First Baptist Shreveport

In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 we are called to run our races in such a way to get a prize. 1 - Prepare  Corinthians were having a problem with their freedom in Christ- they heard about love and grace, but didn't understand that because of that grace, love, and freedom, we were meant to give up our freedoms to love and serve others.  The race of the gospel is the only race that matters. 2 - Partici...

In 1 Corinthians 10:11-13, we find this bedrock promise:  God is faithful.  He will not let us be tempted beyond what we can bear and always provides a way out.   The struggles of the church in Corinth point us to two truths: 1.  Temptation often comes disguised as freedom.  We have rights, but what is the impact on others?  It is better to be loving, to love our neighbor, than to insist on our fr...

What matters is the work of the gospel, not the personalities or people doing it.  God is the one who makes things grow!   Our work's foundation must be Jesus.  We are social, but we are not a social club- we are disciples of Jesus Christ.   What we are building is a temple and we are the temple of the Holy Spirit.   Let's all be farmhands and construction workers- giving together, servi...

What does it mean to have the mind of Christ?    1.  You have to be part of a “WE.” You cannot have the mind of Christ without the people of God.    2. It’s not a human achievement but a divine gift of the Holy Spirit.  3. We have the mind of Christ when we are focused on God’s glory instead of our own.    4. The mind of Christ stays close to the cross of Christ.    5. The mind of Christ unifies. ...

Paul's letters to the churches in the New Testament can be great guidance for our lives and there are many parallels between the church in Corinth and us today:  they were in a new nation, there were divisions between people, and there was great tension between culture and faith.  In 9 verses, Paul mentions Christ Jesus 9 times!  Clearly, Jesus was his great passion.  He reminds them of his a...

📝 The Sermon Notes  May 17, 2026 - Ryan McCoy  Romans 6 - Free Indeed Christian freedom is not personal autonomy, but being set free from the power of sin and death through Jesus Christ. As the scripture says in Galatians 5:1, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Through Christ’s sacrifice, believers a...

The Bibles doesn’t give us happily ever afters.  The people in the Bible are real people with real struggles!   In 2 Samuel 15, we see David recovering compassion, humility before God, a life of prayer, and patience with others.  Clearly something has changed for David!   Is there a fog you need to come out of?  What would it take to create change in you?   David is going through a mess and great...

Difficult relationships are not healed by avoidance.   In 2 Samuel 14, David encounters a delicate situation with his son Absalom. Do we deeply see others we're in relationship with? Some reasons we fail in this: - we're too self centered to try  - we're too anxious - we reduce them to one characteristic - we freeze people in time  Sometimes in difficult relationships, we are are un...

2 Samuel 12 There is a temptation in life to live like we are God- functional atheism.   This is the oldest temptation in all of Scripture (Genesis and satan tempting Jesus) David finds himself in a place he did not mean to go (Bathsheba, murder,  betrayal) After he overcomes this, he is in a more dangerous position. Power drunk and sin blind. Sin does this to all of us.  Is there an area in your...

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.  Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8 If you heard that there was a man eating lion roaming around South Highlands or Spring Lake or Broadmoor, would you think “well that’s good to know.  If I run into him when I go to get the mail I’m sure I’ll figure something out.  Or would you take some steps...

In this passage, King David is at the pinnacle of his power and wealth.  He considers building a house for God.  God then appears to David and emphatically says no.  God has a different, greater plan. Sometimes the things we want are not the best things for us. Sometimes we can talk ABOUT God and not TO God.  David might have been moving from being full of God to being full of himself.  (Eugene Pe...

The movement of the Ark of the Covenant in this story was a human centered effort with disastrous results.  David learns that worship can be dangerous and we should approach God on God’s terms.  We do not have a domesticated God that we can manage or control by superstition.   Worship is dangerous when we put ourselves at the center.  It’s easy to come into worship with an entertainment mindset. ...

