What does First B Jackson teach about spiritual growth?
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, teaching on spiritual growth starts with what God has already done, not with what a person needs to try harder to achieve. In the Ephesians 3 series, Pastor Will worked through Paul's prayer that believers would be strengthened in the inner being by the Spirit, that Christ would dwell more fully in their hearts through faith, and that they would grow in comprehending the love of Christ together with the whole church. The renovation analogy he used stays with you: when God saves a person, He holds the deed from day one, but the work of making every room fit for His presence takes a lifetime. Growth is not the condition for His ownership; it is the fruit of it.
Several messages press on the difference between white-knuckling a list of rules and genuine transformation. When Michael Demetrius preached from Colossians 3, he was direct that rules on their own have no power to actually change a person. What produces real change is maintained connection with the Father, and that means being honest with God about exactly where you are, not performing a version of yourself you think He wants to see. Carl made a similar point working through Romans 6, separating the one command in the passage, yielding your members to righteousness, from any idea of straining after growth through willpower. Yielding, he said, is listening to that still small voice and following it, and the familiar image he used was the two wolves: the one that wins is the one you feed.
Running underneath all of it is the conviction that God does not abandon a work He has begun. Carl preached directly from Philippians 1:6 on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, anchoring the whole sermon to the idea that God will finish what He started in a person, which means growth is not finally dependent on a believer's consistency but on God's faithfulness. That does not make human cooperation irrelevant, but it does mean the foundation is secure. Prayer, scripture, honest confession, and surrender keep appearing across these messages as the ordinary means through which that growth actually moves forward.
Taught from Ephesians 3:14-21 · Philippians 1:6 · Romans 6:1-23 · Galatians 2:20 · Colossians 3:1-4
The passage taught · 1 Corinthians 3:16
16 Don’t you know that you are a temple of God, and that God’s Spirit lives in you?
World English Bible
The messages that teach on it
- April 12, 2026 According to the Riches of His Glory Pastor William walks through Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3, showing why our inner being, faith, knowledge of Christ's love, and fullness in God matter more than anything outward.
- April 12, 2026 According to the Riches of His Glory Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3 asks God to strengthen our inner being, grow our faith, deepen our knowledge of Christ's love, and fill us with His fullness.
- June 2, 2024 Sunday, June 2nd, 2024 - 11am Service - From Comfort to Commitment: Living as True Disciples Jackson Hole youth pastor Michael Demetrius opens Colossians 3 to ask whether we are chasing temporary comfort or living with eternity in view.
- June 5, 2016 The Free Gift Is Eternal Life Romans 6 shows that the wages of sin is death but God's free gift is eternal life. Pastor Carl walks through what it means to yield to righteousness and grow in sanctification.
- November 29, 2015 God Will Finish What He Started The preacher walks through Philippians 1:1-11, showing how Paul responded to imprisonment with grace, peace, thanksgiving, and prayer, and why God cares more about our character than our comfort.
Mentioned along the way
- September 11, 2024 Women's Bible Study - September 11th, 2024 - Overcoming Temptation Through God’s Strength Natalie Yates teaches on Matthew 4, tracing how Jesus faced the lust of the flesh, pride of life, and lust of the eyes, and how we can follow His example.
- January 7, 2024 His Mercy Is More Pastor Peter walks through 1 Peter 1, calling believers to hope fully, live holy, fear God, love deeply, renounce sin, and grow in God's Word.
- June 4, 2023 Pack the Essentials Michael Demetrius shows graduating seniors and their church family what belongs in the essential "backpack" for life: salvation by grace through faith, and walking daily with God.
- May 5, 2019 Light Shining in a Dark Place The pastor walks through 2 Peter 1-2, warning against false teaching and the popular idea that sincerity matters more than what you actually believe.
- April 22, 2018 He Who Began This Good Work Will See It Through A worship leader fills in to preach on Luke 13, exploring how God's kingdom grows from a tiny seed into a tree with room for everyone in His family.
- February 24, 2015 Living As a New Creation - Who do You say that I am (Wk. 3) (2) A Wyoming pastor teaches on embracing your God-given identity in Christ, renewing your mind, and letting the Spirit transform how you see yourself and live.
- August 24, 2014 Expel the Wicked Person From Among You The pastor walks through 1 Corinthians 5, showing why church discipline is an act of mercy toward the individual and an act of faithfulness for the whole congregation.
- September 25, 2011 Speak Lord, Your Servant Is Listening A Wyoming pastor opens a 40-day series on love by teaching a Jackson congregation how to recognize and respond to God's voice, drawing from 1 Samuel 3.