ZEBULON BAPTIST CHURCH
Weekly Bulletin
Sunday, February 8, 2009

O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Psalm 95:1-6

Is It Finished or Not?
And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. (Acts 15: 1).

Now here is the folly of this lie. These men came declaring to the saints-to saints who were already in the state of righteousness and holiness in the new man in Christ Jesus-saints who because of Christ's work of grace performed in them--circumcision of the heart--they were made willing to look away from themselves to Christ alone in whom they were complete-saints who were satisfied with Christ even as God their Father-and these blind men had the audacity to say that something remained for the sinner to do. The lie comes down to this. After all that Christ has done, man must perfect his work. Such a notion is continually cast out by the inner workings of Christ in those whom he truly governs in Spirit. The eternal security of Christ's hand is at stake if such a lie prevails. Christ will not allow it. Pastor Clay Curtis (Pennington , New Jersey)

WHAT IS YOUR REASON?
If a minister compromises the message of grace and the gospel of our Lord Jesus, we begin to search for reasons. If a prominent church member becomes entangled in the world, business, or any number of interests which take him away from the fellowship or causes him to neglect things spiritual, we begin to search for reasons. One might produce a variety of reasons for this departure from Christ and strong attraction to the flesh, but there is ONE CHIEF REASON--THIS PERSON HAS NEVER SEEN CHRIST JESUS, OUR LORD! He has never beheld, in his heart, the great glory, beauty, and sufficiency of Christ. The Lord Jesus has never become to him, "My beloved!"

As Solomon said, "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine" (Song of Sol. 6:3). John said, "He that SEETH THE SON and believeth on Him hath eternal life" (Jn. 6:40). To see Christ as He is, is to lose interest in all others! To see Christ as the ultimate joy, peace, rest, and glory is to cease from all other works and pursuits and enter His rest. To see Christ as God's only anointed Redeemer, complete Saviour, and effectual atonement is to trust Him and Him alone to save and keep us. To see even the REPROACH of Christ to be greater riches than all the treasures of this world is to walk away from them with no regrets and never look back! To even look back is to perish with Lot's wife. But he that seeth the Son knows that nothing back there is worth comparing to Him! Pastor Henry Mahan

WORDS OF WISDOM
The law knows nothing of mercy; the gospel knows nothing else. By the Law I learn that I am guilty, but by the gospel I learn that I am guilty, but by the gospel I learn that I am justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. By the law I learn that I have ruined myself by sin and stand exposed to Divine vengeance, but by the gospel I learn that the Lord Jesus was made sin for me that I might be made the righteousness of God in Him. By the law my hopes are destroyed, and by the gospel my expectations are raised. By the law I am stripped, exposed, condemned, and slain; but by the gospel I am quickened, justified, accepted, and clothed. Milford Hall, Sr.

CONTINUE IN PRAYER
Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak. (Col. 4:2).

Our Lord said in Luke 18:1, "that men ought always to pray and not to faint." Prayer is not a mechanical performance to be seen of men; the Pharisees prayed that way and were not heard before God (Matt. 6:5). Prayer is not so much an act as it is an attitude of the heart, and a dependence of the soul upon Almighty God. It is also seeking to spread out our heart's desire before God and asking it to be granted according to His sovereign purpose. Real prayer is communion with God through the only Mediator, Jesus Christ the Lord; who is sitting at God's right hand making intercession for us (Heb. 7:25; 1 Tim 2:5). Prayer is never intended to change the purpose of God, but rather to make us know and realize what the purpose of God is. I have often heard people say, "that prayer changes things." I hope it changes our wrong attitudes, our sinful desires and our ungodly conduct, but prayer never changes the purpose of the eternal God (Isa. 46:9-12). He said, "I am the Lord I change not" (Mal. 3:6).

Well then, since God is sovereign and has decreed all things, then why are we instructed to pray? God has decreed all things, but all He has decreed come to pass through the means He has ordained (Acts 4:27-28). God has elected a people unto salvation (2 Thes. 2:13), but He has also decreed that His people shall be saved from their sin by the appointed means, Jesus Christ (Gal. 4:4); His grace and sacrifice (Rom. 3:24). The gospel then is one of the appointed means to accomplish His eternal purpose and prayer is another. Even the prayers of His people are included in His eternal purpose. Therefore, instead of prayer being useless and vain; they are part of the decrees by which God exercises His eternal purpose.

What distinct privilege the Lord has given unto to His covenant people to call upon our great God and Father in prayer. “For we have received the spirit of adoption whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15).

Samuel declared, "Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you" (1Sam. 12:23).

Paul declared, "Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you" (1Thes. 5:17-18).

I hope we can all say, "Lord teach us to pray" (Matt.6:9-15).