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Grace Baptist Church of Danville

October 22, 2017

 

It is my determination, in everything I preach and write, to glorify God my Savior, the Triune Jehovah, expose sin and leave sinners without excuse before God, call sinners to Christ, comfort, edify, and strengthen GodÕs saints, and inspire in the hearts of GodÕs elect devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. Any subject that is not useful for these goals is not worth thought, let alone discussion by GodÕs ambassador.

 

 

Daily Readings for the Week of October 22-29, 2017

Sunday                Luke 13-14                                                   Thursday       Luke 21-22

      Monday                Luke 15-16                                                   Friday             Luke 23

      Tuesday              Luke 17-18                                                   Saturday                    Luke 24

      Wednesday        Luke 19-20                                                   Sunday                      John 1-2

 

á      We will have our Quarterly Fellowship today. There will be no service here tonight.

á      I am scheduled to preach this Friday through Sunday for Robert Street Baptist Church in Dudley, England. The following Monday and Tuesday, I am scheduled to preach for the Free Grace Fellowship in Ballymoney, North Ireland.

 

Happy Birthday!  Susan Grant-28th     Rickey Dale Birchum-29th

 

Nursery Duty This Week: Today: Nicole Abell   Tuesday: Shelby Fortner

 

They Shall Return to God Don Fortner

(Tune: #497 — When I Can Read My Title Clear —CMD)

  1. Christ Jesus ransomed His elect, from everlasting woe;

And He will keep those ransomed souls, until His grace they know.

  1. The ransom price He paid was blood — (His sin-atoning blood!),

And justice satisfied demands — they shall return to God!

  1. Whatever may oppose, they shall, compelled by grace, come home,

Come home to God by faith in Christ, rejoicing, they shall come!

  1. They shall obtain endless delight, and everlasting joy. —

They shall possess the realms of light, and blessed rest enjoy.

  1. Sorrows, and pains, and sighs shall flee away from their abode;

And their transported souls shall see their Savior and their God.

 

ÒWolves, or false prophets, most often come in sheepÕs clothing. They come dressed in the language of the gospel; they speak of grace, election, particular redemption, depravity. They speak of Jesus Christ. They freely use and quote Scripture. However, they receive not the love of the truth, which means they love not our Lord Jesus Christ, who is himself the Truth. These wolves do not love to lie down in green pastures. Rather, they love to disturb the sheep in those green pastures. They do not love, as sheep, to feed on Christ. Rather, they love to feed on the sheep. Their purpose is only to fleece the sheep, not feed them.Ó                             — Pastor John Chapman

 

Understanding Romans 11

Romans 11:1-36

 

In this chapter God the Holy Ghost openly reveals the mysterious designs and purposes of God both toward Jews and toward Gentiles. It pleased God for four thousand years to confine the knowledge of himself to ShemÕs seed: Abraham and his physical descendants. But, because of the hardness of their hearts, in just judgment God cast them off and sent the gospel of his grace and salvation in Christ to the Gentiles, that he might gather his elect from the four corners of the earth.

 

Without Repentance

Yet, he still has an elect remnant among the Jews, AbrahamÕs physical seed. And in due season it is his purpose to restore, to bring again, that elect remnant to himself. The purpose of God according to election stands firm. — ÒFor the gifts and calling of God are without repentanceÓ (v. 29). Understand this, and rejoice. — ÒThe gifts and calling of God are without repentance!Ó The gifts of the covenant (Ephesians 1:3-6), the gifts of salvation (John 10:26-28), the callings of grace are all without repentance. God never changes his mind. God never alters his purpose. God does not change and cannot change. That is our security (Malachi 3:6; Hebrews 13:8).

 

Judgment and Grace

Paul says, with regard to the Jews who have been cast away, ÒGod hath concluded them all in unbelief.Ó He has shut them out and shut them up in unbelief, and did so justly because of the hardness of their hearts. The physical seed of Abraham, the nation of Israel, is blinded by divine judgment and shut out from God. But that does not imply any change in God.

