Sermons on Advent Conspiracy:

Immanuel: He Drives Away Our Fears

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 3, 2010

Advent 1987: Ahaz let fear drive him to sacrifice the best that he had and to mire down in "what if". God through Isaiah offered the ultimate sign of hope, His own presence, who drives away our fears.

The birth of a child has many layers of meaning. When a baby is born into a family, there can be all kinds of different feelings, all sorts of different meanings. For one family, this is indeed a blessed event, filled with joy, running over with excitement, the fulfillment of hopes and dreams and ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 7:10-17

Denomination: Baptist

Come: To A Choking World

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 6, 2009

What chokes the joy out of life? Too many cares that major on minors, and the relentless pursuit of material success. Jesus came to be authentically human among us.

Nearly every time I take an airplane trip, I get a happy surprise. When we take off and rise through the congestion of earth and the grim gray clouds of our immediate atmosphere, there comes that astonishing moment when the plane bursts through the cloud cover into bright sunlight. I am always ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 13:3-22

Denomination: Baptist

Friend Of The Shut Out Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 20, 2009

We are not shut out: Jesus includes us by giving us knowledge, by giving us a place in His mission, and by paying the price to see that we are included in the Kingdom.

A number of years ago I saw a very provocative poster. It was a depiction of the doors of Washington. Nothing more than a series of doors, arranged in rows on the poster, probably twenty or twenty-five, all photographs of various doors in this city. Some of them were beautifully simple doorways ...read more

Scripture: John 15:12-17

Denomination: Baptist

Friend Of The Hopeful Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 22, 2009

In fearful times, there are also signs of hope. Some turn everything into a sign of fear and conflict. Others can see hope if they allow others to succeed. The child Jesus is a sign of such hope.

"The time of fear is over; now comes the time of hope." These words were spoken in the most unlikely of situations. A French novelist, Tristan Bernard, and his wife, were being put into prison by the Gestapo, after the Nazis had overrun France. They were being sent to a concentration camp; ...read more

Scripture: John 3:25-30

Denomination: Baptist

Friend Of The Full Heart Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 23, 2009

Christmas is a time for full hearts: weary, guilty, anxious, sad -- past, present, and future. Mary felt the same things, but Christ comes to forgive our past, empower our present, and assure our future.

Christmas is an emotional time. All kinds of feelings are involved with the celebration of Christmas. If you don’t feel some tension, some excitement, or some pressure, something at this time of the year, you are either dead or you’ve been watching the Redskins, which is about the same thing. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Denomination: Baptist

Earning The Right To Be Heard

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 27, 2009

Jesus is God’s way of earning the right to be heard. He comes to where we live, and he experiences what we experience. He is therefore credible.

I invite you to eavesdrop with me this morning. Listen and we can overhear some conversations. Overheard in the grocery store aisle: a mother and a little girl, shopping dangerously close to the candies, the cookies and the other goodies. The little girl saying, "I want these and I want those and ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

The Great Adventure Series

Contributed by Bobby Stults on Feb 26, 2010

How many believers go through the motions of living the Christian life and are actually BORED in their walk? We are called to an exciting and abundant life in Christ, serving God is all about seeking Him and the adventure of serving Him!

Sermon Brief Date Written: February 26, 2010 Date Preached: February 7, 2010 Where Preached: Oak Park (AM) Sermon Details: Sermon Series: Series on the Holy Spirit – The Great Adventure!! Sermon Title: The Great Adventure! Part 1 of 6 Sermon Text: John 14:12 [ESV], various others 12 ...read more

Scripture: John 14:12

Denomination: Baptist

Are You A "Reasonable" Believer? Series

Contributed by Bobby Stults on Feb 26, 2010

How often do we miss out on what God has for us b/c we use the ’excuse’ that we have OTHER responsibilities?

