My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye. Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart. Proverbs 7:1-3
Am I Hearing The Truth?
When a person is looking for a church to attend and worship God, that person should never assume that he or she is hearing the truth. Our Lord said in Matthew 7:15 "Beware of false prophets!” They are everywhere, telling every lie known to man! So how can I know whether I'm hearing the truth or a lie? We all must ask ourselves two
questions: Am I hearing God's word? and Who is getting the glory in salvation?Is salvation up to me or did Christ finish it alone?
THE TRUTH is: Christ did it all! (Hebrews 1:3). Christ has already finished it all! (John 19:30). And Christ gets all the glory for salvation! (1 Corinthians 1:31). If a man is not preaching THAT, he's not preaching the word of God. And if he's not preaching the word of God, he's a false prophet!
It's not: THIS is what webelieve… and THAT is what they believe… THE TRUTH is not dependent on what any of us believe! The only thing that matters is: What has God Almighty said in His word? THE TRUTH is not an opinion about the word… THE TRUTH is THE WORD ITSELF! "let God be true, but every man a
liar!" (Romans 3:4)
Pastor Gabe Stalnaker
A Heart Of Thanksgiving
Psalm 40:5
I recently read that somewhere, years ago in New England, there was a day of fasting each month to mourn over the sins of the land. At last, some public official suggested that, instead of the day of mourning each month, they should appoint a feast and thank God for the mercies and blessings which He had given.
I was deeply convicted and strongly impressed by this article. Do we dwell on our troubles and trials so much that we forget to give thanks for our blessings? Instead of counting our blessings, we exaggerate our misfortunes. Instead of praising God for many friends, our minds dwell on two or three contentious persons who wish us evil. Instead of talking about our years of good health, we discuss our hours of pain. Instead of rejoicing in our obedient and loving children, we complain about our prodigals. It is good to fast, mourn over sin, and to take our burdens to the Lord; but it is right to LEAVE THEM THERE!
"A merry heart doeth good like a medicine, but a broken spirit drieth the bones." I plan to take this exhortation seriously and lift both my heart and voice to Him Who is the fountain of all mercies. His mercies far outweigh His chastisements. David said, "Many, O Lord my God, are Thy wonderful works which Thou hast done, and Thy thoughts which are to us-ward. They cannot be reckoned up in order unto Thee. If I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered"(Psalm 40:5).
John Newton once wrote, "Lord, if I have not loved Thee before, let me begin today." Today is a good day to love Him, thank Him, and praise Him. Let this be "The day of beginning again."
Pastor Henry T. Mahan (Bulletin 1982)
WHATSOEVER GOD DOETH
"I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him"(Eccl. 3:14).
This is to be understood of all the decrees of God (Isa. 46:9-12), which are the eternal thoughts of his heart (Acts 15:18). None can hinder His purpose nor change the counsel of his will (Eph. 1:11; Mal. 3:6). His pleasure is always executed (Isa.53:10), His purposes and appointments are always accomplished, never frustrated nor made void (Gal.2:21). Nothing unexpected can turn up to delay the execution of them. Our great God sees the end from the beginning and works all His pleasure to His exact delight.
This is true of all His works of providence and grace (Rom. 8:28). God's eternal and unconditional election of grace is certain and sure, it can never be altered nor reversed, the blessings of it are the sure mercies of David (2 Thes. 2:13; 2 Sam. 23:5). Redemption by Jesus Christ's precious blood is also certain, sure and eternal (Heb. 9:12). All the blessings of grace bestowed on the sinner such as; pardon (Neh. 9:17), justification (Rom. 5:1), adoption (Gal. 4:5), and regeneration (John 1:13) continue forever and are eternal as God Himself (Heb.13:8). There is nothing lacking in the covenant of grace, all things are freely provided and sovereignly bestowed (Rom. 8:32), nothing needs put to it, certainly nothing will ever be taken from it. Believers in Christ Jesus are accepted in the Beloved (Eph.1:6) and stand complete in Him (Col. 2:9-10).
Here is the reason why it must be so, "God doeth it, that men should fear before him." All God's works of grace and providence display His sovereign power and mercy, which demand reverence and awe of His glorious character, "Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him. For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast" (Psalm 33:7-8). The eternal decrees of God don't promote despair, but rather tend to encourage true worship and godly fear. "But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared" (Psalms 130:4).
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