Sermons on Unexpected Heroes:

The Gift Of Pain

Contributed by Philip Harrelson on Jul 4, 2009

Pain is one of the unexpected gifts that God can use in our lives.

The Gift of Pain Text: Luke 5:12-16 Luke 5:12-16 -- "And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean." "And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, ...read more

Scripture: Luke 5:12-16

Denomination: Pentecostal

Behold, A Woman Lay At His Feet! Series

Contributed by Glenn Durham on Feb 16, 2011

God works through unexpected circumstances to protect and redeem his people.

Children’s Sermon Tell about time when Helen and I were sound asleep and suddenly – plop, something jumped into the bed with us! I woke, sat up, stared blindly into the dark (of course saw nothing), and laid back down thinking I had a bad dream. When it happened the second time, I was certain it ...read more

Scripture: Ruth 3:1-18

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Power Of Earnest Prayer Series

Contributed by Brian Bill on Nov 7, 2020

God often does the unexpected when we’re earnest in prayer.

A week ago, I listened to the Voice of the Martyr’s podcast called VOM Radio and learned about Petr Jasek, a believer from the Czech Republic, who was imprisoned in Sudan for 14 months. He served as the Africa Regional Director for Voice of the Martyrs and traveled to Sudan on their behalf. BTW, ...read more

Scripture: Acts 12:1-19

Denomination: Baptist

What Do You Hunger And Thirst For? Series

Contributed by Roshelle Brenneise on Oct 3, 2024

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke of hunger and thirst but threw in an unexpected twist:

October 05, 2024 What images come to your mind when you hear the 2 words hunger and thirst? Are they pleasant images? Probably not. • Hunger, by definition, is a feeling of discomfort or weakness caused by lack of food, coupled with the desire to eat. • Thirst, by definition, is a feeling ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:6, Psalm 42:1-2, Matthew 13:43-46, Luke 18:18-23

Denomination: Seventh-Day Adventist

What’s So Amazing About Grace? Series

Contributed by Paul Barreca on Apr 12, 2013

This story of Judah and Tamar reminds us that God’s grace comes in spite of our sin - even through our sin. Grace overcomes the mess that we make of our lives and provides us with something that we could never provide for ourselves.

There are many passages in the Bible that are difficult to preach. Genesis 38 is right up there at the top of the list. It’s not BORING It’s not DEEP THEOLOGY It’s not IRRELEVANT Simply put, it’s TOO RACY! But the story must be told, because it’s an amazing story about GRACE. The story concerns ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 38:1-38

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Learning To Play Hurt #2 Series

Contributed by Wade Martin Hughes, Sr on Oct 15, 2004

Just think of the examples of sports hero’s that had to play their best games hurt. Well, you may have to learn to keep on even when you are hurt.

LEARNING TO PLAY HURT? (This is part two of a two part series) By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com Many of the thoughts and illustrations in this series I adapted from a sermon by Pastor Wayne B. Smith of Lexington, KY. TEXT: John 6:60 THIS IS A HARD SAYING... John 6:66 From that time ...read more

Scripture: John 6:60-66

Denomination: Assembly Of God

Few Words Sometimes Speak Volumes

Contributed by Timothy Enns on Feb 13, 2012

This sermon is the first in a series that look at the individual judges from the book of Judges, character sketches

How many of you remember the old record players? You remember when a record would get a scratch in it how it would repeat over and over and over again, it would always jump on the scratch and you would either have to physically move the needle up a bit so the song would continue or toss out the ...read more

Scripture: Judges 3:7-11

Denomination: Nazarene

The Mighty Men Of David

Contributed by Bob Ashcraft on Mar 27, 2001

Who are the heroes of today? A look into God’s Hall of Fame.

May 30th, 1999 The Mighty Men of David “Where Are The Real Heroes?”  Who are our heroes today?  It is interesting what our heroes tell us about ourselves. We love heroes as a society.  Israel’s had heroes.  This is the hall of fame of the military heroes. (The ...read more

Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12, 2 Samuel 23:8-39

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Build Your Own Altar

Contributed by James Bryant on May 25, 2002

What will you do when your Hero of the Faith is no longer?

"BUILD YOUR OWN ALTAR" Joshua 22:9-12 (9) And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the country of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 22:9-27

Denomination: Baptist

Life Cycles Series

Contributed by David Welch on Nov 17, 2006

First in a series on the unlikely heros of faith introduced in Hebrews 11

Chico Alliance Church October 6, 2002 Pastor David Welch “Life Cycles” Unlikely Heroes: Part One Introduction God uses all kinds of people to accomplish His work. We ought to consider it a privilege that God includes imperfect fragile humans to bring about eternal impact. Oftentimes a whole group ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 11:1-5

Denomination: Christian Missionary Alliance

Armed And Donkey-Ish Series

Contributed by Daniel Habben on Sep 16, 2012

The true hero of this story is not Samson but our patienty and gracious God.

This is the time of year when movie studios release the films they think have the best chance of winning the Oscar for Best Picture. How many of those hyped-up movies have you gone to see only to leave the theatre muttering: “I just wasted two hours of my life and twenty bucks”? Will we ...read more

Denomination: Lutheran

The Hall Of Faith

Contributed by Christopher Holdsworth on Jul 27, 2013

Running the race with the heroes of the faith, with our eyes fixed on Jesus.

THE HALL OF FAITH. Hebrews 11:29-12:2. 1. In the earlier verses of Hebrews 11, the ‘Hall of Faith’ (as I have called it) spoke of faithful individuals, ranging from Abel through Abraham to Moses. Now we have a shift to the plural, emphasising the collective faith of all involved. “By faith THEY ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 11:29-40, Hebrews 12:1-2

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Care & Feeding Of A Spiritual Leader Series

Contributed by Larry Osborne on Jun 13, 2007

We can recite failings of the Biblical heroes without being fazed (we teach them to kids!) But shocked & dismayed when modern-day heroes have feet of clay

1 Timothy: Doing Church God’s Way North Coast Church Message #8 September 2-3, 2006 Dr. Larry Osborne The Care & Feeding Of A Spiritual Leader 1 Timothy 5:17-25 Sermon Outline Note: ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 5:17-25

Denomination: Evangelical Free

An Unlikely Faith Series

Contributed by Mark Schaeufele on Aug 22, 2007

God can use unexpected people with extraordinary faith to do extraordinary things.

An Unlikely Faith Text: Joshua 2:1-24 Introduction 1. Illustration: A wife woke up one morning and said, “Honey, I just had a dream that you bought me a new gold necklace. What do you think it means?” “I don’t know, but Valentine’s Day is coming soon. Tuesday, you’ll know,” He replied. A few ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 2:1-24

Denomination: Methodist

The Kingdom Like Malformed Mustard

Contributed by Timothy Darling on Mar 27, 2009

Like an unexpectedly huge mustard plant, the kingdom will grow and comfort, in unexpected ways.

Like Malformed Mustard Mark 4:30-32 The kingdom of God is like a VW Beetle. It is one of the smallest cars you will ever see. It is not very comfortable or powerful. It is not very stylish or practical. It is very cheap and not impressive in any way. There is no status with owning one. And yet, ...read more

Scripture: Mark 4:30-32

Denomination: Mennonite