Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Join in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and pay careful attention to those who live according to the example you have in us.” Philippians 3:17 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Good friends make us better people”   Choose your friends carefully. Your mama told you so and so does the Apostle Paul here in Philippians 3:17. It’s a fact of human nature that over time we become like those we associate with. Paul taught the same lesson in 1 Corinthians 15:33, “Bad company corrupts good character.” Hang around with bank robbers and soon, you too will be robbing banks. Spend your time with a bunch of little old ladies making quilts and soon you will probably be a quilter too.   You get Paul’s point. Surround yourself with other Christians who are as committed to spiritual growth as you are. Preferably find some believers who are older and more advanced in spiritual maturity than you are and observe their lives, learn from them, emulate them.   “Now wait,” you might say, “Jesus is our model, not other people.” And you would be right – to a point. Jesus is our Lord and He is the One we are to model our own conduct after. That’s why it’s so important to study your Bible – especially the four Gospels.   But the fact is that Jesus isn’t here with us in flesh and bones. He’s here in Spirit but you can’t see Him, you can’t hear Him, and you can’t watch Him walking through the situations of daily life. Instead, He has surrounded us with godly men and women within whom His Spirit lives – people who He lives in and works through. We can see Jesus in them.     In the larger passage, as part of his teaching about the joy of growing in spiritual maturity, Paul cautions us to choose our friends carefully. He says we need to surround ourselves with people who are going to have a good godly influence on us. In fact, he concludes this thought in verse 20 by reminding us that we are citizens of heaven, members of the family of God, and therefore we need to live like it. Good Christian friends help us to do that.   Paul is telling us here to carefully observe the people around us, identify those who are living the Christian life well, learn from them, and then do likewise. But not only are we to observe, learn from, and emulate those who are doing it right, but we are also to identify those who are bad examples and we must be sure we don’t follow them. Paul writes about that in verse 18. We learn from good examples and from bad, and we will think more about that tomorrow   I’m so grateful for the good, godly friends God has placed in my life who are good examples for me. How about you? Are there special people in your life that consistently set a good example for you and who could perhaps use a word of encouragement from you today? I urge you to send that person a note – perhaps a text, email, or phone call, and thank them for their good example.   Friends who set a good example help us to be better too.   God bless, Pastor Jim     If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way … In, any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained.” Philippians 3:15;16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “No sour-faced Puritans, please”   This morning, I want to return us to our thinking from yesterday regarding the joy that comes from living rightly. Paul writes that if we are mature and maturing in Christ, we will live like it.   A couple of words of caution are needed here. First of all, don’t be unreasonably hard on yourself about this. None of us are perfect and we won’t be until the day we arrive in heaven. Even the Apostle Paul admitted, here in Philippians chapter three and in other letters as well, that he was still a work in progress. So, don’t make excuses for unbiblical conduct, but also don’t beat yourself up about it either. Confess it, correct it, and move on from it.   Also, as we consider Paul’s challenge to us in verse 16 to live what we profess to believe, we must remember to keep this in the context of the main theme of this letter – “joy”. This life-long transformation known as the process of sanctification is not supposed to be a dark and heavy thing that turns us into a bunch of sour-faced Puritans. We’ve all met people who wear their faith like a heavy old coat – just trudging through their days and suffering for Jesus. But who wants that? Who’s going to be attracted to a faith like that?   A mature faith in Christ is a thing of joy. Remember, the Fruit of the Spirit in your life produces characteristics like love, joy, and peace. As you mature in Christ those things should become more and more a part of who you are. If that’s not the result you’re experiencing then you’re doing it wrong.   That doesn’t mean your life will be trouble free. It won’t be. And it doesn’t mean you should paste a phony smile on your face and pretend that life is all lollipops and gumdrops. It isn’t. But it does mean that the more mature you are as a follower of Christ the better equipped you will be to face all of life with strength and dignity, and with love, joy, and peace.   So, strive for spiritual growth by practicing the basic spiritual disciplines of the Christian life. Live what you profess to believe. And do it all with the joy that is yours as a mature follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. And please, don’t be a sour-faced Puritan.   