Contentment

One who is born of the Spirit of God and has a saving interest in Christ is an HEIR OF GOD, is RICH IN FAITH, and has ALL OF HIS NEEDS MET IN CHRIST! He should be content with his lot on earth and be thankful for all things.

One thing is certain: in Christ we have all things that are worth having. “Godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Tim. 6:6). We brought nothing into this world but our sin, and we shall take nothing out. Earthly possessions, honors, and relationships have no value beyond this world; but, to be forgiven of sin and made a joint-heir with Christ Jesus is of the greatest eternal value!

To learn this in heart is to avoid covetousness (which is idolatry) and to enjoy peace and contentment with much or little. “In everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess. 5:18). Pastor Henry T. Mahan (1984)

WHAT FREE WILL DENIES

Before we can see what free will denies, we first have to know what is meant by free will. Free will says that a man’s destiny is dependent upon the choice he makes. His will is free to choose to allow God to save him, or reject God’s offer of salvation. His eternal destiny is determined by his free will.

If I believe my will is free, there are three things I deny. I deny that God is sovereign. I say His sovereignty does not extend to my will. That is a complete denial of His sovereignty. I deny that I am a sinner in the Biblical definition of the word. According to the Bible, men are dead in sins (Ephesians 2:1). That means they are completely unable to do anything to save themselves. Free will is a denial of that. Free will is a denial of free grace. You cannot believe in salvation by grace and free will. Free will is nothing less than salvation by works. The teaching of free will is a denial of the Gospel! Pastor Todd Nibert

Spiritual Blindness

It is not merely that the sinner cannot come to Christ, but he will not come to Christ that he may have life; it is not merely that he cannot see the Truth, but that he loves darkness rather than light, and does not want to see. Sinners are not willing to see. The natural will itself is in bondage. It takes the divine will of God to overcome the wicked will of man by creating life where there was no life. This blindness is more than blindness of the natural eye. It is blindness of heart, blindness of will, blindness of conscience, blindness of understanding, blindness of all things Spiritual. You who are yet blind may raise your objections to my Gospel but you are as unqualified to express an opinion about something you have never seen as a blind man is to argue with you about the color of an object.

Pastor Clay Curtis

Christ Will Do It

Horatius Bonar tells of an awakened soul in Scotland who, in the bitterness of his spirit, set himself to work and pray in order to get peace. He doubled the amount of his devotions, saying to himself, “Surely God will give me peace,” but the peace came not. At last he bethought himself of having a prayer meeting in his house, as a certain remedy; he fixed the night, called his neighbors, and prepared himself for conducting the meeting by writing a prayer and learning it by heart. As he finished the operation of learning it preparatory to the meeting, he threw it down on the table saying, “Surely that will do; God will give me peace now.” In that moment a still small voice seemed to speak in his ear, saying, “No, that will not do; but Christ will do.” Straightway the scales fell from his eyes and the burden from his shoulders. Peace poured in like a river. “Christ will do,” was his watchword ever after.

How many poor sinners today, under the burden of the wrath of God, think that by committing good deeds, they can atone for their sins. How many miss the way of salvation because they refuse to humble themselves and acknowledge that they can do absolutely nothing to merit the favor of God by their own acts of goodness. “Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt, but to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Rom.4:4-5).

Pastor Maurice Montgomery (1939-2015)

Prayer

Prayer is not just saying some words, some prayers cannot even be uttered with words but groans. Prayer is an attitude, it is communion with God all day, every day.

Pastor John Chapman