How Can We be Ashamed of Him?

How can we be ashamed of Him who has saved us with an eternal salvation? Of Him who has called us by His Holy Spirit into His righteousness and to a participation of all His grace? Of Him who redeemed us and made us His own, not according to our works (at any time, either before or after our calling) but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ before the foundation of the world?

The Lord God chose us in Christ, gave His beloved Son to redeem us, would not leave us in sin but called us to Himself and accepted us in the Beloved. To be ashamed of Him, His Word, His kingdom, His blood, His people, or His grace would be unthinkable!

Pastor Henry T. Mahan (bulletin 1985)

WE REJOICE IN TRIBULATION

Romans 5:3-11

After working his purpose in a trial, the love of God toward us fills our hearts by the Holy Ghost. By reminding us of our sin and God’s keeping grace, God grows us in hope that “if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” The end purpose of the trial has come when God brings us to “joy in God [himself] through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the atonement.” That is when God’s love toward us is so magnified in our hearts that we even rejoice in the trial, itself. It is what Paul meant when he said, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2Cor. 12:9-10).

Brethren, some of you suffering serious trials have told me that you are not there yet. James said, “Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” Wait on the Lord because in the Lord’s time, he never fails to give his child the full benefit for which he gave the trial.

Pastor Clay Curtis

Repentance

This matter of repentance is more than mourning over our sins, though mourning is included. The essence of repentance is to change one’s mind about God, Christ, and ourselves. Someone said, “God is not who we think He is, Jesus Christ is more than we think He is, and we are less than we think we are.” Our thoughts of God, Christ and ourselves must be in tune with the Word of God. Until this happens, we have not repented. A sinner is to be submerged in repentance before being submerged in water. “John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4).

Pastor John Chapman

A Sight Of Christ By Faith

A sight of Christ by faith brings peace to the conscience. There is ever a war within, between the flesh and the Spirit, grace and nature, the old man and the new: the motions of sin in our members are ever waring against the law of holiness in our minds: wicked nature is like the troubled sea, which cannot rest; it is continually casting up mire and dirt: but the winds and seas of corrupt nature obey Christ. He says, Peace, be still, and there is a great calm in the soul; for Christ is our Peace, he hath made our peace with God by his blood; he makes and keeps peace in our souls by his presence; our stubborn lusts will fight and reign if Christ be absent from our hearts; therefore we cannot but be glad when we see the Lord.

Pastor David Pledger

The Point Of No Return

While visiting Niagara Falls recently, the tour guide pointed to a place in the river and said, “This spot is called the place of no return…anyone proceeding past this spot will enter the raging rapids classified to be…“survivable.” In my mind, I tried to imagine the horror of someone plunging over the crest of that mighty waterfall to a certain death and then realized…but for the grace of God, that would be the end of every man born in Adam.