Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.” Acts 15:19 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “You don’t get to make the rules.”

 

The words we read in Acts 15:19 were spoken by James, the biological brother of Jesus. The context they were spoken in was what has become known in history as “The Council of Jerusalem”. The new Christian church was very young and consisted mostly of former Jews. These formally Jewish Christians were steeped in Old Testament Law and the customs of the Pharisees. Freedom in Christ and living by grace were still new concepts to them. The practice of their Christian faith still involved many of the trappings of Judaism, including rule-keeping.

 

But now thousands of Gentiles were coming to faith in Christ as well. Should they be required to be rule-keepers too? The Council of Jerusalem had to decide. Amazingly their answer was “No”. Following Christ did not involve keeping a lot of archaic and manmade rules. And of all people, James was the one to verbalize the decision. James was probably the most strict and structured of the bunch.

 

To their credit these early disciples of Jesus were willing to embrace and share grace, even though it was a foreign concept to them when it came to practicing their faith. Extending such grace to others, rather than insisting on a legalistic practice of the faith, was a tremendously gracious act on their part, and one they struggled to arrive at.

 

Many people in our day struggle with it too, and sadly, often unsuccessfully. The great Christian writer H.L Mencken once described a Puritan as “a person with a haunting fear that someone somewhere is happy.” Today many people would apply that same caricature to evangelicals in general, and to fundamentalists in particular. As Philip Yancey noted, “Nowadays legalism has changed its focus. In a thoroughly secular culture, the church is more likely to show ungrace through a spirit of moral superiority or a fierce attitude toward opponents in the ‘culture wars”.

 

By listening to the ungracious speech of many Christians, and by being the targets of stern judgmental condemnation, what does the world come to think about the Jesus we preach?

 

We can learn a lesson from James and the early disciples. We don’t get to make the rules for everyone else. Not only do we not get to make the rules for the rest of the world, but we don’t even get to make the rules for other Christians. The way that James and the other apostles came to their decision in Acts 5:19 was through prayer, reading scripture, and by considering the example of Jesus. They were Biblical and they were gracious. They didn’t try to make the Bible say more than it really says, and they dealt with others in grace. We should do no less.

 

Instead of being stern rule-makers we need to be Christians who model the love and graciousness of the One we profess to follow. Again quoting Yancey, “The world thirsts for grace in ways it does not even recognize.”

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “… for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. I know both how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being content – whether well fed or hungry, whether in abundance or in need. I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:11-13 (CSV)

 

Our thought for today: “Be gracious in times of adversity.”

 

Pastor Chuck Swindoll once wrote, “In all my years of walking with the Lord, I have yet to meet one Christian who has ‘lived happily ever after.’ On the other hand, I have met a great many significant saints who have endured affliction, loss, disappointment, setbacks, failures, and incredible pain through the years. And I have seen many of those same men and women cling to their joy, radiate hope, and sustain a winsome spirit, even through heartache, even through tears, even at death’s door.”

 

I agree with Chuck, I have never met a Christian who lived a fairy-tale life of pure bliss, just tip-toeing through the tulips and skipping along the yellow brick road of life. However I have known many Christians who faced the hardships and trials of life with a sense of peace and confidence and even joy, despite the pain and heartache. They were people who maintained a winsome personality and radiated a sense of hope and happiness, even though they were dealing with great trials.

 

Early in my years as a seminary student I had the privilege of knowing a woman by the name of Phyllis Forte. She was a member of our church and she was one of those great saints who simply radiated joy and love no matter the circumstances. Phyllis had diabetes bad and it was slowly eating her alive. Over the years I knew her I watched the disease take a toe, and then another, and then all of them, and then the entire foot, and then half a leg, and then the other leg started to go. Soon she was confined to a wheelchair and finally she was homebound and a shut-in.

 

I used to visit with her from time-to-time and we would even celebrate the Lord’s Supper together, just me and her at her kitchen table. No matter what she was dealing with personally, she was always upbeat and funny (and fun). She never wanted to talk much about herself or her problems. Instead she wanted to know all about me and my family. She wanted know how Linda and the kids were. She wanted to hear about what I was learning in seminary, whether or not I was taking proper care of myself, what I had for breakfast, and on it went. She was kind and gracious and a great joy to be with!

