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7 Sermon Illustrations on Watchfulness

7 illustrations

Christian watchfulness calls believers to spiritual alertness and readiness against temptation and evil, emphasizing constant vigilance in faith and prayer (1 Peter 5:8; Matthew 26:41). Illustrations often use images of sleepless guards or watchmen staying awake through the night, highlighting the danger of spiritual slumber and the necessity of steadfast attentiveness.

Watchfulness, Overcome

Even many eyes cannot watch if the watcher falls asleep, illustrating the need for vigilance.

Argus is fabled to have had a hundred eyes in his head, only two of which ever slept at once. Jupiter sent Mercury to slay him. Mercury put on his winged slippers, took his sleep-producing wand, and hastened to the side of Argus. He presented himself in the guise of a shepherd with his flock. Mercury began to play upon the Pandean pipes. Argus listened, delighted with the new kind of music, and invited the young shepherd to sit beside him. Mercury sat down, told stories, and played the most soothing strains upon his pipes, till it grew late, hoping to lock in sleep the watchful eyes of Argus. At length, as Mercury played, and told a long story of the discovery of his wonderful instrument, he saw the hundred eyes all closed. The head of Argus leaned upon his breast, when Mercury cut it off with a stroke, and tumbled it down the rocks. The hundred eyes availed not while the watcher slept. Juno took them, and set them in the feathers of the tail of her peacock, where they remain to this day.

from New Cyclopaedia of Prose Illustrations · Elon Foster

Woman Awakes From 16-year Catatonic State

For 16 years, Patricia White Bull was unresponsive to the world - unable to speak, swallow or move much. On Christmas Eve, she suddenly snapped back to consciousness.

“Don’t do that,” she blurted out when nurses were trying to fix her nursing home bed Dec. 24. Doctors cannot explain why Ms. White Bull, 42, awakened from the catatonic state she slipped into while delivering her fourth child. Her mother, Snowflake Flower, said it was a Christmas miracle from God.

Since then, Ms. White Bull — known as “Happi” — has been speaking her children’s names, catching up on family developments and spending a lot of time just watching her children and smiling.

“I just went up to her and gave her a hug, and she gave me a hug back,” said her oldest child, Cindi, a 26-year-old senior at the University of North Carolina. “It was the first time she had ever hugged back. It was scary at first. It was overwhelming emotionally.”

Ms. White Bull’s speech is clear but still limited. She has talked very little but listened a lot. Her hands, which had been clenched tightly for 16 years, have loosened.

(The Detroit News, 4Jan2000)

from Internet via Kerux Sermon and Illustration Database watchfulness

Seeing Eye Dog

Watching For The Master

As I pulled into the parking lot of the shopping center I noticed a couple get out of their truck and carefully close the door on the passenger side. As I parked my car I could see the reason for the special care in closing the door. Their dog was in the cab of the truck. I watched the animal as the couple disappeared inside the store. He never took his eyes off them. My getting out of my car right next to him did not distract him. He was still. He was not barking. He was focused on his master. I did what I needed to do and came back to my car. There he was still looking toward the store entrance where he last saw his master. Still not barking. Still not in a panic. Still not distracted by other cars or this stranger staring at him and making mental notes. He was watching for his master.

Practically every time we come home we are greeted by our cat, Smooky II. Sometimes he hears us, or sees us well before we reach our house. Occasionally he will be sleeping on the porch. At other times he is patrolling the neighborhood making sure all is in order. When he hears our car he responds. If he is across the street he heads home. If he is on the porch he jumps down and runs toward us. It is not unusual for him to run right in front of us as we pull into the driveway. By the time we reach the door he is usually there waiting for us Of course, he his anxious to get to his food dish too, but, he also watches for his master.

This is not a lesson in animal psychology, but the scene with the dog in the cab of his master's truck caused me to think: Am watching for the Master's return? How eager am I to see the Master coming in His glory? Am I ready to shower Him with my love and praises of gratitude? Sometimes I get so caught up in this world and all it has to offer, that thinking ahead to the next doesn't excite me very much. At times I am so enamored with other people, other relationships, other activities in this life, that I think very little about how exciting it will be to see the Master return. A song that we sing quite often with as much emotion as any we ever sings addresses the issue:

Jesus is Lord, my Redeemer.

