Pastor and Mrs. Knight

Pastor Jeff Knight of Deerfield Beach First Baptist Church is a man who really does practice what he preaches, and if you're a person who prefers to learn by doing, then you need to pay close attention to Jeff; no one else 'does' the bible quite like he does.

Pastor Jeff Knight counseling before the Baptismal Pool

Pastor Jeff is one unique individual; he is definitely not your stereotypical Southern Baptist Preacher-man. He's causual, soft-spoken (mostly), and has a simple way of leading by example. He believes in total immersion Baptism, and total immersion Community. You'll see him every single day of the week interacting with his congregation in one way or another- whether it's serving food in the church concession, or coaching basketball in the church's Upward league three days a week.

You'll also catch him having a community dinner and bible study at church every Wednesday, initiating community projects, and hosting a life-group at his house on a Sunday night. Somehow he manages all this with three young kids and a wife who works full-time at a local elementary school. His love and dedication make him a shining light in this small town.

A couple years ago a teen mission group from out of state lost their reservations at a church on the day they arrived in West Palm Beach. When they realized they had nowhere to sleep and nowhere to even park their bus, they opened a phone book, randomly picked a church, and dialed. That day, Jeff answered the phone as well as their prayers. He rounded up cots and housed the busload of temporarily 'homeless' teens at the church, and he fed them for a week.

On occasion you'll see him preach an entire sermon without ever cracking open the Bible, his knowledge is that thorough. He can deliver a message with such conviction and authority; people leave the sermon feeling closer and more intimate with Jesus than ever before.

The bible can sometimes seem like the most intimidating and incredibly complex document ever written. With an amazing ability to break it down into small lessons and stories, Pastor Jeff turns complex chapters of the bible into easily understood and often funny stories, sharing wisdom and common sense that can be applied to everyday life. He personalizes the bible, bringing it to life and tailoring it to daily matters- that's his specialty.

For Seder, he brought in a Jewish Rabbi and served a traditional Jewish Seder dinner to the complete congregation and all their extended family and friends.  With a terrific slide show and personal presentation, the Rabbi gave us Baptists a complete education of the history, tradition, and meaning of the Seder dinner. Not exactly what you'd expect at your usual non-Jewish church.

Rabbi telling the history of the Jewish Seder tradition

Pastor Jeff's staff picture

If you are the least bit curious about religion, come in one Sunday, you're guaranteed to not only learn something useful, you'll also enjoy it. Spend a little bit of time listening to this man who makes the Bible (and the people in it) come to life. Besides his gift of gab and a finely honed sense of humor, Pastor Jeff has an incredible ability to make the bible understandable. Guaranteed, you'll probably hear a few good, funny stories in there too.

Pastor Jeff's army for God looks a lot like this:


Butterfly Garden participants

See ya Sunday!