CALL TO WORSHIP
(Tune – Come Holy Spirit, Heavenly Dove – p. 158)

Thou, Christ, the great Jehovah art,
The Fount of holiness,
And, God with us, Thou art become,
The Lord our Righteousness.

Oh, wash us with Thy blood and clothe,
With Thy pure spotless dress;
Oh, hide us in Thyself, and be
The Lord our Righteousness.

Make us by grace to be indeed
What we in word profess;
Oh, make us like unto Thyself,
The Lord our Righteousness.

Pour on us showers of Thy grace,
Increase our fruitfulness,
That we may yield Thine own to Thee,
The Lord our Righteousness.

So in Thy glorious image raise’d,
May we Thy mercy bless,
And sing forever praise to Thee,
The Lord our Righteousness.

Today: Bible Classes – 10:00 a.m.; Morning Worship – 11:00 a.m.
Messages by Pastor Bill Parker

Television Broadcast: Reign of Grace Television
Sunday morning on WALB-TV @ 9 AM.

Live Streaming – 10:00 and 11:00 a.m. – Sermon Audio web site

Web Sites: Reign of Grace: www.rofgrace.com
Sermon Audio: www.Sermonaudio.com\reignofgrace

Birthdays: Michael Lee – Nov . 20^Th

NO WEDNESDAY SERVICE ON 11/23/16

Hymns for service: Savior, Like A Shepard Lead Us – p. 294
Savior, More Than Life To Me – p. 304

Faith is like breath in an infant's lungs. Breath is not the cause of life; but where there is no breath, there is no life. Even so, faith is not the cause of life, but where there is no faith, there is no spiritual life.

-- John Gill

PREDESTINATION IS NOT FATALISM

Fatalism implies that all events come to pass through the working of a blind, unintelligent, impersonal non-moral force which cannot be distinguished from physical necessity and carries us helplessly within its grasp as a mighty river carries a piece of wood. Predestination teaches that from all eternity God has had one unified purpose which He is bringing to perfection through this world order of events. The power of God is the ability and strength whereby He is able to bring to pass whatsoever He pleases, whatsoever His infinite wisdom may direct, and whatsoever the infinite purity of His will may resolve. – Boettner

The Lord Jesus Christ was “delivered BY THE DETERMINATE COUNSEL AND FOREKNOWLEDGE OF GOD” into the hands of wicked men (Acts 2:23) to establish the ground of the salvation and justification of His people through His finished work of righteousness. As the fruit of His great work of redemption on the cross, God the Holy Spirit brings sinners to hear and believe the Gospel – “And when the Gentiles heard this [the Gospel], they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: AND AS MANY AS WERE ORDAINED TO ETERNAL LIFE BELIEVED” (Acts 13:48). All of this is the work of God’s sovereign, ordained purpose and will to the praise of the glory of His grace in Christ Jesus. -- Pastor Bill Parker

BE ANXIOUS FOR NOTHING

“Be careful [anxious] for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)

Even as believers who by the grace of God trust in the Lord, we still have times of worry and anxiety over so many things in this world and in our nation. This is part of our natural human frailty as well as the remaining corruption of sinful flesh within us. We are to fight this sin and weakness within by keeping our hearts and minds focused upon Christ our Lord and Savior who loves us and gave Himself for us. He saved us, keeps us, and will bring us to glory despite all of the sinfulness and corruption in ourselves and in our world. But let me give you four absolute certainties that we know from God’s Word concerning these matters:

(1) Everything on this earth will change. Nothing will stay the same. Thanks to God, we have enjoyed much freedom and prosperity in this country, but it is not eternal. Only the things that pertain to God will last forever – 1 Peter 1:24-25.

(2) The change will eventually be for the worse not the better. There may be brief moment when things on earth seem a little better to us, but this world is not improving as time moves on. It is a fallen, corrupt, cursed, and dying world – 2 Peter 3:10.

(3) God is in control. No matter how good or bad we think things are, God is still on the throne. It is all going according to His sovereign will and purpose – Ephesians 1:11; Daniel 4:35. This is not stated to make us fatalistic or irresponsible, but it does give us comfort when things seem to be so bad.