 

In Philippians 4:11-13 the Apostle Paul described a depth and maturity of faith that enabled him to be happy and content regardless of his circumstances. That’s because his joy came from within his heart and radiated out, rather than coming from outward circumstances and working its way in. His joy, contentment, and graciousness came from Christ and not from circumstances.

 

Paul and Phyllis were content, joyful, and gracious, regardless of the circumstances they found themselves in. May the same be true of us.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has given the kingdom into the hands of your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a murderer!” 2 Samuel 16:7-8 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Watch those words!”

 

The other day I came across an interesting phrase which I had not heard before: “Avoid not only the words you may have to eat, but the words that may eat you.” It was said in reference to a guy by the name of Shimei, whose words you just read in 2 Samuel 16:7-8. Here’s what was happening:

 

King David had just been overthrown as king of Israel by his son Absalom and he was now fleeing for his life. As he was trudging along the rural dusty roads leading to his exile, he encountered a man who was a descendant of the old king Saul. His name was Shimei. Shimei hated David because he thought David had stolen the throne from Saul. So now that David himself had been overthrown, Shimei encountered him on the road and began to mock David, shout curses at him, and even throw stones at him.

 

Okay, so fast forward some short time into the future, to the time that the army loyal to David defeated the army of Absalom, and David was now headed back to Jerusalem to reclaim the throne. Once again he would be the king over all of Israel (and the king over Shimei). So in 2 Samuel 19:19-20 Shimei, realizing that he was in pretty deep do-do, hustled out to meet the returning King David and he begged the king’s forgiveness. In this case Shimei had to eat his words. Lucky for him David was gracious and forgave him, but as punishment David placed certain restrictions on where and how Shimei could live for the rest of his life.

 

Now fast-forward again, this time to 1 Kings 2:8-9 and we find that David, now very old and approaching death, has passed the kingship to his son Solomon. Shimei, evidently thinking he was now free and clear because David was no longer king, violated the terms of his agreement with David. He no longer adhered to the restrictions David had placed upon him. Hearing of this, Solomon had Shimei arrested and executed. Therefore, ultimately, eventually, Sheimei’s foolish words from all those years earlier ended up eating him.

 

An important part of being a gracious person is found in how we speak. It matters what you say, how you say it, and who you say it too. Foolish words – words that should not be spoken, often have a way of coming back and biting us. Sometimes you will have to eat those words, and sometimes those words will eat you.

 

Gracious people speak in gracious ways – all the time. So, watch those words!

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “My dearly loved brothers, understand this: everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for man’s anger does not accomplish God’s righteousness.” James 1:19-20 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Confidence leads to calmness”

 

Yesterday I told you about the conference on Biblical sexual ethics that I attended and how impressed I was by the friendly and respectful manner in which the leaders and attendees discussed the difficult and emotionally-charged issues being addressed. This was especially impressive considering it was not a one-sided discussion. The presenters and attendees included people from across the cultural spectrum including conservative evangelical Christians, leaders of the Gay and Lesbian agenda, Republicans, Democrats, liberals, conservatives, and everyone in-between.

 

To introduce yesterday’s devotional I quoted 1 Peter 3:15-16 which tells us that we must be prepared to present our views when the opportunity arises, but we have to do it with gentleness and respect, “Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. However, do this with gentleness and respect, keeping your conscience clear.”

 

One of the reasons the leaders and attendees at that conference were able to discuss such emotionally-charged issues in a calm and reasoned manner was because they all had a quiet sense of confidence. They had all done their homework. Everyone had taken the time to thoroughly study the issues from their own perspective, and from the perspectives of those who saw things differently. After lots of research, thoughtful listening, and a genuine desire to get to the truth, each participant arrived at the point of knowing what they believed and why they believed it. Therefore they were confident in their positions and prepared to discuss it in a calm and respectful way.

 

One of the reasons people often get upset and defensive when they’re discussing difficult issues is because they feel threatened. And one of the reasons they feel threatened is because they’re not sure of themselves. They often don’t have good answers for hard questions and they attempt to compensate for that by raising their voice, or using exaggerated language, or lapsing into empty dogma and silly clichés.