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this also to you. In any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained.” Philippians 3:15-16 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “The joy of right living”   In the previous passage in Philippians chapter three, Paul addressed the subject of the joy that comes from spiritual maturity. In these verses he writes about the joy of right living. Mature believers are to be consistent in the way they live, holding always to the standard set for us by the Word of God. The Bible is our manual for living. In it, God has given us the clearly established boundaries within which we are to live this set-apart life, honoring Him and growing everyday a little more like His Son and our Lord Jesus Christ.   He says in verse 15 that “all who are mature should think this way.” Paul was saying that “If you are one of us, if you are part of this maturing group of Christ-followers, then you will think this way too.” Think “what” way too? Think the way that Paul has just described in the previous passage. If you are part of the group of maturing Christians then you will acknowledge that God has given us Biblical boundaries within which we are to live and you will do the things necessary to continue growing.   That’s how mature Christians think and live. They don’t engage in unbiblical practices and then make excuses and rationalize why they believe it’s okay to live like that. They don’t keep skipping prayer and Bible study in the mornings because they slept late. They don’t keep missing worship attendance. Instead, they realize how important all of this is, they commit to do it, and then they actually do it. Paul says here that if you are one of us, if you’re part of this group of maturing Christians, then this will be your mindset too.   Then in verse 16 he writes that we each need to live up to whatever truth we have attained. What he means is that the more you know about the Bible and about God’s standards for living, the more responsibility you incur for living a holy life that truly honors the Lord.   Right living produces joy. When you are in a healthy relationship with God and with others because you are living Biblically, your joy will abound. There’s more that needs to be said about this, so we will come back to it tomorrow.   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ … But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12; 13 (CSB)   Our Bible verse for today: “Keep going, you’re not there yet”   I love this passage from Paul found in Philippians 3:12-14 and I find it encouraging. Even after having had a personal encounter with the resurrected Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus, followed by thirty years of intense ministry as the most effective evangelist in the history of Christianity, and even after being selected by God to write two thirds of the New Testament, Paul was still learning and growing as a Christian. Even after all that, he still was not fully mature as a Christian and he still had to make “every effort” to take hold of that maturity.   The passage also tells us that the reason he did it was because Christ had taken hold of him. Jesus had captured Paul’s heart and had a firm hold on him. So, in turn Paul was determined to take a firm hold on Jesus and to continue becoming more and more like Him.   Paul’s ambition was to constantly grow and improve – to be a little better, a little more mature today than he was yesterday. But that would take effort on his part. It’s not magic and it wasn’t going to happen automatically. He had to want it and he had to be willing to work for it. He had to be intentional about it. He had to strive for it. And the way he did that is the same way you and I do it. We pray regularly, we study our Bibles every day, we faithfully gather with other Christians for learning and fellowship and worship, and we regularly engage in acts of service in the name of Jesus. All of that keeps us growing and developing in our faith.   Then in verse 13 he gives us two important coaching tips that he applied to his own life and which would be extremely helpful for anyone who wanted to experience the continuous growth that Paul experienced. The first tip is to acknowledge that you have not yet arrived. Be honest about it. The truth is that none of us are spiritual giants. None of us are super-saints. Compared to Jesus we are all spiritual midgets and there is a lot of room left for growth.   Then the second tip is one that most of us need to pay particular attention to. Paul wasted no time dwelling on his past mistakes and failures. They were dead and gone. There was nothing he could do to change any of it. Instead, he kept his eyes focused forward, constantly stretching, reaching, and striving for what lies ahead.   Now of course, you cannot erase the memory of what happened in the past, nor should you. There are probably important lessons that you should have learned and you should be carrying those lessons forward with you so that you don’t make the same mistakes again. You don’t pretend as if the past never happened, but you also don’t let the past control you or hinder your forward progress. Far too many people are so preoccupied with the past that it steals their joy in the present and it hinders their progress towards the future. Learn from the past but don’t live in the past. Your hope is in Christ, your joy is in Christ, and your future is in Christ. So, strive to grow in Christ.   Paul focused on the things he needed to do so he would keep moving forward in the development of his spiritual growth. We should too. You’re not there yet, so keep going!   God bless, Pastor Jim     If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning, everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect, but I make every effort to take hold of it because I also have been taken hold of by Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Spiritual maturity produces joy”   The most joyful and joy-filled people I have ever known have also been the most spiritually mature. A coincidence? I think not. Spiritual maturity produces joy. In Galatians 5:22-23 Paul writes about the fruit of the Spirit (the character traits of Jesus that the Holy Spirit progressively develops in the lives of His faithful followers). They are “love, joy …” and seven more. Joy is the second character trait of Jesus that the Holy Spirit wants to develop in your life, and spiritual maturity produces that joy.   