First Baptist Podcast
Weekly messages to encourage, challenge, and spur you on to live like Jesus.
50 episodes
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Weekly messages to encourage, challenge, and spur you on to live like Jesus.
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We all have blind spots. Just like a house needs inspection to catch hidden structural problems, our lives need people who can help us see what we can’t see on our own.In this message, we look at Matthew 7 and 1 Corinthians 3 to explore what it means to build our lives on the foundation of Christ, and why inviting trusted, godly people into our lives to speak truth isn’t a threat, but a grace.
Continuing our “Under Construction” series, this message looks at how the early church grew their faith in Acts 2:42-47, and what it means for us today. Just like building a house takes more than owning tools, it takes actually using them, growing in faith takes intentional action, not just good intentions. This week we walk through five tools the early believers devoted themselves to: God’s Word as the foundation for growth, fellowship instead of trying to grow alone, communion to remember what Jesus did on the cross, prayer as ongoing conversation with God, and giving and serving to put fait
Building a house doesn’t stop at the blueprint, there’s always a bill at the end, and it keeps coming every month after. Following Jesus works the same way. In Luke 14:25–33, Jesus tells the crowds that before they commit to Him, they need to count the cost. This week we look at what Jesus really meant by “hate your family,” what it means to “carry your cross,” and why grace that costs you nothing changes nothing.
Ever feel like you fell into your life instead of choosing it? Most people plan a kitchen renovation more carefully than they plan their life. This message kicks off a new series on building a life worth living — starting with the plan and the foundation. Learn why working hard on the wrong blueprint still leads nowhere, and why God’s plan for your life isn’t a specific destination but a person: Jesus.
We wrap up our Favorite Bible Verse series with the one from Pastor Ryan: “He who testifies to these things says, Yes, I am coming soon. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” (Revelation 22:20), the very last words Jesus speaks in Scripture. When life feels heavy, the same arguments on repeat, one thing after another breaking down, the waiting that never seems to end, this verse gives me permission to hand it over to God instead of trying to fix it all myself. We dig into why “soon” doesn’t mean what we think it means, why Jesus hasn’t returned in 2,000 years, and what he’s actually coming back to do , not
Our elders were each asked to share a favorite Bible verse — and in this message, one of our elders unpacks his: 2 Timothy 1:12, “For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.” He shares why this verse has anchored him through doubt, anxiety, and hard seasons of life, tracing his own journey of faith — from accepting Christ at age eight, to walking away in college, to recommitting his life to the Lord later in life.
This week’s message looks at Galatians 1:10 and what it means to live as a servant of God rather than a people-pleaser. We explore three situations where the pressure to please people shows up, plus three questions to ask when discerning God’s direction for your life. Who are you trying to please?
This week, our youth share memories from their mission trip to Indianapolis, Indiana, where they served alongside YouthWorks at food pantries, community gardens, and clothing distribution centers. Each student reflects on how their experience connects to their favorite verse— and what it looks like to be made to matter, made to mirror, made for each other, and made for mission.
What does the end of the road actually look like? This final message of The Journey Home walks through the complete picture of what God has been doing in every human life — from condemnation, through salvation and sanctification, all the way to glorification. The destination isn’t just heaven. It’s home. And the hope of what’s waiting there is what carries us through the hardest miles of the journey.
We all know the feeling — you’re driving down the road, and suddenly your car drifts. That’s exactly what sin looks like in the Christian life. In this week’s message from our series The Journey Home, Pastor Ryan unpacks the honest struggle every believer faces: knowing what’s right and still veering off course. Drawing from Romans 6–8, he tackles the three ways we try to handle sin on our own — minimizing it, hiding it, and making amends — and why none of them actually work. The real answer? Stop fighting sin by staring at it, and start each day asking the Holy Spirit to guide your mind and s
In this week’s message from The Journey Home series, Pastor Ryan digs into one of the most misunderstood words in the Christian faith — repentance. It’s not just feeling bad when you get caught, and it’s definitely not trying harder through willpower and self-improvement. True biblical repentance, or metanoia in the Greek, means a complete 180-degree shift in how you see everything — God, yourself, and the world around you. And here’s the part that changes everything: you can’t do it on your own. Through the parable of the Prodigal Son and passages from Mark, Acts, Romans, and Ephesians, Pasto
Just like carbon monoxide — odorless, colorless, and silently deadly — sin causes damage you don’t see coming until it’s too late. In this message, Pastor Ryan walks through five real consequences of sin straight from Scripture: it separates us from God, it enslaves us in patterns we can’t break on our own, it places us under God’s righteous wrath, it leaves us spiritually dead — unable to fix ourselves no matter how hard we try — and perhaps most dangerously, it deceives usinto thinking none of this applies to us at all. The good news? There’s only one solution that actually deals with sin at
Life is a highway — but what happens when we’re heading the wrong way? In this message we tackle one of the most misunderstood topics in the Christian faith — sin. Using the hilarious scene from Planes, Trains & Automobiles, it paints a picture of how sin blinds us to the fact that we’re going the wrong direction — and how we often don’t even realize it until years later. You’ll discover what the Bible really means by sin — it’s far more than just a list of rules. It includes our attitudes, our desires, and even the good things we fail to do. We’ll trace sin all the way back to its origin — fr
We spend a lot of time and money trying to hold onto life — but have you ever stopped to ask where life actually comes from? This Mother’s Day, we trace the thread of life through the pages of Scripture: from the moment God breathed life into the first human being, to the holy calling of motherhood, to the eternal life Jesus makes available to every one of us.
