Sermons on Greg Smith:

I Do Not Box As One Punching The Air!

Contributed by David Smith on Mar 1, 2012

Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. 25Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.

Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. 25Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. 26So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Why I’m Not A Hospital Chaplain

Contributed by David Smith on Mar 9, 2012

My colleague, Father Elias, began his sermon on the Sunday I was in hospital by saying.

My colleague, Father Elias, began his sermon on the Sunday I was in hospital by saying, “I think if it had appeared in the paper that a priest had threatened to beat up a fellow patient in a Sydney Hospital, the most common response would have been, ‘I didn’t know Dave was in hospital!’” I’ve ...read more

Denomination: Episcopal/Anglican

Mourning The End Of Summer

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Feb 26, 2011

We find that we have dallied or been irresponsible, and the things we said we want to accomplish are impossible at this late date. But God is capable of redeeming even that element of irresponsibility if we renew our commitment to Him.

Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, August 28, 1988 Here we are at the end of summer, or nearly so. It's the end of August, which is at least psychologically the end of summer. It's the end of the summer feeling, for now it's back to reality, now it’s back to business and a ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 8:18-22

Denomination: Baptist

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

Safe At Home

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 1, 2011

Interactive sermon, asking what more we can be for our children: mutual submission means respect; parenting means sacrificial love; the church has a responsibility to provide safety.

Takoma Park Baptist Church, August 31, 1997: audience response involved There are times when all of us need to participate, times when no single person can speak all the truths or do all the work. There are times when a community of people must come together, and think together, pray together, ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 6:1-4

Denomination: Baptist

No Deposit, No Return

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 2, 2011

To fail to do what is right is not only sin, but is unproductive. What of our knowledge resources and our financial resources? Are they making a difference? If not, no gain.

Calverton Baptist Church, Silver Spring, MD, August 15, 1982; Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, Sept. 30, 1984) Preachers find sermons in all sorts of strange places, and I found this one in a bottle! Now you can just stop thinking what you are thinking and listen to what I mean! ...read more

Scripture: James 4:17

Denomination: Baptist

On Not Giving Up On The Family

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 3, 2011

Baptists have a distinctive history, with some soaring moments and yet with some dismal ones as well. There is much to correct, but the good news is that we remain committed to missions and evangelism.

Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, Feb. 4, 1996 They came out of nowhere. From small villages and obscure city streets, from backwoods farms and hard labor coal mines; from workingmen’s cottages, but not from the plantations, and from the ranks of domestics and cooks, but not ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 6:7-10

Denomination: Baptist

A Mother's Loan

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 4, 2011

Hannah shows us that women today can turn their insecurities and their relationships over to God and can find fulfillment.

(First Baptist Church, Gaithersburg, MD, May 11, 1980; Calverton Baptist Church, Silver Spring, MD, May 9, 1982; Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, May 12, 1985) One of God's great mercies is that He consistently takes our faltering insecurities and transforms them into something ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

All Your Anxieties?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 5, 2011

God is able to deal with all of our anxieties, not just a portion. He can relieve us of our fears for those things which will not really happen; for our concern for daily survival; and most of all, for our fear of death.

(Originally preached at Calverton Baptist Church, Silver Spring, MD, Jan. 30, 1983; thereafter, with slight variations, at Clinton Baptist Church, Clinton, MD, July 29, 1984; Cresthill Baptist Church, Bowie, MD, Aug. 5, 1984; Takoma Park Baptist Church, Washington, DC, Aug. 12, 1984; First Baptist ...read more

Scripture: 1 Peter 5:7

Denomination: Baptist

The Goodness Of God

Contributed by Matthew Smith on Mar 12, 2011

As James talks to us in James 1 about not being deceived, he gives us some reasons that we can know that God is good no matter what our circumstances.

In the mid to late 90’s people in the church began to say God is good--- all the time--- all the time---God is good. It’s easy to proclaim and to shout aloud the goodness of God when things are going great! It’s easy to brag on Jesus when people are coming to know Christ in large ...read more

Scripture: James 1:16-18

Denomination: Baptist

The Journey Of Transformation Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

Being a follower of Jesus is more than just admiring Him from a distance or giving him our time on Sunday mornings. It is literally taking on the person, the mind, and the heart of Jesus. We are called to be worshippers with our whole lives not just an au

The Journey of Transformation Romans 12:1-3 Kyle Idelman writes, It was a Thursday afternoon, and I was sitting in our sanctuary where 30,000 people would soon be coming to one of our Easter services. I had no idea what I was going to say to them. I could feel the pressure mounting. I sat there ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:1-3

Denomination: Methodist

Retraining The Mind, Body And Soul Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

If we are to run the race in life that God has set for us, we must develop a lifestyle of training to be like Jesus. As one noted basketball coach once stated, “The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win.”

 This

Retraining the Mind, Body and Soul Ephesians 4:22-24 In the ancient Greek Olympic games, an athlete would begin training at least 10 months before the race. This training involved rigorous discipline including the athlete’s diet, his sleep habits, exercise routine, and daily running.
The ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:22-24

Denomination: Methodist

Plugging Into God Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

God desires a relationship with us, so first we have to make space for God. The second step is to connect to God. But the problem is we aren’t connected to God or even other people. And if we are, it’s infrequent and usually casual or shallow. That leads

Plugging Into God John 15:5-8 In this sermon series, we’re asking you to look at yourself through a new lens, as that of an apprentice of Jesus. An apprentice is someone who is bound to another for a certain amount of time to learn an art or trade in which the master is an expert. To be a ...read more

Scripture: John 15:5-8

Denomination: Methodist

Making Space For God

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

The church too often has reduced following Jesus and growing in your faith to doing: pray, worship, get in a Bible study, give, serve and witness. But to follow Jesus is as much about being in a relationship with Jesus, as it is about doing the things of

Making Space for God
 1 Timothy 4:7 (Phillips Translation)

 To say that our nation is caught up in a fitness craze is an understatement and this time of year New Year’s Resolutions abound with losing weight and lifestyle changes. How many of you have made New Year’s ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:7

Denomination: Methodist

Jesus, The Teacher Series

Contributed by Tim Smith on Mar 17, 2011

When Jesus taught, he did so in parables. Now this was not unique in Jesus’ day for most rabbis or teachers taught in parables. The Greek word for parable means “thrown along something else.” Parables are about comparisons.

Jesus, the Teacher Mark 4:1-20 For the past several weeks, we’ve been looking at the Gospel of Mark through two questions: “Who is Jesus?” and “What meaning does he have for our lives?” We’ve learned that Jesus came to preach that the kingdom of God is near, he ...read more

Scripture: Mark 4:1-20

Denomination: Methodist