Sermon Brief Date Written: February 10, 2010 Date Preached: February 14, 2010 Where Preached: Oak Park (AM) Sermon Details: Sermon Series: Series on the Holy Spirit - The Great Adventure Sermon Title: Are You A Reasonable Believer! - Part 2 of 6 Sermon Text: John 14:12, Neh ...read more

Scripture: Nehemiah 2:1-5

Denomination: Baptist

The Rut Of Christianity Series

Contributed by Bobby Stults on Feb 26, 2010

In serving God believers so often find themselves allowing routine and tradition to overwhelm their actions... sometimes to the point where they cannot serve as God desires them to serve!

Sermon Brief Date Written: February 26, 2010 Date Preached: February 21, 2010 Where Preached: Oak Park (AM) Sermon Details: Sermon Series: The Great Adventure – Rediscovering the Adventure Sermon Title: The RUT of Christianity! Part 3 of 6 Sermon Text: John 14:12, Exodus ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 3:1-6

Denomination: Baptist

Do Your Assumptions Limit Your Service To God? Series

Contributed by Bobby Stults on Feb 26, 2010

How many people today jump to conclusions based on the circumstances and situations they see in their lives, only to find out that what they had thought was WAAAAY off base! We do that spiritually as well...

Sermon Brief Date Written: February 26, 2010 Date Preached: February 28, 2010 Where Preached: Oak Park (AM) Sermon Details: Sermon Series: The Great Adventure – Rediscovering the Adventure Sermon Title: Do Your Assumptions Limit Your Service? Part 4 of 6 Sermon Text: Gen 15:5; ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 15:5

Denomination: Baptist

Christmas Wisdom: The Story Of The Wise Men Series

Contributed by Tom Shepard on Dec 12, 2006

Three aspects of a Wise Man 1. Journey of Faith 2. Journey of Worship 3. Journey of Change

Christmas Wisdom: The Story of the Wise Men "Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, ’Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.’ ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Word Made Flesh: A New Beginning

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Feb 28, 2011

We cannot repair our mistakes alone, because we keep on starting at old premises. What we need, and receive in the Incarnation, is a new beginning, modeled and taught.

Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, Nov. 30, 1986, Advent I One comic strip character aspires to be a writer. His crowning ambition is to write the definitive novel, the bestseller to end all best sellers. And so time and again he sits down at his typewriter, poises his paws (must be ...read more

Scripture: John 1:1-14

Denomination: Baptist

The Logos Series

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Nov 29, 2010

The Christmas season is about celebrating the incarnation, the time when God became a man. God visited this planet in human form over 2,000 years ago; how do we understand who our Savior is?

The Logos (John 1:1-13) 1. This past Tuesday, it was difficult to drive in and out of our church parking lot because of a barrage of traffic down Webster Street. 2. Where did this traffic come from? Downtown was blocked off because President Obama and Vice-President Biden were speaking at a ...read more

Scripture: John 1:1-13

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Prophecy: A Root Of Hope! Series

Contributed by Scott Bradford on Nov 30, 2010

This sermon is about the prophecy about Jesus birth, coming from the root of Jesse, and that he brought hope to the Gentiles! So to we have a root of hope in Jesus in our time!

(secondary text: Romans 15:9-12) When a member of my congregation, 18 year old Heidi was thrown from a car back in May, and suffered a head injury it was a real miracle that she recovered and was soon in rehab at Crystus Santa Rosa. She was learning to walk again through rehab and therapy and a ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-10

Denomination: United Methodist

Filled For A Purpose

Contributed by Mike Rickman on Dec 3, 2010

The first coming of Christ was preceded by increased spiritual activity. As we celebrate His birth shouldn’t we also celebrate that same spiritual activity?

December 5, 2010 Morning Worship Text: Luke 1:11-17 Subject: The Announcement of John’s Birth Title: Filled for a Purpose It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! Don’t you just love this time after Thanksgiving? I mean, what more could a person want; a time to go out and fight the crowds ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:11-17

Denomination: Assembly Of God