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HomeIllustrations

7,545 Illustrations

Browse Sermon Illustrations

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Top Rated Newest Oldest|All Sources Biblical Illustrator Spurgeon Maclaren

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Sermon Illustration

The Sailor Who Kept Forgetting

On March 21, 1748, a violent storm nearly sank the merchant vessel Greyhound in the North Atlantic. John Newton, a twenty-two-year-old sailor who had mocked...

Psalm 78:1-2, 34-38Universal

232 words

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Sermon Illustration

The Teacher Who Refused to Give Up

In 2019, a high school English teacher in Nashville named Clara Johnson noticed a student named Marcus sitting in the back row, hood up, headphones...

Isaiah 42:1-9Universal

232 words

Sermon Illustration

Rembrandt's Final Homecoming

In 1668, a bankrupt and grieving Rembrandt van Rijn picked up his brush to paint what would become his final masterpiece: *The Return of the...

Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32Universal

253 words

Sermon Illustration

The Pillar on the Graben

In 1679, the Great Plague swept through Vienna, killing an estimated 76,000 people in a matter of months. Emperor Leopold I, who had fled the...

Genesis 9:8-17Universal

232 words

Sermon Illustration

The Counselor Who Never Checked the Market

When the 2008 financial crisis gutted retirement accounts across Denver, Margaret Alston did something her neighbors found baffling. She kept her phone off financial news...

Psalm 112:1-10Universal

244 words

Sermon Illustration

The Password Reset

Most of us have been there — staring at a Gmail login screen, cycling through every password combination we can think of, growing more frustrated...

Universalgrace

231 words

Sermon Illustration

Trusting the Developer

Every few weeks, a notification appears on your phone: "Software update available. Your device will restart." Most of us tap "Install Tonight" without reading the...

Universaltrust

228 words

Sermon Illustration

The Necessary Dissolution

Inside a monarch butterfly's chrysalis, something almost unthinkable happens. Biologists who have carefully opened chrysalises at different stages discovered that the caterpillar doesn't simply rearrange...

Universaltransformation

249 words

Sermon Illustration

Thirty-Seven Flags and a New Allegiance

Every spring at the federal courthouse in downtown Seattle, hundreds of immigrants stand beneath a row of flags and raise their right hands. They come...

Psalm 45:10-12, 16Universal

233 words

Sermon Illustration

The Coach Who Wouldn't Leave the Parking Lot

In 2019, a high school basketball coach in Memphis named Penny Hardaway noticed that Marcus, a quiet sophomore who had been showing up faithfully to...

Luke 15:3-7Universal

221 words

Sermon Illustration

The Jersey That Forgave a Nation

On June 24, 1995, Nelson Mandela walked onto the pitch at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg wearing a green-and-gold Springbok jersey — the very symbol...

Universalforgiveness

227 words

Sermon Illustration

Faithfully a Hidden Life

George Eliot's novel *Middlemarch* follows Dorothea Brooke, a young woman of extraordinary moral passion who dreams of doing something great for the world. She marries...

Universalhumility

245 words

Sermon Illustration

The Carvings No One Was Meant to See

When restoration workers climbed scaffolding to the upper reaches of Chartres Cathedral in France, they discovered something remarkable. The medieval stone carvers — anonymous craftsmen...

Universalobedience

235 words

Sermon Illustration

When Folly Meets Real Life

In our fast-paced, ever-changing world, we often find ourselves navigating the tumultuous waters of Folly—those moments of poor judgment, misguided choices, and the allure of what seems easier or more appealing. Picture for a moment a young man named Ethan,...

Philippians 4:6-7Missional

179 words

Sermon Illustration

When Science and Faith Meets Real Life

In our rapidly changing world, where the dialogues between science and faith often feel like a tug-of-war, we find ourselves in a place not unlike the biblical figures who grappled with their own understandings of truth. Think of Noah, standing...

Genesis 1:26-28Traditional

279 words

Sermon Illustration

William Tyndale's Last Prayer

In October 1536, outside the walls of Vilvoorde Castle in Belgium, William Tyndale was led to a stake. His crime was translating the Bible into...

Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24Universal

247 words

Sermon Illustration

Science Illustration: Order and Design in Creation

In the heart of the mountains, where soaring peaks kiss the sky, there sits a hidden valley—a place where the whispers of creation are palpable. One chilly morning, I found myself wandering down a narrow path, surrounded by trees that...

Hebrews 11:1-3Universal

256 words

Sermon Illustration

Rolling Away the Reproach

In May 1862, Robert Smalls stood at the wheel of the CSS Planter in Charleston Harbor, his heart pounding as Confederate fortifications loomed in the...

Joshua 5:9-12Universal

254 words

Sermon Illustration

The Rancher Who Stood Still Outside Dalhart

In the summer of 2019, a cattle rancher named Earl Whittaker watched a supercell thunderstorm roll across the Texas Panhandle toward his property outside Dalhart....

Psalm 29Universal

249 words

Sermon Illustration

Haydn's Canvas of Sound

In 1798, at the age of sixty-six, Franz Joseph Haydn began composing what many consider his greatest work — *The Creation*. The oratorio opens with...

Genesis 1:1-2:4aUniversal

227 words

Sermon Illustration

The Example of Compassion - Quote

A few years ago, I visited a nursing home to deliver a message of hope to those who often felt forgotten. As I walked through the halls, I met a woman named Margaret. Her eyes sparkled with a hint of...

Psalm 23:1-6Traditional

257 words

Sermon Illustration

When Salvation - Biblical Analogy

Imagine a young woman named Sarah, feeling lost in a bustling city, unsure of which path to take. She has dreams—of becoming a teacher, of serving her community, of making a difference—but the choices before her feel overwhelming. One evening,...

Psalm 23:1-6Black Church

254 words

Sermon Illustration

The Priest Who Touched the Untouchable

In 1873, a young Belgian priest named Father Damien de Veuster stepped off a cargo ship onto the shores of Molokai, Hawaii — a place...

Isaiah 42:1-9Universal

230 words

Sermon Illustration

Luther's Fortress Against the Dark

Martin Luther knew darkness intimately. The great Reformer suffered crushing bouts of what he called *Anfechtung* — spiritual despair so heavy he could barely rise...

Zephaniah 3:17Universal

236 words