Sermons on Joseph M Stowell:

I Pledge Allegiance To A Hiding God

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jul 7, 2002

The recent "under God" court decision is inconsequential. Far better to pledge allegiance to a God who does not need publicity and lip service, but who points us to acts of justice, liberation, and witness.

In every age there are those who feel they need to help God out of hiding. God, it seems, is never without public relations agents, who want to help Him get His name out. They have their own reasons – some of them well-intentioned, and some of them selfish – but the truth is that God does ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 45:1-19

Denomination: Baptist

Babel And Bubbles, Babies And Beginnings

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 6, 2002

God gives confusion when we act out of pride; but He wants in His church to reconcile all of us to one another, and does so through the model of the Christ of the cross.

I am becoming an expert in baby talk. Thanks to two young granddaughters, I am learning all over again the special language of infants. What their tiny mouths utter is not nonsense. They have their own language. Just because I have become accustomed to the language of the adult world – ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 11:1-9, Acts 2:1-4

Denomination: Baptist

The Da Vinci Code: Thrilled By A Thriller Series

Contributed by Joseph Rodgers on May 17, 2006

Decontructing Brown’s conjecture to equip believer’s to share the truth.

The DaVinci Code – Fact or Fiction Thrilled by a Thriller – 1 Pt. 2:1-3 Insert: Unlocking the DaVinci Code Intro Video Clip Intro: Treachery, religious fanaticism, murder, an ancient conspiracy, secret societies, erotic spirituality and feminism are just a few of the plot lines in the 2003 ...read more

Scripture: 2 Peter 2:1-3

Denomination: Baptist

Judging Faith Series

Contributed by Joseph Rodgers on Mar 26, 2007

Artificial Faith is marked by critical, judgemental spirit.

Foolproof – JUDGING Faith James 4:10-12 Recap: We’ve been studying in James about how to have a foolproof faith – a faith that can’t be fooled into embracing anything not of God if you’re saved, and a faith that can’t fool you into thinking you’re saved when you’re lost. ...read more

Scripture: James 4:10-12

Denomination: Baptist

Knee Deep In Sheep

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Dec 10, 2005

For Advent III, preached at First Baptist of Gaithersburg, MD. "We may be knee deep in sheep, but let this keep you as you sleep, it is joy we reap". God in Christ transforms the ordinariness of everyday, humdrum life.

We may be knee deep in sheep, but let this keep you as you sleep – it is joy we shall reap. Did you get all that? Too many rhyming words? Ah, but every one of them is important. Listen again: we may be knee deep in sheep, but let this keep you as you sleep – it is joy we shall reap. Now you ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:8-20

Denomination: Baptist

A Harvest Of Peace

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 11, 2007

As gardeners grow beauty, so also we must grow peace: speak truth without prejudice; pass judgments but do something to help the troubled grow; pay attention to our own hearts; and settle for nothing less than Christ as the full truth.

As if we did not have enough yard work to do at home, my wife and I have taken on a gardening project at the church to which we belong, Montgomery Hills Baptist Church. The landscaping had deteriorated, and so a gardening team was formed to take care of it. My wife volunteered; I got volunteered. ...read more

Scripture: Zechariah 8:9-17

Denomination: Baptist

Experience, Obedience, Fulfillment Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jul 6, 2004

As the conclusion of a series on the "Experiencing God" discipleship course, and for Christ the King Sunday and a stewardship emphasis. The only way one can experience God is to obey Him and wait for the grace of fulfillment.

The time comes when it is no longer good enough to know about something; you want to experience it directly. The moment comes when it just does not satisfy to have only an arm’s length relationship to something. The only thing that will satisfy is a first-hand, up close and personal, immediate ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 1:11-29

Denomination: Baptist

Everybody Will Like Me Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jul 18, 2004

First in a series on dealing with popular illusions. I can deal with not getting everybody to like me if I will live in integrity, love intentionally, let go of negative feelings, and leave it finally to God.

More energy has been spent on this one thing than on building the Panama Canal, constructing the Great Pyramids, or creating the Interstate Highway system. More energy! More tears have been shed on this one item than on the depredations of poverty, the destruction wrought by great storms, or a ...read more

Scripture: Romans 12:9-21

Denomination: Baptist

Don't You Get Weary, Children

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 30, 2010

Revised for use at the Chapel of a retirement complex: Life is burdensome if it is merely obligation and not love, or if we think our work means nothing. Christ's victory shows the power of a meaningful life.

Riderwood Village Chapel, Silver Spring, MD August 8, 2004 In May our son got married. He and his bride passed out little bottles of soap to be used instead of the traditional rice, so we all celebrated at the end of the wedding by blowing bubbles. Well, my daughter’s child, his niece, ...read more

Scripture: 1 John 5:1-5

Denomination: Baptist

The Father: Reaching Into The Pockets

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Aug 9, 2010

The waiting father reaches deep into the reservoirs of love, extending compassion to his wayward son. So we also as parents must seek not to control but to guide and then be ready for forgiveness.

I shall not soon forget the image he presented, this father of the bride. He had smiled all through the vast and elaborate preparations for the wedding; his daughter was a kind of elegant princess, he knew it, she knew it, everybody knew it – and so the princess must have a grand occasion. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 15:11-32

Denomination: Baptist

Down To Racing Weight

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 2, 2010

Delivered March 1986. To run this race of life and faith, you need worthy role models, you need to rid yourself of destructive habits, and you need the pacesetter, Christ.

Beneath this bulky middle-aged body and especially beneath the generous folds of this preaching robe, there beats the heart of a runner, a racer. Surprise, surprise, you never knew that, did you? But it's true. Inside this fleshy disgrace to the human race there lies buried somewhere the soul of ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

The Holy Spirit, Victory's Vision

Contributed by Joseph Smith on May 12, 2010

Memorial Day 1986: God is at work in history. He restrains evil and, in Christ, He absorbs evil into Himself and provides complete redemption.

All during this month, as we have thought together about the work of the Holy Spirit, we have been in familiar territory. It wasn't hard to think about the Holy Spirit in the heart, speaking to me, leading you, dealing with each one of us as individuals. That we know about, that's familiar ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 7:1-17

Denomination: Baptist

The Resolution We've Already Broken

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 18, 2009

We try to be perfect, in the "spotless" sense. But perfection means completion, and is tied to meeting others’ needs rather than achieving our goals. Jesus’ sacrifice was his "finished" accomplishment.

It happens every January. Just as sure as snow and the Super Bowl, with or without your favorite team, it always happens in January. Broken resolutions. Broken resolutions are the order of the day in the first month of the year. Those noble impulses we all have to do better and to be better – we ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 5:38-48

Denomination: Baptist

The Heart Is Forgiving

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 9, 2009

Pulpit drama monologue as if the preacher were Simon, into whose house Jesus came, and where the jar of ointment was given. An emphasis on feeling, on forgiveness,and on generosity.

Frankly, I like things cool, calm, and collected. This business of lavish public display has always bothered me. It’s just bad taste, that’s what it is, when people feel they have to hang all over each other in public. Great day, what you do see down at the market sometimes, young people so ...read more

Scripture: Luke 7:36-47

Denomination: Baptist

My Three Sons

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Dec 7, 2008

Dramatic monologue as if David were speaking: he starved emotionally his son Adonijah, he indulged his son Solomon, and he distanced himself from his son Absalom.

"Bless the Lord, 0 my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, 0 my soul, and do not forget all his benefits ... as a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him." As a father has compassion for his children … When I first ...read more

Scripture: 2 Samuel 18:1-33

Denomination: Baptist