65 Sermon Illustrations on Faith in Trials

At a coastal aquarium, a savage barracuda quickly tried to attack the mackerel but was stopped by the partition. After bumping his nose repeatedly, he finally quit trying. Later, the partition was removed, but the barracuda would swim only to the point where the barrier had been and stop. He thought it was still there! Many people are like this. They move forward until they reach an imaginary barrier, but then stop because of a self-imposed attitude of limitation. When Everything Material Is Lost Dr. G. Campbell Morgan tells of a man whose shop had been burned in the great Chicago fire. He arrived at the ruins the next morning carrying a table. He set it up amid the charred debris and above it placed this optimistic sign, "Everything lost except wife, children, and hope. Business will be resumed as usual tomorrow morning."

Take a piece of wax, a piece of meat, some sand, some clay, and some shavings, put them on the fire and see how they react. Each of them is being acted upon by the same agent, yet...the wax melts, the meat fries, the sand dries up, the clay hardens, the shavings blaze. Just so, under identical influence of circumstances and environment one man is made better, and he becomes stronger, and another becomes weaker, while another withers away. This explains why one hears the Word of God and is made better. Still another hears the same thing and is made angry. Not so much what is done to us, but what we do, determines our destiny. Take heed how you hear and act.

The WEATHER Test-Are you a sailboat Christian, making progress in the Lord only if the winds are favorable and things go your way? Or are you a tugboat Christian, plowing right ahead according to God's Word even though the gales are against you? (Revelation 2:10). The WORRY Test-If you trust, you do not worry; if you worry, you do not trust as you should. Haven't you found that "He keeps him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Him" because he trusts in God? (Matthew 6:28; Luke 12:27). The WORLDLINESS Test-Do you think as the world thinks, go where the world goes, act as the world acts? Does your life give evidence of having your affections set on things above, not on things of the world? (Romans 12:1). The WALLET Test-What proportion of your income last year was turned over for the work of the Lord? Was it at least as much as the tithe which the Jews paid before the grace of God was revealed in Christ? (Leviticus 27:30; Nehemiah 12:44). The WORK Test-How much of your energy is being given to the work of the Lord, and is it a reasonable portion of what you are expending in the day-to-day task of making a living? (John 9:4). The SOUL-WINNING Test-Are you by life and lip presenting Christ so that He is attractive to those who do not know Him as their Savior and Lord? (Matthew 12:30; Romans 15:5-6).

Faith is a daily necessity whether one is getting married, taking a job, struggling with an illness, or overcoming a handicap. And faith in God is the cornerstone of all other faiths. As one psychiatrist says, "When I learn a patient has no faith in God, I dismiss the case. There is nothing to build on." Do Not Let Hurts Hurt You "Though I say, 'I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my sad countenance and be cheerful'" (Job 9:27 NASB). Rejections, defeats, and failures that all of us have experienced can create enough negative feelings to destroy us. Be careful! Often the most painful wounds are not the scars that are outwardly seen, but the hidden wounds deep in the heart. Being hidden, they are often the most dangerous. Setbacks in our lives can take the joy out of living. Our faith is weakened and if we collect enough hurts it will stop us from wanting to press forward. Even success can make one the target of criticism. Don't let the hurts hurt you! Look at Job. A man of the land of Uz, blameless, upright, one who feared God, and one who turned away from evil. Job had seven sons and three daughters, a beautiful family. He was considered "the greatest of all the men of the East." He lost it all in the twinkling of an eye. He lost his health, wealth and family. He hurt. His wife hurt. His friends hurt. He was knocked down but not out. He had lost some of the passionate power to grow and some of his enthusiasm had diminished but he checked his negative thinking and that of his wife and friends and stated, "I will forget my complaint, I will leave off my sad countenance and be cheerful." How could he do that after undergoing so much hurt? Along the shoreline in California it is a common sight to see whales stopping alongside rocks to scrape off barnacles as they migrate from Alaska to Mexico. In our lifetime we also will pick up a collection of personal hurts that will attach themselves like parasites sapping the life out of us. They must be scraped off. How did Job do it? The same way we can do it-through faith. Faith is the only thing that can heal the hurts. Job scraped the barnacles off. It was painful! It hurt! The scars would remain but his life was put back together. Strong belief in God was the medicine. His wife, his friends could not help him-only God could!

