 2012

In the beginning God.. I have looked closely @ this part of the verse for a while now and there are few points that I believe would be important to note from it.

In the beginning God.. I have looked closely @ this part of the verse for a while now and there are few points that I believe would be important to note from it. 1. There is always a beginning for everything in life- In the beginning..assures me that everything I see around me were not in existence ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 1:1

Denomination: Pentecostal

The Keeping Power Of God Series

Contributed by Dennis Davidson on Mar 18, 2013

It is out of our personal relationship with God that we come to know with assurance certain things in the Christian life. These closing assurances are intended to be great encouragements to us.

1 JOHN 5: 18-21 [LIFE, LIGHT & LOVE SERIES] THE KEEPING POWER OF GOD John here reaches the end of what he wants to write. He has clearly shown the differences between the true believer and the false, and now he concludes by reiterating his purpose, which is to assure his readers who ...read more

Scripture: John 5:15-21

Denomination: Baptist

Failure Not Final Sermon V: From Bitterness Of Failure To Boldness Of Faith Series

Contributed by Charles Cunningham on Mar 11, 2020

God's greatest servants suffered incidents of failure, but their recall of such a close relationship and personal experiences with the Lord in the past sparked repentance and renewal of faith.

FROM BITTERNESS OF RUINOUS FAILURE TO BOLDNESS OF RENEWED FAITH Standing there in the Sistine Chapel with head craned backward as far as possible, gazing in awe and amazement at the ceiling above, my eyes beheld the wonder we had heard about but could not ...read more

Scripture: Luke 22:54-62, Acts 4:8-13

Circle Core Series

Contributed by Steve Ely on Apr 20, 2021

Who is in your circle? Are they the right people? Why? What are the people in our circles supposed to do? We will discover that those who are close matter most!

Circle Check Pt. 1 - Circle Core I. Introduction Circles are everywhere. Roadways, signs, coins, cups, headlights, taillights, logos, jewelry . . . circles surround. When you get right down to it ... circles is another way to describe relationships. We begin to circle up at a young age. On the ...read more

Scripture: John 13:34

Denomination: Pentecostal

Circle Component #1 Series

Contributed by Steve Ely on Apr 20, 2021

Who is in your circle? Are they the right people? Why? What are the people in our circles supposed to do? We will discover that those who are close matter most!

Circle Check Pt. 2 - Circle Component 1 I. Introduction They are present in every generation since it was invented. Whether it was in black and white or in color they are the mainstay of our airwaves. Leave it to Beaver. Andy Griffith. MASH. The Brady Bunch. The Partridge Family. Good Times. ...read more

Scripture: Romans 14:13

Denomination: Pentecostal

Circle Component #3 Series

Contributed by Steve Ely on Apr 20, 2021

Who is in your circle? Are they the right people? Why? What are the people in our circles supposed to do? We will discover that those who are close matter most!

Circle Check Pt. 4 - Circle Component 3 I. Introduction Circles are everywhere. Entertainment. Games. And one of the most obvious place you see circles is in sports. Holes Balls Goals Pucks Hoops?Huddles Scrums Circles are another way of saying relationships. We instinctively seem to know that ...read more

Scripture: James 5:16

Denomination: Pentecostal

Circle Component #6 Series

Contributed by Steve Ely on Apr 20, 2021

Who is in your circle? Are they the right people? Why? What are the people in our circles supposed to do? We will discover that those who are close matter most!

Circle Check Pt. 7 - Circle Component 6 I. Introduction Circles are everywhere. Entertainment. Games. TV Shows, Sports. And in Science. In his book, The Book of Circles, Manuel Lima takes the reader on a tour of use of circles in architecture, urban planning, fine art, design, fashion, ...read more

Scripture: Romans 15:7

Denomination: Pentecostal

Arise And Shine: Part 1 Series

Contributed by Kiruba Stephen on May 4, 2022

When the darkness closes in on our lives or we are under the covering of darkness for a long time, Jesus comes in and shines His light and sets us free.

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. 2 For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 60:1-3, John 5:1-15

12th Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A. Sparrow Stories.

Contributed by Paul Andrew on May 26, 2023

Several times the sparrow flew at the closed window and smacked itself into it, until it got so weak it could no longer fly; it only could walk.

Pastor Don Friesen tells a fascinating story about a sparrow that somehow got into the rafters of St. Helen’s Parish Church in the English town of Brant Broughton. At the time of the intrusion, they were recording a guitar recital for later broadcast on the radio. The chirping bird didn’t exactly ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:26-33

Denomination: Catholic

Prophet Enoch Series

Contributed by Rev. Dr. Andrew B Natarajan on Jul 7, 2024

Enoch walked with God in a declining culture. He had a very close relationship with God in a world and at a time that was becoming very wicked. He was a powerful preacher.

Text: Genesis 5:21-24, & Jude 1:14-15 Theme: Prophet Enoch Greetings: The Lord is good and his love endures forever! Introduction: The prophetic ministry is one of the five-fold ministry in the church. Ephesians 4:11: "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 5:21-24

Denomination: Methodist

A Return To Civility: 10 Don't Covet Series

Contributed by Denn Guptill on Aug 31, 2024

We don't hear the word covet a lot this days, but being greedy is pretty close. This message looks at why we shouldn't be greedy.

A Sunday school teacher was asking her class if anyone knew what the Tenth Commandment was, to which a little boy responded, “You must not take the covers off your neighbour’s wife.” Pretty close. Well, here we are—the last week of our series, A Return to Civility. When we started the series in ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 20:1-17

Denomination: Wesleyan

Things Aren't Always As They Seem Series

Contributed by Stu Hodges on Jun 11, 2013

God sometimes has a bigger purpose, something you cannot see behind an open door you walked through or behind that door that closed so abruptly on you.

Have you ever had to say this to someone in your house? I have to say this to my kids all the time because my kids have this tendency to stand right in front of our tv. I mean, they just stop dead in their tracks, it’s like they’re hypnotized by what’s happening in that moment on ...read more

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Truths About Sin

Contributed by Charles Wall, Jr. on Aug 26, 2003

Sin will take you further than you want to go; keep you longer than you want to stay; and cost you more than you want to pay.

Michael Kalman, a dermatologist issues a word of warning to those in our country who constantly strive for that golden brown suntan, "Today’s deeply tanned beauties are tomorrow’s wrinkled prunes." In thinking about sin, sin is kind of like getting a suntan. It may look great today, it may be ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Walking On Water

Contributed by Scott Bayles on Oct 9, 2004

When the billows are tossing high and life seems at its worst, how can we manage to stay above water? Peter teaches us to Listen, Look, and Lean on Jesus.

Walking On Water by Scott R. Bayles, preacher Church of Christ Scripture Reading: Isaiah 43:1-3a Invitation Song: Faith & Praise #453 "Love Lifted Me" Claudia was a newlywed in her twenties when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease and given only a fifty percent chance of survival. Quickly, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 14:22-33

Denomination: Christian Church