As we continue our study of Paul’s letter to the Philippians we need to always keep before us the main theme of this letter, which is “joy in Christ.” Every lesson Paul teaches in this letter is designed to increase the joy we experience as a result of our relationship with Jesus.   In this section of his letter Paul writes about how a maturing follower of Christ should live. What he’s referring to here, without actually using the term, is what theologians refer to as “The Doctrine of Sanctification”. “Sanctification” is a fifty-cent theological word that has a double meaning. It means “to set apart” and “to make holy.” So, in its fullest sense when you sanctify something you first set it apart and then you proceed to make it holy.   That’s us as followers of Jesus. In the moment we place our faith in Him for the forgiveness of our sins we are “set apart” for God – we are separated out from the rest of the human race and adopted into God’s heavenly family. We have been “sanctified” – set apart for God the Father. And then from that moment on the rest of our lives are intended to be a process of becoming increasingly holy in thought, word, and deed. The actual process of sanctification is a lifelong transformation designed to make us more and more like Jesus.   And please don’t forget that it is a process and it is lifelong. It occurs little-by-little over a very long period. Until your dying day God will still be working on you. There’s an old saying in the Christian world that goes, “I’m not yet who I should be, but thank God I’m no longer who I used to be.” That should be true of all of us.   In Philippians 3:12 we find that Paul is using himself as an example of the point he is making. Even at this point in his life with Christ – as the famous Apostle Paul, he still had not arrived. He was still a work in progress.   Me too. You too. We all are. But the good news was that God was not done with Paul and He isn’t done with you or me either. There is more spiritual maturity to come and that means there is more joy to come because, spiritual maturity produces joy.   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more.” Philippians 3:4 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Pride comes before a fall”   Pridefulness is a joy-stealer. It is selfish and self-centered and results in a person being preoccupied with themselves. In Philippians 3:4-11 Paul has left his discussion about the dangers of legalism and what a joy-stealer that is, and he shifts his focus to the dangers of pride, and what a joy-stealer it can be. We humans tend to take pride in who we are and in what we have done, and that often leads us to the false assumption that those things – who we are and what we have accomplished, make us better than others and more acceptable to God. It’s a lie.   In Paul’s case he had about the most impressive pedigree a Jew of his day could have. He had been raised in a good Jewish home, he could trace his heritage back to Jacob’s youngest son Benjamin, he was educated and served as a Pharisee, and he was zealous in keeping the Law – to the point of obsession. But none of that made him righteous – instead it just made him mean. Paul, as the Pharisee Saul, was a fire-breathing fundamentalist who stormed around pronouncing judgment on others, breaking up Christian meetings, arresting the followers of Jesus, and even presiding over their executions. His religious fervor just made him a mean and angry man.   But Paul’s point here was that none of the things he just cited about himself made him acceptable in the eyes of God. His religious fervor didn’t, his great education didn’t, his professional achievements didn’t – there was nothing he was or had achieved that made him acceptable in God’s eyes. It was his faith in Christ that did it. Therefore, Paul considered everything else to be rubbish and unimportant by comparison to his faith in Christ.   At one time in Paul’s life all those things did matter to him – a lot. He was excessively proud of his Jewish heritage, and of his education, and of his professional achievements, and of his position as a Pharisee. And he did believe those things made him more acceptable in God’s eyes and better than everyone else. But they didn’t. It was a lie.   Your situation is probably different from Paul’s. Your credentials aren’t the same as his. You aren’t from the tribe of Benjamin. But you are from the USA, a “Christian” nation, right? How proud of you of that. Are you a better person and more acceptable to God because you were born in the USA instead of in Zimbabwe?   You probably weren’t raised in a strict Jewish home, but how about in a strict Christian home? Are you more pleasing and acceptable to God because your childhood home had a Bible and your family went to church?   Maybe you didn’t sit at the feet of the great Rabbi Gamaliel and receive the best education available to a Jewish boy in Paul’s day, but have you gone to college and do you have some degrees? Does your education make you better than anyone else and more acceptable to God? And maybe you haven’t been a Pharisee, but have you had some professional success of which you are proud of? You get the point.   Solomon taught in Proverbs 16:18 that pride comes before a fall. In other words, excessive pride sets us up for a fall. It did for Paul when he was Saul the Pharisee and it can have the same effect in your life and mine. Pride is dangerous and it is a joy-stealer.   