Two out of three Americans say they believe in Jesus. But belief without action isn’t saving faith — James calls it dead. In this final message of our Called to Serve series, we walk through James 2:14–26 and ask the honest question: if someone followed your calendar and your checkbook for the last year, would they find evidence of a living faith? James doesn’t ask what you believe about the poor. He asks what you did the last time you saw one. This message is a challenge — not to condemn, but to wake us up. Because we serve a God who raises dead things to life, and He wants more for you than
In this powerful message from James 1:26-27, we learn that growing in faith isn’t just about what happens inside the church walls — it’s proven by how we serve others in the world around us. James challenges us to move beyond just talking about our faith and actually put it into action by caring for those who cannot care for themselves. God has always had a special heart for orphans and widows — those who have no provider, no protector, and no one to advocate for them — and He calls us to reflect that same heart in how we live. True religion is demonstrated through a willingness to step up and
Who is God calling you to serve? In Luke 5, Jesus stops for a man with leprosy — someone no one else would go near. He didn’t have to. But he chose to serve anyway. We are called to do the same. To show up for the people on the outside. To serve even when it’s uncomfortable. This message looks at who the “untouchables” are in our world today, and what it looks like to show up for them with willingness, compassion, and love.
What does the kingdom of God actually look like in practice? Three days before the cross, Jesus answered that question — and the answer might surprise you. In this message from Matthew 25, we dig into the parable of the sheep and the goats and discover that how we treat those in need is more significant than we ever imagined. Jesus makes an incredible claim: every act of service done for the least of these is done directly for Him. We also tackle one of the biggest misconceptions about this passage — is Jesus teaching salvation by good works? The answer is no, but the truth is even more challe
What would you do if your favorite show ended on a cliffhanger with no next episode? That’s exactly how Mark’s Gospel ends the Easter story — and he did it on purpose. In this Easter message, we explore Mark 16:1-8, the most unusual resurrection account in the Bible. No tidy ending. No appearance of the risen Jesus. Just an empty tomb, a frightened group of women, and a challenge left for you to wrestle with. We’ll uncover why Mark deliberately left the story unfinished, what the empty tomb really means, and how your life is meant to be the sequel.
On Maundy Thursday — the final night before the cross — Jesus packed more love into a few hours than most of us show in a lifetime. He washed His disciples’ feet, predicted His own betrayal, taught them about what was coming, and then broke bread and poured wine and said: remember me. In this message we walk through the full story of the Last Supper using all four Gospels, uncovering what Jesus was really doing and why it still matters for us today.
What would you do with your mom’s diamond ring — bury it, keep it, or sell it? That question opens up one of history’s most haunting betrayals: Judas Iscariot. In this message, we explore what really drove Judas to betray Jesus, why it matters more than we’d like to admit, and the uncomfortable truth that we’re more like Judas than we think. But there’s also the story of Peter — another betrayer with a very different ending. Two disciples. Two betrayals. Two completely different responses. Which one will you choose?
Tuesday of Holy Week reveals intense confrontations between Jesus and Jerusalem’s religious establishment. The chief priests, scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, and elders felt threatened by Jesus’ growing popularity, especially after raising Lazarus from the dead. They challenged His authority and tried to trap Him with three questions about taxes, marriage, and the greatest commandment. Jesus answered with divine wisdom, then exposed their hollow performance and love of human applause. He contrasted their self-serving motivations with a poor widow who gave sacrificially out of genuine devotion.
Jesus’ dramatic actions in the temple weren’t about corrupt business practices—they were about a broken religious system that had become spiritually unfruitful. The temple was supposed to be a house of prayer for all nations, but it had become exclusive and ritualistic. Jesus wasn’t trying to reform the old system; he was declaring it finished and replacing it with himself as the new temple. Through Christ, we now have direct access to God without religious barriers. God desires sincere hearts that produce spiritual fruit, not just religious activity, and he wants his love to be accessible to
Palm Sunday reveals three distinct responses to Jesus that still exist today. The crowd correctly identified Jesus as the promised Messiah but wanted him to be a political king who would restore Israel’s former glory. The Pharisees completely rejected Jesus because he threatened their power and authority. Only Jesus himself understood the true purpose of this moment – that he came not for political liberation but to offer spiritual freedom from sin and death. This pivotal event challenges us to examine our own relationship with Jesus and ask whether we’re trying to make him king on our terms o
Marriage wasn’t humanity’s idea but God’s perfect design from the beginning. When God saw that it wasn’t good for man to be alone, He created woman as a gift and helper. Husbands are called to love their wives sacrificially, just as Christ loved the church, demonstrating this love through actions, not just words. Wives are called to submit to their husbands out of love, creating harmony in the relationship. God values marriage so highly that He uses it as a metaphor for His relationship with us. No marriage is perfect because no people are perfect, but we can strive toward God’s ideal while ex
