“PRIORITY #1: LOVE GOD”
FBCF – 1/4/26
Jon Daniels
INTRO – The new year usually causes folks to start thinking about new things: Resolutions they are making – Changes they want to see – Adjustments to different areas of their lives – Maybe want to check off some things off your “bucket list” this year.
Read about farmer asked his inexperienced wife to drive a tractor in a straight line across a field. Told her to pick a stationary object @ the far end & drive toward it. She agreed but ended up driving a very crooked path. When he asked her what she aimed at, she pointed to a bird that had been hopping across the ground. That’s not how it works. If we want to keep our lives heading in the right direction in 2026, we must set our sights on something or someone that is sure & unmoving. Worldly goals shift, but the truths found in Christ & W of G are stationary & sure.
For us as a church, we also want to get refocused or more focused on some essential areas in our ministry – Ways for us to keep “Making Much of JESUS.”
One area that we are going to give more attention to is discipleship. I know some of you may think that we are already doing that. But we want to be more intentional in this area – Want to develop a simple, clear discipleship track to move a person from being lost to being a fully devoted follower of Jesus. As our vision statement says:
“First Baptist Flora is making much of Jesus by being a people & a place of GRACE where anyone can meet Jesus & grow in their relationship with Him.”
We want to give PLENTY of opportunities for ANYONE to “meet Jesus” – Evangelism – Seeing lost people saved – Present the Gospel in every worship service – Equip & resource YOU to share the Gospel w/ lost people that you encounter as you go about your daily life.
- In 2025, we baptized 42 people (125 other additions) – How awesome would it be for us to see at least 125 people saved & baptized in 2026?
- For that to happen, every ministry area must make evangelism a high priority – every staff member must be actively witnessing to lost people on a regular basis – every LG leader must be looking for opportunities to share the Gospel in your LG (When is last time you KNOW a lost person was in your LG? When is last time you intentionally INVITED a lost person to your LG?) – every deacon must be intentionally looking for witnessing opportunities – every Christ-follower who’s a member of FBCF must be constantly looking for opportunities to share their faith.
But we don’t want to see people simply meet Jesus, as wonderful as that is – we want to see them “grow in their relationship w/ Him” – we want to come alongside them & help them in that process – Discipleship.
Steven & Alex Kendrick – “War Room”, “Courageous” others – (slide) “What a loving offer [Jesus] makes. A permanent relationship w/ Him. And inside of this relationship, the daily power to follow Him, know Him, & become like Him. To live a life that gives glory to God. That’s discipleship. Not just deliverance from sin, but a life of devotion to Jesus.” (Devoted to Jesus, p. 10)
Start new series for New Year: “3 Priorities for the New Year (& Every Year for the Rest of Your Life)” – Kind of long & wordy, but that’s on purpose. Make us think about it. Our walk w/ Jesus not just a one & done commitment – a one-time New Year’s resolution for 2026 – a one-time moment in the life cycle of this church. These priorities must be LIFELONG priorities that drive us forward all the way to the end of our earthly life.
EXPLANATION – 4 Scripture passages to consider:
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 – Loving God has always been the priority for God’s people.
“Shema” – Most important prayer for Jewish people – “Shema” is word that begins this prayer – “Hear” or “Listen” – Not just w/ your physical ears, but tune your entire being in to God. In the Jewish tradition, this prayer is to be spoken daily. It was so important & influential that Jesus used as His answer to a scribe who asked Him what the most important commandment was – Mark 12:28-30.
Book of Deut written by Moses around 1400 BC. That tells us that loving God has always been an essential priority for God’s people. It’s not enough just to recite this prayer daily – we must live it out daily. Loving God informs & impacts everything we do & every relationship we have.
1 John 4:19 – We love Him because He first loved us – This verse states the heart of every true Christ-follower – We love Him – PERIOD! Say it & say it loud: I love Jesus!
- Spurgeon: “Look through all the pages of history, & put to the noblest men and women, who seem to still live, this question, ‘Who loves Christ?’ &, at once, up from dark dungeons & cruel racks there rises the confessors’ cry, ‘We love him;’ & from the fiery stake, where they clapped their hands as they were being burned to death, the same answer comes, ‘We love him.’ If you could walk through the miles of catacombs at Rome, & if the holy dead, whose dust lies there, could suddenly wake up, they would all shout, ‘We love him.’ The best & the bravest of men, the noblest & purest of women, have all been in this glorious company; so, surely, you are not ashamed to come forward and say, ‘Put my name down among them.’”
