"Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." (Romans 4:7-8) ******************************************************* ******************************************************* O PRAISE EMMANUEL TUNE "IT CAME UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR" CM/DOUBLE WORDS BY JIM BYRD
1. O hear the tidings of great joy, Of Jesus Christ the King; Exalt His Name above all names, And to Him praises sing. The prophets set Him forth of old, This Savior promised long; Come sing the praises of the Lord, With all the ransomed throng.
2. A Child was born, a Son was giv’n, The Lamb of God was He; He came glad tidings to proclaim And set the captives free. Unto the Savior glory give, Jesus Who came to save; He died to put away our sin, And rose up from the grave.
3. With Him the Father is well pleased, Christ is our Righteousness; In Jesus sinners are received, He is our worthiness. Rejoice, give thanks, and sing His praise, Let ransomed sinners tell; That God in human flesh has come, O praise Emmanuel! *********************************************************** CONGREGATIONAL SCRIPTURE READINGS TODAY: MORNING: PSALM 144 EVENING: LUKE 9:1-17 *********************************************************** Daily Readings- December 4-10 Sunday - Galatians 4-6 Monday - Ephesians 1-3 Tuesday - Ephesians 4-6 Wednesday- Philippians 1-4 Thursday - Colossians 1-4 Friday - 1 Thess. 1-5 Saturday- 2 Thess. 1-3 *************************************************************************** ETERNAL SURETYSHIP OF CHRIST From old eternity the Lord Jesus Christ assumed full responsibility for the salvation of those given to Him in divine election. He was "made a Surety of a better covenant" (Hebrews 7:22). That covenant of grace was a contract entered into by the persons of the Godhead before the world was made. As the legally appointed Representative of all those given and entrusted to Him for safe-keeping by the Father, the Son of God became obligated for the salvation of His elect. The Father laid upon Him, and He willingly took upon Himself, accountability to divine justice to put away their sins and bring in perfect righteousness for them by His substitutionary death on the cross. We read that His blood was "the blood of the everlasting covenant" (Hebrews 13:20). God the Father has always looked to His Son for satisfaction for the indebtedness of those sinners chosen unto salvation; consequently, at no time has the justice of God sought restitution from His children. That which Christ accomplished at the cross, the reconciliation, justification and redemption of His people, was because of that glorious covenant entered into by the Father and our Surety. Like David, each believer finds great comfort in this covenant which is "ordered in all things, and sure: for this is all my salvation, and all my desire" (2 Samuel 23:5). –Pastor Jim Byrd *************************************************************************** DRESSED ALIKE I have seen a family of children all dressed alike, that none might boast over the others, all being equally fair. So it is with God’s family. They are all righteous in the obedience of One. One garment covers them all - the robe of their elder Brother. Believers differ in attainments, in gifts and graces, but all are equally justified before God. It is no work of their own that justifies them, it is the work of Christ alone. Ah, brethren! There is no boasting in Christ’s family. –copied *************************************************************************** TRUTH WELCOMES CLOSE INSPECTION Augustus Toplady was bold in his opposition of the false doctrine held by John Wesley. Wesley preached a salvation conditioned upon the sinner’s cooperation with God. He embraced free-willism and staunchly opposed the gospel of sovereign grace. In one of his letters to Wesley, Toplady chided him: "Canvass the points of doctrine wherein we differ, as strictly as you can. They will stand the test. They scorn disguise. Truth, like our first parents in the state of innocence, can show herself naked without being either afraid or ashamed: and he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest that they are wrought in God."
My friends, the truth of God will stand inspection; it will bear up under scrutiny. In fact, truth, when closely examined, sparkles more brilliantly to the glory of God’s grace. Consider the intricate details of the gospel of the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ and you will find all of the divine attributes to be active and each is glorified. This is the only message that renders all the honor for the salvation of sinners to God and gives sweet consolation to needy, helpless sinners. I unashamedly proclaim to you that blessed truth: "the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD" (Psalm 37:39). --Pastor Jim Byrd *************************************************************************** SOVEREIGNTY AND PRAYER Prayer is not the requesting of God to alter His purpose or for Him to form a new one. Prayer is the taking of an attitude of dependency upon God, the spreading of our need before Him, the asking for those things which are in accordance with His will, and therefore there is nothing whatsoever inconsistent between Divine sovereignty and Christian prayer. –A. W. Pink
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