A true witness delivereth souls: but a deceitful witness speaketh lies. In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. Proverbs 14:25-27
We welcome missionary Cody Goover and his wife Winna to our service this morning. Cody will bring the gospel message for us today in our Bible study and in our morning worship.
Saved By Grace
"By grace are ye saved," (Eph. 2:8-9) declared Paul as he took the crown off the head of man in every respect and gave all the glory to God. He exalted the Lord God, our gracious Sovereign, Who will have mercy upon Whom He will have mercy (Rom. 9:13-16).
I wish every preacher would proclaim this glorious doctrine. "By grace are ye saved." This is the doctrine that will shake the gates of hell if it is preached. If you are ever to get any comfort or assurance or hope, it will not be in your morality, works, or free will; but it will come from realizing that it is by the grace of God in Christ Jesus that we are saved. What the sun is to the heavens, that is God's grace in Christ to theology. Take away the mercy of Christ in substitution and there is nothing left worth preaching or believing.
Pastor Henry T. Mahan (from his bulletin 1982)
Was Christ a Sinner?
Was Christ a sinner? For many years misguided people have loved to debate this question. The answer is absolutely not! Here is a more important question. Was the sin of God’s elect literally transferred to Christ? The answer is absolutely!
I know that no mortal man can fully understand the imputation of sin to Christ or the imputation of righteousness to God’s elect. That is just fine because our belief in substitution is not based upon what we can understand or logically explain. Our faith is based upon the Word of God. It doesn’t matter if I can understand something. The only thing that matters is what does the Word of God say?
There is no doubt that the Word of God teaches that the sin of God’s elect was literally transferred to Christ. The Word of God says Christ, who knew no sin, was made sin (2 Cor. 5:21). The Word of God says Christ redeemed His people from the curse of the law by being made a curse for them (Gal 3:13). Sin was so literally transferred to Christ that in Psalm 40:12, the Savior called the sin of His people “mine iniquities.”
Sinners like us desperately need to be made righteous. Our only hope of being made righteous is Christ being made sin for us. The imputation of righteousness to God’s elect is only as real as the imputation of sin to Christ. I can only be made truly righteous if Christ truly took my sin and put it away with the blood of His sacrifice.
This glorious truth cannot be understood by worms like us. It can only be believed by God given faith. God give us faith to quit debating and start believing!
Pastor Frank Tate
THE ONLY REASON FOR SALVATION
“I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake” (1John 2:12).
There is only one reason revealed in Holy Scripture that any sinner would be pardoned from all sin. That one reason is Christ alone (Eph.4:32). Christ Jesus was manifested to take away our sin and in Him is no sin (1 John 3:5). The only reason for grace is Christ (John 1:16). The only reason for mercy is Christ (Titus 3:5). The only reason for salvation is Christ (Acts 4:12). The only reason for sanctification is Christ (1Cor. 1:30). The only reason of justification is Christ’s blood atonement (Rom. 5:9; 1 John 4:10). His name's sake includes all these things and much more (Rom. 5:20).
Salvation is not because of our merit, nor our baptism, nor our works, nor our prayers, nor our repentance nor our faith; but for the sake of Christ, His blood, sacrifice and satisfaction; and it reaches to all our sins, original and actual, secret and open, past, present, and future. The only reason for our salvation is not found in us, but rather in the Lord Jesus Christ alone (Isa.43:1-7; 44:21-23).
No wonder Paul proclaimed that he counted everything else as rubbish and loss. May God give us the same testimony in our heart.
“But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith” (Phil. 3:7-9).
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