Did you ever try to lift all the burdens of life at once? It is hard to bear yesterday's, today's, and sometimes tomorrow's burdens and temptations in one day. A doctor was once asked by a patient who had met with a serious accident, "Doctor, how long shall I have to lie here?" The answer, "Only a day at a time," taught the patient a precious lesson. It is the same lesson that you and I need-the day's portion in its day. Let us be faithful for one short day, and the long years will take care of themselves. That Is Faith A skeptical physician said to his Christian patient, "I could never understand saving faith. I believe in God and I suppose I believe in Jesus Christ-I am not conscious of any doubts. I believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God, and I believe in the Bible, yet I am not saved, I do not feel God near me. What is the matter with me?" "Well," said the patient, "a week ago I believed in you as a very skillful physician. I believed that if I put myself in your hands I would recover from my illness. In other words, I trusted you. For a week now I have been taking some mysterious stuff out of a bottle. I don't know what it is; I don't understand it, but I am trusting in you. Now, whenever a person turns to the Lord Jesus Christ and says, 'Lord Jesus, Christianity seems to me to be full of mysteries. I do not understand them, but I believe Thou art trustworthy and I trust Thee; I commit myself to Thee,' that is faith. A very simple thing, isn't it?" The faith of the patient did not heal him; it was the remedy that healed him; but in faith he took the remedy.

A poor but devout Frenchman came to his spiritual advisor and said with a sorrowing heart: "I profess faith in God, but at times, against my will, I'm overwhelmed with doubts as I try to live a Christian life in this world. Surely, God must be displeased with me as I struggle to overcome them." The clergyman answered with much kindness, "The King of France has two castles in different areas and sends a commander to each of them. The castle of Mantleberry stands in a place remote from danger, far inland; but the castle of La Rochelle is on the coast, where it is liable to continued sieges. Now which of the two commanders, do you think, stands highest in the estimate of the King-the commander of La Rochelle, or he of Mantleberry?" "Doubtless," said the poor man, "the King values him the most who has the hardest task, and braves the greatest dangers." "You are right," replied his advisor, "And now apply this matter to your case and mine."

One of the most memorable sermons was preached by the late Emil Brunner at the Fraumunster Kirche in Zurich, Switzerland. It was based on the phrase, "faith, hope, and love." The points were these: Every man has a past, a present, and a future. Every man has a problem in his past, a problem in his present, and a problem in his future. The problem in our past is sin, but God has an answer to that problem. The answer is faith-faith in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The problem in our future is death, but God has an answer to that problem also. The answer to that problem is hope-hope in Christ's return based on the fact of His historical resurrection and His promises. The problem in our present is hate, and God's answer to that problem is love. It is the love of Christ lived out in the lives of those who trust Him. This Too Shall Pass "What is your favorite Scripture?" someone once asked an elderly woman. "My favorite Scripture is, '...and it came to pass...." When asked why she chose this one she said, "Because it does not say, '...it came to stay...." Everything is temporary. What will not be changed by the passing of time will be changed by the end of time. The biblical principle is that we are to look beyond any problem, suffering, and confusion of this time and look to the future reward. Paul said, "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18). We can live with present problems because of their temporal nature. Why bother to fuss, fume and stew over something that will be gone sooner or later? Instead, concentrate all your energy on what you can influence, and attempt to make a better life for yourself and those in your circle of influence.

