Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Isn’t the fast I choose: To break the chains of wickedness, to untie the ropes of the yoke, to set the oppressed free, and to tear off every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the poor and homeless into your house, to clothe the naked when you see him, and not to ignore your own flesh and blood?” Isaiah 58:6-7 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “God wants obedience not religious ritual and good intentions.”

 

Repeatedly in Scripture God makes it clear that He is unimpressed with mindless religious rituals and that our good intentions are meaningless if they’re not followed up with action. He wants our faith to make a real difference in the real world and in the lives of real people.

 

The Israelites were great at religious ritual. They knew the rules, they had the policies and procedures of Temple worship down pat, and they could recite scripture frontwards and backwards. Any yet, God was unimpressed. More than that, He rebuked them. The practice of their faith had become little more than a religious game that they had become good at, but it made little practical difference in their own lives or in the lives of others whom they came in contact with.

 

As the people of God we are to be a constant source of help and blessing in our communities. We are to be a force for good, change agents who make a positive difference in the name of Jesus Christ. As individuals and as a body of believers the church must be intentionally on-mission with Jesus outside the walls of our buildings.

 

In Isaiah 58:8 God goes on to tell us what will happen when we do actually go out to bless people: “Then your light will appear like the dawn, and your recovery will come quickly. Your righteousness will go before you, and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard.”

 

Yes, the Lord’s glory will shine through us and He will use our obedience to bless others. But also, He will use our obedience to bless us. Remember the fresh encounter we’ve been learning about all month? Obedience in action is often the catalyst for a fresh encounter with God. Here’s the rest of that passage from Isaiah:

 

58:9-10: “At that time, when you call, the Lord will answer, when you cry out, He will say ‘Here I am.’ If you get rid of the yoke among you, the finger-pointing and malicious speaking, and if you offer yourself to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted one, then your light will shine in the darkness, and your night will be like noonday.”

 

And in 58:11: “The Lord will always lead you, satisfy you in a parched land, and strengthen your bones. You will be like a watered garden and like a spring whose waters never run dry.”

 

Did you catch that? Put feet to your faith, live it out in a practical way in the real world, being a blessing to real people in need, and spiritually you will be like a watered garden and like a spring whose waters never run dry.”

 

There’s the fresh encounter. It comes through faith in action. Go wants obedience, not religious rituals and good intentions.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “The people worshipped the Lord throughout Joshua’s lifetime and during the lifetimes of the elders who outlived Joshua. They had seen all the Lord’s great works He had done for Israel.” Judges 2:7 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “You cannot live on yesterday’s walk with God.”

 

In the Bible study “Fresh Encounter” Henry and Richard Blackaby note that there is an observable pattern that exists in the lives of God’s people, and which repeats itself with respect to how they walk with God. For a while they are faithful in their walk and they honor Him with their conduct. Then they get spiritually lazy and begin to drift from Him. Then they become progressively more and more involved in unbiblical behavior. God then disciplines then and that then causes the people to repent and to once again walk closely with God.

 

We see that pattern most clearly in the lives of the people of Israel as recorded in the book of Judges. In Judges 2:7 we read of how in the days of Joshua the people were faithful. Then in 2:11 we read that the entire nation began to drift away from God, “The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight.” Then in 2:15, “So they suffered greatly.” And then in 3:9, “The Israelites cried out to the Lord.”

 

What we read about in the lives of those early Jews is a pattern of conduct that is all too common in God’s people throughout the ages. Most of us do at one time have a vital and dynamic relationship with God. But over time the passion often cools and we end up on cruise control, just going through the motions but thinking we are still being faithful. That’s the equivalent of trying to live on yesterday’s walk with God. Because it was good yesterday, we fool ourselves into believing it is still good today.

 

For many Christians that’s the beginning of a downward spiral which leads them away from God, out of church, and often into conduct that is unbiblical.

