Sermons on Joseph Smith: showing 766-780 of 26,428

Persistence In The Presence: How Women Pray

Contributed by Joseph Smith on May 22, 2009

Women succeed in pray because they persist in trusting God, allow the whole self to pray, take God at His word, are not afraid of intensity, choose responsibility over religion, and keep their commitments.

If, as Thomas Edison tells us, genius is one per cent inspiration and ninety-nine per cent perspiration, then I suspect it is also true that prayer is one per cent insistence and ninety-nine per cent persistence. Prayer is one per cent insistence, to be sure; we do, in our prayers, tell God what ...read more

Scripture: 1 Samuel 1:1-28

Denomination: Baptist

What Then Will We Have?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 24, 2008

Gaining authentic riches means embracing the way of life over the way of death. The way of life means constant companionship and reconciled relationships, all in the risen Christ.

They promised me an income of up to ten thousand dollars a week. It would come in the easiest of ways; all I would have to do would be to sit at home and wait for it to pour in. They said the money would mount up effortlessly. Up to ten thousand dollars a week, made by promoting certain ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:16-30

Denomination: Baptist

Amid The Flood

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 26, 2008

Dramatic monologue as if Martin Luther were the preacher, telling his own story. Time period is the Wartburg stay; focus is on hope and trust in a changing world, "amid the flood" of change.

[Backstage] Walled up here in this fortress, kept practically as a prisoner, prevented from teaching, prohibited from preaching, what good am I? What can I accomplish in such a place? I was not born for idleness, nor for solitude. I was born for action. I was destined by Him who holds in His ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 46:1-11

Denomination: Baptist

What Good Deed Must I Do? Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Oct 30, 2008

The rich young ruler’s question was off-base. It assumes that we can do one overriding deed to win God over; it is possessive; and it is self-centered.

I am not very good at giving gifts. I just have a hard time, when Christmas and birthdays and anniversaries roll around, a hard time giving the right gifts. It’s not that the folks I want to give to are picky or unworthy; it’s just that I can’t seem to figure out what they want and get it. For ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:13-16

Denomination: Baptist

Together In Disappointment, Together In Hope Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 2, 2008

Church life is full of disappointments, but it can be equally full of hope and fulfillment. The key is to stay together and see what God will do. God is a God of abundance and not of scarcity.

We serve a God of abundance and not a God of scarcity. Ours is the God who possesses the cattle on a thousand hills. He is not a dilettante deity with nothing in His hands; He is the God who flung the stars into space and who has made all things. All things are made by Him and all things are at ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 1:3-11

Denomination: Baptist

Hot Heads, Cold Hearts

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 6, 2008

Anger drains us when it is either displaced or misplaced. But when we learn to replace it with a relationship to Christ, it becomes energizing.

One day when Margaret and I were college students, she said, “I think you ought to know that the deacons are going to ask for our pastor’s resignation.” We were members of the same church and had shared in appreciation for the thoughtful, exciting sermons our pastor brought us week by week. But ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

What Do I Still Lack? Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 8, 2008

The young man raising this question with Jesus lacked historical memory, lacked self-awareness, and lacked a vision for one compelling pursuit. For Maundy Thursday

I: Remember The third of our ultimate questions sounds almost like a throwaway. Like a sarcastic castoff. “What do I still lack?” The young man had already asked the most sweeping question possible, “What good deed must I do to have eternal life?” As you may remember if you were here two ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:16-22

Denomination: Baptist

Absence Of Pain Or Pain Of Absence? Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 9, 2008

We either want to disengage from conflict situations and save ourselves the pain, or we have to absorb the guilt of being absent and causing others pain. Trust an abundant God, who is able to take our pain and express abundant love.

We serve a God of abundance and not a God of scarcity. Ours is not a dilettante deity with nothing in His hands. Ours is the God who possesses the cattle on a thousand hills, who flung the stars into space, and who has made all things – all things. All things are made by Him and all things are ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Who Can Be Saved? Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 11, 2008

Salvation seems elusive, whether it means personal peace, reconciliation, or productive life. Good Friday we see what God will do about that frustration.

I Everyone gets frustrated. In ways small or great, we feel the frustration of not being able to do what we want to do, not being able have what we want to have, not being able to achieve as we would want to achieve. Young people, by nature, dream great dreams. If you give them half a chance, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 19:16-26

Denomination: Baptist

A New Dimension Of Obedience

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 12, 2008

Dated 1985. Jesus saw that we live in a complicated age and are therefore called to love God with our minds as well as heart and soul and strength. Consider serious Biblical and theological study.

In order for you to understand fully what I am about to say, you would need to know my wife, and moreover, you would need to visit our backyard and find out that my wife is a wild flower nut. Now you will be very careful to get exactly what I said. I did not say, exactly, that my wife has lost her ...read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 6:1-9

Denomination: Baptist

A World-Class Child For A World Of Children

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 15, 2008

Story sermon: a child watches her father being taken away charged with being disorderly, feels guilty, but does not understand why all the others in her family "receive him not."

No Scripture is more loved and more often quoted than the Gospel of John, chapter 3, verses 16 and 17. If you want to put: the good news in miniature, there it is. One sentence encompassing the heart of the good news. So as we cane to the Advent season, during which we shall remember the Lord’s ...read more

Scripture: John 1:10-13

Denomination: Baptist

Payday Someday

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 15, 2008

Dated 1988. Being paid not only means money, it also means self-worth. So when they complained to Malachi that evil people got rewarded, he pointed out that being God’s possession was reward enough, and that God’s justice would ultimately be done.

My seminary classmates and I were approaching graduation, and went through a little process requested by the alumni office of the seminary. They asked us to fill out a form that would help them place us in churches or other ministry positions, now that we were finishing our training. And one of the ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Let's Turn The World Over To Mothers

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 15, 2008

Dated 1988. Part dialogue, part conversation, between the preacher and his wife. Pain is caused by absenting ourselves from those against whom we have a grievance. Mothers understand compassion and challenge the rest of us to reconcile.

It is very appropriate that Margaret join me in bringing the message today… appropriate not only because she is a mother, but also because today’s message was inspired by both of our mothers … both hers and mine. Several years ago my mother was sitting in her living room reading the newspaper with ...read more

Scripture: 2 Samuel 14:1-24

Denomination: Baptist

Leaky Disciples

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 17, 2008

Dated 1988; post-revival message. We do not retain the Spirit after a period of excitement because we have not counted the cost, we are victims of low self-esteem, or we are not our own persons.

Nothing is more annoying than to be trying to transport some liquid in a leaky vessel. You think you’ve got whatever it is all secure and ready for use, and then all of a sudden you find out it has leaked and drained allover the place ... and nothing is more disturbing and frustrating. When I ...read more

Scripture: Luke 9:57-62

Denomination: Baptist

Letting God Be God Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Nov 20, 2008

To pray as Jesus prayed is to have the same understanding of God as He did: a firm but compassionate father, a giver who expects us to learn appreciation, and an empowering forgiver.

Introduction to Series Praying As Jesus Prayed Every fall I like to take at least two Sundays to focus on some aspect of that most basic of all the disciplines of the Christian life, the discipline of prayer. I do this for several reasons. First, building in a specific emphasis on prayer in our ...read more

Scripture: Luke 11:1-13

Denomination: Baptist