God bless, Pastor Jim     If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the (true) circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh …” Philippians 3:2-3 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Watch out for those dogs”   Legalism is such a danger and such a joy-stealer that the Apostle Paul gave us an extensive teaching about it in the middle of his “letter of joy.” Clearly, legalism is something God wants us to avoid getting trapped in. So, let’s continue following Paul’s teaching about the issue:   Here in Philippians, and also in Galatians, Paul labels those who preach and teach legalistic doctrine as “dogs” and “evil workers” and “false teachers”. When he says that they “mutilate the flesh” he was referring to the fact that the Judaizers of his day insisted that Christian men had to be circumcised according to the Old Testament law. The foreskin of the penis had to be cut away in a bloody religious ritual that would symbolize that they really did belong to God. In Galatians Paul said he wished that those who taught such perverted lies would cut away all their own manhood entirely rather than just the foreskin.   When he says that “we” are the “true” circumcision what he is referring to is that the kind of circumcision that matters to God is spiritual circumcision, not physical circumcision. The physical cutting away of the male foreskin was intended to be a symbol for those Old Testament Jews that represented the cutting out of their lives any thought or activity that was in any way offensive to God. True circumcision is cutting sin out of our lives, not cutting skin away from our body. It is a spiritual act not a physical one.   The religious ritual of circumcision that the Judaizers were insisting upon for those Christians was not really any different in spirit from the horsehair shirts the Christians of the middle-ages used to wear; or crawling across the square on all fours like the woman in Mexico City was doing (discussed in earlier devotionals in this series); or the long lists of rules and regulations that some of our fundamentalist churches insist on today. It’s the same legalistic principle and as Paul was pointing out here, such practices are death to true joy and freedom in Christ.   For Paul, grace was primary. Grace was so important to him that he wrote about it more than once, defended it, even fought for it, and willingly suffered to promote it. Paul loved grace and he wanted it for others too.   False teachers who lead people away from grace and into legalism is such a problem that not only has Paul addressed it in other letters, but three times in this single verse he repeats the warning “watch out!” He is warning his readers to not be fooled by the false teachers. Don’t let others impose legalistic practices on you that go beyond what God Himself has clearly required of us in the Bible. Don’t let them steal your freedom and joy that comes to you through grace and as a gift from God.   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh. For we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh …” Philippians 3:2-3 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Embrace grace and live free in Christ”   At this point in his “letter of joy,” Paul continues his discussion about the dangers of legalism and what a joy-stealer it can be in our lives. Since Paul considered this to be such an important issue regarding our ability to fully embrace grace and live free in Christ, it should be that important to us too. So, let’s continue following along as he leads us in our thinking about it.   The reason legalism and all of its rules and regulations can sometimes seem appealing to people is because it takes all the thinking out of the practice of your faith. Legalism essentially provides you with a checklist of dos and don’ts. Then you can just go down the list checking them off and the thinking is that if you do enough of those things, then you will be pleasing and acceptable to God.   Living in grace on the other hand, is much harder. It requires spiritual maturity to be free from long lists of rules and regulations spelled out for you by other people, living instead by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and to do it in a way that truly does honor Christ.     Some Christians engage in what we call “cheap grace.” Cheap grace is when a person abuses their freedom in Christ and uses it to live in a way that is contrary to Biblical principles. But they conclude it is safe and okay to do that because they’re saved anyway. And so, they profess faith in Christ but then engage in behaviors that are unbiblical, like a homosexual relationship. Or they profess faith in Christ but then have sex outside of marriage even though the Bible expressly forbids that. Or they cheat on their taxes, or any number of other behaviors that are clearly wrong. Those are examples of people abusing grace and treating it cheaply.   Spiritually mature Christians live according to Biblical principles and they do it simply out of love for Jesus.  Grace gives us the freedom to live free in Christ under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Legalism, on the other hand, works to control behavior in a heavy-handed and authoritarian manner. That is the exact opposite of what Jesus intended.   Paul has a good deal more to say on this subject – too much for us to consider in a single daily devotional. So, we will pick this back up tomorrow. In the meantime, I urge you to embrace grace and live free in Christ!   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “In addition, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord. To write to you again about this is no trouble for me and is a safeguard for you.” Philippians 3:1 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Live free and joyfully”   Today is “Veteran’s Day” in the USA. It’s the day each year when we honor those who have ever served in the U.S. military and we thank them for their service to our great country. It’s because of their sacrifices that we enjoy the freedoms we do. So, if you have served in the armed forces, thank you for your service!   However, there is a freedom that is far greater than living in a democracy as we do. It’s the freedom that is found in Christ, and so this morning, I want to return us to our thinking from yesterday regarding the dangers of legalism as a potential joy-stealer.   Paul begins this passage by urging his readers to rejoice in the Lord. If we keep that statement in the context of what he writes here about the dangers of legalism, we realize that he is urging us to find our joy in Jesus alone and not in extreme acts of religious rituals like he is about to describe in the upcoming verses. He even goes on in this verse to remind them that he has written to them about this previously and he says that doing so (writing about it again), is for their protection. Obviously, Paul considered legalism to be a supreme danger and a guaranteed joy-stealer and therefore he wanted to circle back and address the issue again.   In all his letters when Paul warned about the dangers of legalism, he was almost always referring to the group known as “The Judaizers.” They were Jews who were professing Christians but who were hanging onto the laws of the Pharisees as well. They taught that to be a Christian you had to observe many of the old laws of the Pharisees too. The Judaizers are always portrayed as stern, demanding, critical, uptight, and very judgmental. They do not come across as relaxed and joyful.   That tends to be true of legalism in general. The primary difference between grace and legalism is that legalism teaches there are lots of rules and regulations and acts of self-denial we must engage in to be more acceptable to God. That’s a dark and heavy way to practice your faith. There’s not a lot of joy in that.   Grace leads us to freedom in Christ and a life of joy. Grace helps us understand that because of what Jesus did for us, we are already fully pleasing and acceptable to God. We then obey Him simply because we want to. We do it out of love. And with that kind of outlook, there is a great sense of freedom and joy.   I encourage you to choose grace over legalism and then learn to live free and joyfully in Christ.   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571

Good morning everyone,   Our theme for this month: “Living with joy”   Our Bible verse for today: “Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the evil workers, watch out for those who mutilate the flesh.” Philippians 3:2 (CSB)   Our thought for today: “Legalism is a joy-stealer”   Bible commentator Max Anders tells the story of how once when he was in Mexico City he went to the central square in the city to visit the great cathedrals which border the square. While he was there, he noticed a peasant woman on all fours, crawling across the square on hands and knees. The square was paved with cobblestones which were irregular in shape and with pointy sharp corners. So, the woman’s hands and knees were getting bruised and cut as she crawled along.   As she slowly made her way across the square to the entrance to one of the great cathedrals, she would periodically stop, rise-up on her knees, fold her hands, bow her head, and pray for a few moments. Then she would get back down on all fours and continue her long slow crawl across the square to the cathedral. It was an act of humiliation and penance on her part as she tried to prove to God how sorry she was for her sins.   You are probably sitting there thinking that it’s not necessary for people to do things like that in order to please God, and you would be right. 1 John 1:9 tells us that if we confess our sins God is faithful and just and will forgive our sins. It’s a matter of God’s grace and not some extreme measures we subject ourselves to. But legalism teaches Christians we have to engage in extreme acts of penance, sacrifice, and self-deprivation in order to please God.   That’s the subject Paul addresses here in the beginning of chapter three of his letter to the Philippians – this letter that is all about living free and joyfully in Christ. In the opening verses of this chapter, he refers to a group of religious legalists known as “The Judaizers.” They taught that in addition to the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, Christian men also had to be circumcised according to the Jewish tradition or they were not really a Christian. Paul was cautioning his readers to reject such thinking. Salvation is found in Christ alone, by grace alone, and not by any additional actions, sacrifices, or rituals.   Sadly, we see modern-day versions of this legalism in parts of the Christian community today. When leaders promote and insist upon practices that go beyond what God Himself requires of us in the Bible – beware! It’s a form of legalism, it is unnecessary, and it is a guaranteed joy-stealer.   Righteousness in God’s eyes is a gift of grace that comes through faith in Christ alone. Beyond that, how to live a life that is pleasing to God is spelled out for us by Him, in the Bible. There is nothing more to it, and nothing less. Beware of legalism – it is a joy-stealer!   God bless, Pastor Jim   If you like what you’re reading in these daily devotionals, and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

Copyright © 2024 Oak Hill Baptist Church, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Oak Hill Baptist Church 3036 Genesis Road Crossville, TN 38571