 

However many other Christians simply stay in a lukewarm condition. They never descend into the depths of serious sin, but neither are they on fire for the Lord anymore. They’re just sort of “being” Christian and “doing” church. That condition is much more common. Our churches are filled with people who are lukewarm and on cruise control.

 

Are you living today on yesterday’s walk with God? Have you been a Christian so long that the practice of your faith has become routine and your passion for God has become lukewarm? Do you even realize that has happened? When Christians drift away from God it’s almost always a subtle thing that happens slowly, almost imperceptibly, over a long period of time but which in the end, leads them to be far from God and they don’t even realize it.

 

I encourage you to spend some extra time today just sitting quietly before God and allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to you about where you are really at in your relationship with the Lord. Then be willing to make changes as needed to get back on track if necessary.

 

God bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?” asked the men. “He is not here, but He has been resurrected!” Luke 24:5-6 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “The resurrection changes everything!”

 

That’s the title of the sermon at Oak Hill Baptist Church this Easter Sunday morning, “The Resurrection Changes Everything!” And it does! When Jesus defeated death and arose from the grave He ushered in a new era in human history. His resurrection from the dead, and then His ascension back into heaven, changed everything. Never before has it been possible for human beings to have such a close and intimate relationship with God. And never before has it been possible to have the hope, peace, and eternal security that faith in Jesus provides.

 

I’m not going to give away the points of the sermon here this morning but I will tell you that the resurrection changes everything in six important ways. I’ll explain tomorrow.

 

If you’re in the Crossville area then I invite you to join us. At 9:00 there will be an Easter Breakfast Brunch along with activities for the children, including an Easter egg hunt. At 10:00 we will enjoy the Easter Celebration Service, beginning with the baptism of a new believer; then lots of special Easter music; interpretive dance; a sermon revealing the six ways in which the resurrection changes everything; and we will conclude with a special event that will be revealed tomorrow.

 

If you’re not in the Crossville area then I encourage you to listen to the service online at www.oakhillbaptist.net. It will be recorded and will be available for you online just hours after the service concludes.

 

Our theme for this month has been “A Fresh Encounter”. We’ve been thoughtfully and prayerfully considering personal spiritual renewal and church-wide revival. That then has the potential to lead to spiritual awakening among non-Christians in our communities. Tomorrow, Easter Sunday morning at Oak Hill Baptist Church, could be your opportunity for a “Fresh Encounter” with God. I look forward to seeing you then.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “This Easter could be the day God begins a mighty movement of His Holy Spirit across our land.”

 

Easter is a time of renewal and awakening. Although every gathering of God’s people can and should be a celebration of Jesus, Easter Sunday is the day each year when we specifically celebrate the great truth that Jesus defeated death, arose from the grave, and that through Him we can have eternal life too.

 

Easter is also the day each year when churches typically experience their highest attendance. Wayward Christians who don’t go to church throughout the year do come on Easter Sunday. Non-Christians too will frequently go to church on Easter. Therefore there is a greater opportunity for a mighty movement of God on this day than perhaps on any other. On no other day throughout the year are there as many people gathered in churches across the land, singing resurrection songs, hearing resurrection truths preached, and seeing Jesus exalted in the lives of His people.

 

So as the people of God who are committed to being on-mission with Jesus to help expand God’s kingdom on earth, this is a day of great opportunity. If we do our part to prepare and to pray and to invite, we will be offering up to God a great opportunity to do a mighty work in our church if He so desires.

 

But we do have to do our part. First, we have to pray. We have to pray that God will move in our individual hearts and then in the hearts of others. Then we have to prepare. The events should be well planned; the buildings should be cleaned; the songs rehearsed; the sermon well-written. And then we must invite. If you invite them they will come. Oh, not all of them, but many of them. In survey after survey people say that they would attend a church service if someone they know invited them – especially on a special day like Easter.

 

Do you plan to attend church on Easter Sunday? I want to invite you to worship with us at Oak Hill Baptist. At 9:00 we will be serving a brunch in the Fellowship Hall. Come and eat with us and enjoy the good company. There will also be special events for the children, including an Easter egg hunt. At 10:00 there will be an Easter Celebration Service. We will begin with the baptism of a new believer. There will be lots of special Easter music, and some interpretive dance along with the music, and an Easter sermon.

 

Will you invite others? A personal invitation from you to a friend, family member, neighbor or co-worker is the best way to invite someone. You can also use this devotional message as a form of written invitation. You can re-send it to those in your email address group, and/or repost it on your Facebook page.

 

This Easter could be the day that God begins a mighty work in our land. But if that is to happen, it will begin in each of our individual hearts. That then could spread to those around us, and then to our church, and then to our community, and then to the state of Tennessee, and then to the USA, but it begins with you and with me.
I hope to see you at Oak Hill Baptist Church this Sunday.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:12-13 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “You will find Him when you seek Him.”

 

One of the greatest truths in all of Scripture is that God wants to be heard and understood by His people. God created people to have a love relationship with Him. That’s your sole reason for existing. God had no other reason to create human beings other than to have a love relationship with us.

 

That being the case, God is always ready and eager to interact with us. It’s the reason He created us to begin with. However it’s also true that God will not force us into a relationship with Himself. He certainly could force us if He wanted to. I mean after all, He is God. He is all-powerful and He could compel and force our compliance if He wanted to.

 

But if He did do that then the relationship would be rather meaningless. We wouldn’t be in a relationship with Him because we wanted to be, out of love, but because we were forced into it. Therefore God creates the opportunity for us to have a close and loving relationship with Him – or not. He even goes so far as to entice us and draw us to Himself, but He will not force us.

 

But to those who will respond, they will find that God is there and that God is ready to have the relationship with us that He created us for. Jeremiah 29:12-13 is just one of many passages in the Bible where God makes it clear that if we will respond to His invitation, we will find Him waiting for us.

 

Sadly, there are many people who never respond to God’s invitation. Many never even reach the starting point of placing their faith in Jesus so that they can have a relationship with the Father. But beyond that, there are many professing Christians who are casual and even ambivalent about their relationship with God. They put little effort into nurturing it and therefore they have little real fellowship with Him.

 

Not only is that tragic for them, but it grieves the Father’s heart. Remember, you were created for this. Having a deep love relationship with the Father is your primary purpose for living. Don’t be content with anything less. He wants to be found by you. And if you seek Him, you will find Him. He has promised.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “How happy are those whose way is blameless, who live according to the Lord’s instruction. Happy are those who keep His decrees and seek Him with all their heart; Turn my heart to your decrees and not to material gain.” Psalm 119:1-2; 36 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Don’t allow your heart to be captured by idols.”

 

The primary reason Christians drift away from God is that we allow our heart to be captured by idols. I’m not talking about idols such as the golden calf of Exodus chapter thirty-two, or the statue of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter three. No, our idols are much more subtle than that. In our day we bow down to the idols of wealth and leisure, of power and stature, of good looks and peer acceptance, to mention just a few.

 

There are many things we can allow into our lives that become so important to us that they actually draw us away from God. Having a good job and a successful career that is advancing in influence and income is a good thing – unless that career becomes a consuming passion in your life and begins to get in the way of other things that should be more important, like your relationship with God and spending time with your family.

 

Saving and investing money is fine – it’s smart and a matter of being a good steward. But it can also become more than a simple matter of good stewardship. It can become an unhealthy obsession. When that happens, your wealth has become your god.

 

Rest, relaxation, and leisure are important parts of a healthy and balanced life. Spending time in the great outdoors playing golf, hiking, fishing, riding a bike, are good things. Unless you’re doing them on Sunday morning instead of going to church as God’s Word instructs. Then the good thing has become a bad thing because it is taking you away from the best thing that God instructed you to do (Hebrews 10:24-25).

 

In Psalm 119 the writer reminds us of the joy that is ours when we keep our priorities straight. When our heart is truly seeking God and our desire is to simply be obedient to His commands, then we will know true joy. The idols of the world, all those things that distract us and draw us away from God, cannot begin to compare to the simple joy of knowing God and being obedient to Him.

