Oak Hill Baptist Church

Know, speak, and stand, for the truth

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. They will turn away from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” 2 Timothy 4:2-4 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Know, speak, and stand, for the truth”

2 Timothy 4:2-4 is not intended just for preachers and teachers; it applies to all Christians. “Preach the word” means “Declare Biblical truth.” “in season and out of season” means “whether it’s convenient or not and whether people want to hear it or not.” The instruction applies to all of us. We are all to declare Biblical truth – in our churches, yes, but out in the world too. And we are to do it whether doing so is easy or hard, and whether the listeners want to hear it or not.

Paul then goes on to say that the time will come when people (both in the world and in the church) won’t tolerate sound doctrine. Instead, they will find speakers and leaders who will tell them the things they want to hear. Then, as a society, and sadly in some churches, people turn away from the truth and to myths and lies instead.

Such is the situation in our society today and as a Christian community, it’s largely our own fault. Why is it our fault? Because far too many of us are not doing what Paul commanded in 2 Timothy 4:2-4, we are not boldly and confidently speaking and standing for the truth. There are many reasons. One is that we have allowed ourselves to become busy and distracted. We are just caught-up in life. Another reason is fear – fear of the blowback we might get for speaking Biblical truth to a culture that is opposed to it.

But another reason for our silence is that many Christians in our churches are confused about sound doctrine and Biblical truth. They simply haven’t been instructed in it, and therefore they can’t speak about what they don’t know. This isn’t true of all Christians or all churches, but it is a widespread problem.

This Sunday at Oak Hill Baptist we are going to begin a study of the book of Romans. Romans is the clearest, most concise, and most complete presentation of the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith found anywhere in the New Testament. We need to know what Romans teaches, and we need to know it well enough that we can then explain it to others in simple ways that can be easily applied.

I invite you to join us for this study. The service begins at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville.

Let’s encourage each other to know the truth, to speak the truth, and with boldness and confidence, to stand for the truth.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

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Maybe it’s our own fault

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “This disaster happened because the people of Israel sinned against the Lord their God …” 2 Kings 17:7 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Maybe it’s our own fault”

I admit it, I am nostalgic for “the good old days”. I grew up in a “Leave it to Beaver” kind of neighborhood. It was very much an “Andy of Mayberry” world. Looking back, it seemed so simple and safe and innocent. We went to church, we pledged allegiance to the flag, we watched Saturday morning cartoons, and we played outside until the street lights came on.

It was a different time, a different world. By comparison, today’s world seems like the stuff of bad science fiction. They actually have Drag Queen Story Time in kindergarten? And this is a good thing? We’re all supposed to pretend that a man wearing a wig and a dress is really a woman, and I’m being hateful if I point out that in reality, he’s actually a man? How did we get from Andy Griffith to RuPaul, and who’s fault is it?

I find the editorial note in the introduction to the book of 2 Kings in the Experiencing God Study Bible to be both insightful and disturbing. The editors wrote, “The best of times became the worst of times. Why? How could Israel explain the radical change of fortunes? How could God’s people go from being the dominant nation on earth under Solomon to a vassal of Babylon with no land, no temple, no political structure, and no apparent hope? … Second Kings shows that God’s people have themselves to blame for judgment …”

By the time the Biblical narrative brings us to the opening chapters of 2 Kings, Israel was a divided land – they had long since ceased to be a united people and they had spent decades fighting each other. As a society they also increasingly focused on material things instead of spiritual – the people who had been faithful to God had increasingly drifted further and further from God. And as all of this went on, their nation continued to fall apart until eventually, there no longer was a nation.

The best of times became the worst of times, and it didn’t happen quickly. It was slow and progressive. But in time, the nation that was blessed by God found itself under the judgment of God, and it was their own fault.

We Christians often complain about the sad condition of our nation today, but how much of it is our own fault? How responsible are we as a Christian community for the social and cultural condition of our society? Have we gotten increasingly lazy and ineffective about being on-mission with Jesus in our world? Have we become lax in our own standards of morality? Have we forfeited our influence in the world because we have become too much like the world? Maybe much of this is our own fault.

