Sermons on George Smith:

The Parable Of The Sly Bastard

Contributed by David Smith on Feb 26, 2008

if you want to know how to handle money, take your lead from this sleaze-bag criminal accountant in Luke 16, for he was smart enough to know the most valuable thing that you...

One of the lads at Fight Club on Tuesday night approached me with a question: "You know that parable Jesus tells about the merchant who found the pearl of great price?”, he asked. “Yeah”, I said. “Well, I want to know who is the merchant in the story supposed to be?” This is not the standard sort ...read more

Scripture: Luke 16:1-9

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Why Bad Things Happen To Good People

Contributed by David Smith on Feb 26, 2008

It’s the age-old theological question - why do bad things happen to good people? Jesus, as ever, doesn’t give us the response we expect. ...

They say that philosophy deals with two sorts of questions: * Questions to which everybody knows the answer (eg. Do I really exist?). * Questions to which nobody knows the answer (eg. Why do I exist?). Religious teachers tend to deal the same sorts of questions, perhaps particularly questions ...read more

Scripture: Luke 13:1-19

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Hating Your Family For Jesus' Sake!?

Contributed by David Smith on Feb 26, 2008

How can we hate our parents, partners and children? It has to be the most offensive exhortation Jesus ever gave - telling us that we have to hate the ones we love th most...

As soon as I noticed that our Gospel reading today was the one that begins by telling us that we’ve got to ’hate our mothers and fathers’, I decided then and there to give my sermon today on Paul’s Letter to Philemon! No, as much as I’d like to do that, I feel I have to stick with "hate your ...read more

Scripture: Luke 14:25-33

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Faithful Servants (A Sermon On Luke 12:35-40)

Contributed by David Smith on Feb 26, 2008

Following Jesus: It’s long hours, hard work, costly, and a little bit crazy, but would we ever consider changing positions and serving someone else? Not a chance! ...

I thought that I finally had a totally positive sermon for you today! I’ve been under rather trenchant criticism of late for repeatedly giving sermons focused on the theme of judgement and on the hard path of discipleship, and I admit that I have been looking for that text, "Come to me, all ye who ...read more

Scripture: Luke 12:35-40

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Trusting God For The Future Of Our Church Series

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Feb 28, 2008

This sermon encourages our church to trust the promises of God in reaping a harvest of milk and honey even with two different perspectives in the church.

As I review this past year in the life of our church, it is apparent that God has been speaking to us in a language of promise just as He did with the people of Israel. I did not review the past year from a standpoint of what went wrong and what went right. No instead I reviewed this year from a ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

My Sins Have Caught Up With Me!

Contributed by David Smith on Feb 29, 2008

I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.

I’m doing something a bit radical today and preaching on today’s Psalm! Some of you might not have even realised that we had a Psalm of the Day. And in truth, in the seventeen years I’ve been at this parish, I think that this is only the second time I’ve preached on the Psalm! But we who follow ...read more

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Caged Courage Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 2, 2008

We can unleash our courage if we know who we are and what we are about, and if we have a proper perspective on our relationships.

Most of God’s creatures are in some sort of cage. Animals that appear to run wild are not all that free; they have migratory patterns and other restraints on where they can go. They are caged, even when that cage is not visible. And what that cage does to their courage! The birds of the air, ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 1:12-26

Denomination: Baptist

Our Commitment To Ministry Series

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 2, 2008

This sermon is an exposition of the acronym F-I-R-S-T Essentials for a balanced church ministry. Forget ourselves and lend a helping hand for the benefit of others.

Jesus was concerned about people. He was drawn to the crowds. But He did not see the crowds as a sea of faces. Rather, He saw each individual. He looked beyond the surface what other saw to see people for what the really were. He was touched by what He saw. He understood the depth of their needs ...read more

Scripture: Philippians 2:3-4

Denomination: Baptist

There Is Hope In Faith Full Living Series

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

The believers of the Old Testament teach us to anticipate heaven while evaluating earth. In other words, keep heaven in view while living in here on earth.

Philip Yancey in his book, Disappointment with God, tells of a letter he received from a woman who was struggling with life and her faith in God. He says, “A young mother wrote that her joy had turned to bitterness and grief when she delivered a daughter with spina bifida, a birth defect that ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 11:13-16

Denomination: Baptist

A Faith That Conquers Anything Series

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

Pressing on in Christ produces a tested faith that can stand the test of time.

John McArthur in his book; "Reckless Faith" tells the this story: A few summers ago I drove across the country to deliver my son’s car to him. He was playing minor-league baseball in Florida and needed his car for local transportation. The cross-country trip fit perfectly with some previously ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 11:1

Denomination: Baptist

The Man's Role In Society

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

The sermon was written to call us to repentance for missing for so long, restore us to the place of godly leadership and stability, and encourage us to hang in there even when the going gets tough.

The society in which we live has neglected to teach men about their role in the home, in the church, and society. The worldly view of a man’s role is that he should provide financially for his family, but we shouldn’t expect him to be very engaged with home life. In spite of all our talk of ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 2:8

Denomination: Baptist

The Bottom-Line Of Christian Service

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

The text is tailored to teach us that love is the bottom-line to effective Christian Service. Carrying out this new command given to us by Jesus Christ can and will only be evident in how we treat one another.

In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new voice came over the intercom asking for a carry out at checkout register 4. Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to answer the call. As he approached the check-out stand a distant smile ...read more

Scripture: John 13:34-35

Denomination: Baptist

Developing A God Sized Vision

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

A church with a God-sized vision is a church/people who will join in fulfilling His plans for the church.

About 350 years ago a shipload of travelers landed on the northeast coast of America. The first year they established a town site. The next year they elected a town government. The third year the town government planned to build a road five miles westward into the wilderness. In the fourth year ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 29:18

Denomination: Baptist

A Biblical Approach To Worship

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

God is looking for and demanding true, sincere worship.

Originally to worship meant simply to “attribute worth”; worship could be directed to God or to a person to whom honor and respect should be given. In classical Christian writings it referred primarily to our chief goal in life, that is, rendering grateful homage and dedicating our lives to God ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 24:1-10

Denomination: Baptist

How To Respond The Natural Disasters

Contributed by Clinton Smith on Mar 4, 2008

This sermon encourages believers to trust God in the natural disasters. God can be trusted no matter what happens in life.

I went to a nearby hamburger stand by my job on Friday to get some oatmeal. Before entering in I picked up a copy of the LA Times newspaper and on the front was the gory pictures of the Katrina aftermath. As I walked into the hamburger stand to place more order, a man seen the newspaper under my ...read more

Scripture: Job 9:1-12

Denomination: Baptist