John Milton (1608-1674) became totally blind at the age of 43, but he did not give up. During his childhood and early years he absorbed a vast knowledge and remembrance of the Scriptures. To this he added mastery of the Latin and Greek classics which he studied in their original languages. At the age of 47, while immersed in total darkness, he began writing his monumental epic, Paradise Lost, which he completed in 10 years, and which to this day is generally regarded as the most sublime and the greatest non-dramatic poem in the English language. As a writer, he ranks second only to Shakespeare. The Holy Scriptures lifted him out of his perpetual darkness and thereby God "amply furnished my mind and conscience with eyes," as he stated to his friend, Philara, in Athens. He exulted in the Lord; his spirit was alive with unction from above: "While God so tenderly provides for me," he said, "while He so graciously leads me by the hand and conducts me on the way, I will, since it is His pleasure, rather rejoice than repine at being blind."

A man found himself staggering alone under a load that was heavy enough to crush half a dozen strong men. Out of sheer exhaustion, he put it down and had a good look at it. He found that it was all borrowed! Part of it belonged to the following day; part of it belonged to the following week; and here he was borrowing it that it might crush him now! It was a very stupid but a very ancient (and also modern) blunder. The Value of Adversity If Abraham Lincoln was a young man today, the traveling library would supply him with books; a county caseworker would see that he had enough light to read by; the government would see that his parents got a monthly welfare check, housing assistance and food stamps. Abe could apply for an educational loan and some social service clubs would see that he went to camp each summer. End result: There would be no Abe Lincoln such as the one we remember and love who overcame poverty and adversity to become one of the greatest Presidents of all time. No Cross, No Crown A grapevine says, in the early spring, "How glad I am to get through the winter! I shall have no more trouble now! Summer weather will come, and the garden will be very beautiful!" But the gardener comes, and cuts the vine here and there with his knife. The twigs begin to fall, and the grapevine calls out, "Murder! What are you cutting me for?" "Ah," says the gardener, "I do not mean to kill you. If I did not do this, you would be the laughingstock of all the other vines before the season is over." Months go on and one day the gardener comes under the trellis, where the great clusters of grapes hang, and the grapevine says, "Thank you, sire, you could not have done anything so kind as to cut me with that knife." No pruning, no grapes; no grinding mill, no flour; no battle, no victory; no cross, no crown.

When solid timber is needed, we pass by the things grown in the hot house. We seek the oak grown on the storm swept hills. The great in God's Kingdom have been taught by the hills and vales of temptation. Yielding creates littleness, overcoming creates greatness. The Example of the Pine One day a boy and his father went into the mountains. They took shelter from a storm in the lee of some great gray boulders that lay like sleeping giants close to the crest of a lonely ridge. As the two looked upward, they saw the wind lay its grim hands on a mountain pine that towered from the summit of the ridge. It was a sentinel that could escape no danger, an outpost to receive the first shock of the enemy's attack. Savagely the wind tore at it, shook it violently, and howled through the branches. To the boy, the tree, strong though it was, seemed about to be torn to pieces. "Look, Father!" he said, pining upward, "what the wind is doing to that pine!" The full fury of the blast just then made the pine shudder and sway. It heaved desperately against the black sky. "Storms are an old story to that tree," said the father. "A tree like that lives in a struggle from the time it is high enough to catch the first breath of air. Tennyson says a tree is 'storm-strengthened on a windy site.'The strongest trees are always those that have weathered the greatest number of gales. Besides, the question is not what is happening to the tree, but what is happening in the tree." "The pine does not really seem to mind fighting the storm, does it?" the boy asked. "No, because it is able to withstand the strongest wind," the father answered. "It is the same with us. It really does not matter what happens to us, but it matters a great deal what happens in us."

