Priority #1: Love God Series

“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.