425 Sermon Illustrations on Bible

A Haifa policeman, well versed in the Bible, managed to track

down a band of smugglers by applying a passage from the Prophets. The

gang used an ass drawn caravan to cross the border into Israel and the

policeman was able to capture some of the asses but the smugglers got

away. The cop let the beasts of burden go without food for several

days and then turned them free. And just as predicted in Isaiah: "The

ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib;" the starving

animals led police directly to the smuggler's hideout.

Taking a few minutes each day to read a chapter is a good way to

start. But we should also block out extended periods of time

for exploring God's Word and reflecting on what He is saying to

us. The importance of spending much time with something of great

value and beauty is illustrated by a quote from the National

Geographic magazine about Carl Sharsmith, an 81 year old guide in

Yosemite National Park.

"Carl was back at his tent quarters after a long afternoon with

tourists. His nose was flaked white and red with sunburn; his eyes

were watery, partly from age but also from hearing again an old

question after a half century of summers in California's Yosemite

National Park. A lady tourist had hit him with a question where it

hurt: "I've only got an hour to spend at Yosemite," she declared.

"What should I do? Where should I go?"

The old naturalist-interpreter-ranger finally found voice to reply.

"Ah, lady, only an hour." He repeated it slowly. "I suppose that if

I had only an hour to spend at Yosemite, I'd just walk over there by

the river and sit down and cry."

A whole lifetime is not long enough to appreciate fully the beauty

and learning and value of the Bible. That's why we must take time to

study its truths and make them real in our lives.

A friend told me this tale a few years ago as we paced together the deck of a steamship on the Mediterranean and talking of the things unseen. The chaplain of a prison, intimate with the narrator, had to deal with a man condemned to death. He found the man anxious, as he well might be–nay he seemed more than anxious; convicted, spiritually alarmed. The chaplain’s instructions all bore upon the power of the Redeemer to save to the uttermost; and it seemed as if the message were received and the man were a believer.

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the chaplain had come to think that there was ground for appeal from the death sentence. He placed the matter before the proper authorities, and with success. On his next visit, very cautiously, and by way of mere suggestions and surmises, he led the apparently resigned criminal towards the possibility of a commutation. What would he say? How would his repentance stand if his life were granted him? The answer soon came. Instantly, the prisoner divined the position; asked a few decisive questions; then threw his Bible across the cell and, civilly thanking the chaplain for his attentions, told him that he had no further need of him nor of his Book. –Bishop Moule

A certain society in order to gain access for a missionary to some African tribes, sent down trinkets to be bartered with the natives. Among them was a package of those little hand glasses, such as ladies use. The natives had never seen their own faces, except in the waters of some lake or stream, and the news of this wonderful instrument, by which people could see their own features, was spread abroad until the missionary was invited by tribe after tribe to visit them, with his hand glass.

It happened that away in the interior there was a princess in one of the tribes, who had been told that she was the most beautiful woman in the tribe, and that her face was the most beautiful on earth. When she heard of this instrument in which she might see what a beautiful creature she was, she sent for the missionary and bade him bring one of those mirrors.

The truth was, the princess was the least attractive woman in the tribe. So she got the mirror, and went into the hut to take one good long delicious look at her beauty, but when she held up the glass and saw what a hideous creature she was, how ugly in every feature, she lifted her royal fist and dashed the glass to pieces, banished the missionary, and made a law that no mirror should ever be brought into the tribe.

When Columbus saw the river Orinoco, someone said that he had

discovered an island. He replied: "No such river as that flows

from an island: That mighty torrent must drain a continent." So,

any candid reader must recognize that this Book of books must

have had its spring in the heights of heavenly wisdom, and must

have drawn its, volume and impetus from the unseen universe of

God's Spirit.

Twenty years after Adoniram Judson reached Burma the New Testament

was translated into the Burmese tongue. In 1824, when war was waged

between England and Burma, Mr. Judson was thrown into prison, and Mrs.

Judson buried the precious manuscript, just ready for the printer, in

the earth beneath their house. But as mold was gathering upon it, on

account of the dampness caused by heavy rains, with a woman's ready

wit, she sewed the treasure inside a roll of cotton, put on a cover

and took it to the jail to be used by Mr. Judson as a pillow. In nine

months he was transferred to the inner prison, where five pairs of

fetters were upon his ankles, and it was

announced that he, with a hundred others, fastened to a bamboo

pole, were to be killed before morning.

During this terrible night, much prayer ascended for the precious

pillow. It had fallen to the share of the keeper of the prison, but

Mrs. Judson, producing a better one, induced him to exchange. Mr.