 

People who are sure of themselves, people who know what they believe and why they believe it, and who are prepared to discuss it, they tend to have a quiet sense of confidence and are therefore not threatened by opposing points of view. This is why at Oak Hill Baptist Church we are a “teaching church”. In other words there’s a heavy emphasis on teaching the truth of Biblical principle, and doing it in ways that are easy to understand and easy to apply to everyday life situations. Therefore our folks know what they believe, why they believe, and they’re prepared to discuss it.

 

Confidence leads to calmness. When we know what we believe and why we believe it we will feel comfortable discussing those issues, even with those who disagree with us. And, we will do it with grace.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. However, do this with gentleness and respect, keeping your conscience clear …” 1 Peter 3:15-16 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “There is hope.”

 

Yesterday we gave some thought to the shrill and unkind tone which underlies much of the national conversation in our nation these days. I mentioned a Bart Simpson-like sense of snarkiness which seems to have taken hold of many people. I noted the mean-spirited nature of the political dialogue in our nation’s capitol. And I pointed out that God’s people should be different, that we should be people who are known for our gracious manner, for our warmth and kindness and compassion.

 

Sadly that’s sometimes not true of Christians. Far too often we allow ourselves to get emotional and angry when it comes to hot button cultural issues, and we allow our rhetoric to become overheated and caustic. Sometimes angry Christians are the ones with the sharpest tongues.

 

But there is hope. In fact, I’m actually encouraged. A few years ago I was at a conference of church leaders in Nashville. The conference was sponsored by the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. The title of the conference was “The Gospel, Homosexuality, and the Future of Marriage.” There were over two thousand church leaders there from forty-eight states and five countries. The general sessions and the workshops covered a large spectrum of issues related to Biblical sexual ethics and there was a lot of discussion about the rapidly evolving cultural landscape in our country with respect to sexual ethics.

 

The conference leaders invited spokespersons, leaders, and authors from the Gay and Lesbian movement to attend and to participate in the discussions as well. There were also liberal professors and left-leaning news media invited. The object was to create an atmosphere where all sides of the issues were fully and fairly presented so that honest dialogue could then take place.

 

What impressed me most about the conference was the kind and respectful tone of the discussions. There were no pulpit-pounding hellfire and brimstone sermons; there was no angry finger pointing; and there were no chicken-little types running around crying about the sky falling. Instead the discussions were conducted in kind and respectful tones. Everyone was measured in their speech, the points were well-reasoned and logically presented, and there was a spirit of mutual respect all throughout.

 

I will tell you more about this conference in tomorrow’s devotional. For now it’s enough to know that there is hope. As Christians we can do what Peter called for in 1 Peter 3:15-16. We can stand for truth and we can contend for Biblical principles while being kind and gracious in our manner, even when dealing with emotionally-charged cultural issues.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Graciousness”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king for his friend.” Proverbs 22:11 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Be a gracious person”

 

Typically in the Christian world when we speak about grace we’re talking about God’s grace bestowed upon us. The most common theological definition of grace usually reads something like, “Undeserved blessings freely bestowed upon man by God.” Most references to grace in the Bible are about some form of God’s grace bestowed upon us.

 

However not only is grace a character trait of God’s, but it is also supposed to be a character trait which the Holy Spirit brings out in us. God freely bestows grace upon us, and we are to freely bestow grace upon others. Another way to look at it would be that as His people we are to be conduits through which His grace flows to others.

 

When the character trait of grace becomes a dominant feature of an individual’s personality we say that person is “gracious”. Their manner is one of graciousness. The dictionary tells us that a gracious person is, “Marked by kindness and warm courtesy; tactful; merciful or compassionate; marked by elegance and good taste.”

 

Our world needs a lot more people who are gracious – people who are marked by kindness and warm courtesy, people who are tactful in their manner, merciful and compassionate with others (and some elegance and good taste would be a nice touch too).

 

Can I get a witness? The discourse in our culture has become increasingly shrill and unkind; the tone set by many of our leaders is absolutely caustic and often mean-spirited; and we see throughout our society an increasing trend towards Bart Simpson-like snarkiness.

