Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Samuel said … Why did you not obey the Lord? Why did you pounce on the plunder and do evil in the eyes of the Lord? ‘But I did obey the Lord,’ Saul said.” 1 Samuel 15:17; 19-20 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Partial obedience is disobedience.”

 

1 Samuel chapter 15 records one of the saddest chapters in the life of King Saul. He was instructed by God to lead the armies of Israel to completely wipe out the nation of the evil Amalekites. It was to be a scorched earth campaign. God said the Amalekites were so evil, they were such an offense to Him and such a plague on the earth, that they were to be completely wiped-out, every man, women, child, animal, building, crop – all of it.

 

But Saul didn’t do it. Not completely. Saul spared the life of King Agag, and he led the army to selectively hold out for themselves the best of the plunder. Then, when confronted by Samuel the prophet regarding his failure to fully obey the command of the Lord, Saul lamely attempted to rationalize and justify his actions. He tried to make his partial obedience look like full obedience and then he tried to make the case that it really made sense for him to do it the way that he did, rather than the way the Lord commanded.

 

In their commentary on this passage the editors of “The Leadership Bible” challenge us to consider the question, “What’s your price? What will it take to get you to disobey God and do it your way instead of His?” For Saul all it took was his desire to save the life of a fellow king who he liked, and the opportunity to acquire a little bit of plunder.

 

If you read the history of the nation of Israel you quickly realize that they always had a price. There was always a point at which they decided to do it their own way rather than God’s way. And they always suffered for it. Whenever Israel obeyed God, He never failed to bless them. But whenever they disobeyed Him, He never failed to punish them.

 

So, what is your price? At what point will you decide, “I want what I want and I’m going to do what I want, regardless of the fact that God has clearly instructed otherwise.”?

 

I want you to know that’s it’s impossible for a child of God to intentionally disobey God without suffering for it. There are always consequences. Those consequences may come fast or they may come slow, but they will come and they will hurt.
God has made it clear to us what His standards are and what He expects from us. We have to play by the rules or we will suffer the consequences.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by failing to pray for you.” 1 Samuel 12:23 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “God’s people are to be praying people.
The story is told of a church which, when they heard that a bar was going to be opened in their neighborhood, the people of the church organized a protest movement and petitioned the city council to deny the business permit. After a lot of heated debate the city issued the permit anyway and the bar opened.

 

The people of the church then shifted tactics and began praying that nobody would patronize the bar and that it would go out of business. And sure enough, that is what happened. For some reason, no matter how he advertized or what kind of specials he ran, the bar owner was not able to attract very many customers and he quickly went out of business.

 

Enraged, and convinced that it was the fault of the church, the bar owner sued. In court he made the case that it was because of the prayers of the church that his business failed. The people of the church however, afraid that they might lose the case and suffer a financial judgment against them, insisted that their prayers had nothing to do with it. After considering the claims of both sides the judge observed, “It seems to me that the bar owner believes in the power of prayer but the church people don’t”. Wow. May that never be said about you or me!

 

Let me ask you, “Do you understand how prayer works?” Well that’s ok, neither do I. All I do know, from Scripture, from history, and from personal experience, is that when God’s people pray, things happen. For reasons all His own God has decided that He would work here on earth in concert with the prayers of His people.

 

That being the case, since prayer is so important, it’s one of the rules God imposes upon His people – we are to pray. Examples of the prayers of God’s people are woven all throughout the Bible. Jesus Himself prayed and He taught us how to pray. The Apostle Paul told us to pray constantly and in all things. Samuel told the people of his day that he would have been guilty of sinning against God if he did not pray for them.

 

Our church, Oak Hill Baptist, has a reputation as being a praying church. In our prayer meetings we write prayer letters, many times to people we don’t even know but who have come to our attention by means of a prayer request. We have prayer for that person and then everyone in the meeting signs the letter, just letting the person know that we had special prayer for them.  We then mail it to the person. I can’t count the number of times a recipient of one of those letters responded just to tell us how touched they were by the thoughtfulness of the letter. Recently one of our members gave this testimony, “It’s so comforting to know that this is a praying church and that when you say you will pray, you really do.”

 

I want to encourage you today to pray. Pray a lot. Pray about all things. And when you say you’re going to pray, actually pray. Things can happen in other people’s lives as a result of your prayers for them. That makes prayer both a gift and a privilege. It’s also a responsibility. Since God enables us to pray, since He listens to our prayers, since He answers our prayers, and since He has chosen to work in conjunction with our prayers, He expects us to pray.