Judson was not killed, but was hurried away to another place, and

again the pillow was his companion. But one of the jailers untied the

mat that served as its cover and threw the roll of cotton into the

yard as worthless.

Here a native Christian, ignorant of its value, found and preserved

it as a relic of his beloved master, and with him months afterward its

contents were discovered intact. After the close of the war this New

Testament was printed, and in 1894 the whole Bible was translated into

the Burmese language--a language peculiarly difficult on account of

its construction and curious combinations. --Stories of Bible

Translation

Are you beginning to tremble for the safety of your Bible? Do you

fear that the "critics" are about to utterly destroy it? Have you

concluded that these scholarly destructionists are multiplying so that

their name is legion? The destructive critics are few, but noisy. They

remind us of a story we heard awhile ago.

A man came to a hotelkeeper and asked him if he would buy two car

loads of frog legs. "Two carloads!" exclaimed the astonished landlord.

"Why, I could not use them in twenty years!" "Well, will you buy half

a carload?" "No." "Twenty or thirty bushels?" "No." "Twenty or thirty

dozen?" "No." "Two dozen?" "Yes." A few days later the man returned

with three pairs of legs. "Is that all?" said the landlord. "Yes. The

fact is, that I live near a pond, and the frogs made so much noise

that I thought there were millions of them; but I dragged the pond

with a seine, drained it and raked it, and there were only three frogs

in the whole thing! You have already made your application. --Epworth

Herald

A woman whose husband was a confirmed drunkard led a most

miserable life until one day a colporteur came to her poor home

and brought her a Bible. She found much comfort in reading it

and soon came to treasure it above everything. Her husband

sneered and railed at her about it. One day, when he came home

half intoxicated, and found her sitting over her newly found

treasure, he snatched the Bible from her, threw it into the

stove, and set fire to it. "Now we shall see," said he, "what

will be left of your new religion."

The next day he opened the door of the stove, and taking the fire

tongs, was about to stir up the cinders, which, as he thought, were

all that was left of the Bible, when his eye fell upon the words:

"Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away."

Having been thrown in closed, some pages of the Book were partly

preserved, and these words stood out clear and distinct. They were

like a revelation to the man; he stood convicted and awe-stricken.

Soon after he was converted, and led a different life. --Sunday School

Times

Before Alexander Duff, the missionary, reached India, he was

twice ship-wrecked. On the very coast of India, only a few miles

from the place that was to be his home, an awful storm struck

the ship and wrecked it upon the shore. The first night in India

he slept in a heathen temple. He was sailing from his home for

India in the "Lady Holland." He had been a great student and had

won many honors in college and gathered together a library of

eight hundred volumes. He loved these books very much. When the ship

was wrecked; he lost all of them, Everything was gone! All

gone! When the people were safe on land, they looked like an

unhappy company.

From the shore the missionary watched, hoping he might see

something from the wreck floating on the sea. All of a sudden he

jumped up, for he saw something very small on the water. He thought it

hardly worth saving. It was washed up on the shore and when he picked

it up he found it was his own Bible. He thought it was very strange

that out of all his eight hundred books, only one was saved, and that

one was his Bible. He thought God wished him to know that one Book was

worth more than all the other seven hundred and ninety-nine which he

had lost, and that he was to make it the chief study of his life.

He opened it, and there on that lonely shore he read to his

friends' these words from one of the Psalms: "They that go down to the

sea in ships, that do business in great waters; these see the works of

the Lord, and His wonders in the deep."

When Alexander Duff began his work in India he started a school to

educate the Hindu boys. In that school the Bible was taught. He loved

the Bible and he wanted to teach it to others who did not know it.

After a few years there were a thousand scholars, and several big

school buildings. Often they sang: "Holy, Bible! Book Divine, Precious

Treasure, thou art mine; Mine to tell me whence I came, Mine to tell

me what I am." --Children's Missionary Story Sermons

A London clergyman, called to the garret of a dying man,

found him plunged into anxiety over the mystery of a torn text.

A stray leaf from a torn Testament had caught his eye. It was

part of \reference{Romans 3}{Romans 3}. He read the portrait of the

sinner, and

recognized it as his own; but as he read on "But now the

righteousness of God without the law is" the leaf was torn off.

