Our theme for this month: “Changing the tone of the conversation”

Our Bible verse for today: “But the Lord replied to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things …” Luke 10:41 (Amplified Bible)

Our thought for today: “Pay attention to the things that matter.”

The other day a friend and I were having a conversation about why people aren’t as responsive to important things as we think they should be. The actual topic we were discussing in this case was my new book “Getting Along without Going Along: Biblical Sexual Ethics in an Age of Controversy and Conflict”. The book was the product of a team effort. Although I wrote it, others helped with editing, cover design, publishing, and promotion. All of us involved in bringing the book to print believe strongly in the book. Sexual ethics present a difficult issue for Christians of our day and we believe the book conveys an important message in a helpful and easy-to-read format.

So we’ve all been a little surprised by the initial slow sales. It’s not that the book isn’t selling, it is, but we’re surprised by the large number of Christians who have seen the various promotions for it but who haven’t purchased a copy. Because sexual ethics is such an important cultural issue for Christians today, and since this book provides average Christians with accurate Biblical information on the issue, as well as good answers to difficult questions and a clear path forward for engaging the culture, you would think there would have been a better response.

However my friend made an important and helpful observation that I believe to be very accurate (and which Jesus addressed in Luke 10:41). She said, “Jim, people are just completely wrapped up in their own lives. Everyone is just so busy and so distracted that we miss a lot of things that ought to be important to us.”

I think she’s right. Because we’re so busy and so distracted we miss things we would otherwise pay attention to. That being the case, for those who are tasked by God to communicate Biblical truth on important issues, we have to keep at it and try extra hard. People can be reached but it takes extra effort to get their attention.

Yesterday I noted that in the Old Testament God continued to send prophets to speak messages the people of ancient Israel needed to hear. He kept communicating the message to them in hopes that they would hear it. While I don’t consider myself to be a prophet in that sense, I do have a message that is important and which I’m convinced the people of our day need to hear as well. And I am trying to communicate that message to people who are very busy and often distracted with the cares of life. So I continue to promote the book in every way I can.

If you don’t have your copy yet I encourage you to get yours today. You can order one online at www.JimMersereauBooks.com. Remember, all profits from the sales of the book are being donated to the Oak Hill Baptist Church missions and humanitarian relief projects. You can also help to promote it by sharing this message with those in your email address book or by reposting it on your Facebook page.

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Our mailing address is:
Oak Hill Baptist Church

3036 Genesis Road

Crossville, Tn 38571

Our theme for this month: “Changing the tone of the conversation”

Our Bible verse for today: “Still, the Lord warned Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, ‘Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.’ But they would not listen.” 2 Kings 17:13-14 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “It is our job to speak the truth.”

2 kings 17:13-14 is part of a longer passage which is sub-titled by the Bible translators “Why Israel Fell”. In that passage we read that the nation sinned; God sent them prophets to speak words of warning; but the people would not listen. So God punished them and the nation fell.

The other night my youngest son and I were discussing my new book, “Getting Along without Going Along: Biblical Sexual Ethics in an Age of Controversy and Conflict” (available at www.JimMersereauBooks.com). He pointed out that in all of history no great nation has ever remained great. At some point every great nation has fallen. Most of them ceased to exist altogether, like Babylonia and Rome. But even those that have continued to exist, like Egypt and England, they’re just a shadow of their former great selves. In virtually every case those great nations fell because they decayed from within. They abandoned the principles and moral standards that made them great to begin with, and then their moral decadence became like a cancer which ate away at the foundations of their society. After that it was an easy thing for other nations to conquer them.

My son observed that that’s what’s happening in the USA. We’re progressively abandoning our foundational principles of morality and decency. It’s getting so bad that it’s become fashionable to even disrespect our national symbols like the flag and the national anthem, and to scorn our foundational Biblical principles. Unless this trend is reversed it will be the beginning of the end of America’s greatness. Sexual immorality is one of the issues destroying us as a nation and it’s exactly why I wrote my book – to help Christians to have clear, concise, well-reasoned words to speak on the subject of sexual ethics in our day.

In the case of ancient Israel, the Lord repeatedly sent prophets with words of caution and warning, but the people refused to listen. That might be the case in the USA as well. But just as in ancient Israel, the words of caution and warning must be spoken. As was noted in yesterday’s devotional, if we don’t say it, they won’t hear it. But if the truth is spoken, people will at least hear it, and some will respond.

As the people of God it’s our job to speak the truth, whether the nation wants to hear it or not, and whether they respond to it or not.

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Our mailing address is:
Oak Hill Baptist Church

3036 Genesis Road

Crossville, Tn 38571

Our theme for this month: “Changing the tone of the conversation”

Our Bible verse for today: “How, then, can they call on him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.” Romans 10:14-15 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “If we don’t say it, they won’t hear it.”

Yesterday we thought about the fact that our society is putting increasing pressure on Christians to remain silent in the public arena. In television shows and movies Biblical beliefs are scorned and Christians are portrayed as cartoonish buffoons, or worse. The liberal news media focuses on stories about disturbed extremists who profess to be Christians but who behave very badly, and then those news reports are offered in such a way as to suggest those extremists are actually typical Christians. Atheistic college professors bully and ridicule Christian students in the classroom. All of that and more contributes to the pressure Christians feel to remain silent about Biblical issues.

In Romans 10:14-15 Paul instructed us to go into the world, speaking words of truth and Good News. The primary message to be spoken is the Good News that through faith in Christ our sins can be forgiven by God. But along with that primary message, the followers of Christ must also speak-up for Biblical principles as they pertain to the situations we encounter.

In our society today the general population is increasingly Biblically illiterate. People simply do not know what the Bible says about the life situations they’re facing, and they will not know, unless some Biblically informed Christian tells them. How can they know if nobody tells them? If we don’t say it, they won’t hear it.