 

Praying is one of the rules in God’s kingdom.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

 

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Pay close attention to your life and your teaching; persevere in these things, for by doing this you will save both yourself and your hearers.” 2 Timothy 4:16 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Make a positive impact on others.”

 

God calls us to live lives that honor Him and which have a positive impact on all those around us. It’s a common Biblical theme which is restated frequently all throughout the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments.

 

To show us what that looks like, in the Bible God also gives us examples of such men and women to serve as models for us. Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Deborah, Ruth, Samuel, Elijah, Esther, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Jesus of course, Mary, Paul, James, and Timothy, just to name a few.

 

In each of their cases the way they lived brought honor to God and had a positive impact on those around them. People were paying attention. They were watching and listening and being influenced by the way those godly men and women conducted themselves.

 

This past Sunday in our church we took a few minutes to honor one our men who has had a significant impact in our community. He is an ordained minister who makes his living as a High School teacher and he is the head basketball coach for the boy’s basketball team. The previous week he had celebrated is 100^th win as a coach. But more than just being an effective and winning coach, he uses his position to build into the lives of the young men on his team. He takes the time and makes the effort to really get to know them and to build a deep relationship with them. He offers them counsel about life issues, and he models for them how a godly man conducts himself.

 

The Apostle Paul had a relationship like that with young Timothy. Timothy was Paul’s protégé. Paul built into Timothy’s life. He taught him, counseled him and modeled for him how to live a life of integrity which was pleasing to God and which would impact others in a positive way.

 

This is what God expects of His people. We are to be salt and light in the world interacting with others, blessing them, and modeling for them how a godly man or woman lives. This is one of the primary ways God draws people to Himself – through the good example of those who already belong to Him.

 

One of the rules for Kingdom living is to live in such a way that your words and your actions bring honor to God and have a positive impact on others.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” Colossians 3:23 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Employees and employers both have a responsibility to honor the Lord.”

 

As I write this it is Monday morning and so, the beginning of a new work week for most folks. As we continue our discussion of “Playing by the Rules”, let’s think about what that should look like on the job.

 

The Christian writer Henry Crowell once wrote, “A man’s (or woman’s) business is not chiefly his way of making a living but his altar where he serves the king.” That’s what Paul was getting at in Colossians 3:23. Whatever it is you do, do it with all your heart as if you were doing it for Jesus and not just for your boss.

 

How we conduct ourselves in all areas of life can be, and should be, an act of worship. Our goal should be to please God and to bring honor to Him in all that we say and do. That includes on the job.

 

A Christian should be the best employee the company has. In terms of faithfulness, dependability, respect shown to superiors, kindness and compassion shown to fellow workers, and in terms of striving to do the best job possible, a Christian should be an exceptional employee because the Christian is performing that work as an act of worship in an attempt to please and honor the Lord.

 

But that attitude of excellence, and the virtues cited above, don’t just apply to Christian employees, they apply to employers as well. If you are a Christian, and if the Lord has allowed you the privilege of serving in a leadership position in the workplace, your attitude should be the same as that of the Christian employee. You should conduct yourself as if you are serving the Lord Jesus Christ Himself in the manner in which you exercise your leadership responsibilities. Your position of leadership in the workplace becomes a vehicle through which you can be a blessing to those who work for you.

 

Of course you have a responsibility to the company or organization, you must ensure those under you work well and do their part to accomplish the mission, but that can and should be done in a godly manner, consistent with Biblical principles.

 

If you would like to read an expanded teaching on this subject please see chapter thirteen of my book, “Walking with Paul”. There you will find an exposition of Paul’s teaching in Ephesians chapter six which deals with Christian employees and employers, and how we are each to conduct ourselves in the workplace in a manner that honors the Lord.

 

If you don’t have a copy of that book you can get one at www.JimMersereauBooks.com, or visit us at Oak Hill Baptist Church and I will be happy to give you a copy as a gift.

 

Employees and employers both have a responsibility to honor the Lord in how we conduct ourselves in the workplace. It’s simply a matter of “Playing by the Rules” that God has given us.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure – pressed down, shaken together and running over – will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” Luke 6:38 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “Give generously to others and God will give generously to you.”

 

Jesus was a master at explaining profound spiritual truths in contemporary language and by using examples from everyday life that the people could easily relate to. Such was the case in Luke 6:37-38.

 

In this passage Jesus was teaching about the virtue of having a big, kind, heart and a generous spirit. He taught that God will treat us as we treat others. He told us that we are not to have a judgmental spirit towards others, otherwise God will judge us. He said we are not to condemn others for their mistakes and short-comings, and we ourselves will not be condemned. He tells us to forgive if we want to be forgiven. And then He says we are to give if we want to be given to. It’s the law of sowing and reaping. You reap what you sow.

