Sermon Central
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Every Branch That Bears Fruit Must Be Pruned To ... PRO
Contributed by Stephen Smarowsky on Jun 14, 2008 (message contributor)
Every branch that bears fruit must be pruned to bear much more fruit. I have a tomato plant that has been living for over two years now. Every winter the cold weather and heavy breeze kill more than half of the vines and leafs. If I don't prune the dead, it will spread and kill the whole plant. Therefore, I must prune what is wilted to save the rest of the plant. In turn, the plant grows bigger, stronger, and bears more tomatoes than before. The tomatoes don't only multiply, but they are much more pleasing in their flavor.
We must allow God to prune the wilted friends, habits, thoughts, and possessions out of our lives. By allowing this to happen, we will grow stronger and bear more fruit for the Kingdom of God. We will not only add to the Kingdom in quantity, but also in quality. The fruit we bear will be much more pleasing to God. Like David did, ask God to search your heart of any offense. David wrote, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; And see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting" (Psalm 139:23-24).
Jesus said that His Father prunes His children. The richest, fullest, most fruitful lives are those that have been strengthened through the painful process of tribulation. We have no right to think God will use us until He cuts away whatever may hinder our growth. What we see as tragedies may be only blessings in disguise, and the very opportunities through which God chooses to...
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A Pastor Tells Of Standing By His Father's ... PRO
Contributed by John Williams Iii on Nov 10, 2002
"A pastor tells of standing by his father’s tombstone and reading the words, "Born 1884 - Died 1970." It suddenly occurred to him how much the little dash between those two dates symbolized". (Herb Miller. Actions Speak Louder Than Verbs. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1988, p. 124). It is what we ...read more
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A Couple Of Years Ago, Newsweek Magazine Ran An ... PRO
Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Jun 6, 2005
A couple of years ago, Newsweek magazine ran an article on “Faith and Healing.” The article began with this unsettling story: “On a quiet Saturday afternoon, Ming He, a fourth-year medical student in Dallas, came across a man dying in the VA Hospital. Suffering from a rare cancer and hooked up ...read more
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The Dictionary Defines ‘accident' As "An ... PRO
Contributed by W F on Sep 21, 2004
The dictionary defines ‘accident’ as “an unforseen event or one without apparent cause.” Any Christian who understands the sovereignty of God will immediately determine from this definition that there is no such thing as an accident. It’s like the cowboy who goes to buy some life insurance. The ...read more
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Patience Makes It Happen PRO
Contributed by John Williams Iii on Nov 10, 2002
PATIENCE MAKES IT HAPPEN "The history books are full of stories of gifted persons whose talents were overlooked by a procession of people until someone believed in them. To name a few ... "Einstein was four years old before he could speak and seven before he could read". Einstein became ...read more
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Have You Ever Seen A Straight River? Canals Are ... PRO
Contributed by W F on Sep 21, 2004
Have you ever seen a straight river? Canals are straight, but all rivers seem to be crooked. We call it “meandering.” Why are rivers crooked? Because the natural tendency of a river is to take the easiest way around any obstacle. So rivers are always crooked, and they always run downhill. Some ...read more
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