Baptism is a symbolic burial in a watery grave, by which our Lord Jesus symbolically fulfilled all righteousness (Matthew 3:15), showing in the ordinance how he brought in everlasting righteousness for his people by his obedience unto death. His resurrection from the watery grave pictured his resurrection, by which the Triune God declared redemption accomplished by Christ’s obedience. Believer’s baptism portrays exactly the same thing. It is a symbolic confession of our faith in Christ (Romans 6:4-7).
• GRACE BAPTIST CHURCH in Taylor, Arkansas will host a sovereign grace Bible conference October 15-17. Scheduled speakers are: David Eddmenson and Don Fortner. The host pastor is Bro. Darvin Pruitt. Telephone: 870-626-0740— Email: darvinpruitt@gmail.com • COLLEGE GROVE GRACE CHURCH, College Grove, TN will host its annual sovereign grace Bible conference October 22-24. Scheduled speakers are: David Eddmenson, Todd Nibert, Paul Mahan, Chris Cunningham, and Don Fortner. — Bro. Chris Cunningham is the host pastor. Telephone: 615-368-7853 — Email: cunninghamtn@gmail.com _____________________________________________________________
By God’s Eternal, Wise Decree — Don Fortner (Tune: #142 — Jesus Shall Reign — LM)
1. By God’s eternal, wise decree, His Son, the Lamb, was slain for me. His blood accepted at the throne, Before I sinned, my sin atoned! 2. This wondrous mystery of grace, Revealed by God, by faith embraced, The changing course of time defies. — Eternal mercy never dies! 3. Though my heart fails and flesh decays And earth’s foundation’s melt away, God’s purpose shall the same remain. This anchor shall my soul sustain. — 4. My Savior’s blood, through ageless skies, “Mercy, eternal mercy!” cries, And thus secures my home above, Loved with an everlasting love! _____________________________________________________________ “Is it nothing to you?” Lamentations 3:12
The death of our Lord Jesus Christ is the most wonderful, astounding, magnificent event in the history of the universe. Nothing that is, has been, or shall hereafter be can be compared to it. Yet, as he was suffering the wrath of God, bearing the sins of his people, dying as the voluntary Substitute for guilty, hell-deserving, hell-bent sinners, such as we are, we hear the Son of God expressing the most woeful, unexplainable lamentation imaginable. He cried, "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger."
When I hear those words falling from the lips of the Son of God, as he hangs upon the cursed tree, I simply cannot avoid asking a question. Of whom does the bleeding Lamb of God speak these words? To whom is the death of Christ meaningless and insignificant? Nothing in all the universe is more wonderful and magnificent in the eyes of God the Father than the death of his dear Son. The Savior himself declares, — “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life!” The angels of heaven ever look into the mystery and wonder of redemption by the blood of Christ with astonishment. God’s servants, faithful gospel preachers are so overwhelmed with the wonders of redemption and the glory of the Redeemer that they never cease to study, glory in, and preach the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (Isaiah 6:1-6; 1 Corinthians 2:2; Galatians 6:14). Redeemed sinners on the earth cherish nothing, delight in nothing, marvel at nothing like we do the death of our Lord Jesus Christ for us (Galatians 2:20; 1 John 3:16; 4:10). The ransomed in glory appear to think of nothing and speak of nothing except the dying love of the Lamb in the midst of the throne (Revelation 5:9-12). Hell itself looks upon the death of Christ as a wonderful, unexplainable, mysterious thing. I am certain that this is one thing that Satan himself did not understand: — That Christ would triumph over him and crush his head by his death upon the cross! Else he would never have put it into the heart of Judas to betray the Master.
Yet, there are some to whom our darling Savior speaks as it were with astonishment, to whom his death is meaningless, insignificant, nothing! Who are these people to whom the death of Christ is nothing? Who is it that thinks little of the sin-atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ?
Our Lord is here addressing himself to everyone who passes by him, passes by his sacrifice, passes by his death as the sinners’ Substitute in unbelief, to everyone who hears and refuses to believe the gospel. O unbelieving, Christless soul, it is you to whom the Son of God speaks! O cold, calculating, heartless, preacher, you who pass by the crucified Christ and take to your lips the meaningless, insignificant trifles of politics, social corruptions, moralisms, denominationalism, historical religion, creeds, and debates about nothing, it is you to whom the Master speaks! Christ crucified is mundane, meaningless and insignificant only to unregenerate, unbelieving souls.
It is my heart’s prayer that you will hear these words echoing in your soul ("Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger.") until the death of our Lord Jesus Christ is made to be the most important thing in all the world to you. I pray that you and I may become totally consumed with the crucified Christ, that our hearts, our lives, every fiber of our souls may be constantly dominated by the death of Christ as our sin-atoning Savior. Let us meditate upon and study the great, sin-atoning sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ until it consumes our every thought! _____________________________________________________________
How Could I? Pastor David Eddmenson
I was thinking this week how impossible it would be for a true, God-called preacher, to preach anything other than the Lord Jesus Christ and him crucified. How could I, a desperately wicked sinner, stand week after week, and service after service and tell men how to live, when I struggle and fail daily myself? How could I, the wretched and depraved man that I am, tell others how to become better spouses, parents, children, friends, employers and employees, when I have failed and continue to fail miserably at these things myself? What hypocrisy and vanity that would be! It is not my place to try to straighten people out. A wise and older friend of mine told me not long ago, concerning preaching, to always remember that a man could shear a sheep many times, but he could only slay a sheep once. Friends, it is the preaching of Jesus Christ only that causes us to decrease (sheared). My responsibility is not to tell people how to live, but proclaim to them how our Savior lived, died and resurrected, doing everything perfectly for and in the place of hell-deserving sinners. If God is pleased to save a man or woman, that person will want to hear only one message and one message only: — That Christ came into the world to save sinners, and that sinners come to Christ by free and sovereign grace alone for eternal life. _____________________________________________________________
What Think Ye of Christ? Pastor Paul Mahan
This is the issue, this is the question which the Lord would have us all ponder and consider. This is the determining factor in our salvation: — What think ye of Christ?
The other day I received an email from a man who wanted to know what I thought of John Wesley. After answering him, the name of Charles Spurgeon came up. He proceeded to tell me how he could not tolerate Spurgeon because of his toleration of Wesley. I shouldn’t have bothered to answer that man. In fact, I don’t think I’ll answer anymore questions regarding what I think of this person or that. The question is not, What think ye of Spurgeon?, but rather, What think ye of Christ? Our salvation does not depend upon whether we think this person or that person is orthodox or unorthodox, true or false. But our salvation does depend upon whether we think Christ is true or not.
There are certainly questions concerning judgment, which many things can cloud. And we can and must speak out against false doctrine. But whether we are saved or not does not depend on whether we think someone else is saved or not. It depends upon — WHAT THINK YE OF CHRIST? _____________________________________________________________
THE GRACE BULLETIN October 10, 2010
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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