Sermon Illustrations

Erwin McManus says, “Truth exists because God is trustworthy. The biblical understanding of truth is that all truth comes from God. Our experience of an objective reality is the result of the very character and nature of God. The integrity of the cosmos is an extension of the personhood of its creator.” McManus tells a story of what happened in his church one Sunday. He writes, “Sue Cho was a first-time guest at Mosaic (the name of his church in L.A,). She had come with her sister, who, unlike her, was a follower of Jesus Christ. When she was growing up in China, she was both an accomplished athlete and intellectual. After the close of the Sunday worship experience, she expressed appreciation for the teaching and asked if there was an Internet dialogue she could engage in. She added that she had many questions about the existence of God and would like very much to pursue them. In the midst of our conversation, I ventured into the mystical. I suggested to her that I knew something about her though we had never met. And she asked me what that was. I stated that during the worship experience that night God had revealed himself to her and that this disturbed her, since she had no intellectual validation for his existence. And I told her it was my sense that beyond revealing himself, God had spoken to her and told her that Jesus was his name. There was no small awkward silence after that moment. Her lack of eye contact let me know she was considering her response carefully. I simply invited her to consider that it was okay to acknowledge whether or not this was her experience. She quietly looked up and said yes, that was exactly right. And I asked her if what she needed through the Internet dialogue was the intellectual validation to support what her spirit already knew to be true. She gave me a resounding yes. I assured her we would be more than happy to help her brain catch up with her heart or her mind with her soul. It was hardly days after this encounter when her emails began to read like the female version of the apostle Paul, expressing a vibrant, dynamic, and passionate relationship to Jesus Christ.”

Truth is important and it is knowable, because God has made it knowable. And when you not only know it but live it, and allow it to transform you, it will also create a passion in your heart that will make you glad you are alive.

Related Sermon Illustrations

Related Sermons