 

But the people of God should be different. In our manner we should demonstrate the graciousness of God. We should be people who are known for our kindness, warmth, courtesy, tact, mercy and compassion.

 

In Proverbs 22:11 Solomon noted that a gracious person is the friend of kings. What he meant was that everybody likes a gracious person. It’s hard not to! People who are kind, compassionate, warm and tactful are very likeable.

 

Hopefully through our study this month the Holy Spirit will have the opportunity to sand down some of the sharp edges of our personalities and we will all become more gracious and likable.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “God has made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.” Ecclesiastes 7:29 (TEV)

 

Our thought for today: “Leave room for the singing of angels.”

 

As I was sitting here this morning on the last day of the month, thinking and praying about the final devotional about “balance”, my thoughts were drawn to an article I wrote more than ten years ago. The title of the article is “Room for the Singing of Angels”. (You can read / download it on my website at www.JimMersereauBooks.com. Just click on the tab “free articles”).

 

I got the idea for the article from a book by Howard Thurman entitled “Deep is the Hunger”. In that book he made the statement, “There must be remaining in every man’s life some place for the singing of angels.” By that he meant that we must structure our lives in such a way that there is time and room for quietness and peaceful relaxation so that we can hear from God.

 

The problem for many of us is that we fill our lives right to the outer edges with people and activities and noise. Our days are crammed with work, chores, hobbies, and all sorts of other activities and demands. This is the observation Solomon was making in Ecclesiastes 7:29 when he wrote, “God has made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.”

 

Thurman’s point in his book (and mine in my article) is that there must be space in our lives for quietness and peace, because that’s where God is heard best and most often. This is the “room for the singing of angels” Thurman was writing about. It’s where our heart is calm, our mind is clear, we’re at rest, and we are therefore in a position to hear from God. It’s in such times that He speaks to our troubled minds and soothes our frazzled soul.

 

I want to end this month by sharing with you my favorite Psalm. It is Psalm 23 and this is the NIV rendition:

 

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.

He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

 

I pray that you achieve good balance in your life; that you experience peace and rest; and that you leave room each day to hear the singing of angels.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “We must obey God rather than men.” Acts 5:29 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Sometimes your life should be out of balance.”

 

Not everything is equally important and therefore not everything deserves equal time and attention. Proper balance involves allotting the appropriate amount of time and attention to people and things based upon their relative importance in your life at this time. And, those priorities can change from time-to-time depending on what’s going on.

 

Sometimes our lives will necessarily have to be out of balance – for a time and for a good reason. Sometimes a situation is going on which is so important that for a while it will need more time, attention, resources, and emotional energy than anything else that is going on. At such times we will be out of balance in favor of whatever that particular thing is.

 

For instance, in recent days I’ve made the case that our relationship with Jesus is the most important thing in life. Since that’s true we must be resolved to live life from a biblical worldview, adhering to Biblical principles. But doing that can sometimes cause our lives to get out of balance in a big hurry and in big ways.

 

I’m thinking of the Christian baker in Colorado who refused to bake a wedding cake for a gay wedding. He is now facing criminal charges, lawsuits, possibly financial ruin, and maybe even time in jail. I’m sure that at this moment his life probably does not feel balanced to him. He is living in the middle of a storm of controversy and troubles. But, he is standing on principle. He made up his mind that he would not compromise his values. Instead he has chosen to stand on Biblical principle as stated in Acts 5:29. He decided to do what is right and he resolved to face whatever trial or storm such a stand brought into his life.

 

Today we live in a society which demands that we go along in order to get along. Sadly, too many Christians are willing to do just that. Many Christians today just go with the cultural flow because doing so is easier than standing firm for Biblical principles and it requires less risk. In such cases their lives might seem happy and balanced and easy since they’re avoiding the conflict, but their stand is not right and it does not honor the Lord.

 

That’s just one example of a way in which resolving to do the right thing can result in our lives becoming temporarily unbalanced. The fact is that sometimes we will be faced with choices that cause imbalance and even turmoil. There are things that are important enough to deserve a disproportionate amount of our time and attention for a while.