What do you do when faced by a closed door in life? A young boy from Missouri named Harry had to answer that question. He gave evidence of brilliance on the piano even as a child. In addition to being gifted, Harry had such discipli ne that at the age of seven he was at the keyboard by five each morning. He practiced faithfully for hours each day. Under the tutelage of Mrs. E. C. White, he produced each day stronger hope that he would eventually reach greatness. When Harry was 15, Mrs. White brought news to her star pupil. Paderewski, the greatest pianist of the day was coming to town. The young boy was thrilled as he listened to Paderewski play. Mrs. White took her pupil backstage after the concert to meet Paderewski. With trembling voice, the young boy told the world-renowned pianist that he played his minuet. "There is a part of it," young Harry explained, "that I do not know how to execute." Paderewski walked back with the boy to the empty stage and to the piano. The boy sat at the same piano where Paderewski had played only a few minutes before. As the student played, Paderewski gave a smile of approval to the boy's teacher. A bright future seemed to loom before him. Then ensued the closed door. The next year Harry's father lost everything in the Kansas City grain market. Harry had to go to work, and his dreams of the concert stage were shattered. Did the boy give up on life? Did he let this closed door stop him? Not at all, for this young, gifted, promising pianist would become world famous before his life was over, as President of the United States. His name was Harry S. Truman. Does Anything Ever Turn Out Right? Picture with me, if you will, a man running through the wilderness being chased by a lion. He knows that if he is fast enough and dodges through enough thickets, that he could possibly elude the lion. Luckily, he does manage to elude the lion, only to be confronted by a bear. Again, he runs with all his speed and strength, realizing now that his only hope is to reach the safety of his house. Once again, he is successful and manages to elude the beast by reaching his house. He runs inside, slamming the door behind him and feeling pretty good about having overcome the obstacles of life. But, as he leans against the wall with his hand to catch his breath, he is bitten by a snake. This was an actual illustration that God used in Amos 5:19 to show Israel the hopelessness of their situation. We all have days and weeks like that, do we not? But are we like the woman who said that she had quit praying for patience because God might give her more? But God, being the wise and all-knowing Father that He is, will often give us what we need to grow healthy and spiritually strong, even though we do not ask for it-though He would like to hear us ask now and then. Children almost never ask for a bath, but we give it to them anyway, because we know that it will help them.

Naturalists are amazed at the resistance of weak things in nature. There is security and triumph of frail things that baffles man's understanding and imagination. "It is a curious thing," wrote Kay Robinson, "that the extremes of heat and cold seem to be most easily endured by the flimsiest creatures. What is it that, when the frost is splitting our strongest metal water-pipes, protects the tiny tubes of life-giving moisture in the almost spectral organism of a gnat? Larger things get frostbitten and perish. In tropical countries the tiniest insects brave the blistering midday heat which shrivels the largest herbage, and drives men, birds and animals gasping under shelter. In India a small, blue butterfly flits all day about the parched grass or sits in full blaze of the sun where metal or stone becomes so hot that it burns the hand. What heat-resisting secret resides in the minute body of that little butterfly, scarcely thicker than notepaper? Nature's power of preserving life touches the miraculous." The same God who made the natural world made the spiritual also. Similarly, then, the saints have the least reason to be afraid when they most feelingly recognize their utter weakness and dependence. We prevail by yielding; we succumb to conquer like those sea-flowers that continue to bloom amid the surf when the rocks are pounded. In acquiescence and diffidence, in yielding and clinging, we triumph over adversity as the fern survives geological cataclysms and the butterfly the scorching sun. In our weakness we experience God's strength (2 Corinthians 12:9).

When the Lawrence Mills were on fire a number or years ago--I don't mean on fire, but when the mill fell in--the great mill fell in, and after it had fallen in, the ruins caught fire. There was only one room left entire, and in it were three Mission Sunday-school children imprisoned. The neighbors and all hands got their shovels and picks and crowbars, and were working to set the children free. It came on night and they had not yet reached the children. When they were near them, by some mischance a lantern broke, and the ruins caught fire. They tried to put it out, but could not succeed. They could talk with the children, and even pass to them some coffee and some refreshments, and encourage them to keep up. But, alas, the flames drew nearer and nearer to this prison. Superhuman were the efforts made to rescue the children; the men bravely fought back the flames; but the fire gained fresh strength and returned to claim its victims. Then piercing shrieks arose when the spectators saw that the efforts of the firemen were hopeless. The children saw their fate. They then knelt down and commenced to sing the little hymn we have all been taught in our Sunday-school days, Oh! how sweet--: "Let others seek a home below which flames devour and waves overflow." The flames had now reached them; the stifling smoke began to pour into their little room, and they began to sink, one by one, upon the floor. A few moments more and the fire circled around them and their souls were taken into the bosom of Christ. Yes, let others seek a home below if they will, but seek ye the Kingdom of God with all your hearts.