"Is what" cried the dying man. What worlds on worlds hang on the

answer! Withheld, refused, withdrawn, forgotten, canceled? The

rest of the verse he drank in as life to the soul "is

manifested." --The Dawn

The Bible is not only, to be read, it is to be followed. An

old hunter in Michigan, when the country was new, got lost in

the woods several times. He was told to buy a pocket compass,

which he did, and a friend explained to him its use. He soon

got lost, and lay out as usual. When found, he was asked why he

did not travel by the compass. He said he did not dare to. He

wished to go north, and he "tried hard to make the thing point

north but it wasn't no use; "'twould shake, shake right round,

and point southeast every time." A great many people fail of the

right direction in life for the same reason of the mishap which

befell our Michigan friend: they are afraid to take the Bible

and follow just as it points.

Paul explicitly states that the sword of the Spirit is

Scripture, the word of God. The Scottish pastor and writer

Thomas Cuthrie said, "The Bible is an armory of heavenly

weapons, a laboratory of infallible, medicines, a mine of

exhaustless wealth. It is a guidebook for every road, a chart

for every sea, a medicine for every malady, and a balm for every

wound. Rob us of our Bible and our sky has lost its sun."

The committee of a Bible Society in Scotland, some time ago,

resolved that a house-to-house visitation should be made by some

of the members to ascertain if possible whether every family in

the village possessed a copy of the Scriptures, and if not, to

supply the want where they found it necessary. Among others

visited was an elderly woman who, on being informed what object

the visitors had in view, asked them indignantly if they had

come to her thinking she was a heathen who hadn't the Word of

God in her house. She assured them that she had, and to convince

them of the truth of her statement she called to her

granddaughter, who was in the room, "Bring the Bible from the

press, lassie, and let the gentlemen see that I have a Bible."

The girl did as she was bid, brought the Bible, and laid it on

the table. It was observed that the book was kept partly open by

something placed between the leaves. On finding what it was the

manner of the old woman immediately changed. Instead of upbraiding,

she now thanked the gentlemen for their visit, saying, "It's really a

good thing you came, gentlemen; for there, ye see, I've found my

spectacles that I have not seen for the last three years. Though I

looked for them every place I could think of, I never could find them,

and there they are." --James Douglas

Ralph C. Norton, who was the Director of Personal Work for the

Chapman-Alexander Missions and Director of the Belgian Gospel

Mission, was talking with some friends about the supreme work of

winning men one by one, in which God has used him so

wonderfully. When they noticed the almost exclusive place he

gave to the Bible in personal work, one asked him: "What do you

do Mr. Norton, in cases where the unsaved man does not accept

the Bible as having any authority?" "Well, if I had a fine

Damascus sword with a keen double-edged blade I would not sheath

it in a fight just because the other man said he did not believe

it would cut." --Sunday School Times.

When a Soviet official was asked why a study of the Bible was

frowned upon in his country, and why those who dared to print

and distribute it were severely punished, he replied, "We find

that the reading of the Book changes people in a way that is

dangerous to our state!"

During World War II when the Nazis occupied a new territory, they

immediately placed all Christians in concentration camps if they made

public commitments to the Word of God. They had found that those who

clung to the Bible would not compromise their faith or yield to the

evil edicts of a godless dictator.

The same type of opposition was manifested during the Boxer

Rebellion in China. A little girl whose father had been murdered

because of his faith hid herself in a cornfield to elude her

persecutors. She was soon discovered and threatened with death if she

did not reveal where the family Bible had been concealed. Testifying

that it was her daily strength and stay, she refused to tell them and

was soon cruelly martyred. She chose to die rather than give up that

treasure Volume!

Those who oppose civil and spiritual liberty continue to suppress

the God-inspired Scriptures, for they consider them "dangerous." To

the believer, however, it remains his beloved "Handbook to Heaven"!

A small factory had to cease operations when a vital piece of

machinery broke down. The firm's own mechanics couldn't get a

thing working again so an outside expert was called in. He

looked the situation over for a couple of minutes and then took

a hammer and tapped the machine in a certain spot and it started

running beautifully. When he submitted a bill for $100 the

plant owner figuratively hit the ceiling and demanded an

itemized bill, which subsequently was forthcoming as follows:

$1.00 for hitting machine; $99.00 for knowing where to hit. God

uses His word to "hit" us where we need fixing. (\reference{Hebrews

4:12}{Hebrews 4:12})

If we hope to lead people to Christ, it is vital that we

learn to rely upon the "Sword of the Spirit." Dr. Broadus, a

Southern Baptist professor and preacher, was asked on one

occasion by a fine student, not a Christian however, to write in

his autograph book. Dr. Broadus wrote in it three Greek words

which mean: "One thing thou lackest." Years later Dr. Broadus

received a letter from a distinguished medical doctor in Texas.

In the letter the doctor stated that he had never been able to

forget that one sentence in his album and trusted that now he

had the one thing that formerly he lacked.

