First Baptist Church

09/01/2026

Post with a link coming Friday. First drop of meals will be 9/13-9/14.

09/01/2026

Arvemia Wilburn requests prayers for her sister, Juanita who has been transferred from Vandy to NHC. Tumors are progressing.

08/31/2026

When In Romans
(Romans 11:1-10)
Perhaps you’ve felt like you’re in the minority in our current culture where a myriad of secular views seemed to have relegated Christianity to a miniscule corner of the world. The prophet Elijah understood that all too well as Paul pointed to him as an example to the Israelites (11:2-4). Elijah felt like he was the only faithful person left, but God had preserved 7,000 in a remnant that refused to bow to Baal. God didn’t stop working then, and he hasn’t stopped today. Don’t feel discouraged when it seems Christianity or faithfulness is on the decline. Trust God who clearly has a different perspective even when results are not immediately visible.
Paul pointed out that this remnant exists according to grace, not by human merit. We can’t earn salvation from our sin state, which is why we have Christ’s atoning sacrifice. People do have the responsibility to walk a genuine walk. Though Israel had significant spiritual privileges, many of God’s chosen people failed to respond in genuine faith, resulting in hardened hearts. Persistent rejection of God’s word has consequences. Believers need to remain responsible to God’s word and avoid an apathetic approach. Be persistent in the faith even when God’s work seems hidden from us.

08/30/2026

We celebrate the baptisms of Dakota Fathera, Samantha Blume, and the Blume's daughter today.

08/30/2026

08/24/2026

Collapsing Under the Weight of Compromise

As a boy, I loved the story of the strongman Samson. To me, he was like Hercules on steroids, and I cheered him on as he kicked the Philistines’ tails. In one of our most recent small group lessons (Judges 16:16-31), we are reminded that while Samson had superior physical strength, he was inferior in his spiritual life. Reading again through his exploits, one couldn’t help but wonder how he made the cut to be the last of Israel’s judges. His parents were tasked by an angel of the Lord to raise Samson as a Nazirite with vows, but their son lived with a weak moral character.

Samson compromised one promise to God after another, stepping closer to the very culture and people from whom he was supposed to deliver Israel. Samson repeatedly placed himself in situations that conflicted with his Nazarite identity and his calling. Samson didn’t learn from his mistakes. He compromised by revealing the source of his strength even though he had been betrayed by other Philistine women and by Delilah in several previous attempt to uncover his secret. By presuming upon God’s grace, he compromised again in Judges 16:20 when he said, “I’ll get out like I always have.” Samson had taken God’s empowering presence for granted even through his continued disobedience. His spiritual blindness resulted in a physical blindness when Samson’s enemies overtook him and ended his sight.

God’s purposes are not defeated by human failure. He worked through Samson’s brokenness to accomplish his purposes to begin delivering Israel from the Philistines. In Samson’s final act of destroying the Philistine’s temple to their false god, Dagon, God shows he is sovereign and powerful

(Editor’s note: I want to echo Pastor Chad’s encouragement to try out our small groups on Sunday morning at 9 o’clock. There are a variety of age groups and teachers with different personalities. You’ll find a place where you feel you belong, sharing love and sharing Jesus. We’re going through part of the Old Testament (Joshua, Judges, and Ruth), and I appreciate the beauty and practical application of these texts. God’s plan of redemption from the fall of man until Christ’s died and rose again is such an intriguing journey to go on, that will make you fall in love with Jesus all over again (if that’s possible.)

08/22/2026

When In Romans
(Call to the Field)
Romans 10:14-21

In last Sunday’s (August 16) sermon series, Pastor Chad underscored Paul’s message to Israel--tell others about Jesus. “How, then, can they call on him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher?” (Romans 10:14) The related verb form preacher in the Greek is kēryssō (κηρύσσω), meaning to herald, proclaim, or announce. Paul tells us that all believers, not just the man in the pulpit, have the responsibility and privilege of sharing the gospel with people. God chooses to use us to proclaim that He sent his Son to die on the cross for our sins and was raised again physically according to the Scriptures.

Unfortunately, not everyone who hears chooses to believe. Human effort can’t manufacture faith. Believing in Jesus and the life-transforming message of grace through faith is the key Christian message. As Paul pointed out in his day, not all of Israel obeyed the gospel even though they heard the good news. But he also said in verse 20 that God’s salvation was for the nations, not just the Jews but the Gentiles as well. “It has been found by those who did not seek me.” Salvation is God’s gracious work in those who believe period. Jew and Gentile alike are brought together into one redeemed people through God’s plan in Christ.

08/17/2026

When In Romans
Romans 10:1-13

How is a person saved from his sins? In the latest installment of Pastor Chad’s sermon series, Paul explains how a person can be restored to a relationship with God. A person is not born into a Christian family. Attending church doesn’t make you a Christian. Getting baptized doesn’t make you a Christian. Understanding intellectually about Jesus doesn’t make you a Christian. Saying a specific prayer doesn’t turn you into a Christian. You become a Christian by making Jesus, your Lord and Savior, a gift that cannot be earned.

Paul loved his fellow Israelites, but they continued to reject the cornerstone of the Christian faith, the resurrection of Jesus. The Israelites’ zeal was through keeping the Law instituted in the Old Testament, which put them in a no-win situation. The righteousness of the Law required perfect obedience, a goal no sinner can earn. Instead, Paul preached that righteousness comes by faith in Christ’s perfect atoning sacrifice, and by believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, our faith unites us with Christ. This results in a heart that will proclaim Jesus in an outward profession. God’s grace through faith produces salvation.

Christ’s obedience, teachings, and sacrifice were the culmination to His Father’s restoration plan. "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.” (Matt. 5:17). Identifying as a Jesus follower, we must strive to have the mind of Christ and live consistently with inward righteousness rather than superficial adherence. “One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.” (Romans 10:10, CSB)
Don’t trust in religious activity. Trust in Christ’s loving sacrifice and balance passion with the truth of the Bible.