First Baptist Church Thomson, Ga

In this next "I Am" statement, Jesus further expands on the ideas we looked at last time in John 7-9. In this message, we look at the first of two "I Am" statements in John 10--"I Am the Gate for the sheep." What does Jesus mean by referring to Himself as the “gate” or door for the sheep? We must look at how shepherds corralled their sheep at night in biblical times in Israel. Then we will look at four implications of this profound claim.

We are looking at Jesus' "I Am" statements in John's gospel so we can discover who Jesus is...in His own words. Today, we look at Jesus' statement, "I Am the Light of the World" from John 8:12 in the broader context of John 7-9. We will see that this profound pronouncement comes with three precious promises and is supported by one powerful proof--giving sight to a man born blind!

We are beginning a series of messages from John’s Gospel on the I AM sayings of Jesus. One of the key themes of John’s Gospel is to tell us WHO Jesus is. The best person to hear from to know who Jesus is, to evaluate our beliefs against—is Jesus Himself! So through these sermons, we will explore what Jesus said of Himself—His I AM statements allow us to hear who Jesus is in His own words. In this message, we unpack the astonishing statement from Jesus that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and the only way we can come to the Father. We will discover how this statement is rooted both in the ancient Jewish customs of betrothal and marriage, as well as the events of the Exodus. It is vital we understand and believe that Jesus IS God. He is the Groom, and we are the bride, and the only way to the Marriage Feast of the Lamb is with Him.

In this final message of this series, we complete the circle of our Disciple’s Path by fully turning outward as we answer the Great Commission to Go for Christ to Make Disciples. Without the outward journey of making disciples, the inward journey of being disciples only leads to stagnation and stunted spiritual growth. In this sermon we walk through a few key moments in the book of Acts to see how we can go in the power of the Spirit to make disciples.

Jesus said that we serve Him as we love and serve others in His name. Service is as vital to our spiritual growth as is coming to worship and growing in groups as we study the Bible. We can think of serving as a connecting trail from the more upward and inward focus of worship and spiritual growth to the outward focus of making disciples.

Looking at Paul’s words to the Philippians, we discover two important truths about our discipleship journey into Christlikeness. While we are chiefly responsible for our own spiritual walk, we do not--and cannot--walk alone. We are saved into a community: the Family of God. And we believe the relationships forged in small group Bible studies are the best way to experience that community.

Sadly, worship is one of the most divisive and misunderstood functions of churches today. So-called "worship wars" break God's heart, harm our witness, and misunderstand the nature and purpose of worship. Using Paul’s words to the Colossian church, we will focus on the importance of how we worship together on Sundays as the gathered Body of Christ.

Today we begin a sermon series on The Disciple’s Path as we consider how we should follow Jesus on a lifelong journey of discipleship to become more like Him and less like the world. We’ll look at our church’s four-fold process of discipleship: Come to Worship, Grow in Groups, Serve in Love, and Go and Tell. But first, let’s think about this spiritual journey Jesus calls us to follow when we put our faith and trust in Him.

These last two verses of Jude's letter are a doxology, turning our focus up to God in praise and adoration. They also serve as an encouragement for believers to endure the attacks of the ungodly with hope, not giving up in keeping ourselves in God’s love. We are reminded that those who truly belong to the Lord, the Beloved who are contending for the true and holy faith, will endure to the end--not because of who we are or what we do, but all because of who God is and what He has done.

Jude concludes his criticism of the ungodly and moves to some commands for the beloved, those of us who are called and loved by God and kept for Christ Jesus. He gives us a battle plan for contending for the faith, and it involves three essential steps: remember, remain, and rescue.

Jude concludes the first half of his letter, explaining the challenge that faces churches in his day: false teachers who have infiltrated the faith by stealth. They may look good on the outside and talk a good talk, but inwardly they are dangerous and toxic. Jude gives us one final warning before he moves on to how we are to contend for the faith against these challenges. He tells us to watch out for the way of the wicked, because if we’re not careful, we might follow their example and discover we are far off the trail and in dangerous territory.

Jude accuses the false teachers of “relying on their dreams.” The Bible has a balanced view of dreams and visions—sometimes they are from God, and sometimes they are not. Spiritual wisdom and discernment are found in knowing the differences. Jude warns us that when we follow godless dreams, we all end up in a nightmare. But it’s not too late for us to wake up and see what is happening for what it really is.

In our human sinfulness and pride, we tend to forget God’s truth and neglect to learn from the lessons of the past, and so we need to be reminded. The three examples from the Old Testament in Jude 5-7 can remind us today how serious God takes sin, and the certainty of His judgment on those who seek to deceive God’s People, Distort God’s Grace, and Deny God’s Son.

We begin this sermon series in Jude, A Faith Worth Fighting For, by looking at how Jude1-4 defines who we are and what we have in Christ, what we must believe about "The Faith" and how we must beware of those who seek to deceive God's people, distort God's grace, and deny God's son. Jude calls us to contend for the faith, and it's an urgent call for us today.

A legacy is what you leave for the people you care about and lives on after you die. The question is not if you will leave a legacy, but what kind of legacy are you going to leave? However, we don’t just leave a legacy, we lead our family into a living legacy every day. In this message, we will look at Psalms 127-128 for some vivid word pictures perfect for men: construction, weaponry, and gardening. Let’s dive into these two psalms to see what they say about how we can lead our family to a legacy of faith.

This week's #FamilyGoal is to create a culture of grace and forgiveness in our families. And to do that, we look at the dysfunctional Old Testament family of Jacob. What can we learn from this highly dysfunctional family about the power of forgiveness and how we can give and receive forgiveness in our homes?

As we continue to think about setting goals for our families, let’s think about goals for how we talk to each other. One of the rules I always had on youth trips was “No drama.” What I meant by that was, no arguing over pointless things, no gossip and name calling. Drama is one of the fastest ways to ruin a trip, a friendship, or a family. How can we handle differences and make decisions as families without unnecessary drama? This was a question the church family in Ephesus needed answered. I think we can adapt Paul’s instructions to them to how we relate and communicate in our own homes and families.

Deuteronomy 6:1-9 is one of the foundational passages of Scripture for the Jewish people—defining who God is, who they are, and how they are to love and follow God as His people. I find it remarkable that so much of this passage deals with parenting! It demonstrates that how we raise our children is directly connected to our purpose in life, our identity as a people, and our relationship with our God. One affects the other in ways often overlook. I think of this passage as the Great Commission for Christian parents. If we want to succeed at raising children who know, love, and follow Jesus, we need to do the right things, as outlined here.

What kind of goals could we set as brothers and sisters in Christ? What about working on loving one another as Jesus loves us? Jesus has set a very high bar for how we should love each other as members of God’s family! But what does that look like in our day-to-day life, as we rub elbows with each other—and the inevitable friction that happens? How can we love each other in Christlike love when we sometimes aren’t very lovely people? The NT gives us a great example and a practical look at the working-out of that kind of Christian love within the church. It’s found in a personal letter written by Paul to his dear friend, Philemon. To help us think through becoming a stronger church family, loving one another as Jesus loves us, let’s look at Paul’s letter to discover some of the qualities we need to embrace and embody.

In this new sermon series, #FamilyGoals, we'll spend six weeks exploring topics like communication, forgiveness, faith, and more, equipping and encouraging us to thrive by embracing God’s design for healthy families. In this first message, on Mother's Day, we look to Hagar, to help us discover how we can overcome the chaos of life and find peace and calm in God’s care.