Category Archives: Sermon Illustrations

The Song Of The Shepherd

Psalms

“My beloved child, I the Lord: I am your Shepherd. You will never want for anything which I know you need.
I am making you lie down in a green pasture. I have to make you lie down because, left to yourself, you would never lie down in that lush and quiet place which I provide for those I love. But now come and rest beside me.
I have led you to quiet waters: a. beautiful pool of refreshment from which you can drink deeply and safely, knowing that this water that I provide will restore your soul and will not overwhelm you.
My dear one, I am guiding you in the right path. It is one of the paths of my righteousness. It is just the right path for you to walk in. My choice is an expression of my holiness and my love for you. It is the perfect path for you. If there were a better one, I would take you along that one instead. My path for you is the path that is bringing you into fullness of blessing. It is the unique path I have planned for you; none other has ever walked it or ever will. Rest in the sure knowledge that you are on the right path. I will see to it for the sake of my own name. Trust me …… and rest.
Beloved and special child, even though you find yourself walking through the Valley of the Shadow of Deep Darkness, and even Death itself, do not be afraid for I am with you in that dark and threatening place. Do you think that I would lead you into some terrible, deathly gully if it were not essential for your blessing? There is only one reason for a Good Shepherd to take his precious lamb into such a place, and that is in order to take it through into a new and richer pasture.
Do not be anxious or afraid. You are my precious one and I undertake to protect you with my rod from all that would harm you, and to guide you with the tapping of my staff when you feel lost and alone and cannot discern the path. I give my Spirit to comfort and encourage you.
This dark experience is one you are walking through with me alongside you. Your trust in me is growing immeasurably because of it. Going through dark places with me binds us together as nothing else can. You can actually embrace your suffering, dear one, and praise me both in it and for it.
I prepare a table before you even in the presence of your enemies. There are no circumstances that can prevent me from spreading my tabledif provision for you. I am pouring the oil of my Spirit and my healing love upon your head. Stand still and let me do it.
In spite of everything, I will see to it that your cup is constantly overflowing.
Dearest child, there is nothing more certain than this: my goodness, my love and my covenant grace will pursue you and cling to you all the days that remain for you here, and when it is all over, this is my solemn promise: You, my dear one, will dwell with me in my house forever, because I love you,” says the Lord.
Expanded version of Psalm 23, from Chris Hill

Promises

A promise from God is a statement we can depend on with absolute confidence. Here are 12 promises for the Christian to claim.

  1. God’s presence—“I will never leave thee” (Heb. 13:5)
  2. God’s protection—“I am thy shield” (Gen. 15:1)
  3. God’s power—“I will strengthen thee” (Isa. 41:10)
  4. God’s provision—“I will help thee” (Isa. 41:10)
  5. God’s leading—“And when He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them” (John 10:4)
  6. God’s purposes—“I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil” (Jer. 20:11)
  7. God’s rest—“Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28)
  8. God’s cleansing—“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9)
  9. God’s goodness—“No good thing will He withhold from them that work uprightly” (Psalm 84:11)
  10. God’s faithfulness—“The Lord will not forsake His people for His great name’s sake” (1 Sam. 12:22)
  11. God’s guidance—“The meek will He guide” (Psalm 25:9)
  12. God’s wise plan—“All things work together for good to them that love God” (Rom. 8:28)

Our Daily Bread, January 1, 1985

All The Fs

Prodigal Son

Feeling footloose and frisky, a feather-brained fellow forced his fond father to fork over the family finances. He flew far to foreign fields and frittered his fortune feasting fabulously with faithless friends. Finally facing famine and fleeced by his fellows in folly, he found himself a feed-flinger in a filthy farmyard. Fairly famished he fain would have filled his frame with the foraged foods of the fodder fragments left by the filthy farmyard creatures. ‘Fooey’, he said, ‘My father’s flunkies fare far fancier,’ the frazzled fugitive found feverishly, frankly facing facts. Frustrated by failure and filled with foreboding he forthwith fled to his family. Falling at his father’s feet, he floundered forlornly. ‘Father, I have flunked and fruitlessly forfeited family favour.’
But the faithful father, forestalling further flinching frantically flagged the flunkies. ‘Fetch forth the finest fatling and fix a feast.’ But the fugitive’s fault-finding frater frowned on the fickle forgiveness of the former folderol. His fury flashed.
But fussing was futile, for the far-sighted father figured, such filial fidelity is fine, but what forbids fervent festivity? The fugitive is found! “Unfurl the flags, with fanfares flaring! Let fun and frolic freely flow!” “Former failure is forgotten, folly is forsaken! And forgiveness forms the foundation for future fortitude.”

The Sin Of Pride

Pride

Rap singer Queen Latifah was asked about the sin of pride. “Pride is a sin?” she responded. “I wasn’t aware of that.”
Actress Kirstie Alley added, “I don’t think pride is a sin …. I think some idiot made that up.”
Rapper Ice-T echoed the same idea: “Pride is mandatory. That’s one of the problems of the innercity. Kids don’t have enough pride.”
Moody Monthly, Sept. 1995

Spurgeon: Preaching is hard work

Preaching

“I have heard of a brother who trusts in the Lord, and does not study; but I have also heard that his people do not trust in him; in fact, I am informed that they wish him to go elsewhere with his inspired discourses, for they say that, when he did study, his talk was poor enough, but now that he gives them that which comes first to his lips, it is altogether unbearable. If any man will preach as he should preach, his work will take more out of him than any other labour under heaven. If you and I attend to our work and calling, even among a few people, it will certainly produce a friction of soul and a wear of heart which will tell upon the strongest. . . .”
Charles Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry