Sermon Illustrations

In October 1971, the Shah of Iran invited 60 kings, queens and heads of state to celebrate the 2,500 years of the Persian Empire. The cost of the celebration was $100 million, but it was not the costliest table ever spread.

"Ripley's Believe It or Not" says that Craig Dawson has an unusual habit. He keeps an eye on the ground as he jogs. This is not for balance, safety or even shyness. He is looking for spare change.

It has been reported that a student was given a question, "Where do our rights come from?" He answered with one word: God. The teacher marked it wrong.

Elbert Hubbard once said, "It does not take much strength to do things, but it requires a great deal of strength to decide what to do."

Those who preach and communicate for the cause of Christ always will want to know something about their audience. It is always instructive to learn something about the culture of young adults, a group the church is desperate to reach. Every year, Beloit College issues the "Beloit College Mindset" list. It tells about the world in which the incoming college students have grown up. Here are some insights from the 2010 list, which represents the class of 2014:

A Sunday School teacher was trying to get some discussion going in her children's Sunday School class during the Christmas season. She said, "If the flower of Easter is a lily, what is the flower of Christmas?"

President Calvin Coolidge was often called "Silent Cal." It has become part of the legend of the man. Although, he wasn't silent about Christmas. Here is what he said as his Christmas message in 1927:

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote this prayer for Christmas: "Loving Father, help us remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of angels, the gladness of the shepherds and the worship of the wise men. Close the door of hate, and open the door of love all over the world...

Harry hosted a dinner party. One of his guests was a surgeon.

In his sermon "Blowing Your Horn," Richard Love shares this: "Sir Michael Costa, the celebrated conductor, was holding a rehearsal. As the mighty chorus rang out, accompanied by scores of instruments, the piccolo player -- a little pint-sized flute -- thinking perhaps that his contribution would not be missed amid so much music, stopped playing.