First Baptist Church of Glendale

06/18/2026

06/17/2026

(These Q&A posts come from actual conversations I've had along the way in my 30+ years of ministry).

"Bro Bill, you teach that going to church is important. I don't agree. I don't have to go to church to be a Christian. If I go to a garage, does that make me a car?"

No, going to a garage does not make you a car. But garages are designed and built for a car's protection and safety. It's where most people park their cars, and there are valid reasons for doing so.

Let me ask you a few questions: If the Holy Spirit truly lived in a person (the definition of a Christian), wouldn't He move in a person's life to go to the place where God's Son, the Christian's Savior, is taught about and worshipped?" Wouldn't the Holy Spirit lead a person to go where they can better mature in their faith and be used to minister to others? Wouldn't the Holy Spirit convict the follower of Christ to assemble with others for corporate worship of God?

It has been God's plan all along for individuals to ultimately grow into large groups. God originally created two people, not one, and they had the ability to procreate to make others, and they were commanded to physically do so. In the New Testament, we are commanded to do the same thing from a spiritual perspective. The church is God's instrument to bring about the fulfillment of Discipleship, Evangelism, Fellowship, Ministry, Worship and Prayer. Lone wolf Christianity is just not capable of accomplishing this at the level God desires.

Find a church. Engage your spiritual gifts within it for God's glory. Grow and mature in your faith. Help others do the same. Watch your life dramatically change.

Bro. Bill

06/16/2026

(These Q&A posts come from actual conversations I've had along the way in my 30+ years of ministry).

"Bro. Bill, I think the church is really nice and all that, but I don't want to join it or even go to it. I just want to be a part of Jesus, not the church."

Many people feel this way, and often for what appears to be valid reasons. But the concept of following Jesus without being a part of His church is not biblical. And if it's not biblical, it's anti-biblical. If it's anti-biblical, it's anti-Christ. If it's anti-Christ, well, draw your own conclusions.

The question to answer is "why is the church even here?" In Acts 20:28 we are taught "keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.' Here we find that God is telling His pastors to watch and shepherd the local church and for the members to realize Christ died for His church. Since this is true, then the importance of God's church must be important to followers of Christ too. When it's not important, something is wrong.

My suggestion is to find a church that watches over and shepherds their members and you get to work ministering to the people. I think you'll find that you will realize just how important the church really is.

Bro. Bill

06/15/2026

The world is a tough place to survive, and the devil will use it to accomplish his mission of lies and personal destruction. So, let me share with you five smooth stones to put in your satchel (1 Sam 17:40).

1. You are God's masterpiece, created for a purpose (Eph 2:10)
2. You are protected and covered by His grace (Isa 54:17)
3. You are loved with an everlasting love (Jer 31:3)
4. You have strength through Christ in every season (Phil 4:13)
5. You walk by faith and not by fear (2 Tim 1:7)

Any one of these smooth stones can take out your spiritual Goliath. You know what to do.....

Bro. Bill

06/13/2026

Remember this from this past Wednesday night Bible study?

SALVATION SANCTIFICATION
Grace Driven Grace Driven
God does the work God does the work thru you
Instantaneous Lifelong
Permanent Dependent on you
Sins forgiven Sins convicted
Eternal Life Rest of your life
Forgiven Accountable
Positional Progressive
Changes your nature Changes your character
One time only Daily Surrender
Made holy Grow in holiness
Alive spiritually Growing spiritually
Fruit of the Cross Fruit of the Spirit
Changes your standing Changes your working
Requires a decision Requires participation
A door you walk thru The journey after the door

Reach out if you have questions!

Bro. Bill

06/13/2026

"Bro. Bill, why do I feel so "down" when I go to church? I want to feel encouraged, and be told what I'm doing right, not what I'm doing wrong. My pastor preaches on sin and repentance, and I always feel bad afterwards. What should I do?"

