Sons of God redeemed by blood, Raise your songs to Zion's God; Made from condemnation free, Grace triumphant sing with me. Calvary's wonders let us trace, Justice magnified in grace; Mark the crimson streams and say, Thus my sins were washed away. Wrath Divine no more we dread, Vengeance smote our Surety's head; Legal claims are fully met, Christ hath paid the dreadful debt. Lamb of God! Thy death hath giv'n Pardon, peace and hope of heav'n; It is finished; let us raise Songs of gratitude and praise.
(Tune: "Depth of Mercy") Pg.233
Why did Peter begin to sink after getting out of the ship? The cause of his failure was not because the water was to rough, but he failed to keep his eye on the Master, he ceased to look in simple faith to the Lord Jesus.
Faith can walk on rough water as easily as on smooth. Nature cannot walk on either. It is not a question of the state of the water, but the state of the heart.
- Unknown
SOME DEFINITIONS
Here are some words I constantly use in preaching the gospel. They are words by which the works of God's grace are presented to us either verbally or by unmistakable examples or illustrations. They are Bible words that every believer ought to know.
Election is God's sovereign, eternal choice and determination to save some, a great multitude of Adam's fallen race. It is a free, unconditional, irreversible act of God's sovereign grace, by which the everlasting salvation of all the chosen was secured from eternity (Psa. 65:4 Eph. 1:3-6).
Predestination is God's sovereign, eternal arrangement of all the affairs of the universe to secure the object of his electing love; to secure the everlasting salvation of his adopted sons and daughters. It is God's plan, the blueprint by which he created the universe and rules it in providence. This great, blessed work of God's grace includes all things and can never be altered. This, too, is a matter of such unmistakable, clear revelation that ignorance of it is inexcusable (Acts 13:48; Eph. 1:4,5, 11; Rom. 8:29).
Redemption is the ransom of chosen sinners out from under the curse of God's broken law and offended justice by the sacrificial, substitutionary, sin-atoning death of our Lord Jesus. Redemption is the satisfaction of justice by the blood of Christ and the deliverance of God's elect from all possibility of condemnation (Gal. 3:13 1 Pet. 1:18-20). The redemption of our souls by Christ’s shed blood also includes and guaranteed the redemption (deliverance) of our souls from the bondage and dominion of sin (Isa. 53:10-11), and the redemption of our bodies from the grave at the resurrection (1 Cor. 1:30; Eph. 1:14). All who were redeemed by the blood of Christ must and shall be saved by God's grace in him.
Regeneration is the new birth, the actual deliverance of chosen, redeemed sinners from spiritual death into spiritual life by the effectual power and irresistible grace of God the Holy Spirit (John 3:8; Eph. 2:1-4). It is a resurrection from spiritual death, to spiritual eternal life in Christ by the Spirit of God.
Providence is the glorious, though mysterious, sovereign rule of the universe by God for the salvation of his people and the praise, honor, and glory of his own great name (Rom. 8:28 Eph. 1:11). Providence is God working out in time what he purposed in eternity. Nothing is more comforting, nothing inspires boldness, and nothing gives peace like a good understanding of and a confident faith in God’s election, predestination, redemption, regeneration, and providence.
- Pastor
Can a man's heart be right, even if his head is wrong?
One of the prevailing errors of our day is that your heart can be right, even though your head is wrong. Or, you can believe in your heart what you do not believe in your head. This thinking is used for so many different reasons. But the naked truth about this is that it is man's attempt to excuse his own refusal to bow to what God says I His Word. "My heart can be right, even if my head is wrong." You cannot believe in your heart what you do not believe in your head any more than you can come back from a place you have never been. Remember, unbelief and false doctrine are not intellectual problems. They are born from sin and rebellion.
- Pastor Todd Nibert
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My Yoke is Easy Matthew 11: 28-30
The Lord had just been describing and condemning the Pharisee's. They put hard yokes and heavy burdens upon men, never restoring or refreshing the soul with rest (Mat 23: 4). Our Lord's yoke is the opposite. To come unto the Lord is to come to him by faith, to be taught of him, about him, to follow him and to find that he refreshes the soul with "grace for grace". He is meek and lowly in heart. When your soul is refreshed and full of joy whatever it is you are doing is easy and light--this is the rest he gives. He has removed every burden. "This is his commandment that we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ. And love one another, as he gave us commandment." What an easy yoke faith and love make. Oh, we will not find this soul rest in the high places of the wise and prudent, nor in the law, but to those who come with a broken and contrite heart, he gives rest unto your souls (John 6: 37).