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Grace Baptist Church of Danville September 12, 2010
Anyone who vainly imagines that he can distinguish between wheat and tares usually goes about the business of weeding the LordÕs garden and pulling up tares with such fervor that the only stalk of wheat left standing in the garden is himself.
Daily Readings for the Week of September 12-19 Sunday Hosea 8-14 Thursday Obadiah 1-Jonah 4 Monday Joel 1-3 Friday Micah 1-5 Tuesday Amos 1-5 Saturday Micah 6-Nahum 2 Wednesday Amos 6-9 Sunday Nahum 3-Habakkuk 3
á Shelby and I will drive to Sylacauga, AL, after this morningÕs services, to visit with Pastor Tommy Robbins and his wife, Robin. Bro. Larry Criss will preach here tonight. á Friday – Sunday I am scheduled to preach for Bethel Baptist Church in Spring Lake, NC, where Bro. Rupert Rivenbark is pastor. Telephone: (910) 497-5627— Email: bzrwrr@charter.net
HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Jenny Bartley-14th Lainey Bradley-15th Schell Plouche-18th HAPPY ANNIVERSARY: Emit and Marlene Long-22nd NURSERY DUTY THIS WEEK Today: Jenny Bartley (AM) Ruth Wall (PM) Tuesday: Shelby Fortner
Christ Made Sin — Don Fortner (Tune: #42 — All Hail the Power CM)
1. ThÕ enormous load of all my guilt Was on my Savior laid, When He, Who knew and did no sin, For sinners, sin was made!
2. ÒAwake, O sword,Ó in furious wrath, Jehovah cried; and He, (The Lamb of God, my Substitute!), Was sacrificed for me!
3. In that same way, by grace and truth, My ransomed soul is made ÒThe righteousness of God in Him,Ó And I from sin am freed!
4. This wondrous mystery of grace, — Salvation, full and free, Shall be the subject of my songs Throughout eternity!
4 Election ÒKnowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.Ó (1 Thessalonians 1:4)
When Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica, he spoke confidently to GodÕs saints there about the indisputable fact of their election. He gave thanks to God for them, their faith in Christ, their love to one another, and the other blessings of GodÕs grace upon them, because he knew that all these things were to be traced to their election unto salvation by God. I know that many have never even heard of GodÕs electing love and grace; and many are terribly confused about it. Here are three practical statements, which may help to clarify some things regarding this soul-cheering, God honoring, gospel doctrine. 1. Election is not the first thing to be learned.
Precious, delightful, important as this doctrine is, it is not the first thing to be learned. We preach this doctrine without apology. I preach it everywhere I go. We teach it in our Sunday School classes, beginning with the toddlers. We are not, in the least, bashful about proclaiming GodÕs electing love. However, it is not our mission in this world to convince people that the doctrine of election is true. A person can go to hell believing election as well as he can go to hell denying it. Our mission is to get sinners to believe, trust, and come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Any sinner who bows to Christ as Lord will have no problem with the doctrine of election. Yet, the first question to be settled in your heart and mind is not, ÒAm I one of the elect?Ó It is impossible for you, me, or anyone else to determine that until the matter of first importance is settled. — ÒDo I trust the Lord Jesus Christ?Ó — ÒAm I a believer?Ó That is the matter of first importance. If you trust the Son of God, your faith in him is the proof of your election. The first thing to be learned is faith in Christ. Where faith is found in the heart, election is believed and loved. 2. GodÕs sovereign election of some to salvation and eternal life in Christ is in no way inconsistent with the promises of God in the gospel.
All the promises of God in Christ Jesus are yea and amen. You may not be able to see how election can be true and the promises of the gospel to sinners are also true; but they are! Hear the promises God makes to sinners in the gospel. Come to Christ, whoever you are, believe on Christ, whatever you have done, trust the Son of God, and these promises are yours! (Read Matthew 11:28-30; Mark 16:15-16; John 3:36; 6:37; 7:37-38; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:8-13; Revelation 22:16-17). 3. GodÕs election, this gospel doctrine of sovereign electing grace does not, to any degree or in any way, remove or destroy your responsibility to obey the gospel.
God commands all men everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). Our responsibility is not derived from the decree of God, but from the Word of God. We are not responsible for what God has purposed; but we are responsible for what he has 5 commanded. We are all responsible to be perfectly holy, but we canÕt! We are responsible to make complete atonement for our sins, but we canÕt! We are responsible to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as our only righteousness and our only redemption, but we cannot even do that! We are, therefore, shut up to GodÕs sovereign grace in Christ! When all things are finished, it shall be said, as we read in Romans 11:7, ÒThe election hath obtained it.Ó And all those elect ones, all who obtain GodÕs salvation say, ÒAmen!Ó
Thank You!
The Lord was pleased, I believe, to grant his blessings upon every aspect of our Bible conference last weekend. Thank you for your generosity, hard work, and warm hospitality, without which the conference could not have been done. Many have expressed to me their great profit from being here and their appreciation for the messages, the music, and the meals. Your unceasing labor of love for the gospel is greatly appreciated by your pastor.
Salvation Purposed and Decreed by God the Father Pastor Henry Mahan
ÒAccording as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.Ó — (Ephesians 1:4-6)
Paul deals with the means of salvation as they were purposed, decreed and prepared by the Father in his eternal counsel.
1. The Father chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, not because we were holy, but that we should be holy. God, in eternity past, determined to have a holy people to populate a new heaven and a new earth; therefore, he chose them in Christ out of AdamÕs fallen race (John 15:16; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Tim. 1:9; 1 Corinthians 1:26-29). 2. The Father predestinated us to be adopted as his own children through Jesus Christ (Acts 13:48; Romans 8:29, 30). God foreordained the persons, the means and the end, or goal, of redemption according to the good pleasure of his own will. 3. The Father accepted us in Christ, which is understood of our persons as righteous, redeemed and sanctified in Christ. He looks upon us in Christ and is well pleased. We are already seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). All of this God the Father has done for the eternal praise of his glorious grace (Ephesians 2:7).
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The Grace Bulletin
September 12, 2010
Grace Baptist Church of Danville 2734 Old Stanford Road-Danville, Kentucky 40422-9438 Telephone (859) 236-8235 - E-Mail don@donfortner.com
Donald S. Fortner, Pastor
Schedule of Regular Services
Sunday 10:00 A.M. Bible Classes 10:30 A.M. Morning Worship Service 6:30 P.M. Evening Worship Service
Tuesday 7:30 P.M. Mid-Week Worship Service
Television Broadcasts in Danville
Channel 6 - Sunday Morning 8:00 A.M. Channel 6 - Wednesday Evening 6:00 P.M. Channel 6 - Friday Evening 7:00 P.M.
Television Broadcasts in Harrodsburg Channel 6 - Sunday Afternoon 3:00 P.M. Channel 6 - Friday Evening 6:00 P.M.
Web Pages http://www.DonFortner.com http://www.FreegraceRadio.com http://www.Grace-eBooks.com
Don Fortner
Listen to sermons at FreeGraceRadio.com |
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