In Sermons: showing 241-255 of 432

A Song For Ordinary Days Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Life is not made up of special days. It may have some extraordinary days sprinkled throughout the year but life is filled with ordinary days. The problem is that we can begin to live for the special days when the real issue in life is staying faithful and

A Song for Ordinary Days Luke 1:39-56 As we approach Christmas, how many of you can remember the days of your childhood when you began looking forward to Christmas, weeks if not months ahead? You watched all the more intently the commercials on TV for the latest toys, put together your Christmas ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:39-56

Denomination: Methodist

When Darkness Invades Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Here's the problem with Christmas today: the Christmas we know is so very unlike the first Christmas was experienced by the holy family. The joy of the birth of the Christ child was soon dampened by evil. What we need to remember this Christmas is that we

A Scandalous Love Affair: When Darkness Invades Matthew 2:13-18 Fireman Edward Cushing tells the story of an old frame house burning on the southside of Chicago. He ordered the hoses to start fighting the fire and then dashed inside and pulled three people out. When the blaze was over, the Chief ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:13-18

Denomination: Methodist

When Life Doesn't Make Sense Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Being a mother can be a costly thing. But following the call of God to be a mother of the Savior can be a costly thing as well. As Christians, sometimes, we tend to sanitize the Christmas story. We think of it as a heartwarming story of a young mother giv

A Scandalous Love Affair: when life and faith doesn't make sense Luke 1:26-38 Dick Hillis tells the story of a mission trip to Africa. “She was lying on the ground. In her arms she held her tiny baby girl. As I put a cooked sweet potato into the mother’s outstretched hand, I wondered ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:26-38

Denomination: Methodist

A Scandalous Love Affair With Broken People Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

There are skeletons in every closet: embarrassing family members with a checkered past who have missed the mark in God’s eyes. But while some may have fallen short of God’s will for their lives, no one is beyond redemption. And the Bible reminds us that n

A Scandalous Love Affair: With Broken People Matthew 1 The Rockefeller family is considered to be one of the most philanthropic families in the world, helping humanity globally in issues like economics, religion, education and environmental affairs. Yet the Rockefeller family tree is filled with ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:1-17

Denomination: Methodist

Kingdom Investors Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Kingdom Investors have the right priorities. Jesus says we are to “Seek first the kingdom of God.” That means the first value of our lives is to invest in the building of the kingdom of God.

Kingdom Investors Matthew 6:19-34 John Hess-Yoder writes of serving as a missionary in Laos. Before the colonialists imposed national boundaries, the kings of Laos and Vietnam reached an agreement on taxation in the border areas. Those who ate short-grain rice, built their houses on stilts, and ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:19-33

Denomination: Methodist

Power Of Simplicity Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Jesus is confronting the world’s conventional wisdom about wealth and materialism which says, “More is better.” Jesus says that for abundant life, less is more. The accumulation of things creates complexity in our lives, and that can make it hard for us t

Power of Simplicity Matthew 10:9-11, 42 Shirley Fields writes, “12 years ago my husband and I were still spending most of our time running a business we had created. Financially everything was great. The store we owned and operated was in a wonderful location, and had the extra large office ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:9-11

Denomination: Methodist

Redefining Wealth Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

What is your relationship with money? More importantly, how does your money impact your relationship with God? In our Scripture today, Jesus gives us keys on redefining our understanding of money and the role that it plays in our lif

Redefining Wealth Matthew 6:19-33 A wealthy, older
gentleman had just recently married a lovely young lady 40 years younger than him, and was beginning to wonder whether she might have married
him for his money. So he asked her, "Tell me the truth: if I lost all my money, would you ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

No Compromise Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Before the world is ever going to take Jesus seriously, the church has to take Jesus seriously. Before the world is converted to a lifestyle devoted to Jesus Christ, the church must be converted to a lifestyle devoted to Jesus Christ. We are called to put

No Compromise Matthew 10:26-33 Before the world is ever going to take Jesus seriously, the church has to take Jesus seriously. Before the world is converted to a lifestyle devoted to Jesus Christ, the church must be converted to a lifestyle devoted to Jesus Christ. Mother Theresa was once asked, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:26-33

Denomination: Methodist

The Conflict Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

When you experience conflict as a result of following Jesus, you are not headed in the wrong direction. Instead that’s a sign you are being faithful to the Gospel.

The Conflict Matthew 10:22-25 Last week we learned if we are going to commit to following Jesus then we need to make sure we know what we’re signing up for because following Jesus can lead to pretty hazardous work. When you follow Jesus, you surrender your will, you surrender your freedom, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:22-25

Denomination: Methodist

Risk Takers Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

when we embrace the mission of Jesus, we make a commitment to hazardous work. And yet one of the things we see in the church today is that following Jesus has become something far less than that. It’s more about comfort than danger and belief rather than

Risk Takers Matthew 10:16-22, The Message Elizabeth Elliott wrote a book called, Through Gates of Splendor. In it, she tells the story of her husband, Jim, who was one of the five missionaries killed as they tried to evangelize the Waodani tribe in Ecuador. What is so amazing to me is that the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:16-22

Denomination: Methodist

Drama Free Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Today we are going to see the importance of relationships in this mission. It is vitally important to establish healthy relationships in your life to assist in serving God. God works through people. God never does anything in the world except what God do

Drama Free Matthew 10:9-15 Charlie Brown said it best: "I love mankind, it's people I can’t stand!" ...and we can all relate. Life could be so serene were it not for those pesky relational challenges. Last week we looked at the importance of the simplicity of our lifestyle, because the wrong ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:9-15

Denomination: Methodist

Travel Light Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

Jesus wants us to choose a simple life. The problem is we live in a consumer society which continuously bombards us with the message, you find life and meaning in the pursuit of things. We justify it by calling it the pursuit of the American dream. The mo

ODYSSEY: Travel Light With my wife and kids living in Arkansas, I fly monthly to visit them. How many of you in the room are frequent travelers? I've discovered with flying today, less is more. Airlines want up to $30 to check a bag. So it’s better, faster and cheaper to keep it as minimal as ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:9-10

Denomination: Methodist

Sent, Part 2 Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 19, 2012

In Matthew 10, we have Jesus’ sermon commissioning the disciples for his mission in the world, sending them out to minister in His name. The word “apostle” and “sent” are the same in Greek. That means every Christian is a missionary, one who is sent-out i

James Emery White tells the story a college history professor who was a Christian. The professor would go down to a local nursing home and visit with the elderly men and women there on a weekly basis. Though some were lovingly visited every day by their families – having been sent there ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:7

Denomination: Methodist

Sent, Part 1 Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 9, 2011

the word ‘sent’ in Greek is the same root word as apostle. So apostle means ‘one who is sent out in the name of Jesus.’ That means every disciple makes a life commitment to Jesus’ mission. Every Christian has within himself or herself the potential for a

Sent, Part 1 Matthew 10:5-8 We’re spending the next few weeks in the second recorded sermon of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. This is the commissioning of the disciples to go out and minister in the name of Jesus. One of the things we see is the type of people Jesus calls. If you or I were Jesus, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:5-8

Denomination: Methodist

The Call Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Oct 9, 2011

In our Scripture today, Jesus is commissioning the disciples to the work of the kingdom. This is when their odyssey, their journey of faith begins and what a ride it will be! There are several things we learn about the call to the odyssey

Odyssey: The Call Matthew 10:1-8 I am a student of history. By the mid 1700’s, the East Coast was settled and civilized. There were virtually no settlements and only a few forts west of the Allegheny Mountains because it was a very dangerous territory. People would get scalped in the ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 10:1-8

Denomination: Methodist