 

To illustrate His point he used an example from the marketplace that the people would quickly have recognized and understood. It was an example of a generous and kind-hearted merchant selling flour or grain. For the sake of our illustration let’s say it is flour.

 

First, the merchant uses a “good” measure. A “good” measure is a fair measure, it’s an accurate measure – as opposed to a “bad” measure which would be inaccurate and would cheat the customer. So the good measure of flour is poured into the sack. But then the kind merchant presses it down, compresses it so he can pour in more, then he grabs the sack by its sides, shakes it up and down, pounds it on the table to compress it even more, and then with a smile and a chuckle, he continues to pour in even more until the flour is overflowing and pouring over the sides of the bag. It was as much as the sack could possibly hold, and then some.

 

That’s how God blesses His faithful and generous people. Jesus says that not only will you receive a “good” measure of blessing in return but beyond that, it will be pressed down, shaken, compressed, and more blessing will be poured in, and more, until there is so much blessing you can’t take it all in and it’s spilling over.

 

Sound good? Would you like to be blessed like that? Well, “With the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.” – said Jesus. If you want to be blessed generously you must bless others generously.

 

Is this all about money? Not necessarily. Money and provisions are certainly part of it. You can’t out-give God in that respect. But even more than money and provisions this is about spiritual blessings. This is about the fruit of the Spirit experienced in your life. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23.

 

Give generously to others and God will give generously to you. That includes giving money but even more than that, it involves giving blessings. Be a blessing to others and in return God will bless your socks off. Pressed down, shaken together, and overflowing. It’s a rule of the Kingdom. It’s the law of sowing and reaping.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honor your father and mother – which is the fourth commandment with a promise – that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth. “Ephesians 6:1-3 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “Children are to honor and respect their parents.”

 

As we continue our discussion of living life according to the Bible, or “Playing by the Rules”, I would like for us to think about what the Bible teaches with regard to relationships between parents and children. And I don’t just mean children in the sense of minor children, this pertains to adult offspring as well.

 

The Bible is clear that children are to honor and respect their parents. When children are below the age of adulthood and still living under the parent’s roof, they are to obey their parents. Once a son or daughter reaches adulthood and is living independently, the relationship necessarily changes and should become less about obedience and more about honor and respect.

 

Now or course there are exceptions to this. Not all parents are worthy of obedience and respect. Some are abusive, negligent, or even criminal in their behavior and therefore more deserving of prosecution and incarceration rather than obedience and respect. But as a general Biblical principle, children are to obey, honor, and respect their parents.

 

But this is a two-way street. Parents are to honor and respect their children as well. Instruction and discipline is to be fair and reasonable. Love and kindness should characterize the relationship. In Ephesians chapter six Paul begins by telling children they are to obey and honor their parents, but then he also tells parents to conduct themselves in a loving and godly manner towards their children. “Fathers, do not exasperate your children: instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” Ephesians 6:4

 

The Amplified Bible brings out even greater depth of meaning from that verse: “Fathers, do not irate and provoke your children to anger (do not exasperate them to resentment), but rear them (tenderly) in the training and discipline and the counsel and admonition of the Lord.”

 

In addition to the general Biblical principles Paul provides us in Ephesians chapter six, in other places the Bible provides even more specific guidance for the relationship between parents and children (minor children and adults).

 

As with yesterdays teaching about the Biblical model for marriage, there is much more that needs to be said on this subject of relationships between parents and children – more than can be covered in this single devotional message. If you would be interested in reading more on this subject, please refer to chapter twelve of my book “Walking with Paul”. If you don’t have a copy you can get one at www.JimMersereauBooks.com. Or visit us at Oak Hill Baptist Church and I will be happy to give you a copy as a gift.

 

Children are to obey, honor, and respect their parents. The Bible tells us so. But it also provides plenty of guidance for parents to properly love, honor, and respect their children. The Bible is our guide for good relationships between parents and children. We all need to play by these rules.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

 

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Ephesians 5:21 (NIV)

 

Our thought for today: “The Bible teaches us how to have a good marriage.”

 

Yesterday I made the statement that “The Bible is our rulebook”. I imagine some readers bristled at that statement because first and foremost, the Bible is much more than just a list of do’s and don’ts. More than just a list of rules and regulations, the Bible is God’s revelation of who He is and what He is like. But with that said, it is also our guide for Christian living and it is filled with commands and instructions about many important subjects, marriage being one of them.

