Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Celebration”
Our Bible verse for today: “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony!” Psalm 133:1 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “Peace within the family of God is a reason to celebrate.”
Last Sunday night in our Bible study group there was a comment made about how little conflict or dissension we experience in our church family at Oak Hill Baptist, and how pleasant it is to be part of a group of mature believers who love each other and who get along well. It’s what King David was writing about in Psalm 133:1.
I personally believe that how easily a person is offended is a measure of the depth of their spiritual maturity. The more spiritually mature an individual is the more likely they are to just shrug things off. Potential offenses to them are like water on a ducks back – it just rolls right off. But when a person is thin-skinned and easily takes offense, that’s an indication of spiritual immaturity. Get a few of those individuals in a church and it won’t be long before people are yipping and yapping and snapping at one another.
Years ago author John Bevere wrote a wonderful book entitled “The Bait of Satan”. The premise is that Satan uses the potential for offense as “bait” to try to turn an individual Christian into a self-absorbed whiny little snot with a victim mentality; someone who is always finding fault and who expects to always have things go their way. A person like that can wreck havoc in a church fellowship. A spiritually mature person will simply refuse to take that bait.
King David recognized and savored the wonderful experience of living in harmony with a spiritually mature group of God’s people. As the pastor of a small, but mature and peaceful church family, I can join with David in saying “Amen!”
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 