 

Striving for and maintaining a healthy balance in life is usually the good and right thing to do, but not always. Sometimes you will be faced with difficult situations which will require an inordinate amount of your time, attention, and effort, and, which might be costly to you.  The right way to deal with such times is to resolve that you will honor God in how you handle it, and then trust the outcome to Him.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in Me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without Me.” John 15:5 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Jesus is the root who produces the fruit.”

 

John 14:31 ends with Jesus leading His little band of followers out of the Upper Room, having just concluded The Last Supper. As near as we can tell, the account we read about in John 15:5 occurred as they were then walking on the outskirts of Jerusalem towards the Garden of Gethsemane.

 

If so, then imagine the scene: it is night, it is dark, the air is cool and the moon is full. On their left are the walls of Jerusalem. On the right are vineyards. To teach an important spiritual truth, Jesus uses the example of a grapevine. He draws their attention to the branches which grow off of the vine and to the fruit that comes from the branches. He tells them, “Spiritually I am the vine and you are the branches. Just as the life of this vine flows in the branches and produces its fruit through the branches, so too My life will flow through you and My fruit will be produced through your life. However, just as this branch must stay attached to the vine in order to bear its fruit, so too you must stay attached to Me in order for My life to flow through you, and for My fruit to be produced in your life.”

 

This parable helps us to understand that the single most important thing we can do to make sure we have a healthy, fruitful, and balanced life is to nurture our relationship with Jesus. Nothing you can do will produce better fruit in your life. Working longer and harder at your job won’t do it. Earning more money, buying a bigger house, driving a newer car, wearing nicer clothes, getting a different hair do, none of that will do it.
There is nothing a person can do that will have a more positive impact on life than to be in a healthy relationship with Jesus. Richard Foster once wrote,

 

“The person who concentrates on the root system of his life is going to bear fruit upward, but if he concentrates on the eye-appealing foliage he many end up a rootless failure.”

 

As we near the end of our study on the theme of balance, I encourage you to focus on the health of your relationship with the Lord. Get that right and everything else will be okay.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Balance”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “For his whole life will be given over to the Lord.” 1 Samuel 1:28 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Following God wholeheartedly puts the rest of life in proper perspective.”

 

In recent days I’ve been making the case that our relationship with Christ must be at the center of our life and everything else in life must be aligned to Christ. I’ve asked you to visualize Jesus sitting on a throne in the center of your heart with everything else in your life in proper alignment around the throne. Another illustration I suggested was to imagine the influence of Christ flowing out from His position on the throne in your heart and infusing every aspect of your life. When this happens, all the elements of your life will be in their proper places and yours will be a well balanced and healthy life.

 

The Old Testament prophet Samuel was a man who had this right. As we read from the words of his mother in 1 Samuel 1:28, even before he was born his life was dedicated for service to the Lord. Samuel was then raised in the home of the priest Eli and from his earliest years he was trained in the ways of the Lord. He grew up to be a great man of God who served the Lord well all the years of his life.

 

One of the features of the “Every Man’s Study Bible” is that the editors have selected key Bible figures to serve as models of inspiration for the readers. They then present short character studies to illustrate how that man in the Bible lived in a way that modern men should emulate. One of those men is Samuel. In his case, the editors note that Samuel became a man who was committed, passionate, bold, and fearless. He served the Lord, taught the people, provided great leadership, confronted kings, opposed foreign enemies, and inspired the people all throughout his long life.

 

The secret to Samuel’s strength of character, fortitude, conviction, and boldness was his wholehearted commitment to follow God and be obedient to Him. His relationship with God was at the center of his life and everything else in life flowed from that.

 

In all likelihood you were not raised in a temple under the tutelage of an Old Testament priest, consecrated before birth for a life of service in ministry. But still, there’s a lot to learn from the example of Samuel. His total and uncompromising commitment to the Lord, and his careful nurture of his relationship with Him was the key to his successful life. The same can and should be true of us. Get the relationship with the Lord right and all the other pieces of life will fall into their proper places. Following God wholeheartedly puts the rest of life in proper perspective.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim