In Sermon Illustrations:

Ray Bradbury's Message

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 28, 2012

RAY BRADBURY’S MESSAGE Avid readers often will credit this or that writer for luring them into a lifelong love of a genre. For those who love science fiction, it offers grand, cosmic landscapes on which to project the boundless possibilities of life. Yet for one writer, Ray Bradbury (August 22, ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:12

Tags: Sin Fall Of Man

Vanishing Waves

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 28, 2012

VANISHING WAVES A wise man once told me to pour a glass of water. He dipped his index finger into the cup, I watched as miniature waves hit the glass only to halt seconds later. The wise man told that regardless of how important the world will ever view me or my accomplishments, history will only ...read more

Scripture: Luke 12:13-34

Tags: Parable Rich Fool

Inescapable Judgment

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 28, 2012

INESCAPABLE JUDGMENT During the winter of 1951, a Montana café owner named Clarence Pellett pulled over to pick up a hitchhiker who appeared cold and frozen while walking during a snowstorm. Once in the car, the hitchhiker Frank Dryman pulled out a gun and ordered Pellett to get out of his ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 16:4-7

Tags: Judgment

Leaning Over A ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 28, 2012

LEANING OVER A CLIFF Writer Parker Palmer tells of his first experience on an Outward Bound course in his book, The Active Life. He says, "I took the course in my early forties, and in the middle of that course I was asked to confront the thing I had fears about since I had first heard about ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

Tags: Trust

Marriage Takes Hard Work

Contributed by Curry Pikkaart on Aug 28, 2012

MARRIAGE TAKES HARD WORK Good marriages are designed in heaven, but they are made on earth. And it takes hard work. It reminds me of the pastor of a big city church who ran an ad for a caretaker/housekeeper. The next day, a well-dressed young man appeared at the pastor's door. But before he ...read more

Tags: Marriage Struggle

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

Sacrifice On The Mission ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

SACRIFICE ON THE MISSION FIELD Let me leave you with this true story I read about two faithful women, who were cross-bearers for Christ. Irene Ferrel graduated from the Bible Institute of Los Angeles with a burden for overseas missions. She found her place in the Congo, where for 10 years she ...read more

Scripture: Lamentations 3:19-23

Tags: Missions

Standard Of Comparison  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

STANDARD OF COMPARISON Michael Green, in his book Illustrations for Biblical Preaching, shares a good lesson which I think is appropriate for beginning our message this evening. He states: All of us frequently compare ourselves favorably with someone else. We all think of someone whom we ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 1:13-16, Exodus 7:8-23

Tags: Holiness

Parable Of An Old Farmer And His Massey ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

PARABLE OF AN OLD FARMER AND HIS MASSEY FERGUSON “One cool spring morning a old man got up and opened the back door to his little farm house. It’s early in the morning and there are still a couple stars out; the grass is covered in dew. He walks over to the barn and pulls the large doors open to ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 13:1-30

Tags: Parable Sower And Seed

The Most Watched Rescue Mission In ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

THE MOST WATCHED RESCUE MISSION IN HISTORY "Estamos bien en el refugio, los 33. " ("We are well IN THE SHELTER, the 33.") That seven-word message set off a wave of euphoria in Chile and around the world. It had been written in red letters on a scrap of paper and taped to a drill bit that penetrated ...read more

Scripture: Luke 19:10

Tags: Salvation

Counterfeit ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Aug 27, 2012

COUNTERFEIT CHRISTIANITY Several years ago in Kentucky a man walked into a Dairy Queen, placed his order and then paid for it with a $200 bill. The cashier gave him $198 in change and he drove away. Some time later in the day I guess the manager noticed that something didn’t seem right about this ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:25-33

Tags: Discipleship

I Grew Up In What I Would Consider, Lower Middle ...

Contributed by Mark Thometz on Aug 27, 2012

I grew up in what I would consider, lower middle class. In the schools I went to as a kid there were really 3 levels of kids when it came to income. You had the rich kids. These kids had a Playstation AND N64, which were big when I was kid. They had huge houses and a TV in every room. Then you had ...read more

Tags: Worship General

Denomination: Christian Church

We Should Be Striving On A Daily Basis To Worship ...

Contributed by Mark Thometz on Aug 27, 2012

We should be striving on a daily basis to worship God in new, loving and exciting ways. It's very easy to become comfortable in our worship. We have that thing on Sunday and sometimes Wednesday and we may even dust off our Bible every now and then to read it. What about feeding the hungry as ...read more

Tags: Evangelism How To

Denomination: Christian Church

Kids Have A Lot Of Questions. The ...

Contributed by Mark Thometz on Aug 27, 2012

Kids have a lot of questions. The “why” questions I've found is most popular. Back in Boise I work for the YMCA as an after school child care worker. Needless to say, when it's you and 2 other adults with 35+ kids a lot of “why” questions come up. “Why can't we do that?...well why? Why!?” This last ...read more

Tags: Curiosity

Denomination: Christian Church

Come Home

Contributed by Joe Bertone on Aug 27, 2012

COME HOME Longing to leave her poor Brazilian neighborhood, Christina wanted to see the world. Discontent with a home having only a pallet on the floor, a washbasin, and a wood-burning stove, she dreamed of a better life in the city. One morning she slipped away breaking her mother’s ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:12-14

Tags: Salvation, Lost, Home, Seek, Found, Wander  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Go Get Your Mother!

Contributed by Joe Bertone on Aug 27, 2012

GO GET YOUR MOTHER! One of my favorite stories of a door is the story of the Amish boy and his father who went to the big city for the very first time. They were amazed by everything they saw. Having grown up and lived all their lives on a rural farm everything was completely new to them. The ...read more

Scripture: John 10:7-10

Tags: Door, Change, Transformation, Mystery, Elevator, Amish  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The Door

Contributed by Joe Bertone on Aug 27, 2012

THE DOOR There is a small metal door painted white in the side of a tiny mission church in Johannesburg South Africa. This door is changing lives. On it are painted the words “door of hope.” That is exactly what it is for various babies within the city. On average some forty to fifty babies were ...read more

Scripture: John 10:1-10

Tags: Baby, Salvation, Missions, Hope, Door, Jesus Christ, I Am, Saving  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Dad Was Dying Of Something Similar To ...

Contributed by C. Scott Ghan on Aug 27, 2012

ILL. Dad was dying of something similar to Alzheimer’s. He was very violent, dangerous and in a great deal of trouble in his home town where he had been Fire Chief. The County didn't want to, but left with no other option committed him to a lock-down unit where he would remain for the rest of his ...read more

Tags: God's Forgiveness

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

A Biblically Balanced Christian Has Both A Full ...

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Aug 27, 2012

A biblically balanced Christian has both a full head and a full heart, giving off ...read more

Tags: Learning

Denomination: Baptist

The Great Chicago Fire

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Aug 27, 2012

The fire started at about 9 p.m. on Sunday, October 8, in or around a small barn that bordered the alley behind 137 DeKoven Street.[3] The traditional account of the origin of the fire is that it was started by a cow kicking over a lantern in the barn owned by Patrick and Cahterine O’Leary. Michael ...read more

Tags: Tongue

Denomination: Baptist

Model Kylie Bisutti, 21, Has Decided To Leave ...

Contributed by Gene Gregory on Aug 27, 2012

Model Kylie Bisutti, 21, has decided to leave Victoria’s Secret because it clashes with her Christian beliefs. “I just became so convicted of honoring the Lord and my body and wanting to be a role model for other women out there who look up to me,” Bisutti said today on “Good Morning ...read more

Tags: Conscience

Denomination: Baptist