 

In Ephesians chapter five the Apostle Paul gives us the Biblical model for a good and healthy marriage. It’s based on the concept of “mutual submission.” Paul actually sets-up the discussion in verse twenty-one by telling us that we are to be submitted to one another. He then immediately launches into instructions for husbands and wives on how they are to behave within the framework of marriage. It begins by being submitted to each other.

 

This seems to fly in the face of conventional wisdom. It’s widely believed by many that since the man is supposed to be the head of the household, that must mean that the woman must humbly and quietly assume an inferior role in second place – maybe not barefoot and pregnant, but subservient none-the-less. But such an understanding is not Biblical. Read Ephesians chapter five.

 

It’s true that Biblically the man is required by God to lead his home, but he is to do it in “partnership” with his wife. The man and the woman are equally important within the structure of the marriage they simply have different roles. It’s similar to the make-up of the Holy Trinity. Within the Trinity the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are equally God and equally important, they each simply have different roles. Well, so too the husband and wife within the structure of a marriage.

 

Yes, Paul teaches that the wife is to submit to the leadership of her husband, but he also teaches that the husband is to treat his wife as being more important than Himself, even to the point of sacrificially surrendering his life for hers. Paul says that the husband is to serve his wife and sacrifice for her, just as Christ served and sacrificed for the church.

 

Men, are you serving your wife like Christ serves the church? Are you treating her like your equal partner? Are you submitted to her just as she should be submitted to you?

 

Some men can’t handle that. They’re intimidated by the idea of their wife being a fully equal, and equally important, partner in the marriage who simply has a different role to play. But as Christian author Jill Briscoe once wrote, “A man of quality is not threatened by a woman of equality.”

 

There is much, much more that needs to be said on this but space doesn’t permit it here. For an expanded teaching on this subject please read chapter eleven of my book “Walking with Paul”. If you don’t have a copy of it you can get one at www.JimMersereauBooks.com. Or visit us at Oak Hill Baptist Church and I’ll be happy to give you a copy as a gift.

 

There is no secret about how to have a good marriage. The Bible explains it for us. All we have to do is play by the rules.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

 

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “All Scripture is inspired by God and is profitable for teaching, for rebuking, for correcting, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “The Bible is the rulebook.”

 

Yes, there are rules. Sorry, but that’s just how it is. It’s true that we in the New Testament age live in what is called “The Age of Grace” but that doesn’t mean that there are no rules and therefore everyone is free to make it up for themselves. That would be anarchy not grace (you can read the book of Judges to see what that looks like).

 

The primary reason God gave us the Bible is to reveal Himself to us. Another reason is so He could clearly communicate His will to us. But another reason He gave us the Bible is so that we would have a guide for Christian living. This is what Paul was writing about in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. All Scripture comes to us from God and is meant to provide us with all the structure we need in order to live life within God-ordained boundaries.

 

Now, let’s be honest. We know this. If you’re a professing Christian, and if you’ve spent any time at all in a good Bible-believing Bible-teaching church, then you know this. But we also know that we can be prone to cherry-pick the Scriptures. Sometimes we pick and choose which verses and passages we will accept and obey, and which we will conveniently ignore or attempt to explain away.

 

And so, a man obeys the command about not committing murder, but he finds ways to rationalize in his mind the occasional viewing of porn. His thinking is, “At least I’m not having an affair and cheating on my wife”. Or a woman attends church faithfully, as Hebrews 10:24-25 instructs, but quietly behind the scenes she’s a terrible gossip. But she dresses the gossip up in God-talk by saying, “I’m only telling you this so you can pray for her.”

 

You get the idea. From time-to-time we’re all guilty of this. But some people live this way. Some people have adopted patterns of living which are in direct contradiction to the clear guidance provided by the Bible, and then attempt to rationalize why it’s really ok and understandable.

 

Well, it’s not ok and it’s not understandable. God gave us the Bible for a reason and He didn’t make any mistakes when He wrote it. It’s not as if He just wasn’t thinking about your particular situation when He provided mankind with His guidance on the issue you’re currently dealing with. Therefore the Scriptures about sexual immorality, or financial stewardship, or church attendance, or (fill in the blank) apply as much to you right now as they do to everyone else all the time.

 

“All” Scripture is inspired by God. All of it. So as the people of God we must know it, we must live by it, and in those cases when we are straying from it, we have to correct our behavior and come back into line with it.

