April 13, 2008
Sunday 10:00am WLEX TV Channel 18
It is requested that children under the age of five stay in our nursery
so there will be no distractions during the preaching of the Gospel.
HYMN OF THE DAY
How rich the depths of love Divine
Of bliss a boundless store
Dear Saviour let me call Thee mine
I could not wish for more. (Repeat)
On Thee alone my hope relies
Beneath Thy cross I fall
My Lord, my life, my sacrifice
My Saviour and my all. (Repeat)
How great Thy wisdom power and grace
That in redemption shine
The heavenly hosts with joy confess
The work is all Divine. (Repeat)
Before His face they cast their crowns
Those crowns which Jesus gave
And with ten thousand, thousand tongues
Proclaim His power to save. (Repeat)
(Tune: “Majestic Sweetness” )
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Birthdays
13th – Sarah Byrd 14th – Velena Verenich 15th – Brigette
Gifford 16th – Yvonne Davis 16th – Ann Schuyler
17th – Raven Leigh Bailey 18th – Melissa Virgin
What we call the “Doctrines of Grace” - Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and the Perseverance of the Saints, are true! This is the clear teaching of Scripture. It is also true that the doctrines of Grace are very much like the clothes we wear. They take the warmth of the person wearing them. If the person wearing them is warm…they are. If the person wearing them is cold and lifeless….they are too!
“The simple believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to
his going.” - Proverb 14:15
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There is not a more important verse in the Bible than Habakkuk 2:4 – “The just shall live by his faith.” A mistake on this verse is a mistake on life! It is quoted three times in the New Testament. In Romans 1:17 it is a summary of the Gospel which is the power of God unto salvation. In Galatians 3:11 it is said to be how both Old Testament and New Testament saints alike have been saved. In Hebrews 10:38 it is how believers persevere and do not draw back. It is a summary of the message of the Bible. The just (The Justified), shall live (they have life before God), by faith. They cannot live by their works. Only by faith in Christ. They persevere, “Looking unto Jesus”. This is the “Faith which worketh by love” (Galatians 5:6). I hope this is not merely a doctrine we agree with, but life! “The just shall live by faith.”
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EVERY BELIEVER’S CLOSEST FRIEND
We all have friends, whether friends of the family or friends at work. But
if these friends are not believers, then they should be just “surface
friends”…they cannot enter into any deeper concerns we all have
as believers in this world. We also have close friends, our brothers and sisters
in Christ, with whom we can freely share our thoughts and concerns as we stumble
through this life, warring against our flesh….although some times things
arise that we may not feel comfortable bringing up with our fellow brethren.
This is why I am so glad I have “A friend that sticketh closer than
a brother” (Prov. 18:24). No matter where I am, and what I am facing,
I can bring it before my Savior, my brother, my friend….for He says
we should be “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you”
(I Peter 5:7). Christ is every believer’s closest friend, and how thankful
I am that I can take anything and everything that concerns me to Him…
“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling
of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without
sin, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain
mercy, and find grace to help in time of need”(Hebrews 4:15-16).
- Brian DuFour
I HAVE EVERYTHING
When Jacob was about to see his brother Esau again for the first time since
stealing his birthright and blessing, he anticipated their reunion with tremendous
anxiety. In an attempt to placate his potentially hostile brother, Jacob sent
servants ahead with lavish gifts. When the two finally met in Genesis 33:8,
Esau responded, “What meanest thou by all this drove which I met? And
he [Jacob] said, These are to find grace in the sight of my lord. And Esau
said, I have enough (literally “plenty”), my brother; keep that
thou hast unto thyself.” But Jacob’s confession in verse 11 is
the perspective of every true believer whose portion is Christ, “Take,
I pray thee, my blessing that is brought to thee; because God has dealt graciously
with me, and because I have enough (literally “everything”). And
he urged him and he took it.” A person’s choice of words can speak
volumes about the state of his soul. Esau, not wanting to be outdone by his
brother, said, “I have accumulated a lot of stuff of my own.”
But Jacob, for whom blessing was not calculated by the number of his possessions,
said, “If I gave it all to you Esau, I’d still have everything,
for I have Christ, who is All in all to me!”
- Mark Daniel
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When we are satisfied that we know all truth, and cannot be taught any more,
it is probably that we need to begin at the beginning. One of the first lessons
in the school of wisdom is to know that we are naturally fools, and that man
is growing wise who is growing conscious of his own deficiency and ignorance.
“And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing
yet as he ought to know” (I Cor. 8:2). – C. H. Spurgeon