We’ll think more about this tomorrow but for now, please pray that God’s people will stop being complicit and/or indifferent to the moral decay in our land.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Let’s turn the world right side up

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “When they observed the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed and recognized that they had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Let’s turn the world right side up”

The context for what we just read in Acts 4:13 is this: The new church in Jerusalem was exploding with growth and power. People were coming to faith in Jesus by the hundreds, even the thousands. One day, Peter and John were about to enter the temple courtyard when they encountered a lame beggar at the temple gateway. The man was hoping to receive money from them but he received something better instead. In Acts 3:6 we read, “But Peter said, “I don’t have silver or gold, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!” Instantly the man was healed and he jumped up, walked, and praised God.

The people all around were astonished and they too praised God for the miracle. Peter then used the opportunity to preach about Jesus to the gathered crowd. That angered the Pharisees and religious leaders, so they ordered that Peter and John be arrested. When they were finally brought before the ruling council, they confidently answered the accusations made against them, and again used the occasion as an opportunity to speak about Jesus. Peter and John were so confident and so bold that we read in Acts 4:13 the leaders were amazed that these simple fishermen were so sure of themselves and were having such an impact on the city. It caused them to realize that these men had been with Jesus.

But that wasn’t true just of Peter and John. That entire Christian community was on fire for Jesus. They were all bold and confident. Not only were they together and caring for each other (Acts 2:42-47) but they were moving throughout the city caring for those in need, blessing people in the name of Jesus, and telling them the Good News of the Gospel.

It has often been said that those early Christians were turning their world upside down for Jesus, but I don’t think that’s the right way to describe it. They weren’t turning the world upside down they were turning it right side up. With the power of the Holy Spirit working through them, they were changing their city from how it was to how it was supposed to be. They were setting things right.

Can the same be said of us as a Christian community? Are we turning our city, our state, our nation right side up? Does the observing world look at us in amazement and conclude, “Those people have been with Jesus!”?

The Holy Spirit guided those early Christians to overcome persecution, prejudice, politics, social issues, cultural differences, and much more, to powerfully impact their world. The same should be true of us. Let’s focus on the things that really matter. Let’s work together to turn our world right side up.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

The power of community

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” Philippians 2:4 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “The power of community”

This morning I want to continue our thinking from yesterday’s devotional regarding how important it is for each of us to be a “stretcher bearer” – someone who helps to carry the load when a brother or sister is struggling and in need of help.

Yesterday I shared a quote with you from a woman whose family was going through a deep, dark valley – a terrible situation – and her church family and friends supported them and helped to carry them through it. Her statement was “I was hurting badly but I was being loved deeply.” That was said by Carol Kent and was recorded in her book, “When I lay my Isaac down: Unshakable faith in unthinkable circumstances.”

The valley Carol and her family were going through was that her only son committed first-degree murder. Up to the point of pulling the trigger and killing a man, her son had been an outstanding person in every respect. He was a strong Christian, he was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, he was in the middle of a good career as a Navy officer, and he was married with two children. But convinced that his wife’s ex-husband posed a potential threat to their two daughters, he traveled six hours to another part of their state, hunted the man down, and shot him dead in a parking lot in front of witnesses. He was then arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

Carol, her husband Gene, and everyone who knew their son Jason were stunned in disbelief. Carol and Gene’s world quickly fell apart. What would happen to their son now? What about his wife and children? Also, at that time, Carol was a well-known motivational speaker and best-selling Christian author. What would people think? Would she even be able to continue her ministry and if so, how could she encourage, motivate, and guide others through life when her own son was a murderer and her life was falling apart?

It was in this context that Carol experienced the power of good Christian community. She wrote, “I never understood what power of community could do. It’s people in the body of Christ working like a family to sit and cry with you. Holding you. Caring for your needs. Carrying your burdens for a day. Creatively solving problems. Gathering resources. Opening doors of hope. Writing notes of encouragement. Fighting a cause on your behalf. Finding a way when there is no way. Listening. Waiting with you as long as it takes. It’s people “being Jesus” to you.”

I want to remind you today that there is power in good Christian community and chances are, somebody you know needs your help today. I encourage you to be there for them.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Are you a stretcher bearer?

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “Just then some men came, carrying on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed. They tried to bring him in and set him down before him. Since they could not find a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the roof tiles into the middle of the crowd before Jesus.” Luke 5:18-19 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Will you be a stretcher bearer?”

One day Jesus was in a village in Galilee teaching the people. The house was filled to overflowing and a crowd had gathered outside as well. Then, along came some men carrying a paralyzed friend on a stretcher. They obviously believed that if they could just get their friend to Jesus, He could and would heal him. But the crowd was so thick that they couldn’t get into the house. So, they climbed up on the roof, made a big hole in it, hoisted up their friend on his stretcher, and then using ropes they lowered him through the hole in the roof and set him down right at the feet of Jesus.

Imagine the surprised and then amused look on Jesus’ face as bits of debris were falling all around him, and then He sees this stretcher being lowered down from the ceiling. And now, here’s this paralyzed man laying at His feet waiting to be healed. Well, Jesus did heal him, and He forgave the man his sins as well. And, according to verse 20, He did it not because of the faith of the paralyzed man but because of the great faith demonstrated by his friends, “Seeing their faith he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” And (verse 24) “I tell you: Get up, take your stretcher, and go home.”

I read a great statement the other day from a person who was describing one of the deepest, darkest periods of life that she and her family ever had to go through. She said that during that time her church family rallied around them with love, support, and help. With prayers, meals, money, help with daily tasks, and much more, their church family carried them through their ordeal. Her statement was, “I was hurting badly but I was being loved deeply.” Her friends had essentially been stretcher bearers for her and her family. They carried them through their time of difficulty.

That is an essential element of healthy church life and it’s one of the things I love the most about Oak Hill Baptist. We are stretcher bears for each other. As a group we come around the hurting one, we each pick up an end of the stretcher, and together we help to carry our hurting brother or sister through their dark and difficult season of life.

Are you a stretcher bearer? I hope you are. And are you in a church filled with people who are stretcher bears? I hope so because I promise you, the time will come when you will need to be carried. Nobody gets through life without going through deep valleys, and everyone needs help sometimes.

Be a stretcher bearer. Be one of those who can be counted on to be there, to grab an end, and to help carry someone else through a difficult time in life.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

He is risen!

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “The angel told the women, “Don’t be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here. For he has risen, just as he said.” Matthew 28:5-6 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “He is risen!”

Without question, Easter is the most important day of the year on the Christian calendar. Good Friday is the second most important and Christmas is the third. The fact that Jesus was born matters tremendously. The fact that he died on the cross to pay the penalty for your sins and mine is important beyond description. But the fact that He arose from the dead changed everything. As the Apostle Paul taught in Ephesians chapters one and two and in Romans chapter eight, the same power that God used to raise Jesus from the dead is the power He will use to raise you and I to eternal life as well.

The resurrection of Jesus is one of the most provable facts in recorded history. So much so that Billy Graham once wrote, “There is more evidence that Jesus rose from the dead than there is that Julius Caesar ever lived or that Alexander the Great died at the age of thirty-three.”

Throughout history it has been the proof of the resurrection that has led many sceptics and atheists to faith in Christ. C.S. Lewis was one of the most brilliant men of his day, a professor at Oxford College in England. He was also a sceptic of Christianity who eventually came to faith in Christ. He wrote that it was his study of the resurrection that eventually led him to conclude that it is impossible for the Christian faith to not be true.

Entire books have been written by former atheists and sceptics documenting the historicity of the resurrection. Josh McDowell was one them. He was a top law student who decided to use his research skills to prove once and for all that Christianity was a hoax. Instead, his studies led him to the same conclusion that C.S. Lewis arrived at, “It’s impossible for this to not be true.” “Evidence that Demand a Verdict” and “A Ready Defense” are two of Josh’s books that record in detail all the evidence he uncovered that convinced him the resurrection of Jesus absolutely did happen.

