Sermons on Joseph Freidman:

If You Want Joy

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 13, 2010

Genuine joy comes after we do what Christ bids us do, and is grounded in our relationship to Him. In fact, the real issue is not our joy but His.

If you want joy! What a ridiculous premise! Of course you want joy. Of course we want to be happy. Of course all of us want to feel deep satisfaction with life. We want joy. That's just self-evident. The trouble is, we don't know how to get that joy. We don't understand where joy comes from, how ...read more

Scripture: Luke 10:1-21

Denomination: Baptist

All Things

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 14, 2010

Final message on the church's vision statement. Christ's lordship over all things means that there is nothing worthy that we can leave out of our work, but it will succeed if we are focused on Him and not on our own success.

At the very center of the Christian faith there is Christ. That sounds self-evident: it seems obvious. But we keep forgetting it. We keep on trying to live without a center. Think about a wheel which has no hub; if you try to roll that wheel, its spokes will collapse. And no church will hold its ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:28-39

Denomination: Baptist

Fearing Fear

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 15, 2010

Delivered 1986. Fear is often a self-fulfilling prophecy, based on our image of a vengeful God. But challenging God is faith-filled, and His response is Jesus, who experiences all that we experience.

The trouble with preparing sermons in a series that lasts several weeks is that I am never quite sure whether I am the only one who knows where we are in that series. I am never quite sure whether you see just four sermons, or maybe you only attend two of the four weeks, or whether you sit with ...read more

Scripture: Job 3:20-26

Denomination: Baptist

Knowing Just Enough To Be Dangerous Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 17, 2010

Being less than fully informed Christians can be injurious to ourselves and to our world. Ultimately we need to know Christ personally as much as we need to know about our faith.

Between knowing nothing and knowing a great deal there is something which is very dangerous. That is knowing a little. Knowing just enough to be dangerous. In many instances, it isn't dangerous to be totally ignorant. If you don't know, and you know you don't know, you will go ahead and get help. ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Brothers: Rivals, Partners, Or Soul Mates?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 17, 2010

For Masonic Divine Service: Brothering can be an accident of birth or proximity, but it often becomes competitive because of insecurity or exploitive because of sin. Christ chooses us to be brothers and lays His life down for us.

It's almost time to elect a president of the United States. Every four years we go through this little exercise called a national election. And even though every four years we tell one another that the election is about issues; about the economy and about foreign policy and about defense and about ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 4:1-9

Denomination: Baptist

The Best Is Yet To Be

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 21, 2010

Senior Adult Sunday 1989: God wants to bless us in our senior years and to give us "laughter". He can work through our mistakes and even make those into blessings. From crosses He makes resurrections.

As they passed through the middle age years and headed for senior status, they took some measures to make sure that those years would be manageable years. They took stock of their finances, for example, and made sure that there would be enough for everyday life and for at least a few emergencies. ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 17:1-21

Denomination: Baptist

Waiting For Full Joy

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 22, 2010

Delivered 1989, on the 25th anniversary of the reception of the church's first black member. We wait for full joy and unity, which come from embracing all people and from being the agents of redemption for all needs.

Exactly twenty-five years ago, two things happened which were destined to have a profound effect on my life, and I want to share them with you this morning. These two unrelated happenings took place without the people involved in either one being aware of the other one, but, as I have said, both ...read more

Scripture: John 17:6-18

Denomination: Baptist

Where Is The God Of Justice?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 25, 2010

For Martin Luther King Day 1988: It is irresponsible to continue to whine about God's absence in the face of injustice. He is refining His church to address justice, and will bless us when we give ourselves without reserve to His purposes.

Some twenty-four centuries ago, when the prophet Malachi's ears were assaulted by an impertinent question, he heard it as a confession of irresponsibility. When the men and women of Judah shouted at this prophet, who had accused them of wearying God, who had charged that their blabbering talk was ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Prayer And The Cynical

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 25, 2010

Prayer emphasis fall 1987: common wisdom is that we will never change, and the cynic believes that. Like Koheleth we can lose hope for everything. But the Christ who will come gives us hope, life, companionship, and is at work in all things for change a

One of the rules you learn when you study the discipline of marriage counseling is that you must try to help young people preparing for marriage to know at least this much: that whatever he or she is now, they will be more of it in fifty years. Whatever he or she is now, they will be more of it in ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Dirty Feet At The Table

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 27, 2010

The Lord's washing of all the disciples' feet reminds us that all of us need cleansing, that His cleansing starts us on the way to holiness, and that we are then empowered to help others toward cleansing.

When I was growing up, there were very definite rules about what you did or did not do at the dinner table. Obviously, everyone was expected to wash their hands before coming to the table and then to wait quietly while prayer was offered. To this day, if I rush to eat something without doing both ...read more

Scripture: John 13:1-17

Denomination: Baptist

The Holy Spirit: The Gift Of Unity

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 27, 2010

Delivered in 1986, shortly after pastoral call. The Spirit gives us unity in a time of riskiness and danger. That gift is more than unanimity; it is dedication to God's purposes.

Not everything in every sermon has to be communicated in words. Words and speech are only a part of the way you get a message across. A part of what you folks receive is not only what you hear, but also what you see. What you see and what you pick up just from being here is certainly a part of the ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-16

Denomination: Baptist

The Holy Spirit In The Heart: When Words Fail

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 28, 2010

Delivered 1986: When we cannot express ourselves even in prayer, God's Spirit communicates what we cannot say. So also His Table opens up a channel of communication via the contrite heart and the broken spirit.

Have you ever had this experience? You are caught up in a great debate, or maybe it's a discussion of some issue. You are quite sure you are right; you know, you just know, that what you think is the right way, and here you are, arguing your point. With power and passion you get right up to the ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:26-27

Denomination: Baptist

Heavenly Cpr

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 28, 2010

1986, with an Assistant reading the part of Philemon. An imaginary set of letters between Paul and Philemon, emphasizing that a new relationship with Christ changes every human relationship, and calls for forgiveness and mutual support.

Among all the weighty theological treatises the apostle Paul wrote to the churches he had established, among all the complex sentences and profound thoughts and ponderous pronouncements, there is one little gem from the hand of the great apostle that is quite different. The little letter to ...read more

Scripture: Philemon 1:1-25

Denomination: Baptist

Pain Turned Into Joy Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 12, 2009

It seems unreal that pain could be turned into joy. Yet pain is the very stuff of joy. It will come, not instantaneously, but completely. The risen Christ proves this, and can transform our disappointments, disillusionments, and shame into joy.

“You will have pain, but y our pain will turn into joy.” That brings back memories of the doctor’s office and that giant needle moving ever closer. “This will hurt a little bit.” A little bit! When you are a year old, it hurts a lot, and there is no joy in it. No, I do not remember being one ...read more

Scripture: John 16:17-24

Denomination: Baptist

In The Spin Cycle

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 13, 2009

Addictive behaviors are sins that we simply ought not to start; and they are sicknesses that stem from low self-esteem. Christ is able to deliver from both sin and sickness.

When washday comes at our house, I go on alert. I go on alert for a certain noise. If we are washing something heavy, like bathroom mats or a bedspread, I can predict that during the washing process, I will hear great clunks and thunks arising from the basement. It will sound as though somebody is ...read more

Scripture: Proverbs 23:29-35

Denomination: Baptist