ZEBULON BAPTIST CHURCH
Weekly Bulletin
Sunday, December 28, 2008

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Psalm 91:1-4

PASTOR'S NOTE
Thank you for your generous gifts to Bridgett and me. I count it a privilege and honor to be your pastor and pray the Lord will continue to bless us together around the gospel for many years.

I will be preaching on Wednesday, Dec. 31 in Wheelersburg, Ohio for the Wheelersburg Grace Church; service begins at 7:00 p.m. Charles Pennington is the Pastor.

No mid-week service here this week!

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
(1Cor. 15:55).

Oh! ye faithful in CHRIST! Rejoice in hope of the glory of GOD. Death hath no longer a sting; the passage through the grave is but the valley of the shadow of death, for the substance is done away. CHRIST hath perfumed the grave with his holy body. It is no longer the territories of the devil, but the chamber of rest to the LORD'S people. From thence, clear views are now seen of the city of the living GOD. "Blessed be the GOD and FATHER of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, who, according to his abundant mercy, hath begotten us unto this lively hope by the resurrection of JESUS CHRIST from the dead!" (1Peter 1:3). Robert Hawker

Take Heed What And How Ye Hear
"If any man hath ears to hear, let him hear. And He said unto them, Take heed WHAT ye hear: with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you: and unto you that hear shall more be given" (Mark 4:23-24).

"Take heed therefore HOW ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that which he seemeth to have" (Luke 8:18).

It is a serious thing to hear the Word of God preached or read. The Lord Jesus Christ said we will be accountable for WHAT we hear and HOW. If by His grace we hear His Word, lay hold of It, act upon It, walk in It; we will be blessed by It and receive more of It. If we walk by faith He will strengthen our faith. If we walk according to His Word, we will receive more strength to walk according to that Word. If we receive the light of His Word and walk in that light, we will receive more light.

BUT . . . if we hear It (His word), but are "not doers of it, we deceive ourselves." If we hear of mercy and are not merciful; if we hear of grace and are not gracious; if we hear of forgiveness, forbearance, longsuffering, kindness, compassion, love, gentleness, hospitality and charity . . . and do not show the same, . . . then that little bit we have will be taken from us . . . "even that which he seemeth to have." That which the mere professor of the faith says he believes, will be proved to be just that . . . a profession only, and not life, light and true saving faith. That unregenerate person will degenerate even further until it is plain they "were not of us" And so, it is a serious thing "what and how we hear." What we hear is the Word of God and a matter of life or death. How we hear It and act upon It proves whether it is a "savour of life to life or death to death."

When the Lord sent His Word through Peter to the house of a man named Cornelius, speaking on behalf of his family and friends that were gathered, he said: "Now therefore are we all here present BEFORE GOD, TO HEAR ALL THINGS THAT ARE COMMANDED THEE OF GOD" (Acts 10:33).

Here are some things to consider as to how we should hear the Word.

1. Listen and hear the Word prayerfully. Cornelius had been praying for a Word from the Lord and the Lord sent that Word through a preacher. Before, during and after the Word, we should be praying, "Lord, I'm here to hear. Please give me ears, a heart to receive, and feet to walk in Thy Word.

2. Listen and hear the Word personally. After the Lord spoke to Simon Peter, Simon turned and looked at John and said, what about him Lord? The Lord said, "What is that to you? Follow me." We should be listening to God's Word for ourselves, not others. We should take the Word very personally and not be thinking, "so and so really needs this." May the Lord speak to us personally.

3. Listen and hear the Word, considering Whose presence we are in. Let us be as Cornelius, who said: "we are here present BEFORE GOD." It is truly GOD'S WORD that we are hearing, not man's. Therefore it is not an option as to receiving It, believing It, and obeying It. As Paul said of the preacher, "As of God, in the sight of God speak we of Christ" (II Cor.2:17); so we should hear that Word as if God did beseech us Himself. With what fear and respect did we did we listen to our earthly fathers when they spoke to us? How much more should we hear and reverence the Heavenly Father when He speaks. "If the Word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward" (Heb.2:2). ". . . If they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from Him that speaketh from Heaven" (Heb.12:25)

4. Listen and hear the Word as precept (command, order, mandate). "Thou hast commanded us to keep Thy precepts diligently (Psa.119:4). We may hear or not hear the words of men without consequence. We may take them or leave them, accept them or reject them . . . But not God's Word. His Word is a command! All of It! Again, let us say with Cornelius and friends, We are here to hear all things that are commanded thee of God. God's Word is to be received, believed and acted upon, with great blessings upon those who do; and sore punishment to those who do not.

Brethren, let us take heed what and how we hear! For it is the Word of the living God.
Pastor Paul Mahan

STEDFAST, UNMOVEABLE, ABOUNDING
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. (1Cor. 15:58).

Because believers have been given the complete victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1Cor. 15:57), we have such a sure and certain hope of forgiveness and pardon from all sins (1John 1:7), full redemption in Christ (Gal. 3:13), total reconciliation in Christ (2Cor. 5:18), everlasting righteousness in Christ (Rom. 4:6), washing of regeneration in Christ (Titus 3:5), and sure and certain hope of a glorious resurrection in Christ (John 11:25; 1Cor.15:51-56) therefore, be steadfast, unmoving and always abounding in the work of the Lord.

Be steadfast; settled in Christ, rooted and grounded in Christ, stand fast (Col. 2:7). Take a stand for the cause of God and truth of the gospel and don't compromise. (Gal. 5:1).

Be unmoveable; wherever the gospel is being denied or challenged be firm, strong, confident in the faith, and in view of the truth. Let nothing shake your faith or move you away from the gospel. Contend for the faith once delivered unto the saints; (Jude 1:3).

Always abounding in the work of the Lord. Always engaged in doing the will of God; in promoting His glory, preaching His gospel and advancing His kingdom. Which means, not only to be engaged in this, but to be engaged diligently, laboriously and excelling in this. You must work and labor in the Lord, under his direction, and by his influence; for without Him ye can do nothing (John 15:5). Not to be saved, but rather because we have been saved by His power and sovereign grace (Eph. 2:8-10; 2Tim. 1:9).

Knowing that our labor in the Lord is not in vain, God will bless the work He has given to us. He will bless His word to the hearts of His people (Isaiah 55:11). "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place" (2Cor. 2:14). Pastor Tom Harding