Sermons on Josephs Process:

Lessons From Wiffle Ball

Contributed by Joseph Stapleton on May 5, 2009

I loved wiffle ball as a child, some of those lessons apply to our walk with Christ

LESSONS FROM WIFFLE BALL (All my sermons use illustrations from sermon central and all scripture is NIV unless otherwise noted) When I was a young child I loved to play wiffle ball. We would set up a small “ball park” in the back yard and pretend we were great base ball players. You can do ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 12:2

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Getting Past Self-Indulgence

Contributed by Joseph Smith on May 6, 2009

Self-indulgence does not mean denying yourself what you actually need, but meeting needs easily turns into obsession. The way out is service to others.

Whoever first baked Pecan Sandies should be made a saint. I love Pecan Sandies cookies! The taste of crunchy pecans, the texture of shortbread. I don’t care if you are from Georgia and pronounce it pee-kan, I’ll insist that Pecan or pee-kan Sandies are the finest cookie on the market. And so ...read more

Scripture: Galatians 5:13-15

Denomination: Baptist

Taking Risks For Homeland Security

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jan 29, 2005

For Men’s Day at Emmaus Baptist Church, Quinton, VA. Aquila is an example of taking risks to secure his self-knowledge, his relationships, and his contribution to the church.

Anything worth doing involves risk, doesn’t it? Nothing great has ever been accomplished by people afraid to take risks. I have seen a poster that showed a small fish, closing in on a worm and a fishhook, but unaware that he was about to be gobbled up by a large fish, which was itself about to be ...read more

Scripture: Acts 18:1-28

Denomination: Baptist

Seeing Through The Darkness Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Feb 22, 2009

This is a time of profound darkness, when many things we have depended on fail. We may be among the curious crowd or the concerned companions, but we will eventually see. Who will be the next converted centurion?

When you are suddenly plunged into darkness, that darkness is profound, and you cannot see anything. But wait a while, let your eyes adjust, and if there is a glimmer of light anywhere, you will begin to see and you will make your way through. The darkness will not be quite as dismal as you first ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:44-49

Denomination: Baptist

Wacky Wall Walkers

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Feb 23, 2009

We Christians will be seen as wacky, using our own value system; we are wall-builders, giving the world something it really needs; and we are walkers, plodders, keeping at the task faithfully.

Anybody who is reading today’s newspapers can understand at least a part of Nehemiah’s frustration. The newscaster reported from Saudi Arabia this week that when fall comes in a few more weeks the midday temperature will drop all the way down to 110°! Tough times in the Middle East! But I’m sure ...read more

Scripture: Nehemiah 6:1-16

Denomination: Baptist

War Of The Walls

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Feb 26, 2009

Just as God used two American generals to rebuild a wartorn world after WWII, so he used Nehemiah to build Jerusalem and will use us to rebuild our society and our church, despite the naysayers and those who say it cannot be done.

No one was quite sure when sundown came, for it was already too dark too see. The enormous clouds of dust and debris had filled the air for hours, and a choking darkness engulfed the sky. The moments of destruction had been so horrible, so swift and so complete, that those left alive could ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

Is It Worth It To Disciple Everybody?

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jun 18, 2009

The death and resurrection of Christ give Him the authority to command us to disciple beyond superficiality, to reach even the marginal, and to have a global scope to our mission.

Somebody out there has a plan for your life. Somebody has a plan for the world you live in. Time and again I see evidence that there are those who believe that with enough planning, enough energy, and enough work, they will get you into their orbit. They have a plan for your life and for your ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:19-20

Denomination: Baptist

It's All So Simple Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jun 19, 2009

To the issue of why bad things happen to good people, Eliphaz’s answer is spiritually lazy and assumes that we can earn God’s favor. Job’s response is to have faith in a God who will ultimately accept responsibility for sin.

You and I are about to enter the realm of mystery together. I know of nothing which challenges the mind and the imagination quite so much as the mystery of human suffering. Why men and women should have to suffer physically or emotionally – that has never been answered completely. In recent weeks ...read more

Denomination: Baptist

A Hiding Place With Noble Plans

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jun 20, 2009

We all need a place of quiet in which to hide and reflect; it will be the community of faith. Here we know one another as we really are, but love one another anyway. That is transformative.

Just a little less than a month ago, as many of you know, my wife’s father passed away very suddenly. Of course, we all hurried to get together, and then, as families do in times like that, we began to tell stories. We remembered how he used to say this or how he once did that. And one story we ...read more

Scripture: Isaiah 32:1-8

Denomination: Baptist

Paternal Pleas To Posterity

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Jun 21, 2009

Calvary Baptist Church, Washington, DC: We will never achieve maturity until we come to terms with our paternity and accept our posterity. Understand that those who shaped us were also maturing; the transforming power of Christ will open wide our hearts.

All of us aspire to maturity. All of us hope to become mature and complete, grown up in every way, accomplished, respected, and honored. It’s a worthy goal. It’s a proper ambition. But we will never achieve maturity until we come to terms with both our paternity and our posterity. Our ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13

Denomination: Baptist

Turn Aside And Look Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 1, 2009

We so often live with tunnel vision. But if we turn aside and look at what God is doing, we will find an experience that will not end, a mission that will direct our lives, and a presence that will never leave us.

I confess to a malady known as “tunnel vision”. Tunnel vision is being able to see only what is straight ahead, as if I were going through a tunnel, and there is nothing to see on the sides, only the light at the end of the tunnel. Tunnel vision is not so much a condition of the eyes as it is of ...read more

Scripture: Exodus 3:1-15

Denomination: Baptist

The River Jordan: How We Got Over Series

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 3, 2009

Many things look impossible, particularly if we are worn down by the "too much" of survival. But there are those who go before us and test the waters and make a way for us. We need to do the same for others. Black History Month

Have you enjoyed watching the Winter Olympics? Isn’t it amazing what those skaters and the skiers can do? Isn’t it astounding that human bodies can plummet down slopes and whiz through channels at what seems like supersonic speed? I’ve only seen snatches of the Olympics, but I’ve thoroughly ...read more

Scripture: Joshua 3:7-16

Denomination: Baptist

Failing, Fruitless, Flourishing

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 7, 2010

We are a part of this world's injustice and brokenness, and need to repent, for we have too often attempted nothing or have given ourselves to pointless activity. "Only what you do for Christ will last" and that is guaranteed by His risen life.

There are just too many things that are not the way they ought to be, and I don’t like it! Are you with me? There are too many things going on that should not be going on, and when I hear about them or experience them, it disturbs me. I don’t like the brokenness I see in this ...read more

Scripture: Luke 13:1-9

Denomination: Baptist

Laborers Together With God

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 11, 2010

Annual sermon, D. C. Baptist Convention. Clergy and laity will be in conflict, but it can be creative when we recognize our humanness, turn our competitiveness in productivity, and learn to identify where God is already at work.

I've done a little work through the years in helping ministers get positions on church staffs. Every Baptist minister, I guess, has done that. Where are the bishops when you really need them? But it's been fun to help young ministers, particularly those who were students of mine from my campus ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:1-9

Denomination: Baptist

Peace Now

Contributed by Joseph Smith on Mar 12, 2010

Funeral message for Matthew Jackson, a quiet man whose chief pleasure was to be among family and friends and who devoted himself to a disabled son.

There are two kinds of quiet people. There are those who are quiet because, to tell the truth, they have nothing to say! And then there are those who are quiet because they are simply content with what they know; they have no need to impress anyone else. There are two kinds of quiet people. Two ...read more

Scripture: James 3:13-18

Denomination: Baptist