Today’s Speaker: Brother Jim Casey will conduct the 11:00 am service today. Pray for him as he delivers God’s word.
Television Broadcast: Our Reign of Grace Television program is being broadcast on WFXL Fox 31, Channel 4. The program will air every Sunday morning at 11 AM.
Radio Broadcast: Sunday morning at 9:30am on 98.7 FM –WISK. To hear sermons click here
David Alvord – Sept. 20th , Dawson Young – Sept. 23rd.
Everlasting Righteousness
Every time we say "for Thy name's" sake, or for Christ's sake, we are making use of another's claim, another's merit, and conceding or accepting the whole doctrine of imputed righteousness. Every man is daily getting, in some way or other, what he personally has no title to. When a son gets an inheritance from his father, he gets what does not belong to him, and what could easily and legally be diverted from him. When one who is not a son gets an estate by will, he gets what he has no claim to, simply by a legal deed. Human jurisprudence recognizes these transferences as competent and proper, not fictitious or absurd. Man daily acts on these principles of getting what he has no right to, simply because a fellow-man wills it, and law acknowledges that will. Why then should he speak of fictitious transferences in spiritual blessings, proceeding on precisely the same principle? why should he deny the law or process of the divine jurisprudence, by which forgiveness of sins is conferred on him according to the will of another, and secured to him by the claims of another? If earthly law deals thus with him in earthly things, why should not heavenly law deal thus with him in heavenly things?
--- Horatius Bonar
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 4According 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: Ephesians 1:3-4
The doctrine of election does not stand in isolation. He chose a people (1) unto something or with an objective in mind and (2) He chose them in a Person – the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice that God chose a people unto salvation in Christ, that they “…should be holy and without blame before him…” Think on that! God has always viewed the elect, those He chose in Christ unto salvation, as holy and without blame in Christ. The all-knowing God knew, even ordained that these saints would fall along with all the rest of humanity in Adam. And thereby, sin entered so that they were made sinners – not holy, not without blame if judged in their federal head, Adam, or according to their own personal character and conduct. Yet here we see that God always viewed them in Christ as perfectly flawless – having the merits of the obedience unto death (that Christ most certainly would accomplish) accounted unto them. Oh, to be so eternally blessed in Christ!
--- Randy Wages
THE UNCHANGING MESSAGE IN CHANGING TIMES
Many things have changed over the years in this assembly. Some have passed from our midst by death and some have simply chosen not to be with us any more. Some have become a part of us because God has saved them by His grace and brought them to confess Him publicly by identifying with His people in this place. Many circumstances and other things have changed. One thing that has not changed in the years, and I trust by God’s grace will never change, is the message preached. That message is the message of God’s free and sovereign grace in the Lord Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We have sought to set before all who were here to listen, Christ alone as the sole ground upon which God will accept any sinner. The gospel that reveals the righteousness of God is the gospel that has been constantly proclaimed. We have sought to show from the scriptures that God Himself is the Author of salvation. He is the One who chose a people in Christ before the world began, purposing, according to His own will, to be merciful and gracious unto them for Christ’s sake. That God, in the salvation of His people, has imputed, counted and laid upon the Lord Jesus Christ their sins and it was for the “sins of His people that Christ was stricken.” He laid down His life for them and actually paid the debt of their sin which was death. I have showed from the word of God that Christ and the work He successfully accomplished is the whole of our salvation and is a finished, complete work which fully satisfied God, fully honored Him, His holiness and justice and actually saved us from our sins. It is the righteousness of God imputed to us and not our going about to establish our own righteousness that God accepts. Christ was “made sin for us” and we are “made the righteousness of God in Him.” It is by this means that He can be just and yet justify those who believe. That same justice now requires the release and full salvation of all He died for. We have showed what God has said about us, that there is none good, none righteous.. no not one. There is no one who can of themselves come to Christ because they are spiritually dead and unbelieving. Yet, God brings His sheep by giving them spiritual life in the new birth which results in their coming to Christ in faith. They believe the promise of God that He has freely given all things to those who trust in Christ alone, forsake their own works and rely solely upon Him. He saves all who believe on Christ which is to believe the gospel of Christ. God is the Witness to what we’ve preached and we need not the approval of man. While we confess our failures and faults in doing this, we pray for grace from God to continue. May all glory be to Him alone. This I must repeat for as long as He gives us grace to continue. Christ alone must build His church and sustain it!
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