 

The truth is that God is smarter than us. He knows what He’s talking about. The best life any of us will ever have is the life that is lived right in the center of His will. That life is described and explained in the Bible. It’s our rulebook.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree of the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day you eat from it, you will certainly die.” Genesis 2:16-17 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “We want what we cannot have.”

 

Recently I saw a humorous post on Facebook. It was a picture of a blazing forest fire. Across the top of the picture the caption read, “Only you can prevent forest fires.” Across the bottom it said, “Darn it Jim, you had one job, just one job!”

 

That’s funny. Modify the joke slightly and it reminds me of Adam in the Garden of Eden. “Darn it Adam, there was one rule, just one rule!”

 

Why is it that we always want the one thing we can’t have? A man has a beautiful loving wife, but his eye wanders and he’s attracted to others. Or, just as common, it’s the woman who wants a man other than her husband.

 

I read a story recently about a wealthy celebrity – a “wealthy” celebrity – who was arrested for shoplifting. She could easily have purchased the entire store! Not just the contents of the store but the entire business. Yet they caught her stuffing a shirt into her purse!

 

Tell a four year old he can have an apple but not a cookie, and then leave the room. Does he head to the fruit bowl for the apple? No. He makes a beeline for the cookie jar!

 

We want the thing which we cannot have. It’s human nature. But, there are consequences. The four year old gets a spanking. The shoplifting celebrity goes to jail. The unfaithful spouse ends up divorced.

 

Adam and Eve had it made. They had the run of the Garden. It was all theirs to use as they liked. They were free to lounge around all day in their birthday suits, luxuriating in paradise, enjoying all the fruits from all the trees – expect the fruit from that one tree. But, (come on, say it with me) “They wanted the one they weren’t allowed to have!”

 

You know the rest of the story. Broken fellowship with God, expelled from the Garden of Eden, difficult work for Adam, labor pains for Eve, a dysfunctional family life with one son murdering the other, and the downfall of the entire human race – all because they didn’t play by the rules.

 

So, in what way are you not playing by the rules God has given us? In every person’s life there is something, and in every person’s life there are consequences. I want to challenge all of us today to give serious thought to how we’re living and then, compare that to the standards God has given us. Let’s be willing to make adjustments now, while we still can, before the painful consequences begin.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim

Good Morning Everyone,

 

Our theme for this month: “Playing by the Rules”

 

Our Bible verse for today: “Mankind, He has told you what is good and what it is the Lord requires of you: to act justly, to love faithfulness, and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (HCSB)

 

Our thought for today: “It’s not that hard.”

 

“Playing by the Rules”- on the face of it playing by the rules seems like the only right thing to do. Playing by the rules ensures fairness and justice, and it also brings order out of chaos and it leads to outcomes that are best for everyone involved. Fundamentally, that’s why there are rules.

 

But the idea of “playing by the rules” is rapidly going out of fashion in our society today. It’s become common to hear about professional athletes who make a science out of breaking the rules in order to gain a slight advantage over their competitors; or of wealthy businessmen who, although they are already rich, skirt IRS rules in order to gain just a little more financial advantage; or elected officials who lie, manipulate, and disregard the Constitution; or of special interest groups who lobby to have laws amended or bent to their own advantage even though doing so will hurt others; and on it goes.

 

It happens in the Christian world too. We know God’s rules. His standards are clear. Yet how often do we decide to simply do what we want to do, regardless of the clearly established Biblical standards, and then we expect God to bless us anyway? We all do it from time-to-time. This is the most serious and grievous example of not playing by the rules because it involves God’s people disobeying Him.

 

But as Micah explained to the Old Testament Jews of his day, obeying God and living according to His standards is really not that hard. In the Bible God established boundaries within which His people are to live. Those boundaries are really very wide and God gives us a lot of room in which to fully enjoy life. But still, there are boundaries, and we do have to stay within them. When we don’t, when we stray outside of those boundaries, there are always consequences.

 

Playing by the Biblical rules is always in our own best interest. It may be out of fashion culturally, but it is always right and it is always best.

 

All this month we will explore the Biblical principle of playing by God’s rules. We’ll think about what those rules are – and what they are not. We will look at examples of people who lived within God-given boundaries and were blessed because of it, and we will consider examples of people who have chosen not to play by God’s rules, and who have suffered as a result.

 

Folks, it’s not that hard. It really isn’t. While it’s true that none of us will ever live a perfect life, and therefore we will from time-to-time break the rules, we can still structure our lives according to God’s standards and then do our best to live within those boundaries. By the time we’re done with this month of devotional messages, it’s my prayer that all of us will have resolved to do exactly that.

 

God Bless,

Pastor Jim