Lee Strobel is another of those former atheists. He was an investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune. Different person, same circumstances, same outcome. He set out to prove that Christianity and the resurrection of Christ is all a fraud. Instead, his investigation led him to faith in Christ and then to author a series of books, all based on his research. His book “The Case for Easter” was a New York Times bestseller.

It’s hard to argue with the truth. Jesus lived, He died, and he arose again. So, at Easter, we Christians gather in joyful Easter celebrations. When we do the preacher declares “Christ is risen!” and the people respond in unison, “He is risen indeed!”

Yes, He is risen indeed!

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Why did He die for me?

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Why did He die for me?”

Today is the day we have come to call “Good Friday.” It’s the anniversary of the day that Jesus was crucified. It was not a “good” day for Him, but it sure was for us. It’s the day the price for our sins was paid once and for all and therefore, for us, it was a very good day indeed.

Recently a friend at church gave me another little book of poems. This one was “Poems of Praise and Worship” by Dave Conaghan. One of the poems has the title “Why” and it is about the crucifixion.

Why did He die for me? Why did He go to the Cross?
He was God’s Holy Lamb
Son of the Great I Am.
Why did He suffer such loss?

Why did He die for me? Why was there any real need?
He could have called angels down
And take the crown.
Why did He suffer and bleed?

Why did He die for me? Why did He take my place?
It should have been me
They hung on that tree.
Why such Mercy and Grace?

Why did He die for me? Why did He perish that day?
It was God’s holy plan
To redeem sinful man.
Why would I turn Him away?

Why did He die for us? Pastor John MacArthur says that 2 Corinthians 5:21 (above) explains it. It was so there could be a great substitution. On the one side of the substitution Jesus took the punishment for all of our sins. On the other side we were given all of His righteousness so we would be worthy to enter God’s pure, perfect, and holy heaven. On the cross, Jesus made that possible for us.

I will have more to say about this on Easter Sunday in my sermon at Oak Hill Baptist Church. I invite you to join us for an Easter brunch at 9:00 and for an Easter celebration at 10:00. For now, as a Christian community, on this Good Friday, let’s all take time to prayerfully thank Jesus for bearing our punishment on that cross.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Practice the ministry of presence

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “See how he loved him!” John 11:36

Our thought for today: “Practice the ministry of presence”

Yesterday we held a celebration of the life of my friend Jim. It was held in the beautiful home that he and Cindi designed and built. It was casual and informal as people drifted in and out throughout the afternoon sharing food, drinks, love, and laughter, telling each other our favorite “Jim stories,” and just being with the family. Jim was a good man who accomplished a lot in his life and he left behind a family that loved him very much. He also had many friends and a church family that will miss him.

The people who came to the celebration were practicing an important element of Christian community – the ministry of presence. It was about honoring Jim and his life, yes, but even more than that it was about offering comfort and support to the family. It is often and rightly said that funerals are for the living not for the dead. The person who has passed away is already in eternity and nothing that is said or done at a funeral, memorial service, or celebration of life will effect that person at all. The event is for those who are left behind and who must now get on with life without their loved one.

Jesus practiced the ministry of presence. We see it in the scene in John 11:36. There we read of the death of Jesus’ good friend Lazarus. Jesus was there to comfort the family. Granted, in this case He would also raise Lazarus from the dead afterwards, but He was also there for the family and to share in their grief.

Simply being present for people is an essential element in good Christian community. Whether it’s at a celebration of life, or during a time of sickness, or during any other trial of life, we need to simply be there for each other. It is not a time for preaching, teaching, or mouthing cliches. It is a time to simply carry one another’s burdens and to offer comfort and support.

I encourage all of us to be more intentional about practicing the ministry of presence. Just be there for people.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at http://www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Reject self-pity

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “Aram had gone on raids and brought back from the land of Israel a young girl who served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria, he would cure him of his skin disease.” 2 Kings 5:2-3 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Reject self-pity”

This morning I want to return us to the story of Naaman from yesterday’s devotional. There’s an important person in that story who is often overlooked, and whose role in the outcome goes unnoticed. It’s the servant girl. We know almost nothing about her except that she was a young Jewish girl from Israel who was captured by the army of Aram and brought back to serve as a slave. From that point forward, her life would be one of captivity and servitude – that’s all she had to look forward to.

