Why Follow Jesus?

Imagine being a church where our singular focus is to follow only Jesus in everything

You do understand, don’t you, that a church like that doesn’t just happen.

It takes grit and determination and - as we preached the other week - motivation.

Enough of us have to want it so badly that we can taste it in order for it to happen.

You have to be dedicated to persevering through every challenge and trial because they will come.

We have to pray without ceasing

And listen in prayer.

We have to believe Jesus when He says, Matthew 5:6 ““Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”

We have to believe that Jesus, and Jesus only, satisfies.

We hope to achieve the goal to some extent on this earth.

It’s a high and lofty goal.

It’s what Peter is advocating for in our verses for today.

Open your Bibles to 1 Peter 2, we’ll be reading just four verses today, 9-12.

For those who are wondering, yes, we’re going back in time to pick up 9 & 10 - there is way more to be said about those than we said.

While you are looking the verses up, lets talk to the kids for a second.

Kids, you are going to have a lot of disappointments in your life.

From simple things like not being able to go to Dairy Queen when your parents had said that you were

To big stuff like the quarterback that won the biggest award in football this year.

Fernando Mendoza was rejected to play football by 140 colleges.

That’s a lot of people telling him he couldn’t do it.

But one person finally said yes, and Fernando made his family proud.

People are going to tell you a million reasons why following Jesus is nuts.

They will try to convince you that you are wrong

They will tempt you to do things you shouldn’t

For some of us, even our families will turn on us.

Listen to me, you can’t stop following Jesus - you can’t.

Try to listen as closely as you can today and see if you can come up with an answer to this question:

Why do I need to follow Jesus always?

In fact adults, you need to be asking yourself the same question.

Why do I need to follow Jesus always?

With your Bibles opened, hear now the Word of the Lord from 1 Peter 2:9-12

1 Peter 2:9–12 ESV

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

This is the Word of the Lord

Thanks be to God.

Pray with me:

Lord Jesus - Your Word is clear, but our hearing and seeing is dull.

Dear Lord, clear away the fog and cause our hearts to burst with zeal to follow you

In all things - every day - all the way to glory - In Jesus’ name, Amen.

One of the most powerful words in the English language is a little three letter word.

It is a conjunction - which means it links one though with another thought.

It’s not the word AND

And is a conjunction and it links two similar thoughts.

“The restaurant had biscuits and gravy for breakfast and I ordered it.”

It simply continues the thought.

However, the three letter conjunction with all the power is the word but.

But contrasts one thing with another.

“The restaurant has the best french toast in the universe but I ordered biscuits and gravy because there is nothing better than that.”

Now, here’s why this is important.

Verse 9 begins, “But you….”

So if but is a conjunction that contrasts one thought with other - what did Peter just say that we are different from?

Look back at verse 8

1 Peter 2:8 “and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.”

The stone of stumbling is Jesus.

They disobey Jesus’ word and so they stumble

Because they were destined to stumble.

Now, does that necessarily mean God planned forever for them to stumble?

What it means is, anyone who rejects Jesus, is destined to stumble.

All of the craziness in our country is because there are people who reject Jesus so they disobey His Word, and they stumble.

“But you…”

Now, I know this doesn’t sound like much here, but it’s huge.

They are destined to fail, now listen, but you are not.

You are not on a path that guarantees failure - that guarantees you’ll go wrong - that you are destined to crash and burn.

That is the destiny of those who reject Jesus.

But you did not reject Him so you and I have a different destiny.

“But you are a chosen race…”

Now listen to me, I want us to fix something in our thinking.

In our country for literally our entire existence, we’ve had a race problem, but it’s not what we say it is.

We said it was black versus white, white verses black.

Those reprobates who invaded Cities Church show us that the race problem isn’t white vs. black.

They did call the people in the church “White Supremacists”

They did call them “privileged.”

Don Lemon even told the pastor something like, “you don’t worship the Jesus I worship.”

Which is entirely correct.

The Jesus Don Lemon worships is not the Jesus of the Bible.

The fact that they were rioting inside a conservative church proves that the stumbling block isn’t black and white

It is betwen those who strive to obey Jesus’ Words and those who reject it.

There are only two races - those who are saved and those who are not.

Every other designation of race is a distraction from the truth.

But you - you and me, we are a chosen race

These words shoot us back in time to Deuteronomy 7 when Yahweh tells Israel “that Yahweh set His love on you and chose you…”

Chosen is what sets people at odds with each other.

There is no common ground to be negotiated between a chosen person and a stumbling person.

We don’t work from the same center - there is no ground for negotiation.

There are only those who are called and those who are not.

And we are.

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood…”

What does a priest do?

A priest knows God and he brings God to the people and takes the people back to God.

So, we are not destined to stumble over Jesus

And we are chosen by God to bring God to all of those people who are destined to stumble over Jesus, and maybe, and maybe, bring them back to God.

Listen to me - they don’t know what they are stumbling over - they don’t know.

We are all surprised and perplexed that they act like they do

Listen - they don’t know better.

They are acting like their father the devil has trained them to act.

He’s convinced them that they are going the right way.

They don’t know.

When Renee and I went to seminary, I owned a 1972 Cutlass - white on black - 350 engine.

It sounded like it had power and it had power - what a vehicle.

Only, it was a 1972 and it was 1985.

One day, in our apartment parking lot - it died.

This was back in the day when you could work on a car and I was certain that my starter had gone out.

Now I had a little experience working on cars, but not much.

So - you’ll love this - on a cold and snowy day

I went out to the parking lot, jacked up my car and proceeded to replace the starter.

I worked for a while - cold as all get out - but got it on.

And nothing - it would do nothing.

I had no choice except to find a real mechanic.

I finally got ahold of guy that said they normally didn’t accept work that someone else had started.

And I begged him like someone starving for food - so he accepted it.

We had it towed to his shop.

It was the timing chain - the timing chain broke.

Here’s the point - I had no business working on that car.

I thought I did - I thought I knew what I was doing.

But I didn’t have a clue.

I had to have a real mechanic - I had to have someone who knew the truth, to tell me the truth.

We are a royal priesthood.

Where are not destined to stumble.

We are chosen by the King of kings - that makes us a member of the royal household

And we are chosen to tell those who think they know things, we are chosen to tell them the truth.

Not scream, holler and berate them for being dumb, because they don’t know they are dumb.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own possession…

I don’t have to tell you that holy means set apart, it means different.

Get it out of your head that we are supposed to fit in - we aren’t.

Listen to me - the only place that we fit in is when we are with other brothers and sisters at church or in groups.

Spurgeon said this, “If you never strike the worldly person as being a strange person, if you never get the mocking laughter of the ungodly, if they never slander you, if you never detect any difference between yourself and them and they never discover any between themselves and you, it must be because you are not a genuine child of God.”

We aren’t supposed to fit.

We are working for different goals.

Their goal is to have the most toys before they die.

We aren’t even looking at this life for our goals - our goal is live forever with Jesus in a place that makes our most beautiful day here look like we are slumming it.

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9

Remember the other day, we said the word “excellencies” means the excellent character of the Lord.

God made us all of those things so we would be so excited by what he’s doing in our lives that we can’t help but tell people about it.

We were in darkness.

Go back to my Cutlass - listen I worked my rear end off on that car.

Men, some of you know.

I’m in a parking lot with my car on a jack.

I did not own jackstands.

I did not have a shop heater.

I did not have a full set of tools.

It was snowing.

People were walking by wondering if I was working on the car or stealing something.

My knuckles were bleeding

And I’d spent good money on a reman starter.

I thought I was basking in the light.

I was doing what I thought was right.

But this mechanic saved me.

He knew what He was doing.

He showed me the errors of my ways and put me on the right path.

So I told people about him-and I’m telling you about him. today

Listen, do you have a foggy notion of anything God has done in your life lately.

Let me tell you one of mine.

I have to go the ENT center every year - annual visit.

It was scheduled for December.

Sometime in November, I got a notice from the ENT center that my appointment had to be rescheduled.

To January 5th, 2026.

I was annoyed for two reasons.

Number 1 - start 2026 with a doctor’s appointment.

Number 2 - I’d have to pay out of pocket because my deductible reset.

But do ya’ll remember anything about me around January 5th?

I was sick as a dog and wasn’t getting any better.

So I went to my doctor’s appointment and he gave me some antibiotics and a steroid.

And in short order I was well.

What a fortuitous coincidence, right?

I don’t see it that way.

I see it as God looking out for me because He knows me.

He knew I’d keep taking Mucinex and Sudafed until I croaked and I needed help.

So the Lord saw me and He helped me.

That sounds silly to some of you but it’s not silly to me.

The Lord has done that for me over and over and over again.

And if you are His, you can tell the same kinds of stories.

And that’s exactly what we are supposed to do - “proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

1 Peter 2:10 “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

But you are not destined to fail, but you are destined to tell those you don’t fit in with about the excellencies of God.

Because - because - now listen this will hurt some of your feelings - you were nobody.

I don’t care how you grew up, who you knew, where you went to school, who you dated or married

Apart from Jesus - “you were not a people.”

Get that through our heads - we were nobodies - drifting around pretending we were somebodies

But now - there’s our word - but now we are God’s people.

We were wandering around in darkness, thinking that we knew what we were doing and where we were going

When where we was going was hell - living under God’s wrath instead of His mercy.

We were destined to be just like those ICE protestors in Minnesota - crazy people believing they were right

They believe they are right - but they are lost - living under God’s wrath

And we were too, BUT NOW - you have received mercy.

We’ve been reprieved - we were destined to stumble and die and be consumed

But God for whatever reason He chose, had mercy on us - and made us something

1 Peter 2:11 “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.”

Urge you doesn’t capture the force of what Peter is saying.

It’s almost, “I’d compel you,” “I’d make you if I could.”

I urge you as sojourners and exiles

Those two words are synonyms - sojourners and exiles are temporary residents of an area.

They don’t belong there - they belong somewhere else

And truth be told, they want to be somewhere else.

Peter says to abstain from the passions of the flesh -

Again, like the other week - don’t look back.

Listen, Preachers and Sunday school teachers lied to me when I was growing up.

Sin isn’t fun

People who go out and do sinful things are miserable.

That’s a lie - I had a blast doing things I should never have done.

But - there’s our word - but when God convicted me - yeah, well, then things changed.

Peter knows that giving in to those old desires will rip your heart out - they “wage war against your soul.”

Some of you know that.

You yearn for some of your past glory - the good ole’ days cry out to you

Live there long enough and you’ll grow into a bitter old person living without joy.

Peter says no - don’t - if you look forward

If we dwell on what the Lord has done for us

We’ll live with excitement and joy and peace - not every minute

But many, many more times until the day we go home.

1 Peter 2:12 “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”

That could be said another way

Live a good life among the crazies, so that when they talk bad about you, and they will, they will see the good God has put in you and - now here’s an interesting turn of a phrase

And glorify God on the day of visitation - now that makes us think at Jesus’ second coming - but that’s not it.

Live a good life among the crazies, so that when they talk bad about you, they will see how God has made you good and they will glorify God on the day Jesus calls out to them.

Because they see Jesus in you.

On the day Jesus chooses them - on the day that Jesus saves them, they will understand you.

Somebody in the sound booth make a note of this in case this ever happens.

If we are ever invaded by a riot like happened at Cities Church, I pray we fight our first inclination.

Our first inclination is to punch someone in the throat and those who are carrying start unholstering their weapons.

Yeah, not the best response.

I pray we’d do two things

First, the sound booth throws up the song “In Christ Alone” on the screen and that we would stand up and sing that song, acapella, at the top of our lungs.

And second, that our men would gently but firmly escort us out of this house and away from them..

Now, if they go violent and get physical - then all bets are off.

But until that - we respond in a way that makes no sense to them.

We sing our testimony - loud, strong, powerfully so that there is no doubt in any of their minds Who is in charge in this house.

When we started, I asked the kids to listen close and try to answer this question: Why do I need to follow Jesus always?

Have you answered that question?

Why do I need to follow Jesus always?

I can tell you one of my reasons - Without Him, I was nothing, but with Him, I am everything.

Why would I follow anyone else?

Let us pray.

Communion

Luke 22:17–20 “And [Jesus] took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

This is just a little nerdy thing here, but did you know that after the resurrection, there are a couple of places where Jesus ate with folks.

On the road to Emmaus, he ate with two guys.

On the beach with Peter and the disciples, he ate with them.

But every mention of Jesus eating after the after the resurrection, there is one thing conspicuously missing:

Wine.

So allow me a momentary flight of fancy here.

I’ve been having a meal with folks before

And everything was ready for us to eat

But the host wouldn’t let us eat.

“Uncle Bill is on the way - we can’t eat until he gets here.”

So we would wait until everyone was there.

That’s Jesus.

He could have had wine after he was resurrected.

He could have it now - but He won’t.

Because we aren’t all there yet.

But one day - Revelation 1:7 “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.”

Jesus is coming again and when He does there will be a banquet like no other that has ever been.

And Jesus will sit at the head table - drinking a glass of wine

Because the family will all be together.

As you come forward for the Lord’s Supper today, think about what that day will look like for you.

Think of who will be there that you love and you miss so much.

Think of who won’t be there - and say a prayer that they Lord will call them to follow Him before it’s too late.

Jesus is coming again - even so, come quickly Lord Jesus.

Let us pray. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Would the brothers serving please come forward.

At First Baptist, we come forward to receive the elements of the Lord Supper.

There are a number of good reasons to do it this way, but one of the best is - it is your testimony.

As you come forward, you are saying to the world, “I have decided to follow Jesus.”

Please exit your pew from the left and head forward to the table closest to you.

Should another table not have anyone at it, please feel free to move to the other table.

The gluten free wafers are at ______________ table.

Once you receive the elements, you can eat it then or take it back to your seat to mediate and pray as you see fit.

Once everyone is served, we’ll sing a song and head home.

And if someone decides to follow Jesus for the first time this morning - when we sing you can come talk to me

Or grab me or someone after the service - we want to rejoice with you.

Won’t you come now to the Lord’s table.