God’s people are one in Christ and one with Christ, even as he and the Father are one. — Imagine that!
The hymn below was written yesterday in anticipation of this hour. After being away for almost three weeks, it is so good to be home, to be with you, our family in the house of God. Thank you for your many expressions of love and for your unceasing intercession on our behalf.
We Find Ourselves at Home — Don Fortner (Tune: #414 — Am I a Soldier of the Cross? — CM )
1. Lord, here, among the sons of God, We find ourselves at home With sinners bought by Jesus’ blood, — To Him we all belong.
2. One in our cov’nant Head and King, You’ve made us one in heart; Of one salvation we all sing, Each claiming his own part.
3. One loaf, one family, one flock, One building formed by love, One fold, one Shepherd (Blessed Rock!), Forever one above!
4. One city ruled by grace divine, “Peace be within thy walls!” Zion shall in full glory shine, When Satan’s empire falls!
“Lord, give our pastor a tongue of fire and a heart of love
To preach the reconciling Word.
Give power and unction from above
Where ever the joyful sound be heard.”
Merle Hart
A Tribute to Jim Gough
(1942 – 2009)
Shelby and I met Jim and Eileen Gough two years ago in Wolverhampton, England. Our hearts were immediately welded together in the sweet fellowship of the gospel. The Lord took our friend home to Glory Friday night. Very few who read our bulletin will even know the name of this man; and you may be wondering why you are reading about him now. The reason is this: Our God teaches us to give “honour to whom honour” is due. Jim Gough is a cherished friend and was (while he lived on this earth) a faithful servant of God.
Jim was an elder at West Park Evangelical Church in Wolverhampton; but that hardly tells the story of his service to Christ and his people. The West Park Church was formed when Jim, Eileen and a few others saw the need to establish a gospel witness in Wolverhampton. He was devoted to the cause of Christ, frequently preaching the gospel at West Park and in other area chapels. Just last week, he and I spent some time discussing one of his new projects: translating and publishing good books in various Indian dialects.
Though my time with him was very limited, I never spent an hour in the company of Jim Gough that was not edifying and profitable to my soul. What higher compliment could one man give to another? Our mutual friend, Bro. Syd Buggins, wrote to me this morning, saying…
“His whole conversation, especially during the last few years, was all of Christ. He could not pray or preach, but it was full of his Saviour. May we be able to say truly, ‘the LORD gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.’ ............ but O the loss!”
Jim and Eileen opened their home, their hearts and their lives to two strangers from America two years ago. They followed us all over England, insatiably absorbing every word preached. When we arrived in Egglesburn this year, we were delightfully surprised to learn that they had (along with Syd and Joan Buggins) rented a van to drive us from meeting to meeting, making it possible for the six of us to spend many hours together discussing the things of God.
One of the last things we spoke of was the fact that so few who preach, preach Christ. Jim was a soft spoken man who hated conflict and went out of his way to avoid confrontation; but his heart was heavy as he spoke. Yet, he spoke with animated excitement as he encouraged me in the blessed work of the gospel. The very last thing he said to me, as we parted company one week ago was, “Bro. Don, be sure to thank your beloved congregation at home for sending you to preach Christ to us.” — Bless God, soon, we shall meet to part no more!
“Then shall I be satisfied.” (Psalm 17:15)
In our happy, eternal home, in our Father’s house in heaven, every desire of the believer’s heart shall be fully satisfied. That which our hearts crave cannot be satisfied until we get to heaven. But there, in heaven with Christ, we shall be satisfied.
This is what David said, “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness.” I take David’s words to imply that there are two stages of satisfaction for God’s saints in heaven: That satisfaction that is found in heaven between death and the resurrection when we shall behold our Savior’s face in righteousness, and that satisfaction that shall be found in heaven after the resurrection of the body when we shall awake in the likeness of our Redeemer.
Believers, as soon as they leave this world, find satisfaction for their souls in heaven. In our day many, who appear to be otherwise orthodox in their doctrine, have begun to teach the Adventists’ doctrine of soul sleep. I will not now discuss all the ramifications of that evil doctrine. But it is a doctrine that robs God’s people of comfort in the hour of death and with regard to their departed loved ones. And it is a doctrine that inspires an undue attachment to this world. More importantly, it is a doctrine directly contrary to the Word of God.
The souls of God’s elect, as soon as they are separated form their bodies, are immediately with Christ in heaven (2 Cor. 5:8; Phil. 1:23), in a state of blessed happiness and satisfaction. It is to this intermediate state of satisfaction, between death and the resurrection, that David referred when he said, “As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness.”
Soon as I draw my final breath and close my mortal eyes in death, I shall with Christ in glory be, in righteousness, forever free!
Find the Dove – See the Lamb
Pastor Darvin Pruitt
Twice in John 1 the evangelist makes this statement concerning the Messiah, “I knew Him not.” How then could he identify Jesus as the savior? Listen close to his testimony, “And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode on Him. And I knew Him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, upon whom thou shall see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptiseth with the Holy Ghost.” Why a dove?
Upon the receding waters of judgment, it was a dove that brought to Noah the evidence that the wrath of God was about to be exhausted.
In Leviticus 12, for the poor bride, who could not produce what the law demanded, she was to offer to the priest a dove and seeing the dove in the hands of the priest it was to be identified in the place of the Lamb. It was the dove that declared Christ to be in the place of all the Lambs which his poor bride could not produce and the evidence that the judgment of God would soon be appeased.
GRACE BULLETIN
May 3, 2009
GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH of DANVILLE 2734 Old Stanford Road-Danville, Kentucky 40422-9438 Telephone (859) 236-8235 - E-Mail don@donfortner.com
Donald S. Fortner, Pastor
Schedule of Regular Services
Sunday 10:00 A.M. Bible Classes 10:30 A.M. Morning Worship Service 6:30 P.M. Evening Worship Service
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