Do you appreciate what we have?

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Sound doctrine, strong faith”

Our Bible verse for today: “So what advantage does the Jew have? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? Considerable in every way. First, they were entrusted with the very words of God. What then? If some were unfaithful, will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? Absolutely not! Let God be true, even though everyone is a liar.” Romans 3:1-4 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Do you appreciate what we have?”

As we discussed in the previous devotional, a Godly heritage can be an asset, but it can also be a liability. I think we can all see how a good godly heritage can be a blessing; we can see it in the history of the Jews and in the history of the USA. So, we probably don’t need to spend a lot of time thinking about that. But what about heritage being a potential liability or problem? In what ways can the heritage become a problem or a hindrance? There are two, one of which I will address today, and the other tomorrow.

First, there is the problem of what is sometimes called privilege without perception. As Paul already established, physical circumcision was to be nothing more than a physical symbol of an inner reality. True circumcision is circumcision of the heart. It is the cutting out of our lives any thought or behavior that does not honor God. The circumcised heart then results in a life that honors God. Jews who lived that way were honoring their true heritage.

The same is true of our heritage here in the USA. If we recognize God’s hand upon the founding of this nation; and we see how our adherence to Biblical principles of morality and ethics have shaped our society in a good way; and if we then conduct our lives according to those Biblical principles which have brought us such great blessings; then our godly heritage is indeed a glorious thing and of great advantage to us. That’s the point Paul was making about the Jews here in these verses, and it applies to us here in the USA as well.

But then in verses 3-4 Paul brings us to one of the potential problems often associated with such a heritage – it’s when the people of that heritage begin to take it for granted. They lose sight of it, and they begin to drift from it. Many within that society, with its rich heritage from God, had drifted progressively further-and-further from their godly heritage.

How did that happen? How did the people get so muddled in their thinking and how did they drift so far from God and His ways? They became so entangled with the affairs of life that they lost sight of the big picture. They were so emmeshed in their cultural rituals and routines of their Jewish culture, and it became so routine to them that they lost sight of the core values of their culture.

That happened to the Jews in Paul’s day, and it is happening to many Christians in America in our day. We have a strong godly heritage – a nation that is founded on Biblical principles and the Judea/Christian ethic, but we must treasure it, nurture it, cling to it, and protect it. Otherwise, we are expecting to enjoy the privileges of the heritage, but we are doing so without the perception or the conscious awareness of where that heritage comes from and what difference it should make in how we live our lives. When that starts happening it won’t be long before we lose the blessings of that heritage.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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