Are you in Christ today?  And how do you know?  Romans 10:9 says that “If you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” That’s how we join in this explosion of life that happens at Easter! The first word we have from our resurrected Lord is REJOICE! (Matthew 28:8)  It’s a word for us today, too.  We can have hope even on...

This is the week that we remember Jesus’ passion - Holy Week.  Today we’re looking at Judas and the role that he played in the story of this week.  Judas was trusted and considered trustworthy as he was the keeper of the money.  How did he come to betray Jesus?  1- Judas betrayed Jesus because he loved money.  Does our loyalty have a price?  Do we have greed working in our hearts?  2 - Judas betra...

In 2 Samuel 1 we see David dealing with grief and loss when Saul dies.  Almost half of the Psalms, many written by David, are Psalms of LAMENT. What does grieving well look like?  - If we live in denial of death, we cannot live well. - There are no shortcuts in grief.  It is not linear and it is ongoing. - We can and should honestly bring our grief before God.   - There are no healthy ways to avoi...

Are we pursuing what is good, beautiful, and true in our lives?   In 1 Samuel 25, we see Nabal, an independent, self-made and self-interested man reject a request for generosity, insulting David.  David doesn’t take it well and is ready for violence.  Nabal brings out the worst in David.   But Nabal’s wife Abigail intervenes, showing us that beautiful living calls us back to God.  Abigail sends gi...

Maybe the comfort and security that we all crave is actually spiritually dangerous for us.  In 1 Samuel 24:4-7, we see David in a cave in the wilderness of En Gedi showing great restraint and honor to Saul when it would have been so easy to justify taking his life.  Because of his faith and trust in the Lord, David acts with forgiveness and mercy.  Forgiveness transforms the forgiver.  AND  Forgiv...

In 1 Samuel 17:57- 18:5, we see David go from a solitary man to a man with a friend.  Today's technology has us more connected than ever but at the same time, we have become more isolated than ever before.  We are experiencing what some have called a "friendship recession."  What can we learn from David and Jonathan?  -Before David was friends with Jonathan, David was friends with G...

In the story of David and Goliath, we see that fear had become the common currency of Israel.  They become immobilized by the taunts of a single man.  Enter David.  Eugene Peterson says of Israel- they have a "failure of imagination." But David has a God-dominated imagination.  We also have a problem imagining that God can use small things to accomplish big things.  Saul has a Goliath-dr...

As we continue our series in 1 Samuel 16, we see that Saul's lack of leadership had consequences.  In today's passage, Samuel went out on priestly business to anoint a new king.  At first look, he thought he might be replacing one obvious choice for another, but as Jesse's sons came forward, we see that God is looking deeper than we do.  "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do n...

It's amazing what the Spirit of God can do with willing hearts! The story of Saul's son Jonathan in 1 Samuel 14 shows us that faith requires overcoming paralysis and taking a step.  We can always put off decisions to serve and obey God, but faith requires action.  Faith ultimately requires us to jump in and be ALL IN.   Faith has its own arithmetic. In 1 Samuel 14:6, Saul rightly remarks...

Sometimes things and events are not what they seem.  In 1 Samuel 9 we see that a story of lost donkeys actually turns out to be the appointing of a king!   Sometimes God sets up divine appointments for us.  Sometimes God is doing something we can't even imagine.  Ultimately, God has bigger things in mind than you becoming just a little bit better version of yourself- God is all about heart tr...

What would you do on an ideal day?  This week's sermon explores 1 Samuel 7 as Jeff preached from his office on a livestream while the FBC Shreveport campus was covered with snow and ice!  

If we let politics lead and shape us, if we barter for blessings, or if we treat God like a vending machine, we may be putting God in a box.  He doesn't belong to us, we belong to Him.  Do we obey only when it's convenient?  Is there something you've been holding onto and trying to justify?  The way to measure is through Jesus and His teaching- to love God and love others.  Jesus ca...