"By tacking about men get the wind, not by lying still; many times a supply of grace cometh ere we are aware." When we do not seem to have the favouring gale in our voyage towards heaven, let us not therefore cast anchor, and idly lie still, but let us use what wind we have, employing that measure of grace which is vouchsafed to us. Let us put up the sail to catch sidewinds, that we may be aided by indirect helps till we get where more propitious breezes blow. If I cannot pray, let me read a chapter. It may be that while I hear God speak to me I shall learn how to speak to Him. If in my private reading I feel no unction upon the word, let me go forth and attend the meeting of the saints; perhaps God intends to bless me by the ear, or in company with others. If this fails, let me go and visit the sick, or perform some deed of charity. Perhaps in helping others I may find succour for my own soul: God has often saved a man from freezing by setting him to rub a brother into warmth and life. If all this shall not have succeeded let me hold converse with some choice servant of God; and if this should fail me, let me get to my knees again, or begin to sing a psalm, or tell to others what I have experienced of God's love in times past. How often it will happen that, ere I am aware, my soul will make me like the chariots of Ammi-nadib. "While I was musing," said one, "the fire burned." "The wind bloweth where it listeth," and a heavenly gale often comes upon a sudden; but it seldom or never comes to idle souls, or to those who are indifferent about it, listless, inactive, dead, careless whether it comes or not. Come then, brother, tack about. Complain not of the want of heavenly wind, rather complain of want of consecrated energy. Lord, grant that what I preach to others I may always practise myself.

A man who had enjoyed great prosperity, and amassed considerable wealth, without thought of God, was at length overwhelmed with calamities. His life was imperilled, his property was lost, his family were sick nigh unto death, he lost his eyes, and, last of all, his boy died. He desired to be led to the side of his dead son, and handled the loved form which he could no longer see. There he exclaimed, "O God! it is enough! Stricken, smitten, and afflicted, the wandering child of pious parents, who have long since gone to heaven, will yield. I will kiss the rod that smites me; and, though I cannot now see thee in all nature, as once I might have done, yet I do and will hear thee in the silence of my heart." They came to remove him; but he said, "Oh, no! not yet; not until here, audibly, in your presence, and, above all, in the presence of the all-seeing God, I make my vows. Samuel! dearest Samuel! thou wilt never come to me, but I will go to thee, in that world where the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest."

Though the mariner sees not the pole-star, yet the needle of the compass which points to it tells him which way he sails; thus the heart that is touched with the loadstone of divine love, trembling with godly fear, and yet still looking towards God by fixed believing, interprets the fear by the love in the fear, and tells the soul that its course is heavenward, towards the haven of eternal rest. Leighton.

Then the shepherds led the pilgrims to some new places. The first was Mount Marvel, where they looked, and beheld a man at a distance, that tumbled the hills about with words. Then they asked the shepherds what that should mean. So they told them, that that man was the son of one Mr. Great-Grace; and he is set down there to teach pilgrims how to believe, or to tumble out of their ways what difficulties they should meet with by faith. Then said Mr. Great-Heart, "I know him: he is a man above many." Bunyan.

"Can you climb?" a captain asked of a sailor-boy, before taking him out in his ship. The trial was soon after made, and the poor boy's head began to grow dizzy as he mounted higher and higher on the rigging. "Oh! I shall fall," he cried, looking down upon the sea. "Look up, my boy!" shouted the captain; and so he did, and gained the mast-head. Thus is it with us. When we look below, and see the waves, we fear, or, like Peter, we begin to sink; but keep the eye fixed on Jesus, "look up," and the difficulty is overcome. Howes.

— If He should slay me ten thousand times, ten thousand times I'll trust. I feel, I feel, I believe in joy, and rejoice; I feed on manna. Oh for arms to embrace Him! Oh for a well-tuned harp!