And the only way you can love Him is b/c He loved you first. He took the initiative to love you even when you were unlovable. His love is proactive & preemptive, & gives us the capacity to love others, no matter who they are or what they’ve done.
Romans 8:38-39 – Nothing – absolutely NOTHING – can separate us from God’s love – The reason you cannot be separated from God’s love is b/c you cannot be separated from Him. Preached this absolute truth at Bob Lann’s funeral a couple of weeks ago based on John 10:27-30 – “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me,[a] is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.”
Greatest & strongest verses in the Bible about eternal security. Believe this w/ all my heart & preach it w/ all my might. It’s the truth of the W of G that once a person truly gives their life to Christ & are saved, they NEVER lose their salvation – EVER! They are eternally in the grip of God & His perfect love.
1 John 4:8 – God is love – “There’s nothing you can do to make God love you more, & there’s nothing you can do to make God love you less.” He IS love so He loves you perfectly & completely.
APPLICATION – Priority #1 for every Christ-follower is to love God.
When we truly love God & set our sights on pleasing Him, glorifying Him, & obeying Him, we will ask ourselves these 3 “How” questions:
HOW WILL I GROW IN MY LOVE FOR GOD? – This speaks to your personal walk w/ Christ. As you begin 2026, are you satisfied w/ where you are in your walk w/ Jesus? Are you faithfully spending time alone w/ the Lord on a daily basis? Some people call this their devotion time or their daily quiet time. Kendrick brothers: “The purpose of devotions is not to check a religious box or to impress others. It’s about mtg w/ God & intentionally seeking deeper fellowship w/ Jesus.” (p. 49) 2 elements:
- PRAYER – Use the A.C.T.S. acrostic
- BIBLE INTAKE –
o Get a grip: 5-finger method to get a grip on the Word: Hear – Read – Study – Memorize – Meditate – Apply
o Get a plan: Big DOGS – RPO – Read/Pray/Obey
o Get accountable to someone: Staff/deacons each month – My PAT – Men’s discipleship groups – Women’s Bible study groups – Who will you be accountable to? “I’m accountable to God. Don’t need anyone else.” Recipe for disaster! “As iron sharpens iron…” (Prov 27:17) – “…teach & admonish one another…” (Col. 3:16) – “…confess your sins to one another & pray for one another…” (James 5:16)
HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL I SHARE THE LOVE OF GOD WITH? – “If you aim at nothing, you’re going to hit it every time.” Let’s get practical & chunk it down: Our avg worship attendance in 2025 – 550. Do the math: If each of us shared w/ just 1 person in 2026 =550. 2=110. 3=1650 – Keep going! What if we each set goal of sharing w/ just 1 person a month? 6600 Gospel encounters! COME ON, CHURCH! Let’s see God do something in & through us that will blow our minds! 2026 could be the GREATEST year FBCF has ever experienced!
HOW MUCH WILL I GIVE IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S LOVE TOWARD ME? 3 areas:
- Time – It’s running out for all of us. DON’T WASTE IT! Piper – “You were created to "gloriously display [God’s] supreme excellence." Take risks. Embrace suffering. Fight a good fight. Finish your race. Keep the faith. “If your faith does not reshape your life, it’s not true faith. Real faith radically rearranges your life.” (Paul David Tripp)
- Talents – What gifts & abilities do you possess that need to be utilized to help FBCF keep Making Much of JESUS?
- Treasure – “Tithing is more than a mere financial transaction; it’s our opportunity to say to God, ‘I trust you. It all belongs to you anyway, & I choose to rely on your ability to provide.’ It’s practical & supernatural. It reflects the understanding that every area of life – including finances – should be subject to God’s Lordship.” (Tullos & Howell, Lordship Generosity, p. 70)
CONCLUSION – Every person here today will answer those 3 questions. Will your answers show a deepening love for God? Or will they show no real change in your love for God?