      GodÕs purpose in doing this is Òthat he might have mercy upon all.Ó That is to say, that he might extend the boundaries of his grace to include his spiritual seed, his elect, throughout the world. God has cut off the natural branches. And in cutting them off, he fulfills his purpose of grace to gather his elect out of every nation to himself in Christ.

 

All Israel Saved

ÒAnd so all Israel shall be saved!Ó — Those words of promise do not suggest or imply in any way that all Jews, all AbrahamÕs physical seed, will be saved. Rather, the Spirit of God declares in verse 26 that all GodÕs chosen, all his elect, all his covenant people, called Òthe Israel of GodÓ in Galatians 6:16, shall be saved. Every sinner loved and chosen of God from eternity, every person blessed of God in Christ with all the blessings of covenant grace before the world began (Ephesians 1:3-6), and every sinner redeemed by ChristÕs precious blood at Calvary (Galatians 3:13-14) shall be saved by the grace of God.

            As the inspired apostle wrote about this wondrous mystery of GodÕs wise, adorable, and good providence, doing all things for the salvation of his elect, to the praise of his own glory, he could not contain himself. His heart erupted in praise to the God of all grace saying, ÒTo him be glory forever. Amen!Ó

 

 

To God be the Glory

Romans 11:33-36

 

We are told repeatedly in the Book of God, ÒThe Lord thy God is a jealous God.Ó A jealous God he is, and well he should be. He is so infinitely great that it is not proper for any portion of his glory be given to, or even shared with another. But poor, fallen man is so proud and arrogant that he is ready, on all occasions, to make himself appear glorious. Proud man, in his hatred of God, would even prefer giving glory to the earth and the creatures inhabiting it than to God. Therefore, the servants of God must be vigilant in claiming for God the honor due unto his name.

 

Our Worship

Can we begin to enter into the worshipful adoration of the great God set before us in this doxology? We cannot understand his wisdom or comprehend his ways. But we can adore his wisdom and submit to his ways. It is not ours to question God. He is not to be judged by us. It is ours simply to worship him with an unquestioning faith. He is free. He does what he will, because he will, as he will, and gives account to none! God alone is sovereign. He gives no reason for his purposes and deeds, except the reason of his own good pleasure.

 

God All in All

Man has no claim upon God. But God has an absolute, sovereign claim upon all his creatures. As Paul puts it in 1st Corinthians 15, God is all in all. God is all in all history. God is all in all people. God is all in all things. God is all in all events. God is all in all time. God is all in all eternity. God is all in all! God is the Origin, Spring, and Fountain of all things. All things come from God to man through the mediation of Christ, the God-man. And all things are for the purpose of GodÕs own eternal glory. All things in time and eternity have their origin in the eternal purpose of God, and are accomplished through the eternal power of God, and will ultimately bring honor to the eternal perfections of God.

 

Unsearchable, Past Finding Out

The more Paul spoke of GodÕs purpose and providence, grace and mercy, wisdom, and power, the more his heart swelled with thoughts of praise, until finally it burst forth. There were no bounds to the praise of the eternal God in PaulÕs heart. And here he freely declares that praise. — ÒO the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out.Ó

      How much of the wisdom and knowledge of God is displayed in the things Paul has shown us in this wonderful, instructive epistle! How little of it is known by the best of men! These wonders of wisdom and grace are not to be cavilled at and objected to, but believed, wondered at, and rejoiced in with awe.

      The reason for PaulÕs praise was just this. — He recognized GodÕs total sovereignty. This was his subject throughout chapters 9-11. Just as God sovereignly hardened PharaohÕs heart in Egypt to save typical Israel, even so, he blinded the eyes of the nation of Israel (John 12:37-41; Romans 11:7; 1 Peter 2:6-8), that he might save his elect, his true Israel, Òthe Israel of God.Ó

 

 

 

The Grace Bulletin

 

October 22, 2017

 

Grace Baptist Church of Danville

2734 Old Stanford Road-Danville, Kentucky 40422-9438

Telephone (859) 576-3400 — 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

 

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