What does First B Jackson teach about following jesus?
Drawn from the messages where it was actually addressed: the words said from the front, the passages taught, and where to hear the whole thing.
At First B Jackson, the teaching on following Jesus comes back repeatedly to one honest reality: it costs something, and Jesus never hides that. Pastor Ray preached through Luke 14 showing that Jesus turned to the large crowds following him and laid out three conditions plainly, loving him above every other relationship, taking up a cross daily, and holding possessions with an open hand. The point was not to frighten people away but to keep them from starting something they had not actually counted the cost of entering. The two illustrations Jesus gives, the man who begins a tower without enough to finish it, and the king who has to decide whether to seek peace before a larger army arrives, press the same question from two directions: have you actually reckoned with what this is?
What the teaching at First B returns to just as often, though, is that following Jesus is built on a relationship that earns trust over time, not a single dramatic leap. Pastor Carl, working through Luke 5, kept coming back to how Peter's decision to leave everything looked abrupt only because we forget everything that came before it. Jesus healed someone Peter loved, came to his workplace, and kept proving himself faithful in small moments before Peter ever walked away from his nets. Each act of trust, lending the boat, dropping the nets back in the water at the wrong time of day in front of a crowd, deepened the relationship until leaving everything was simply the natural next step.
The same thread runs through the encounters with the rich young man, taught by both Pastor Blake and Pastor Gary. Jesus looked at that man with genuine love and still told him the hard truth about what was standing between him and following. The man walked away grieving, and that grief is part of the story too. Following Jesus is possible not because people can manufacture enough willingness on their own, but because, as Jesus said, what is impossible with people is possible with God. That is where the teaching lands: the call is real, the cost is real, and so is the help.
Taught from Luke 14:25-35 · Luke 5:1-11 · Mark 10:17-31 · Mark 10:32-45 · Luke 9:51-62
The passage taught · 2 Corinthians 1
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the assembly of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia:
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort;
4 who comforts us in all our affliction, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, through the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
World English Bible
The messages that teach on it
- September 24, 2023 What Am I Still Lacking Jesus meets a man who keeps all the rules but walks away sad. Pastor Mark explores what the rich young ruler reveals about what we truly trust.
- May 28, 2023 He Is No Fool Who Gives What He Cannot Keep Jesus lays out three plain conditions for discipleship in Luke 14: putting Him first, carrying your cross daily, and renouncing all else. Pastor Ray walks through each one.
- August 21, 2022 Jesus Walks Jesus walks away from a crown, walks on water, and walks with twelve who stay. A study in following Christ for who He is, not what He gives.
- May 2, 2022 To Follow Jesus Is to Serve Others In Mark 10, Pastor Felix walks through Jesus predicting His death and redefining greatness: true followers serve others, just as Jesus gave His life for many.
- April 25, 2022 Where Your Treasure Is, There Is Your Heart Jesus meets a rich young man who has kept every commandment yet walks away sad. Pastor Mark explores what it really means to treasure God above everything we own.
- March 26, 2017 What We Have With Him Is Better Without Him The preacher preaches on Luke 5:1-11, showing how Peter's trust in Jesus grew through relationship and why that trust is the foundation of following Christ.
- July 17, 2016 Set Your Face Toward Your Mission Eric Wachob examines Luke 9 to show how Jesus kept His mission clear and calls Christians to set their faces toward God's purposes with the same undivided focus.
Mentioned along the way
- November 29, 2023 Hope Was Born This Night Pastor Carl walks through Mark 3, where crowds press in on Jesus, the twelve are chosen, and religious leaders call him demon-possessed while his own family thinks he has lost his mind.
- November 6, 2022 My Time Is Not Yet Here Sermon exploring discipleship's cost through Luke 9 and John 7, as Jesus walks toward Jerusalem and calls followers to commit fully without looking back.
- August 21, 2022 Sunday Aug 21st 11 am (Traditional Service) "Jesus Walks" Jesus walks on water, feeds thousands, and teaches that He is the bread of life. What does it mean to keep walking with Him when the crowd walks away?
- July 17, 2022 As You Are Going Pastor Ray walks through Matthew 9, Mark 6, and Matthew 13, exploring faith, compassion, and what it means to minister to others as you go about daily life.
- May 23, 2022 Monday Night @ Frist B May 22nd Jesus hears blind Bartimaeus cry out in faith and stops to heal him. A study of Mark 10:46-52 on mercy, faith, and what it means to follow Jesus.
- March 8, 2022 As For You, Follow Me Peter denied Jesus, yet Jesus met him with breakfast and restoration. A study of John 21 on what it means to be forgiven, called, and told simply: follow me.
- December 24, 2018 Christmas Eve Service - 4.30pm (2) A Christmas Eve service at First Baptist Jackson: the nativity story read aloud, carols sung by candlelight, and a straightforward message about Jesus as the light of the world.
- March 26, 2017 What We Have With Jesus Is Far Better Peter trusted Jesus one small step at a time, and it changed everything. A sermon from Luke 5 on how trust built through relationship leads us to follow Christ with abandon.
- July 17, 2016 Set Your Face Towards His Mission Eric Wacham walks through Luke 9 to show how Jesus kept His mission clear and what that means for how we set our own priorities and purpose.
- April 7, 2013 From John 21, Morning Praise (2) John 21 closes the Gospel with four movements: Jesus manifesting Himself, inviting His disciples to eat, restoring Peter through love, and calling every believer to follow Him.