This is the sermon that our open air preachers preach at the DMV and Social Security offices. Copy it, print it, memorize it, and give it a go. This is about an 8 – 10 minute sermonette, and tells everything a sinner needs to know to repent and trust in the savior. This is adapted from one of the sermons found in Ray Comfort’s book, “Springboards for Budding Preachers”.
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen, my name is ___________ and I’m from (your church)__________________. I’d like to have your attention this morning. As you know a few months ago we celebrated a very important national holiday. It’s called Independence Day-The Fourth of July (Use whatever “freedom” holiday you want). And as a result of the signing of that famous document and the events that followed I’m I able to stand before you today and exercise my first amendment right. So, I’d like to have your attention for just a few minutes, because I have a very important question to ask you.
Now, I’m not here to ask for your money and I don’t want your money nor do I need your money. In fact I don’t get paid for doing this. It’s very awkward. I’m simply here because I care. And I don’t mean to offend anyone, but just like if you saw someone drowning you would do everything in your power to save that person; but if they refused your help that would be on them.
Many of you may have heard this old adage spoken by Ben Franklin: In this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes”. And I use to believe it too. But, I’ve come to understand that millions of people don’t pay taxes, legally or otherwise. So, that leaves us with death as being the only sure thing in life. It’s something we don’t like to think about. But, we’re all part of the ultimate statistic: 10 out of 10 people will die. Your day may be up and my day may be up today or tonight. In fact, today around the world over 150,000 people will die. Many of them just like you and me with dreams and plans for the future. And this year in the US nearly 1,000,000 people will die of heart disease. Did you know that this year in the US over 42,000 people will die in an automobile accident? We are all going to die and we don’t know the day or hour.
So, here’s the question I want to ask you: If you were to die today, would you go to a place called heaven or a place called hell? For it is appointed once to die and then the judgment. It is important to understand how God sees us in our current moral state and to understand how he will judge us and by what measure he’ll use. If he judges by the standard of the Ten Commandments would he find us innocent or guilty? Let me take you through a few of the Commandments this morning to see how you would do on Judgment Day. All I need from you is an open heart and a little honesty. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Let’s go over to the 9th Commandment. Thou shall not bear false witness. Have you ever told a lie? A half truth, a white lie, a fib, or a bald face lie to cover your tracts? If you have ever lied in your lifetime than that makes you a liar.
What about the 8th Commandment? Thou shall not steal. Have you ever stolen anything in your life time? The values of the items stolen are unimportant to God. It could be as little as taking a penny, a pencil, a paperclip; cheating on an exam, or down-loading something off the internet without permission. If there’s a chance that you have stolen something in your lifetime then that make you a thief.
What about the third commandment. Thou shall not use the name of the Lord your God in vain. Have you ever said “Oh My G.O.D.!”? If you ever used God’s name to express disgust or as a cuss word that’s called blasphemy. God says he will not hold anyone guiltless who uses his name in vain. You know when you think about it Adolph Hitler’s name wasn’t despised enough to use as a cuss word, but you’ve misused God’s name; the God who gave you life; the God who gave you eyes to see; the God who gave you ears to hear, and a mind to think. You’re not some person living in a far off land where’s there’s no running water. No. God has blessed you beyond your wildest imaginations. You live in a great land. If you use God’s name in vain, you don’t love God. God is your enemy.
Now, let’s take a look at the 7th Commandment. Thou shall not commit adultery. Guys listen to what Jesus said about that Commandment. He said that if anyone looks at a woman to lust after her, he’s already committed adultery with her in his heart. Have you looked with lust?
We don’t have time to look at the other six Commandments, but understand this: If you have broken the 9th Commandment you’re a liar. If you have broken the 8th Commandment you are a thief. If you have broken the 3rd Commandment then you are a blasphemer, and if you have looked with lust you’ve broken the 7th Commandment, which makes you an adulterer. And if you have done those things God sees you as a lying, thieving, blasphemous, adulterer at heart.
Can you see that we’ve violated God’s moral law, his standard? What is your conscience telling you? If you’ve been honest and open with yourself you would have to say that you are guilty of breaking those Commandments. I’m guilty; we are all guilty. Know and understand this: That if you’ve broken just one of the Ten Commandments, you’re guilty of breaking them all. And the Bible warns that if you are found guilty on the Day of Judgment you’ll end up in Hell. You may not understand this but it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
The bad news is that the bible says that all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. No thief, no blasphemer, no adulterer will enter the Kingdom of God. God is holy and demands perfection from us. God will one day judge the world in righteousness. Not only is he going to judge our deeds, but He’s going to judge every idle word that came out of your mouth and every secret thing you’ve ever done.
What will you do to escape the condemnation of God? What can you do to escape the wrath of God? You can’t do anything, but God, who is holy and perfect and just, has done something quite amazing for us. Did you know what he did? It is not his will that any should perish and for that very reason he sent is one and only son, Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, to suffer and die on the cross for you and me. It’s as simple as this: We broke God’s Law and Jesus paid our fine. Jesus Christ gave his sinless, perfect life as a perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. The bible says that God demonstrated his love for us in this: while we were still sinners Christ died for us. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever should believeth on him should not perish but have everlasting life. Jesus was not like you or me. In fact the Roman authority who sent him to his death said this about Jesus: “I find no fault in him”. Jesus was perfect in thought, word, and deed. And after being dead three days, Jesus rose from the dead. He defeated death to give us all the hope of eternal life.
Ladies and Gentlemen, there are two things you need to do today for today is the day of salvation. The first thing is to repent. Forsake your sins and walk away from your sins once and for all. Tell God you’re sorry, but you must humble yourself. For God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. The second thing you need to do is to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior. And don’t just believe in Jesus. For the bible says … the demons believe and tremble. No, you need to trust in him just like you would trust a parachute to save your life. You wouldn’t believe in the parachute; you’d put it on.
Please don’t wait. Just like those kids at Virginia Tech University had no idea that that day would be their last. Each beat of your heart is the drum beat of your own funeral march. Death is your enemy. There’s something in you that says I don’t want to die. God’s has thrown you a life rope. Did you know that? Come to your senses. There’s nothing more important than your eternal destiny.
You wouldn’t sell one of your eyes for a million dollars; you wouldn’t take 20 million for both your eyes. How much more valuable is your soul? What will it profit a man if he gained the whole world and loses his own soul? Repent and trust in Jesus, then God will wash away your sins; he’ll grant you everlasting life. You don’t have my word on that…you have God’s promise, and God cannot lie. So get right with God today, then read your bible daily and obey what it says.
Ladies and Gentlemen thank you for your time and if you have any questions or concerns or if you are in need of prayer today, I’ll be around for a short time. Have a great day and may God Bless you.
Robert Moss
Steve L.