Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Obeying God when obeying isn’t easy”
Our Bible verse for today: “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and followed him.” Mark 1:17-18 (NIV)
Our thought for today: “Jesus calls us into an active faith.”
In the Jewish world of Jesus’ day the practice of the Jewish faith was very much a matter of ritual and routine. It was highly structured and mostly involved simply being in the right place at the right time, going through the right motions, and saying the right things. For many people it quickly became mindless and fairly meaningless. They were just going through the motions so they could put a checkmark in the religious box of their to-do list, and then get on with life.
Sound familiar? How many Christians in our day simply go through the religious motions of the Christian faith? They go to church when they’re supposed to, they sing the songs, sort of listen to the sermon, mentally put a check in the box, and then get on with life. But that most definitely was not the kind of thing Jesus called His followers to. In Mark 1:18 we find that those first disciples left their nets (their way of life) and followed Jesus into something active and new. They spent the rest of their lives on-mission with Jesus.
Follow the Gospel accounts and see how often Jesus commissioned a group of followers to “go out” into the world and “do things” in His name. That was the regular pattern. Jesus never called people to sit in a church facility and sing songs to Him. He called them to get off their duffs, go out into the world, and do stuff to further the Kingdom of God in this world. But doing stuff is harder than not doing stuff. Sitting in a pew and singing a few songs is a much easier way to practice the faith than is going out to the local homeless shelter and helping to serve the evening meal.
Here’s the hard truth: “A genuine and intimate relationship with Jesus leads to a life of ministry and service and mission.” If the practice of your faith consists primarily of warming a pew on Sunday mornings, then there’s not much to your faith. Jesus calls His followers into active faith. He raises them up, equips them, and sends them out into the world.
Read the Gospels and see for yourself. We are to be on-mission with Jesus. The practice of our faith is to be active. If you would like to experience church life with a group of believers who are actively on-mission with Jesus outside the walls of the church facility, we invite you to visit with us this Sunday at Oak Hill Baptist.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 