“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;”

Paul’s words to Timothy go out to all the world as an essential part of the Gospel. They are a declaration made to the “politically correct” and “all-inclusive” generation of which we are a part. It comes to modern man who demands open-mindedness, tolerance, religious diversity and all the other such notions that characterize the hour in which we live. They come without apology to men and women who are generally “Polly parrots” parroting all the ideas, phrases and philosophies of their contemporaries. They come without compromise, with demands and well as declaration and with a just spirit of intolerance from God who will allow no rival. They come from God who announces, “I am God and there is none beside me.” There is ONLY ONE GOD! Singular! Likewise it must follow, that being one God, He must be described the same way by all who truly describe Him and that description must be furnished by He Himself. This is the purpose of His giving His Word, it is to declare and reveal Him. If this be the case, then why are there so many different descriptions which necessarily require that there be many different gods! Here is the answer: Men are not getting their descriptions of God from Him! They may take the Bible and pick and choose a verse here and a verse there in order to set before men a god of their own design. He turns out to be a god of all love and no justice, a god of all grace and no judgment and a god of all mercy and no wrath. But the living God declares Himself to be “a just God and a Savior.” Not a just God and not a Savior and neither a Savior and not just. He must be and act consistently with all His attributes and in doing so He must be the ONE God that He is! He will not become a God to each one differently in order to please them or be what they want. He is one God and He is the “one with whom we have to do!” As one God, He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is the same in every age and must be worshipped as the unchanging One. Being this “one God,” Paul ads, “and there is ONE MEDIATOR between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” One way to God, one way to please God, one way to know God, one way to come before God, one Advocate, Mediator, Savior, Representative, and one salvation! “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” All this being true, I want to make sure I know this ONE God! If He has seen need to declare this fact, there must be many counterfeits, many impostors. I want to “know HIM” whom to know is life eternal. I count all but loss that I may know Him. I want to know the one true and living God who says of Himself, “I the Lord am a jealous God.” Jealous with a holy jealousy which can tolerate no other as the object of His creature’s worship and as the Author of His creature’s salvation!

Gary Shepard

Worthless Morality Preaching

The morality-preaching that passes for the gospel in our day is accepted partly because the world has become so immoral in our pursuit of happiness that parents think messages against sexual misconduct are better for their children than messages of how Christ has put away the sin of his people. Fact is the reason we are so immoral and in need of common morality is because we've been so long without the unapologetic preaching of Christ and him crucified. We can never expect morality in the pew if we immorally prostitute the gospel of God's free grace in Christ Jesus from the pulpit.

Clay Curtis

The grace of God influences both the understanding and the affections. Warm affections without knowledge, can rise no higher than superstition; and that knowledge which does not influence the heart and affections will only make a hypocrite.

John Newton

"For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward them that fear Him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:11-12)

To the ancient Hebrew the distance from east to west and “the depths of the sea” represented infinity. God’s forgiveness of our sins in and by the Lord Jesus Christ is infinite. He took away our sins to the farthest reaches of eternal infinity. This is how glorious, powerful, and valuable the blood of Christ shed on the cross is for all for whom He died, was buried, and rose again, all who believe on Him. Christ’s blood resulted in the righteousness by which God justifies all His people. Justification by His grace in Christ results in spiritual and eternal life by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:18). So the fact that He took away all the sins of all His sheep to the farthest reaches of eternal infinity results in bringing all His sheep into the closest communion with the Godhead through Him. Let us never take these great truths for granted, but let us enjoy them in worship, growth, and fellowship.

Bill Parker

“HE MAKETH NO MISTAKE”

My Father’s way may twist and turn,

My heart may throb and ache,

But in my soul I’m glad to know,

He maketh no mistake.

My cherished plans may go astray,

My hopes may fade away,

But I will trust my Lord to lead,

For He doth know the way.

Tho’ night be dark, and it may seem

That day will never break,

I’ll pin my faith, my all in Him,

He maketh no mistake.

There’s so much now I cannot see,

My eyesight’s far too dim;

But come what may, I’ll simply trust

And leave it all to Him.

For by and by the mist will lift

And plain it all He’ll make,

Through all the way, tho’ dark to me

He made not one mistake.

8.6 8.6

A. M. Overton