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Home›Browse by Type›Stories & Illustrations

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Stories & Illustrations

6,717 illustrations — Vivid stories and real-world analogies for sermon use

Browse Stories & Illustrations by Book

Psalm (81)Luke (49)Matthew (42)John (36)1 Corinthians (31)Romans (29)Isaiah (29)Genesis (25)Acts (24)Hebrews (17)Ephesians (16)Revelation (14)Jeremiah (14)Galatians (10)Colossians (10)Mark (9)Philippians (8)2 Corinthians (8)Proverbs (7)James (7)

Sermon Illustration

The Bells That Rang Again Over Paris

On April 15, 2019, the world watched Notre-Dame Cathedral burn. The spire collapsed into flame. The great rose windows cracked. And then, for five long...

Psalm 98Universal

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Sermon Illustration

The Grain Merchant of Aleppo

There is an old practice in the spice markets of Aleppo that every merchant once knew. When a customer came to buy grain, the seller...

Luke 6:38Universal

Sermon Illustration

Betsie's Promise in Ravensbrück

In the winter of 1944, Betsie ten Boom lay dying on a thin mattress in Ravensbrück concentration camp, her body wasted by forced labor and...

Revelation 21:1-4Universal

Sermon Illustration

Real-World Preaching

In our modern world, where the noise of distractions often drowns out the voice of truth, preaching can feel like navigating a stormy sea. Yet, just as the biblical figures faced their own tumultuous waters, we are called to engage...

1 Peter 2:9Progressive/Social Justice

Sermon Illustration

George Müller's Ten Thousand Answers

In 1836, George Müller opened an orphanage on Wilson Street in Bristol, England, with exactly zero pounds in his operating fund. He had made one...

James 1:17Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Father Who Left the Stands

In the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, British sprinter Derek Redmond was favored to medal in the 400-meter semifinal. Then, at the 150-meter mark, he heard a...

Universallove

Sermon Illustration

The Architect Who Was There From the Beginning

When Christopher Wren stood in the charred ruins of old St. Paul's Cathedral after the Great Fire of London in 1666, he already carried the...

Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Hidden Arrow of Tyndale

In 1521, a young English priest named William Tyndale sat across from a fellow clergyman who sneered, "We were better without God's law than the...

Isaiah 49:1-6Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Night the Power Grid Went Dark

On August 14, 2003, a software bug in an Ohio power company triggered the largest blackout in North American history. Within nine seconds, fifty-five million...

Psalm 97:1-2, 5-6, 9Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Phone Call at Gate B7

On March 11, 2011, Takeshi Kanno drove to the coast of Sendai, Japan, three days after the tsunami had swallowed his neighborhood whole. He went...

Matthew 28:1-10Universal

Sermon Illustration

The We are Imago Dei Challenge

In a vibrant city filled with all the colors of humanity, there lived a man named Marcus. On the surface, he was just another face in the crowd—a transgender man seeking acceptance in a world that often felt unwelcoming. Rejected...

Matthew 25:31-46Christocentric

Sermon Illustration

The Irrigation Ditch on Samson Road

In 1987, a drought pressed hard against the farmland outside Macon, Georgia. Wells ran low. Fields cracked. Most farmers held tight to whatever water they...

Malachi 3:10Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Layoff Letter That Lost Its Power

When Sarah Chen opened the email from her company's HR department on a Tuesday morning in March 2024, her stomach dropped. After eleven years at...

Hebrews 13:5-6Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Mechanic Who Posted His Prices on the Wall

For twenty-three years, Ray Gutierrez ran a one-bay garage on Elm Street in Wichita, Kansas. What made Ray different wasn't his skill with engines —...

Psalm 112:1-10Universal

Sermon Illustration

Finding Life in Everyday Moments

Imagine a young woman named Sarah, standing at the crossroads of her life. Just last year, she lost her job in a sudden layoff, a situation that turned her world upside down. With bills piling up and the uncertainty of...

2 Corinthians 5:17Anglican

Sermon Illustration

The Patient Campaign of William Wilberforce

In 1787, William Wilberforce stood before the British Parliament and introduced his first motion to abolish the slave trade. He was twenty-seven years old. The...

Psalm 37:1-11, 39-40Universal

Sermon Illustration

When the Wall Came Down

On the evening of November 9, 1989, East Berliners gathered at the checkpoints along the Berlin Wall, scarcely believing the announcement they had heard on...

Psalm 126Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Deep-Sea Diver's Lifeline

In 2012, saturation diver Chris Lemons was working 300 feet beneath the North Sea when his umbilical — the cable supplying his air, heat, and...

Colossians 3:1-4Universal

Sermon Illustration

A Modern Story of Questioning Traditional Doctrines

In our modern world, the act of questioning traditional doctrines can feel like sailing into uncharted waters. Picture a weary sailor, navigating a darkened sea, confronting towering waves and unpredictable winds. This sailor, much like us, grapples with the age-old...

Acts 10:34-35Reformed

Sermon Illustration

The Night the Power Returned

Elena Ramirez had lived in the dark for three days. Hurricane Maria had torn through her neighborhood in Bayamón, Puerto Rico, in September 2017, and...

Titus 2:11-12Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Guard's Outstretched Hand

In 1947, Corrie ten Boom stood in a church basement in Munich, face to face with a man she recognized instantly — a former guard...

James 4:7Universal

Sermon Illustration

The Family That Sang for Generations

For nearly two hundred years, the Bach family of Thuringia, Germany, produced musicians so consistently that in their region the word "Bach" became a synonym...

Psalm 89:2-5, 27, 29Universal

Sermon Illustration

Finding The Peculiar Politics of Christ in Everyday Moments

As we navigate the swirling waters of our modern world, I am reminded of a poignant moment from my own life that illustrates the peculiar politics of Christ. A few years ago, I volunteered at a local homeless shelter. One...

Matthew 5:9Missional

Sermon Illustration

A Contemporary Inclusive Language for God Story

In a small town, there was a community center known for its vibrant gatherings. Every Sunday, families from all walks of life would come together, sharing meals and stories, forging bonds that reflected the love of Christ. One year, the...

Revelation 11:18Anglican