 

A fresh encounter with God which leads to spiritual renewal and revival will result in a re-ordering of our priorities. It will restore us and bring us back to the place where God is number one and everything else is lower on the list.

 

I encourage you today to give some thought to what things in your life may have become a sort of idol for you. What is it that has become just a little too important to you and may now be getting in the way of your relationship with God?

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “He gives strength to the weary and strengthens the powerless. Youths may faint and grow weary, and young men stumble and fall, but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:29-31 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “He is there for you.”

 

Sunday night, in our weekly group session of those participating in the Bible study “Fresh Encounter” someone mentioned that her closest times with the Lord seem to come at the lowest points in her life. This person had suffered through the early death of a spouse. She explained that during such times all the minor issues of life fade to insignificance and you find yourself focused like a laser on only those things that truly matter. In her case what mattered were her husband and her Lord.

 

As a result she had a very tender and close time with her husband as she walked with him through that time of dying, and she also had a great awareness of the Lord’s presence with them both. In the middle of all the pain and suffering, they discovered that God was there. The reality of His presence was profound and He did indeed strengthen them.

 

The truth is that God was always there, even before the cancer and the resulting death. It’s not that God suddenly showed up, it’s that they were suddenly focused on Him more intently than they had been before, and that then opened their spiritual eyes to what had always been true.

 

Isaiah 40:29-31 is a great word of encouragement for all of God’s people. It was spoken first and specifically to the nation of Israel in the days of Isaiah, but it’s as true for you and me today as it was for them back then. When we turn to the Lord and patiently wait on Him, bringing Him our pain and sorrows, our weaknesses and fears, He in turn gives us the strength to persevere and to keep going. Such times help us to develop a patient faith in God, a firm trust, and that then helps us to endure even the most difficult of trials.

 

Whatever it is you’re going through today the truth you need to cling to is that He is there for you and He will help you. That’s true whether you’re walking through a deep and dark valley in life, or if your current situation has you on a mountaintop with the sun shining and the birds singing. God is there. He is always there. And He wants you to have a fresh encounter with Him now, in the middle of whatever your circumstances are.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Fresh Encounters”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed by him.” Genesis 18:18 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “God wants to use you to bless others.”

 

The other day an old friend sent me a gift in the mail. It was a beautiful little book by one of my favorite authors, Andy Andrews. The title of the book is “The Butterfly Effect”.

 

The Butterfly Effect is a scientific theory originally developed by Edward Lorenz and presented to the New York Academy of Science in 1963. The theory states, “A butterfly could flap its wings and send molecules of air in motion, which would move other molecules of air, in turn moving more molecules of air – eventually capable of starting a hurricane on the other side of the planet.”

 

Initially the theory was laughed at and rejected by other scientists. But in the half century since then it has proven to be true. All of creation is inter-connected to varying degrees. That’s why destruction of the Rainforest in South America affects weather patterns in Norway.

 

But the Butterfly Effect also holds true for people and for their individual lives. Abraham from the book of Genesis is a great example. From that one man came the world’s three greatest religions, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. And because Jesus Christ was born from the line of Abraham, the entire world was blessed through that one man.

 

But Abraham is simply an extreme example of what’s true of you as well. Your life matters more than you know. People are impacted by you more than you realize.

 

For example, your act of kindness is this moment is a blessing not only to that particular person, but they in turn could be motivated to pay it forward and to bless someone else. And then that person pays it forward, and then the next person, etc. In fact, the recipient of your original act of kindness might remember it ten years from now and be motivated then to go and do likewise. That would mean that your simple act of kindness today spawns acts of blessing and kindness ten years from now, maybe in another part of the country, or maybe in another part of the world, to people you never knew or met. And that’s just one simple example. You can use your imagination to extrapolate this out. That’s the premise of Andy’s book and it’s worth your time to read it.

