Kindness – Sermon Illustration Ideas

Free and Timely Gifts

Anxiety, dept, graciously, helping, Kindness, paid for, Seasons, Storms, Surprise, Thankfulness

We’ve all seen videos of people standing in line at the grocery store when a random stranger walks by and pays the bill. The…

Pay It Forward

Caring for Others, Kindness, Love One Another, Loving Others, Praying

The film Pay It Forward (directed by Mimi Leder, Warner Bros, 2000) follows a seventh-grade boy who is given an assignment to develop a…

Freedom From Condemnation

Condemnation, Forgiveness, Freedom, Gospel, Grace, Kindness, Second Chances, Sin

An illustration of our freedom from condemnation can be seen in the novel Do We Not Bleed? In that novel, the character Jon Mote…

Paid Debt

Debt, Forgiveness, Generosity, Kindness

Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, Florida paid off almost $40,000 in school lunch debt so that graduating seniors and rising juniors would not be…

Captain Hook

Anger, Bully, Kindness, Mean

In the Disney movie Hook (directed by Stephen Spielberg [Sony Picture Studios, 1991]), Captain James Hook is an example of a common bully. He…

Be Kind Rewind

Comfort, Community, Kindness, Working Together

Be Kind Rewind (directed by Michel Gondry [New Line Cinema, 2008])is the silly story of two clerks in a video rental store who accidentally…

Practicing Hospitality

Generosity, Hospitality, Kindness, Loving Others, Serving, Serving Others

In an episode of the television show Gilmore Girls, Lorelai Gilmore is having her home remodeled. Consider showing clips from this episode (season 6, episode…

Enhancing Others’ Lives

Community, Kindness, Loving Others, Serving, Serving Others

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses two sensory-rich descriptions for the people who are his disciples. He states, “You are the salt…

Humble Witnesses

Evangelism, Humility, Kindness, Sharing Faith, Witness

Disabled medical student Zoie Sheets has shared some helpful reflections on how medical professionals should approach “Google warriors”—patients who have compiled their own research…

To Kill a Mockingbird

Good Works, Goodness, Integrity, Justice, Kindness, Righteousness, Strength

In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is a lawyer in the American South who defends Tom Robinson, a Black man…

What Would You Do?

Action, Actions, Good Works, Goodness, Integrity, Kindness, Works

Many times our claims that we want to do the right thing just don’t line up with our actions. The television series What Would…

Wherever You Go

Change, God's Purpose, Interruptions, Kindness, Love, Ministry, Purpose, Thomas a Kempis, Wherever You Go

You don’t need to make a huge move or change in order to begin living in the purpose that God has for you right…

Jesus, Our Advocate

1 John 1:9, 1 John 2:1, 1 Timothy 2:5, Advocate, Faith, Jesus, John 14:16, John 3:16, Kindness, Mark 5:21-43, Mediator, Mercy, Romans 5:12

In our foster-care system today, many young children are left to navigate a maze of court hearings and new schools all on their own. Through…

The Gospel Is Love

Christ's Love, Ephesians 2:4-5, Fruits of the Spirit, Galatians 2:20, Gospel, John 15:9-17, John 3:16, Kindness, Love, Lover Our Enemies, Loving Others, Patience, Psalm 136:26, Psalm 86:15, Romans 5:2-5, Romans 5:8, Romans 8:37-39

At the heart of the gospel is love. God so loved the world he sent his Son, Jesus, to die on the cross (John…

Kindess Grows

2 Timothy 2:15, Acts 1:8, Boldness, Evangelism, Harvest, Kindness, Love, Mark 16:15, Matthew 28:19-20, Matthew 9:37-38, Paying It Forward, Salvation, The Gospel, Trusting God, Witnessing

The film Pay It Forward imagines what can happen if everyone gave someone an act of kindness that could not be paid back and…

Unexpected Conversion

1 Peter 4:9, 2 Peter 3:9, Church Family, Community, Conversion, Grace, Hebrews 13:1-2, Hospitality, Isaiah 58:7, Kindness, Peace, Sexuality, Solace, Titus 1:8, Witness

Rosaria Butterfield is a well-known speaker and writer who converted from a life filled with questions about sexuality, uncertainty, and disdain for conservative evangelicals….

Transformative Empathy

1 Peter 3:15, Acts 1:8, Comfort, Community, Empathy, Evangelism, Galatians 2:20, Kindness, Love, Mark 16:15, Prayer, Romans 1:16, Sharing, Support, Witness

In the May 2015 issue of Christianity Today, Richard Clark highlighted an emerging group of Christian video game-makers who were rising to prominence. Two…

No Repayment

1 Corinthians 4:12, Altruism, Calling, Compassion, Freedom, Kindness, Love, Luke 6:33, Matthew 5:39, Matthew 5:44, Repayment, Romans 12:17, Sacrifice, Satisfaction, Service

“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”- John Bunyan Our compassionate God calls us…

A Father’s Love

1 Corinthians 8:6, 1 Peter 1:3 James 1:17, Countercultural, Example, Father, Fighting, John 3:16, Kindness, Love, Model, Psalm 103:13, Sacrifice, Steadfast, Witness

Debasita Dasgupta, an Indian artist living in Singapore, creates illustrations that demonstrate fathers around the world loving their daughters in tangible ways. One father…