Sermon Illustration

An atheist was walking through the woods. 'What majestic trees! 'What powerful rivers! 'What beautiful animals! He said to himself. As he was walking alongside the river,he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. He turned to look. He saw a 7-foot grizzly bear charge towards him. He ran as fast as he could up the path. He looked over his shoulder & saw that the bear was closing in on him.. He looked over his shoulder again, & the bear was even closer. He tripped & fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up but saw that the bear was right on top of him, reaching for him with his left paw & raising his right paw to strike him. At that instant the Atheist cried out, 'Oh my God!' Time Stopped. The bear froze. The forest was silent. As a bright light shone upon the man, a voice came out of the sky. 'You deny my existence for all these years, teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to cosmic a...

Many years ago, a well-known minister delivered a series of sermons against atheism in an American town in which some of the citizens were known to be skeptical. A few days afterwards he took passage in a steamer ascending the Mississippi, and found on board several of the citizens of that town, among whom was a noted atheist. So as soon as he discovered the minister, he began his blasphemies; and when he perceived him reading at one of the tables, he proposed to his companions to go with him to the opposite side of the table and listen to some stories that he had to tell upon religion and religious men, which he said would annoy the old preacher. Quite a number, prompted by curiosity, gathered around him to listen to his vulgar stories and anecdotes, all of which were pointed against the Bible and its ministers. The preacher did not raise his eyes from the book which he was reading, nor appear to be in the least disconcerted by the presence of the rabble. Finally, the blasphemer walke...

As the Lord Verulam observes, God never produced a miracle to convince an atheist, because His ordinary works may convince him; and unless men will be willfully and stubbornly blind, they must needs subscribe to that of St. Paul: “God hath not left Himself without witness in that He doth good, and gives us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with good and gladness;” (Acts 14:17) and “The invisible things of God are clearly seen from the creation of the world, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead: so that they are without excuse” (Rom. 1:20). When we see footsteps evidently imprinted on the earth, shall we not easily deduce that certainly someone hath passed that way? When we see a stately fabric built according to all the rules of art, and adorned with all the riches and beauty that magnificence can expend about it, must we not presently conclude that certainly there was some skilful architect that built it? It can be...