Wherever God's law is supreme, life and property are safe.

Wherever the Bible is despised or discarded, neither life nor

property is secure, When infidel friends were discussing their

theories around the dining table one day, Voltaire said: "Hush,

gentlemen, till the servants are gone. If they believed as we

do, none of our lives would be safe." The influence of the Bible

in restraining sin and promoting righteousness is one of the

evidences that it is a supernatural and divine

revelation. --Otterbein Teacher

Yes, the Bible gives to man the guidance he needs because it is God's unchanging Word -- good for every age and every generation. I once read about a musician who went to see his aged music teacher. During the visit, the elderly mentor struck a tuning fork and said. "That is 'A.'" Just then, from the floor above came the voice of a singer. "She sings sharp," said the old teacher. He paused for a moment, then lifted the tuning fork again. The second time he struck it he said, "But this 'A'-- always has been, always will be -- 440 vibrations per second. It will be the same 5,000 years from now." And that's the way it is with the Word of God: it is constant and unchangeable.

In a meeting to pray for Garfield's recovery, one who was there

said, "Twenty-six years ago tonight, and at this very hour, our class

was on the top of Graylock to spend the Fourth of July. As we were

about to lie down to sleep, Garfield took out his pocket Testament and

said, "I am in the habit of reading a chapter every night at this time

with my mother. Shall I read aloud?" They assented, and when he had

read he asked the oldest member of the class to pray. And there, in

the night, and on the mountain-top, we prayed with him for whom we are

now assembled to pray." --Topical Illustrations

A Roman Catholic priest in Ireland reprimanded a peasant for

reading the Bible. "But I have a search warrant to do so,"

replied the man. "What do you mean, sir?" said the priest in

anger. "Why," answered the peasant, "Jesus said, 'Search the

scriptures,' and I am doing only what he tells me to do." The

argument was unanswerable --The King's Business

Last December three masked burglars broke into the Louvre

Museum in Paris and stole the 152 year old diamond encrusted

dress sword of the French king, Charles X. A museum spokesman said

that the sword, made in 1824 by French artist Frederic Bapst for

Charles' coronation, has such historical value that "one cannot set

any value on it."

Have you ever noticed that it is always the Bible, the Sword of the

Spirit, that is the object of attack by false cults? That priceless

Sword becomes their target. They aim to deprive the Church of the one

weapon that has been given to us. Let us not sleep as the cultists

make their assault.

When a new FBI agent is hired he is given intensive training.

As part of the program, he is taught to watch for counterfeit

money. He makes a thorough study of the genuine bills -- not

the phonies -- so that he can spot the fake currency immediately

because of its contrast to the real thing.

The child of God can learn a lesson from this. While it is helpful

to study false religions and be fully aware of their dangerous dogmas,

we should be so familiar with God's Word that whenever we encounter

error, we will spot it at once. Today many are being led astray by

cults and isms because they don't recognize how they are being

deceived. The only way to prevent this is to indoctrinate believers

with the truth so they will be much more discerning. A thorough

knowledge of essential biblical doctrines is the only way to detect

their counterfeits!

Sam was my best dog, ever. A field trial dog who found birds and pointed them with contagious enthusiasm, Sam taught me the joy of becoming part of nature. If his point said a bird was hiding in a clump of bushes, it was there. He was so much more than a bird dog, though. Often we'd share together lazy lunches in an abandoned apple orchard, and the snooze that followed. Late one afternoon, Sam and I became separated. Neither of us was familiar with the area. I called and whistled. No sign of Sam. I had to get back to town for an important appointment. But how could I leave Sam? If he finally came back and I wasn't there, would I lose him for good?

Then I remembered a trick an old dog trainer had passed on. I unbuttoned my jacket, removed my shirt and laid it on the ground under the branches of a small bush. I worried all night. But when I returned the next morning there was Sam curled up with his nose under the sleeve of my shirt. He looked up and wagged his tail. “Where've you been friend?” his eyes seemed to say. “I've been waiting for you all night. But I knew you'd come back.”

Later I wondered. When I get lost, do I have the trust to look for some part of God's word and curl up in it? To wait patiently, knowing that my Friend will find me if I just have faith in him? -- Scott Harrison

The Agta people in the northern Philippines recognize this. They use the word "madagat" to describe the Word of God. "Madagat" can mean stinging, venomous, or potent. A poisonous snake is "madagat." On the other hand, doctors have discovered that the venom of some poisonous snakes make good medicine for heart patients. The Word of God is "madagat." If we disregard it, it is like the bite of a poisonous snake. But if we live by it, it gives us life just like the medicine used by heart patients.