As was discussed yesterday, the Holy Spirit will give us words and courage. But the words the Holy Spirit gives us are the words we have taken the time to read, study, and memorize. He then brings those truths to our minds at the time we need them. It’s a difficult thing for the Spirit to bring to our mind things we never bothered to put into our mind to begin with. This is why Bible study is so important.

This is also why it’s important to read good books that explain Biblical principles as they pertain to current social issues. That’s the reason I wrote my new book “Getting Along without Going Along: Biblical Sexual Ethics in an Age of Controversy and Conflict”. The book consists of thirty-four short and easy-to-read essays designed to give Christians the basic information we need in order to speak intelligently and confidently about the subject of sexual ethics. If you don’t have your copy of it yet you can get one at www.JimMersereauBooks.com.

If we don’t say it, they won’t hear it. We must be prepared to speak Biblical truth.

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Our mailing address is:
Oak Hill Baptist Church

3036 Genesis Road

Crossville, Tn 38571

Our theme for this month: “Changing the tone of the conversation:

Our Bible verse for today: “Whenever they bring you before synagogues and rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how you should defend yourselves or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that very hour what must be said.” Luke 12:11-12 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Sometimes the tone that needs to be changed is the silence.”

Increasingly today Christians are being silenced in the public arena. We’re being told to keep our beliefs to ourselves, or there are attempts to shame us into silence by portraying Biblical beliefs as archaic and silly. As a result, many Christians choose to be silent rather than face potential opposition or scorn.

This is not okay. We are commanded by Jesus to be His witnesses in the world. We are instructed to promote and contend for Biblical principles in an ungodly society. Granted, doing so can be risky, and it can cost us, therefore we need courage in order to speak up.

Sometimes we mistakenly believe that courage is the absence of fear. It is not. Courage is overcoming your fear and acting anyway. Courage is not letting the fear defeat you and hold you back from doing and saying the things that need to be done and said. Fear is a natural emotion experienced by everyone and it is actually a good thing. Fear alerts us to danger and causes us to be cautious. Courage is a choice to push past the fear and do what needs to be done – albeit cautiously, but taking action nonetheless.

In Luke 12:11-12 Jesus gave His disciples some instructions about what to do when they needed to have the courage to speak-up in situations where speaking-up would not be easy. He told them to rely on the Holy Spirit. He did not tell them to avoid such situations, or to remain silent in them in order to avoid the wrath of the listeners. He told them to look to the Spirit for courage and guidance and then to speak on His behalf. That’s the answer for us too.

Today we live in a society that is increasingly anti-Christian. In a land that celebrates “freedom of speech” Biblical speech is becoming increasingly unacceptable. Our response should not be to remain silent. We must speak-up with confidence and courage, but also with kindness and respect.

If you haven’t already done so, I encourage you to get a copy of my new book “Getting Along without Going Along: Biblical Sexual Ethics in an Age of Controversy and Conflict.” The main theme of the book is sexual ethics, but the lessons and strategies for how to speak-out in difficult situations apply to all subjects. You can get your copy at www.JimMersereauBooks.com.

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Our mailing address is:
Oak Hill Baptist Church

3036 Genesis Road

Crossville, Tn 38571

Our theme for this month: “Changing the tone of the conversation”

Our Bible verse for today: “But he must ask (for wisdom) in faith, without doubting (God’s willingness to help), for the one who doubts is like a billowing surge of the sea that is blown about and tossed by the wind. For such a person ought not to think or expect that he will receive anything (at all) from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable and restless in all his ways (in everything he thinks, feels, or decides). James 1:6-8 (Amplified Bible)

Our thought for today: “Be balanced, measured, and controlled.”

One of the books I’m currently reading is “Mandela’s Way: Lessons for an Uncertain Age”. It’s essentially a summary of Nelson Mandela’s leadership principles. Nelson Mandela, of course, was instrumental in helping to bring an end to the terrible system of racial segregation and institutional discrimination known as “Apartheid” in South Africa.

Mandela was held in prison by the government, as a political prisoner, for twenty-seven years. He was finally released at the age of seventy-one. It was at that time that he led the nation to end Apartheid and to institute a genuine democracy with fair representation for all races. Personally I don’t agree with some of Mandela’s politics, he was a little too left of center for my tastes, but he was a strong and transformational leader who guided an entire society to a new and better chapter in their nation’s history.

One of Mandela’s outstanding character traits, as described by those closest to him, was that he was balanced, measured, and controlled. He was quietly confident, thoughtful, slow to respond, and when he did respond, it was in a balanced, measured, and controlled manner. He did not allow his emotions to drive his responses. He was intentionally and deliberately in control of himself, and he admired those traits in others. The highest words of praise Mandela had for anyone was “That person is balanced, measured, and controlled”. That was his phrase and he used it often. He admired that in others, and it was especially true of him.

Conversely, he was wary in his dealings with those who were not that way. Mandela was not one to be unfairly critical of others, but one of the most condemning observations he would ever offer about someone was, “That person is emotional, overly-sensitive, and easily offended.”

This is the lesson James was teaching in James 1:6-8. There he encourages us to be thoughtful, deliberate, and prayerful, always seeking wisdom from God. He writes that if we’re not that way, we will be like a person tossed about on the sea, double-minded, unstable, and at the mercy of our emotions. Such people typically do not honor God with their responses in difficult and tense situations.

I encourage you to practice being balanced, measured, and controlled in your thinking and speaking. Becoming that way requires prayer and discipline, but it is possible. This is a character trait we can learn, and which the Holy Spirit will develop in us.

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Our mailing address is:
Oak Hill Baptist Church

3036 Genesis Road

Crossville, Tn 38571