So, it would be reasonable to expect that she would be resentful and sullen. Probably, out of necessity, she would do her job, serve her mistress well, maybe even paste a phony smile on her face and appear to be happy or even grateful but surely, she would secretly harbor resentment and bitterness over her circumstances, wallowing in self-pity.

But that’s not the way this reads. Instead, the passage paints a picture of a dedicated servant who cared about her master enough to speak-up when she thought she knew of a possible solution to his problem. She didn’t have to do that. She could have secretly relished the fact that Naaman had leprosy, and even though she knew about Elisha and his power to heal, she could have withheld that information. Self-pity does that to people. It makes them self-absorbed, bitter, and resentful.

All too often when our personal circumstances are less than ideal, the temptation is for us to become excessively focused on ourselves and our own circumstances, and even to wallow in self-pity over it. When we do that, we become unaware of, or insensitive to, or simply unconcerned about, what’s going on in the lives of others around us.

The servant girl could have been self-absorbed; she could have wallowed in self-pity; but she didn’t. Instead, she chose to focus on helping someone else, and that resulted in a mighty movement of God, which ended up being recorded in the Bible for people to read about for thousands of years.

A good Christian community is made up of people who, despite their own trying circumstances, continue to be aware of and attentive to those around them. They take their eyes off of themselves and focus instead on being a blessing to others.

I know life can sometimes be hard. But I encourage all of us to reject self-pity and to stay focused on others instead.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at http://www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)

Obedience leads to experience

Good morning everyone,

Our theme for this month: “Christian community”

Our Bible verse for today: “So Naaman went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, according to the command of the man of God. Then his skin was restored and became like the skin of a small boy, and he was clean.” 2 Kings 5:14 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Obedience leads to experience”

Naaman was an army General, a rough, tough, man’s man who served as the commander of the army for the king of Aram. However, at some point he contracted leprosy, a contagious skin disease for which there was no cure. Fortunately for him, there was a young Jewish girl in his household, a slave that was brought from Israel to serve Naaman’s wife. She was aware of a prophet in Israel by the name of Elisha who performed miracles. So, the girl told her mistress that if the master (Naaman) would only go to the great prophet and ask for healing, she was sure a miracle would be performed for him and the master would be healed.

So, Naaman went to Elisha, and he did ask for healing. But instead of Elisha simply saying some words, waving a magic wand, and presto chango there was healing, Elisha instructed Naaman to go to the river and perform an elaborate ritual of cleansing. If he would do that, then the One True God would heal him. But Naaman thought the ritual was ridiculous, and he was even insulted that such a thing was expected of him. So, he refused to do it and he went away in a huff. Finally, some of his assistants convinced him to at least give it a try and when he did, as we read in 2 Kings 5:14 (above), he was indeed healed.

What Naaman learned is a lesson that we need to learn too – obedience leads to experience. We obey first, then we get to experience God. The key is to trust God, obey Him, and then move forward in obedience. Just do what you know you are supposed to do, and trust the rest to God.

This is often where good Christian community comes into play. It was the community around Naaman that eventually convinced him to obey first so he could experience second. (Granted, Naaman and is assistants didn’t have faith in God before the miracle, but I’ll bet they did afterwards!)

Our Christian community does for us what Naaman’s assistants did for him. Sometimes it will be through their words of good counsel and encouragement, but other times they will inspire us by their examples. Try this, look around you and notice the Christians who are clearly experiencing the power of God in their lives. If you look closely, you will also find that they are the ones who are obeying God. They are obeying first and experiencing second.

The fact is that when it comes to practicing our faith and experiencing the power of God in our lives, obedience leads to experience.

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(Join us at Oak Hill Baptist Church every Sunday at 10:00. Join us in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you are a shut-in, join us online at www.YouTube.com/oakhillbaptistcrossville)