How He loves me. How I love Him.

He is risen! He is coming!

Lord, come quickly. Hallelujah!

I wonder, do I really want Him to come quickly? And, what if He does? Am I watching so that I will see Him when He comes? Other songs ask, "Will our robes be white?" when He comes? And, "Are you ready?" Am I? Are you? -- Tom Norvell, Colonial Heights, VA

Marathon Movie-watch

Ephesians 5:14

From Wayne Greeson:

“Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light” (Eph. 5:14).

“And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed” (Rom. 13:11).

“Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame” (1 Cor. 15:34).

Even for $2,700 cash people couldn’t or wouldn’t stay awake! I just find it funny that after only 6 hours over 100 had already fallen asleep and one man took only 25 minutes.

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) – Nearly 500 Thais began a marathon movie-watch Friday in a bid to break a world record at a Bangkok cinema, seeing who can stay awake the longest. Some $2,700 in cash is up for grabs, to be shared between whoever can stay the full 52-hour course or endure the most movies without falling asleep. The current record is held by a Hungarian who watched 20 films in 37 hours and 25 minutes. Several thousand applied to take part in the marathon. Participants took a physical to make sure they were fit for three long days and two sleepless nights. “They’re also required to have urine tests before and during the marathon as any stimulant is prohibited,” said Ananya Phungrassamee, a representative for the cinema operator, the Entertainment Golden Village.

Contestants are allowed to take five minutes rest after every movie and another 15 minutes at the end of three movies for mealtimes. They are monitored by an infrared camera to check if they fall asleep, move seats or disturb others. But only six hours after the marathon began, at least 106 contestants were ruled out of the contest as they fell asleep. The first was a man who fell asleep only 25 minutes into the first movie, “The Hurricane,” starring Denzel Washington.

from Garyslist (2/19/2000) · Wayne Greeson via Kerux Sermon and Illustration Database watchfulness

The Falcon and the Shrike

The ancient sport of falconry employed trained hawks in the chase

of wild game. When the "educated predator" was allowed to fly,

however, it often rose too high for human eyes to see it against the

blue sky. It was therefore not uncommon to carry a small caged bird

called a shrike. The hunter could then easily tell where his hawk was

located by watching the antics of the little creature in front of him,

for it instinctively feared the falcon and always cocked its head to

keep it in view.

The Christian desperately needs the sensitivity and perception of

the shrike when it comes to the detection of his spiritual adversary!

Satan, the prince of the power of the air, dwells in high places and

is a master deceiver. He often subtly camouflages himself against the

beautiful background of attractive people and exciting activities. His

presence is hard to detect if we are not on guard.

from Fredericksburg Bible Illustrator Supplements via Kerux Sermon and Illustration Database

(untitled)

At a busy intersection in New York City, a thirty-gallon can fell

from a passing truck, spilling milk all over the street. The

policeman halted traffic while the driver retrieved the can. The

policeman was about to blow his whistle for the GO signal, when a

small white cat crept out on the road and started lapping up the

milk. The whistle remained unblown, traffic stood still, and the

light changed to green three times. Only after the cat had drunk its

fill and returned to the sidewalk did the policeman give the signal

for traffic to proceed.

from Fredericksburg Bible Illustrator Supplements via Kerux Sermon and Illustration Database

(untitled)

"Do you suppose," said little Jimmy to his smaller sister, "that

God cares about such little things like us? He's probably too busy

taking care of the big folks to notice us much."

Little sister shook her head and pointed to mother. "Do you think

that Mama is so busy with the big folks that she forgets the baby?

She thinks of the baby first 'cause he's so little. Surely God knows

how to love just as much as mothers do."

from Fredericksburg Bible Illustrator Supplements via Kerux Sermon and Illustration Database

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