Sermon Illustrations

The last words of a dying person are normally never forgotten. A person’s closing comments often reveal their pain and agony. Some enter eternity without saying anything, while others utter sentiments that disclose their values, priorities, and innermost thoughts.

The great Baptist preacher, Charles Spurgeon, said as his last words, "Jesus died for me." And John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, said, "The best of all is, God is with us."

Contrast those words of faith with the final words of some other persons of history. For example, right before P.T. Barnum died, he asked, “How were the receipts today at Madison Square Garden?” Humphrey Bogart’s last words were, “I should never have switched from Scotch to Martinis.” Joan Crawford was filled with anger when her maid began to pray out loud and said, “Don’t you dare ask God to help me!” Louis Mayer, the film producer, gave his philosophy of life (and death) when he said, “Nothing matters.

Pancho Villa, the Mexican revolutionary, said, “Don’t let it end like this. Tell them I said something.” Karl Marx turned to his housekeeper, who had urged him to tell her his last words so she could write them down, and shouted, “Go on, and get out. Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough.”

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