Mars Hill Baptist Church

Do you often feel that people are looking for ways to criticize you? Do they discount all of your efforts to do the right thing? Do you feel like giving up? When you are down, do others talk about you and try to keep you down? When you see someone doing this to others, does it make you angry? Some years ago, it was stylish to wear bracelets with ‘WWJD’ on them, which meant “What would Jesus do?” In Jesus’ ministry, he faced these things daily. Every time he went about healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, or making a lame man walk again, there were those standing in the background, looking for fault, looking for ways to put him down, discredit his miracles, slander his name and everything he stood for. Indeed, just what did Jesus do in these circumstances?

Bro. William Short took his message from Mark 3:1-6. Jesus had entered a synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. Verse 2 tells us they watched him closely, to see if he would heal on the Sabbath because they wanted to accuse him of breaking the law. Jesus asked the man with the withered hand to step forward. He then said to the others standing and watching, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save a life or to kill?” When no one said anything, Jesus looked around at them in anger. He was grieved by the hardness of their hearts. Jesus then asked the man to stretch out his hand, and when he did, his hand was made whole. The Pharisees immediately went out and began plotting with the Herodians to destroy Jesus.

Would it have been better for Jesus to walk away from the man and refuse to heal his hand? Should the man have said, “That’s okay, Lord, you can heal me another day.” What would you have done? Most of us are so concerned with what we want that we lose sight of what Jesus wants. I don’t think the man with the withered hand cared that it was the Sabbath; he just wanted to be healed. Jesus asked a question to all standing by if it was against the law to do good deeds or to do evil on the Sabbath. Today, most of us don’t even care if we go to church on Sunday, and we certainly don’t expect to be healed when we get there. Some years ago, you would not find a store open on Sunday, because our country reverenced the Lord’s day, but not anymore. Some cities even allow the sale of alcohol on Sunday. Ask yourself this: What would Jesus do? Do you know enough about Christ Jesus to be certain of what he would do?

We need to care about our fellow man, to care enough to share Jesus with everyone we meet. Don’t worry about what anyone thinks of you for doing the Lord’s work. God will honor your good works when you get to heaven. This world is in terrible turmoil today, and it’s with heavy hearts that we think of what the future holds for our children. The truth is, this world is not our permanent home. We are bound for a home in heaven if we know Jesus. So whenever you think of the future, think of everyone you know, and picture in your mind if they will be going up to heaven, or down to a lake of fire to burn for eternity. It’s up to us, as the eyes, legs, hands and hearts of Jesus here on earth today to keep up his ministry. We can’t save anyone, only God can save a lost soul, but we can bring them into God’s house, to hear his word and give them the opportunity to accept him as their Lord and Savior. How did you come to know Jesus? It was through the prayers of Christians, and them asking you to come to church. That’s all it takes. It’s as simple as praying, asking and receiving.

So what did Jesus do? He did the right thing and healed the withered hand. What will you do? That is the question for today. Only you will be able to answer it, and only you will stand before God and give an account of what you did or did not do for Jesus. Amen.

Please pray for our church, the sick, the lost, the hurting, our country, our troops and our schools. Remember those around you who do not know our Lord. Talk to them about Jesus before they meet their destiny. God is great, all the time!

Jackson Chapel Church

Bro. Gary Fant got the morning worship service started off with “Victory in Jesus” and “Heaven’s Jubilee.” Bro. Dennis Smith sang a beautiful song titled “That’s Just God Doing What He Does.”

Bro. Dennis’ text came from Ezekiel 33:10-13: As Christians, we can find ourselves being choked by Satan, and he will take all of our joy from us if we’re not careful. The only way we can get away from Satan’s bindings by is to get on our knees and pray until we get help with the things that bind us. We need to read our Bibles and pray every day, and when Satan comes against us, we will be able to defend ourselves against his attacks. We need to make up our minds to follow Jesus Christ. If we will do that, God will bless us more than we could ever imagine.

The service ended with several coming to pray.

Bro. Gary Fant got the evening worship service started off with “O the Glory Did Roll,” “Where the Roses Never Fade” and “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.”

Bro. Dennis’ text came from Proverbs 22:1-9: As Christians, we need to strive to have a good name, especially in the society we live in today. If we are living our lives for Jesus Christ as we should, we will be faithful to the church. We should also have loving favor for our brothers and sisters in Christ when they are in need. We should love them enough to help that person pray for whatever their need may be.

The service ended with two of our young people giving testimonies. It was truly a blessing to see our young people standing up for Jesus Christ.

Happy Birthday, Thomas Burnett.

Please remember these as you pray this week: the Mike Chancellor family, Jean Mayfield, Alton Cole, the Earl Smith family, Ronald Lynn McGhar, Danny Smith, Nathan Burnett, our service men and women and our lost loved ones.

We are located at 4020 Yellow Leaf Road in Clanton. Our service times are Sunday school: 10 a.m., Sunday worship: 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. and Wednesday Bible study: 7 p.m.