David Bales was a Presbyterian pastor for 33 years. He is a graduate of San Francisco Theological Seminary. In addition to his ministry he also has taught college: World Religions, Ethics, Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Greek (lately at College of Idaho, Caldwell). He has been a freelance writer for Stephen Ministries. His sermons and articles have appeared in Interpretation, Lectionary Homiletics, Preaching the Great Texts and other publications. For a year he wrote the online column "In The Original: Insights from Greek and Hebrew for the Lectionary Passages." His books include: Gospel Subplots: Story Sermons of God's Grace, Toward Easter and Beyond, Scenes of Glory: Subplots of God's Long Story, and To the Cross and Beyond and Beyond: Cycle A Sermons for Lent and Easter. Dave has been a writer for the CSS online subscription, StoryShare, for five years. He can be reached at dobales.com.
In addition to the lectionary resources there are thousands of non-lectionary, scripture based resources...
140+ – Illustrations / Stories
34 – Children's Sermons / Resources
30 – Worship Resources
35 – Commentary / Exegesis
5 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
100+ – Illustrations / Stories
8 – Children's Sermons / Resources
12 – Worship Resources
19 – Commentary / Exegesis
and more...
130+ – Illustrations / Stories
9 – Children's Sermons / Resources
12 – Worship Resources
19 – Commentary / Exegesis
5 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
180+ – Illustrations / Stories
32 – Children's Sermons / Resources
23 – Worship Resources
31 – Commentary / Exegesis
5 – Pastor's Devotions
and more...
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The Immediate Word
Mary Austin
Dean Feldmeyer
Christopher Keating
Thomas Willadsen
George Reed
Quantisha Mason-Doll
Katy Stenta
Elena Delhagen
- Unfinished Business by Mary Austin based on Mark 16:1-8.
- Second Thoughts: The Next Day by Dean Feldmeyer. What do you do on the day after Easter?
- Sermon illustrations by Tom Willadsen, Chris Keating, Katy Stenta, Quantisha Mason-Doll.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
Emphasis Preaching Journal
Wayne Brouwer
Hundreds of first-century graves were identified, most of them marked by simple stones, all etched with the same seven letters: N F F N S N C.
Mark Ellingsen
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Bill Thomas
David Coffin
Frank Ramirez
Bonnie Bates
Bill Thomas
Mark Ellingsen
Nothing is more compelling and compassionate than a willing sacrifice. I came across the true story of Gladys Kidd and her husband, Robert Lee Kidd. Robert Lee Kidd was convicted of first-degree murder in San Fransico on October 18, 1962. Kidd had been represented by an inexperienced public defender who mismanaged the case. He spent a year on death row in San Quentin, before the verdict was reversed by the California State Supreme Court and a new trial ordered.
David Kalas
We have, for example, a standard menu each Thanksgiving. We all know what will be served on that holiday together, and we all look forward to it. Of course, not every dish is each person’s favorite, but we would all be disappointed if anything was missing!
Similarly, we have some traditional things that we eat together on Christmas Day and New Year's Eve. There's one particular meal that I request each year on my birthday. And so it goes, year after year.
Bill Thomas
Frank Ramirez
Mark Ellingsen
Bonnie Bates
CSSPlus
John Jamison
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Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? It isn’t very long. (Let them respond.) Excellent!
John Jamison
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Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? I want to warn you that it is a sad story. (Let them respond.) Okay, let’s hear the story. It isn’t very long.
John Jamison
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Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Excellent! This is a pretty short story, so let me tell it to you and then we can talk about it.
StoryShare
Peter Andrew Smith
“I was just remembering when your Mother and I used to visit.” Henry smiled at her from his seat. “No matter how early we got up the kids were always awake and ready to do the Easter egg hunt.”
“You didn’t hide eggs, did you?” Susan looked quickly around the room. “I don’t think teenagers would bother looking for them.”
“I’m nostalgic but not forgetful. I remember you stopped wanting to do Easter egg hunts when you were about Jason’s age.”
John E. Sumwalt
I had a Sunday school teacher when I was in sixth grade who liked to tell the story of a young man in our community who was killed in a motorcycle accident. He was known as a troublemaker, a “rebel without a cause,” angry teenager who loved to put on his leather jacket, jump on his Harley and make as much noise as possible as he rode down the road.
Frank Ramirez
The gospel hymn Will the Circle Be Unbroken? is such a catchy song that you can hardly mention the title without folks humming it, often unconsciously. It’s a sacred earworm! Indeed, maybe we ought to sing the chorus right now, before I continue
Will the circle be unbroken
By and by, Lord, by and by.
There’s a better world awaiting
In the sky, Lord, in the sky.
SermonStudio
John Jamison
Stan Purdum
This is a thanksgiving psalm. It both celebrates God's answer to the psalmist's prayers for help (vv. 1-2) and declares the psalmist's intention to go to the temple and "return to the Lord" those things the psalmist had promised while praying the prayers (vv. 12-14).
Richard A. Jensen
Nancy Kraft
The Village Shepherd
Janice B. Scott
Let us praise the name of the Lord, for Christ our Lord is risen today! Hallelujah!