You should praise God for having a pastor who is more concerned for your eternal soul than he is your temporary happiness. They are quite hard to find nowadays! If your pastor is preaching to the point where you are feeling conviction, you should be eternally grateful. Here's why:

The closer you get to Christ, the more sinful you are going to feel. Everyone who has ever heard the biblical truth about God should be convicted about their own sins. This is one of the main reasons God has established preaching in the first place. In 1 Corinthians 1:21, Paul writes: “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe”

What you are feeling after hearing your pastor's sermon is conviction. The fact that you are aware of your sin and feel guilty about it, is a sign of spiritual life. You should be grateful to God for allowing you to have such a caring pastor, and you should be thankful for and obedient to support your pastor.

Tell your pastor how you feel. Tell him you're feeling conviction. He will at that point teach you how to feel alive and vibrant! And while you're at it, tell him how much you appreciate him and how grateful to God you are for him being your pastor. You'll be pleasantly surprised at what happens to your "feelings" afterwards.

Bro. Bill

06/10/2026

"Bro. Bill, why is it that so many people seemed fooled by lies now? It seems that a lot of people can't think for themselves anymore. Why?

You might not like my answer, but here it is: Reprobate mind.

This concept comes from Romans 1:28, where Paul explains that people who refuse to acknowledge God and reject His truth are given over to a depraved or reprobate mind to do what is morally wrong. This occurs after a progression of rebellion: first, people exchange God’s truth for lies, then they follow sinful passions, and finally, God allows them to be fully controlled by their own corrupt reasoning

The hard truth is our country is under God's judgement now. A large percentage of our country (the people) have been turned over to a reprobate mind. It is a divine judgment on America, where God no longer intercedes on behalf of truth, but lets people believe and act upon the lies they want to believe and act upon. This is a form of insanity, and it is readily apparent to anyone who is paying attention to our culture now. The scariest part of this is there is typically no way back once this happens.

Where did we go wrong? In the late 1800's, we started to replace God and HIs will with man's philosophies (Darwinism, Higher (biblical) Critique, occultism. etc.). This helped lead our country to the "Roaring 20's" and an anything goes attitude among many people. A generation later, we see the rise of the sexual revolution in the 60"s, which led to the rise of the homosexual revolution a generation later, which led to the insanity of transgenderism we see today.

We are living in the middle of God's judgment now because the signs of God turning people over to a reprobate mind are everywhere. And it is so strongly embedded in our society that lawmakers are now passing laws to protect the insanity. When you see such ridiculousness and irrational behavior, you know that there's a spiritual problem behind it all.

What would we see when God turns people over to a depraved (reprobate) mind? You'll see (vs 29) all kinds of unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil, envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, false information, haters of God, insolent people, boastful, arrogant, disobedient to parents (all authority), etc. Is this not what we see every day on the news now?

We must repent and turn back to God.

Bro. Bill

06/09/2026

“Bro Bill, what is God’s will for me? I want to really try to be all I can be for God.”

God’s will for a person refers to His purpose, desires, and plans for a person’s life. He reveals these items through His Word and the work of the Holy Spirit. To ignore either of these is a guarantee for failure, no matter how hard you may try to be all you can be. Let me share with you several core aspects of God’s will.

First, God wants you (and everyone) to know Christ for salvation (2 Peter 3:9). He wants you to be saved and then act like you are saved! This is the starting point for everything else.

Second, God desires for us is to bring Him glory and fellowship (Gen. 1-2). We are called to reflect His character and love. We are to fellowship with HIm and His people (church). To ignore this is to fail at bringing Him glory and fellowship, a recipe for failure..

Third, God desires us to live lives that are set apart for Him by avoiding sin, loving others, and serving HIm (Rom. 12:1-2; 1 Thess 4:3). To decide not to do this is going against His will, which will cause us problems. You see, God’s will is described as “good, and acceptable, and perfect (Rom 12:2). It is not about your preferences, but about what aligns with His character and purpose.

When we live biblically, our lives get infinitely better.

06/07/2026

Looking forward to seeing everyone at FBC Glendale this morning!! Make the right decision!!