First Baptist Church of Wisconsin Rapids

"God does nothing but in answer to prayer." James 4:2 says, "You do not have, because you do not ask." Jesus said in John 15:5 that apart from Him we can do nothing. God is a good Father who loves to give His children the good things we ask, when we pray according to His will. A pastor is vain to think he can preach so well that unbelievers will come to faith apart from earnest...

There are many well-known and loved stories related to the Christmas season in one way or another, but the Biggest Story of Christmas, of history, and each of our lives is the story of God the Son born to take away the sins of the whole world. This is the biggest story; it is a true story. God the Son humbled Himself from the highest heaven to the lowest place, lower than a manger, and even to the...

Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah and Savior of the world, born of the virgin Mary, who came to save His people from their sins. Against our postmodern and relativistic world, Christians testify that Jesus is the only way, the only truth, the only life. God the Son came down from heaven to live the life we could never live and die the death we all deserve, so that all who believe in Him may have e...

The LORD will hew down all the proud and lofty in the land as an axe hews down a forest. Israel will go into exile. Yet a rod will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and in Him not only Israel but people from every nation will find restoration and peace in a new creation. Application: The dark and disordered days we live in, changing times, our oppressive government, and finding hope and peace in...

The LORD betrothed Israel to Himself, but they have committed harlotry and gone after other gods. Every blessing they have enjoyed will be stripped from them, Babylon will take them into exile, and God's presence will depart from the Temple. It seems Israel and their hope are as good as dead, but God promises resurrection from the dead. Application: Israel sinned because they were sinners and...

Jeremiah foretells doom coming on Judah for breaking the covenant from Sinai and committing harlotry, but he also foretells the coming of a new covenant with better promises. Application: Some ways in which professing Christians commit harlotry in our day, false prophets in our time, the problem of man's sinful heart, and justification and life by faith alone in Christ alone.

David's son Solomon ascends to the throne in Israel and in his great wisdom leads Israel to a golden age of dominion and prosperity. However, Solomon does not wholly follow the LORD, and in his latter years bows down to other gods. The kingdom is torn, Israel is divided, and eventually both Judah and Israel go into exile. Israel has broken God's word, and yet God will be true to His word o...

In the book of Judges, there was no king in Israel, and everyone did what was right in his own eyes. In the book of Samuel, God raises up David the son of Jesse to slay Goliath and eventually sit on the throne of Israel. Yet David is not the Son God promised in Genesis. It is the throne of his son after him that will be established forever.

Israel sins against the LORD, but He raises up judges to deliver them. Nevertheless, the recurring theme of this book is: "In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in their own eyes." Is there a king in the Protestant church today, or is everyone just doing what's right in their own eyes?

Joshua leads Israel in to conquer the land of Canaan. They leave nothing breathing in Jericho. But can Israel conquer the sin in their own hearts, and is Joshua the one who will give them lasting rest and peace?

The LORD renews the covenant with Israel from Mount Sinai. Moses prophesies Israel's rebellion against the covenant and their exile from the land, but he also prophesies of a coming Prophet like him, to whom they must listen.

The book of Numbers continues the story of the faithful and gracious God who keeps His promises of land and offspring to His people. The LORD prepares Israel for battle to take the Promised Land of Canaan and turns their enemies' curses to blessings despite the nation's sin and rebellion.

Pastor Josh continues this series through the Bible with Leviticus. What's with all the laws and ordinances in Leviticus, the Tabernacle, and the sacrifices and washings? Could Israel expect to keep this law for eternal life? Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to all who believe.

The book of Exodus continues the story begun in Genesis, of the offspring of the woman who will crush the head of the serpent. How God fulfills His word time and again, how Pharaoh shows he is of the seed of the serpent, and how the LORD accomplishes an initial fulfillment of the crushing of the serpent in judging Pharaoh and his army at the Red Sea. How God begins to make a way to restore and per...

Pastor Josh opens a new sermon series called Through the Bible at 36,000 ft. In this series, he will preach through one complete book of the Bible each Sunday, in order, providing a flyover view of the book. Churchgoers often hear topical sermons, or hear expositions of several verses at a time, but what is the whole story of the Bible, and how do the different books fit together? Pastor Josh aims...

In our day it still seems to be common knowledge that the Christian God is Trinity. He is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But how did the early church come to terms with the claims of Jesus and His resurrection and arrive at this conclusion? And what does it really mean to say God is Trinity? Application: Christianity is Triune at its very foundation. How should this truth impact our Christian life,...

So many seem to think of God only in His anger. Jonathan Edwards’ famous sermon was not called Sinners in the Hands of a Happy God. But if you search the Scriptures carefully, you will find that they clearly portray a very happy God. They tell us of a blessed God, perfectly happy in Himself, with no lack of any good thing, and no lack of any enjoyment of every ounce of overflowing goodness in His...

The typical god presented from the pulpits of America today is a mild grandfather above the clouds who sweeps sin under the rug and receives men into eternal life as long as they try their best to be nice to people and say they're sorry for their sin. Pastor Josh explains that God requires far more, that all have fallen short of His requirement, and therefore all deserve the terrors of His wra...

Is God good? Pastor Josh seeks to answer this fundamental question of human life and religion. Scripture says that only God is good, but if only God is good, then man is not. So how can anyone be saved and enjoy life?

If God is high and lofty and set apart from man in stature, power, and purity, how can man draw near to him and be saved? Pastor Josh explains that Scripture teaches both the transcendence of God and the nearness of God, in His great mercy. God is merciful to those in misery in their sin.

So many today are so enamored with the stars of music, acting, and athletics. People young and old idolize celebrities in their glitz and glory and treat them as more than royal. The Bible teaches that God excels all men in glory and majesty, and even everything in the earth and the heavens. We exchange the glory of God for idols to our own hurt. Only in Christ is there hope of life and glory.

God is present everywhere, all the time. God sees all things, whether words, deeds, or thoughts. Why this is comforting for the believer and terrifying for the unbeliever. Salvation in the cross of Christ, and the free offer of the gospel of grace to all men.

How contemporary professing Christians often depict God as a "nervous, ingratiating God fawning over men to win their favor." Are professing Christians emphasizing the grace and compassion of God at the expense of His power and authority? Nothing is too hard for the Lord.

In our world, change is the only constant. But down through the ages Christians have confessed that their God is absolutely unchanging. Application: does God change from the OT to the NT? Has God changed since the close of the NT? Did covid change the necessity of the Sunday gathering of God's people for worship?

Pastor Josh introduces a new series on the attributes of God, seeking to answer the questions: 1) Who is God? 2) What is God like?