Forest Hill Baptist Church

"Violence is a lie, for it goes against the truth of our faith, the truth of our humanity. Violence destroys what it claims to defend: the dignity, the life, the freedom of human beings. Violence is a crime against humanity for it destroys the very fabric of society." Pope John Paul II

Genesis 6:11 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight and was full of violence. (NIV)

Things have not changed very much over the millennia. So what is our only hope? The only answer: Jesus Christ.

Psalm 140:1 Rescue me, O LORD, from evil men; protect me from men of violence. (NIV)

Luke 9:59-62 ⁵⁹  He said to another man, "Follow me." But the man replied, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." ⁶⁰  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God." ⁶¹  Still another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-by to my family." ⁶²  Jesus replied, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God." (NIV)

"Procrastination is the thief of time, but it is much more. It clutters up our lives with an appalling number of half-done things." Cliff Cole

Psalm 12:8 The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men. (NIV)

“Non-Christians will insist that we should keep our religion out of the way of their politics. But the reason for that is not that Jesus has nothing to do with the public realm; it is that they want nothing to do with Jesus as Lord.” —John Howard Yoder

John 6:51 [Jesus said:] "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." (NIV)

1 John 2:15-17 Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever. (NIV)

"If we are not nourished by the Bread from heaven, we will stuff ourselves with crumbs from the world." Erwin W. Lutzer

If you have 50 bottles to be filled with water, you don't take a bucket and dump it out hoping to fill them all. No, you grab the first bottle by the neck, and then you pour in water until it is filled. Then you go on to the next bottle... So many churches think of evangelism as a two- or three-week program, which requires bringing in someone with a big name who draws crowds. I always ask, "Are you training each member of your church to be a witness whenever the opportunity arises?"
—Gonzalo Baez-Camargo

1 Peter 3:15-16 But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. (NIV)

Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of truth and falsehood, for the good or evil side.
James Russell Lowell (1819-1891)

We have reached that cross-roads as a nation: Are we a Christian nation or not? The answer will be decided by the individual choice of millions. Pray that our choice will be Jesus Christ.

Nehemiah 1:4 When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. (NIV)

John 11:25-27 Jesus said to her [Martha], "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" "Yes, Lord," she told Him, "I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, Who was to come into the world." (NIV)

"No person hearing the story of the Resurrection can possibly be any more skeptical of it than were the apostles when they first heard about it. The record shows that Jesus had to go to great lengths to overcome their disbelief. Once he ate an impromptu meal of cold fish and honeycomb—the only food at hand—to demonstrate to one diehard doubter that he wasn't a ghost." Louis Cassels (1922-1974)

"Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime." Martin Luther (1483-1546)

Psalm 100:3 Know that the LORD is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture. (NIV)

Matthew 10:29-31 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. (NIV)

Many people are having their greatest battles over their deepening sense of futility and uselessness. It is important that we grasp God's revelation that every one of us is essential to His great plan for the ages. You will seek answers in vain from fellow men and women. Seek your answers rather from God and His Word. He is sovereign; He is still running His world. God wants us to know that He must have all the parts in order to compose His great eternal symphony. He would have us assured that each one of us is indispensable to His grand theme! -- A. W. Tozer

1 Timothy 6:6-8 But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. (NIV)

"A government big enough to give you everything you want is a government big enough to take from you everything you have." Gerald R. Ford

Joshua 1:7   Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. (NIV)

“A dog barks when his master is attacked. I would be a coward if I saw that God's truth is attacked and yet would remain silent.”  John Calvin (1509-1564)