 

Here are a couple of closing quotes from the book which will give you a feel for it: “You have been created in order that you might make a difference.” “The very beating of your heart has meaning and purpose. Your actions have value far greater than silver or gold.” “Your life … And what you do with it today … Matters forever.”

 

One of the reasons God wants us to be a revived people, people who have a close and intimate relationship with Him and who are living in obedience to His commands, is because He wants to use us to be a blessing to people living in a broken and bleeding world. The healthier your relationship with Him is the more use you will be to Him and the more He will bless others through you.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in nobles.” Psalm 118:6-9 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Trust in the Lord”

 

Who or what do you trust in? It’s an important question because the people or things we depend on the most will to a large extent shape our lives.

 

Most Christians would claim that their trust is in the Lord, but a quick look at their lives might suggest otherwise. Many of us actually trust in our career more than we trust in the Lord. Others are focused on investments and retirement accounts for their financial security rather than on the God of all Provision. Some of us trust more in our spouse for companionship that we do in the Lord. And on it goes.

 

But God is not willing to be second place in our lives – to anything or to anyone. Jobs end, stock markets crash, health fails, spouses die, friends desert us, it’s only the Lord who is always there and who never fails us. Therefore our relationship with Him must be the most important thing in our lives, and it must be to Him that we look first – for everything.

 

I love Psalm 118 because it’s such an upbeat and encouraging Psalm. It begins and ends with the exact same words, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever.” For twenty-seven verses in between, the Psalmist praises and celebrates the Lord’s love, protection, provision, peace, and salvation. This was written by a person who knew God well, who had frequent encounters with Him, and who was intimately aware of God’s presence and activity in His life on an ongoing basis.

 

I believe that the kinds of “fresh encounters” which we’ve been learning about this month are reserved by God for those who are determined to keep Him in first place in their lives. When we trust in Him above everyone else, and above everything else, He touches our heart and enables us to sing with the Psalmist, “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His faithful love endures forever.”

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “A Fresh Encounter”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness, who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own opinion and clever in their own sight.” Isaiah 5:20-21 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Compromise is how God’s people end up drifting away from Him.”

 

In the Bible study “Fresh Encounters”, Henry and Richard Blackaby teach that revival is restorative not normative. In other words, God’s people only need to be revived when they have drifted away from Him. Walking closely and obediently with God should be the normal Christian life. We only need to be revived and restored when we have drifted away from that which should be normal.

 

In Isaiah 5:20-21 the prophet warns us about what is perhaps the most common cause behind God’s people drifting away from Him – cultural compromise. This is the natural human tendency to go along so we can get along. When those around us begin behaving in ways that are contrary to Biblical standards and principles, and those behaviors and activities become increasingly common and accepted, the pressure on Christians to conform – to go along so we can get along – can become intense. That can quickly lead to compromise and drifting.

 

I don’t have the time or space this morning to list examples of how today in our society things that used to be known as evil are now called good; and things that used to be acknowledged as good are now labeled narrow-minded, intolerant, and unacceptable. But that’s a perfect example of good and evil being turned upside down and stood on its head. It is darkness being portrayed as light and light being portrayed as darkness. It is cultural elites who are wise in their own minds and who use clever arguments to mislead others.

 

God uses personal spiritual renewal and corporate revival to call His people back to His standards. He uses such fresh encounters to open our eyes to how far we have drifted from Him and how great our need is to return to Him and to Biblical principles.

 

The lure of the world is always strong, but we have to resist it. The way we resist it is by remaining strong in our faith and firm in our convictions. To do that we have to first have a heart that is truly seeking God and His ways. Then we must know the Bible and resolve to live by it. And finally, we must keep ourselves surrounded with Christian brothers and sisters who share that resolve and who will help us to remain strong.

 

Faithful attendance in a good church is an important way in which we remain strong and on track. I encourage you to attend church this Sunday. If you don’t have a church home then I want to invite you to visit with us at Oak Hill Baptist. Sunday school is at 9:00 and the worship service is at 10:00. At 6:00 we will continue our Bible study “Fresh Encounters”.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim