By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: 1 John 4:1-6

Not all discrimination is bad. Sometimes it’s appropriate, even necessary. In general, when speaking of excluding someone based on gender or skin color or ability, then yes, discrimination is not good and doesn’t glorify God, who’s made all people with His image imprinted on them.

But when it comes to the words and beliefs put forth by those who purport to be speaking truth, we must filter what they say through the Word of God. We must discriminate. Just because someone has a winsome personality and a speaking platform doesn’t mean he or she speaks truth. Not every preacher who stands behind a pulpit also stands behind the cross. Some may in fact stand in front of the cross and obscure it so badly that the gospel is unrecognizable in their preaching. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage:  Deuteronomy 18:9-18

It matters which voices we listen to. We are shaped, both in our thinking and in our feeling, in large part by the information we take in through our ears. This is why Jesus said, “Take care what you listen to” (Mark 4:24). It’s why He repeated often when He taught, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Matthew 11:15). It’s why the Father said at the transfiguration, “This is My beloved Son, listen to Him” (Mark 9:7). With all the voices and noises competing to be heard in our world today, we must find the one voice of truth — that of the Lord Jesus. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: Mark 9:17-29

Demons believe in God. They are not atheists (who claim there is no God), and they are not agnostics (who claim that we can’t know whether there’s a God). No, demons are monotheists — they know and believe there is one God — and they even fear him. “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe — and shudder!” (James 2:19). However, while they believe in Him and fear Him, they also hate Him. They can’t stand Him, and they are against everything He’s for. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: Revelation 12:7-12

Satan is not the little devilish cartoon perched upon our shoulder whispering in our ears to do the “wrong” thing. He is the leader of an all-out assault on God and His kingdom. He sought to be equal with God and was denied. He sought to overcome Christ and was denied. He now seeks to disarm, discourage, and defeat Christ’s followers, and he will be denied (Revelation 12:10-11). To better understand him — not in a way that glorifies him, but in a way that prepares us to stand against his schemes — let’s consider these statements:

He is a very real enemy — a proud, deceitful, and murderous enemy. We tend to place more stock in those things that can be observed by our senses: food, clothing, and shelter, friends and family. But those things that matter most for our lives (eternal things) are unseen: God, heaven, love, the seriousness of our sin, hell, the atonement by Jesus on the cross, our hope of salvation, and our growth in godliness. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: Mark 5:1-2, 8-15, 18-20

Sometimes following Jesus means not following Jesus. This was the case in Mark 5, when Jesus healed a man with a demon in remarkable fashion. The man then implored Jesus that he might go with Him, but Jesus urged him to stay and tell his family and friends how much He had done for him (Mark 5:19). For this man (and for many of us), following Christ meant exemplifying Him and talking of Him in the circle of influence he already had. As we too consider our own circles of influence, here are some encouraging thoughts. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: II Corinthians 5:11, 14-21

Passion drives action. We can try to do things we know we should, and we can try to avoid the things we know we shouldn’t do, but eventually, if nothing changes in our heart, we will fail to change our ways. If we want to truly see a change in our actions, we have to reignite and correctly orient our passions within. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: II Corinthians 1:2-7

Following Jesus is not comfortable. He’s called us to carry a cross, come after Him, and die (Luke 9:23-24) not kick back in a recliner and wait for heaven. He pulls us out of our comfort zones, whether it’s for evangelism, serving others, or just being a good neighbor. These things are often very uncomfortable. However, even though we are not to be comfortable, we are able to be comforted. Yes, we die to self (Galatians 2:20). Yes, we suffer with Christ (Philippians 3:10). Yes, we are considered as scum by the world (I Corinthians 4:13). And yet, even as we walk through these times, we have a good Father who comforts us along the way. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: II Corinthians 12:2-10

“We are not as strong as we think we are.” That tag line in the chorus of a Rich Mullins song by the same name also happens to be something of a tag line for all of us. Despite outward appearances and inward feelings, we are not as strong as we think. Our very lives are dependent on a number of things functioning properly all the time: open airway, beating heart, active brain, etc. We are unbelievably fragile, powerless, and insecure. The same goes for us spiritually. We are much weaker than we think we are.

We all have thorns. Before his conversion, the apostle Paul was a learned Jewish prodigy, a pharisee of pharisees, zealous for the law. After his conversion he was a profound Christian theologian, missionary, preacher, leader, and writer. He willingly suffered for the sake of the gospel (II Corinthians 11:22-28) and counted it joy to throw everything away that was gain and bear the reproach of Christ in order to know Him (Philippians 3:7-8). [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: Exodus 3:11-12; 4:10-17

Moses wasn’t a ladder-climbing businessman. He wasn’t a self-assured professional with a great resume and leadership experience. He was a shepherd on the backside of the wilderness. And while he probably wasn’t the guy that anyone would have chosen to lead Israel out of Egypt and into their new homeland, that’s exactly what God called him to do.

His calling, however, wasn’t clean and tidy. Moses struggled with the idea. In fact, he was brutally honest about his own limitations. Who was he that God should even send him (Exodus 3:11)? How would the people know God sent him (Exodus 3:13)? What if they didn’t believe him (Exodus 4:1)? What if he messed up what he was supposed to say and couldn’t communicate clearly (Exodus 3:10)? What if he just didn’t want to go (v. 13)? At every objection Moses raised, however, the Lord had an overruling answer. There was nothing He hadn’t thought of, and there was nothing He couldn’t do. [Read more…]

By Nathan Washburn
Pastor, First Baptist Church, Greenbrier

Focal Passage: John 18:15-18, 25-27; 21:15-19

We like restoration. We like it for movie characters, classic cars, and even kitchens. To have someone or something go down a path of bad judgment or rust or general neglect and then see redemption happen is among the most tangible joys. It brings a feeling of completeness, and we like that. [Read more…]