Sermons on Joseph M Stowell:

Sons, Sin, Swine, And Starving Souls

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 28, 2009

World Hunger Sunday: The younger son found that physical hunger starved his soul; the elder son found that spiritual hunger hardened his heart; the Father hungers for all of his children’s needs.

When I read the Gospels, I know that Jesus must have been a Baptist, and the twelve disciples must have been the Deacons of the First Baptist Church of Galilee. Must have been! Do you know why? Because there is all this talk about eating! Everywhere you turn in the Gospels, there are stories ...read more

Scripture: Luke 15:11-32

Denomination: Baptist

The Absence Of God

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 3, 2010

January 1985: The psalmist experiences the absence of God, even to the point of denigrating himself as a "worm." But when he takes inventory, he does see evidence of God's presence, opens up his heart, and dares to hope.

Today I am going to take a somewhat different approach to the reading of the Scripture and the way I will be preaching on it. And in fact I hope this will make it come alive for you and will enable you to follow the thought of the Scripture writer as well as my own thought. What I plan to do today ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 22:1-24

Denomination: Baptist

The War Against Wickedness

Contributed by Joseph Stapleton on Apr 8, 2010

We are called to be warriors against wickedness, do we do our part?

THE WAR AGAINST WICKEDNESS I think we would all agree that our world is filled with wickedness. It is not something new to our world or our time or this generation even, the world has been filled with wickedness for as long as we have recorded history. The word translated “wickedness” ...read more

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

2nd Chance Jesus?

Contributed by Joseph Stapleton on Apr 9, 2010

Many of become ineffective Christians, because of the sin our lives. God gives us a second chance to get it right.

2 CHANCE JESUS? (All my sermons use illustrations found on sermoncentral.com and passages are NIV unless noted) I have studied many different passages of scripture, I have read and re-read several passages and felt a different leading many times. One of my favorites books in the Bible is the ...read more

Scripture: 1 Timothy 1:1-20

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

When Jesus Comes: No Fear

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 12, 2010

Christmas Day 1988: Jesus came into a world full of fears about economics, government, health, and the rest. Our pretty porcelain manger scenes are not realistic. But when Jesus comes today and works through us, He works to drive away all the fears that

A certain family, a number of years ago, as was their custom, lovingly and carefully set out their beautiful porcelain nativity scene for Christmas. They were so very proud of this delicate, fragile thing of beauty; they had paid a good deal of money for it on a trip to Europe, and its value could ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-20

Denomination: Baptist

What Makes You Think You Can Come Here?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 17, 2010

Lent, 1986, Communion: We should never be intimidated from the Lord's Table by ritual, shame, or weakness. It is hosted by one who offers us mercy and grace, paid for by His blood; so come boldly.

In the South Africa of apartheid, I suppose, nearly anything is possible. And so I do not expect that this story, improbable as it sounds, is untrue. If anything, I expect it could be multiplied many, many times over. At any rate, the story is that one day an Afrikaner, one of the ruling class in ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 4:14-16

Denomination: Baptist

When Jesus Comes: No Respect Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 17, 2010

Christmas Eve 1988: When Jesus comes as an infant, there is no respect, for he is the child of an unwed mother and is poor. When Jesus comes to the end of his life, there is no respect. But He redeems His status and can redeem ours.

Comedian Rodney Dangerfield has made en entire career out of a single piece of business and a single punch line: "I don't get no respect". He will regale you with tales of his childhood, when the other kids used him as a punching bag and called him a host of unflattering names, and then he sums it ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:18-25

Denomination: Baptist

Prayer And The Chronically Unhappy

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 21, 2010

For Reformation Sunday, October 1987: Job in the Old Testament and Luther in the Reformation Era were chronically unhappy people, but used that as a form of spiritual energy to drive them toward creative achievement and an honest personal faith.

It looks as though some people are just born to be unhappy. There are some people who are going to approach nearly everything with a complaint or a gripe, who are going to make a personal issue out of everything. Nothing is quite good enough, nothing quite satisfies. There are folks whose ...read more

Scripture: Job 6:8-13

Denomination: Baptist

To Know, To Obey, To Live

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 26, 2010

July 1988: God's way of life is not burdensome or negative or arbitrary. To know God's way and to do it is to have abundant life.

There is an old saying to the effect that what you don't know won't hurt you. I beg to differ. If it is true that what you don't know won't hurt you, then why don't we just let babies pop anything and everything into their mouths, just as they want to do? Obviously we know that some things will ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 4:1-8

Denomination: Baptist

One Bread, One Body, Many Idols

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 27, 2010

Independence Sunday 1987: We are called to be a distinctive people within American culture, not to follow popular self-centered idolatries.

The trouble with going to Ridgecrest conference center for a week is that you tend to forget how diverse a nation we are. If you were to spend too long at a place like Ridgecrest, you would get to thinking that everybody was Baptist, and Baptist of the southern variety, that everybody gobbled ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 10:14-31

Denomination: Baptist

Promise, Shame, And Fulfillment

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 28, 2010

Advent 1986: Everyone goes through a dynamic of promise, leading to shame, then leading to fulfillment, if we understand fulfillment as the presence of God.

I like the little quip about the fellow who offered His prayer with all sincerity and with tremendous urgency. “Lord," he said, "Lord, give me the gift of patience, and give it to me right now!” Well, at least he knew his need even if he did not exactly demonstrate an understanding of ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 1:18-25

Denomination: Baptist

Prince Of Peace: The Wounded Spirit Whole

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 29, 2010

Advent 1987: Many of us live with deep disappointments, profoundly wounded spirits. Whole nations so live, thanks to the scourge of war. Christ, the Word Made Flesh, does more than tell us to "get over it." He stands beside us, with us.

Jim, as I will call him, was a successful pastor, acclaimed for his preaching skill, sought out for his wisdom, almost worshipped by the flocks of young adults who came to the church he served. It seemed he could do no wrong and that he had it all together, from here on out. Nothing, it seemed, ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 9:2-7

Denomination: Baptist

One Breath, One Flesh

Contributed by Joseph Smith on May 4, 2010

Pentecost 1986: We crave intimacy, and cannot live without it. It is not found in ceaseless work and striving, but in simply receiving grace.

The peculiar thing about our times is that while we seem to be so free and easy, so relaxed about what used to be thought of as intimate, yet at the same time we are hung up, truly hung up, about intimacy. I say the strange thing about us in this last half of the 20th century is that on the one ...read more

Scripture: Genesis 2:4-25

Denomination: Baptist

One Year Toward Eternity

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Apr 20, 2008

Preached for the first anniversary of Salem Gospel Ministries, a church for French-speaking Africans. Like the Christians of Antioch, you fled persecution, you reached out beyond your own group, and you have learned for a year from your pastors.

What a difference a year makes! Just one short year. Just twelve months. It is not long, but it can make a difference. It can be one year toward eternity. Just one short year ago I was still in my 60’s, but now I have started a new decade! Adrien and Barbara, I hope I do not show it too ...read more

Scripture: Acts 11:19-26

Denomination: Baptist

First Thank God Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 14, 2007

Initial sermon of interim pastorate. As Paul lived into relationship with God prior to theologizing, I thank God for the faithfulness in the congregation’s history; for mutual enrichment in its diversity; and for coming victory when no one need be ashame

God is not a problem to be solved. God is a mystery with whom we are to live. God is not an equation to be worked out in mathematical precision; God is personal, with whom we connect. God is a who, a where, and a when -- acting, living, and doing; and if God is sometimes a what and a why, an ...read more

Scripture: Romans 1:8-17

Denomination: Baptist