One evening, a father and his little daughter, who had been spending the afternoon at a neighbor's, started through the darkness for home. It was the first time that she had ever been out doors in the night; and she began to be troubled about the way home. "I can't see our house, papa. I don't know the way. Where are we going?" she said anxiously. He replied, "I can see the road; and, if you keep hold of my hand, I will take care of you." Then she said, as if chiding and comforting herself, "Yes, you do know the way; don't you, papa? You will take care of your little girl, 'cause you love her; don't you, papa?" After this, she only grasped his hand a little tighter, and trudged cheerfully onward wherever he led the way.

As those birds that soar highest in the firmament are not so quickly snared as others; so those men that have an eye of faith upon Christ, whose minds mount above the skies, are not so soon snared by the world, the flesh, and the Devil as others.

— Cawdray

A father was once amusing his children with an electric machine; and, after one or two had received the shock, they drew back from the apparatus with evident dread. The father presently held out the jar uncharged, and consequently harmless, and said, "If you touch it now, you will feel nothing. Who will try?" The children drew back with their hands behind them. "Don't you believe me?" said he. "Yes, sir;" and the hands were held out to prove their faith, but were quickly withdrawn before they reached the dangerous knob. One alone, a timid little girl, had that kind of confidence which really led her to trust her father. The rest believed, but had not heartfelt faith. Even the little believer's faith was not unwavering. You could see on her face, when the little knuckle approached the harmless brass ball, a slight expression of anxiety, showing she had some doubts and fears after all; and there was an evident feeling of relief, when, from actual trial, she experienced the case to be as her father represented it.

Illustrations of Truth.

The undertakings of Alexander, of Hannibal, of Caesar, did not signify valor like to this: their achievements were but toys in comparison to these. Those famous gallants would have found it infinitely harder to conquer the world in this way: to spave subdued their lusts, and mastered their passions, would have proved far more difficult than to get advantage in scuffles with armed men; to discomfit legions of devils would have been to them another kind of work than was the vanquishing squadrons of Persians, of Gauls, of Romans; to have set upon their own ambition and vanity, their intemperance, their revenge, to have quelled those inward enemies, to have sustained affronts, disgraces, afflictions, with a calm and contented mind, — would have more tried their courage than all which they attempted. Dr. Barrow.

A lieutenant-colonel was overwhelmed by the fear of death amid the peril of battle. He was impressed with the steadiness of several Christian soldiers when under fire. Particularly he saw a corporal, who, after several standard-bearers had been shot down, seized the flag-staff, and, as he bore it to immediate death, calmly said to a comrade, "If I fall, tell my dear wife that I die with a good hope in Christ, and that I am glad to give my life for the country." "I cannot forget that," said the colonel: "and I want to become a Christian; for I know there is a reality in religion."

At the time of the captivity, Uri, a man of Israel, became discontented, and murmured against God. When Uri had lamented, one day, the cause of his tribulations in the strange country, the Lord caused a deep sleep to fall upon him. He dreamed that he had left Babylon, with his wife and children, and was again reposing in the mountains of Bethlehem. And his heart was full of joy; and he exclaimed, "Let us be glad, and of good cheer; for all our troubles are at an end." Suddenly, the sun was darkened, the thunder rolled in the heavens, the earth quaked; and the beams of their dwelling trembled. Hastily, Uri took his family, and fled into the field. Scarcely had they left, when the house fell, and the earth where they stood seemed yawning to receive them. Trembling, he sought amid the lightning glare for a safe retreat; but, amid the hurry of change, his child, the youngest, was missing. The father was about to descend for the child, when the earthquake began again; the rock under their feet receded. In anguish he cried, "Who can help us, and save us from this death?" He awoke: he was still in the land of Babylon. "The Lord be praised!" said he: "it was but a dream." But the angel of the Lord stood at the foot of the bed, and said, "This dream came from God. I touched thy forehead; and, when thou didst awake, thy troubles ended. Uri, fear not, but believe." And Uri humbled himself before God, and said, "I have looked for grapes on thorns." And he believed, and comforted his people. And, after these days, Cyrus proclaimed a decree that the Israelites should return to their own land. Krummacher.