Central Grace Church
3596 Franklin Street . Rocky Mount, Virginia
March 6th, 2016
9:30 am Bible Study------------------------------ If The Lord Will, We Shall – James 4:13-17
10:00 am Service -----------------------------------------The Call of a Blind Man – Mark 10:46-52
Nursery Today: Second Service: Aimee P. , Alt. – Wendy B.
Cleaning Schedule: This Week: Andersons , Next Week:
Birthdays: March: 10th – Lyla Bobbitt, 17th – Alec Bobbitt & Rick Polk
F The worship of our Lord through the preaching His Word is a solemn and serious time that deserves fear and respect. It is very distracting to preacher and hearer when anyone gets up during the worship service. Please see that your children use the restroom before the start of the service.
Free Offer? Or The Power Of God’s Call? -- 1 Cor. 1:23-24
It is often difficult to discern the difference between truth and subtle error which sounds so close to the truth, when in fact it isn’t. There are people who claim to be preaching the truth; they adhere to Calvinistic doctrine, they even say when pressed that Christ only died for his elect, but they insist that the gospel is to be freely offered to all without exception. Who could possibly argue with that position?
The error lies not in the principle of preaching the gospel to any and all who will listen without distinction, for who could deny that this is the command of Christ to his church (Mark 16:15)? No, the error lies in their flawed understanding of the ability of fallen man to respond to a gospel offer. Man is dead in trespasses and sins, not merely sick. He is like the valley of dry bones in Ezekiel’s vision (Ezek 37), long dead and beyond the possibility of any revival. Only the power that lies in the voice of God is able to bring life. Only He Who breathed into the dust of Adam and made him a living soul (Gen2:7), is able to quicken a dead sinner and cause him to hear the gospel’s call.
So Paul wrote to the Corinthians, (1Cor1:23-24) that we preach Christ crucified, and the implication is that we preach him to any and all who will hear without distinction. But man in his natural state, Jew or Gentile, will hear only a stumbling-block or foolishness unless it is God who calls him; and when He does, the power of that call will cause him to hear the wisdom of God which is surely Christ and the redemption he has accomplished for his people (1Cor1:30).
When a salesman makes you an offer, you have the power over your money either to accept or reject the offer, but when God calls his elect with the gospel faithfully preached, it is He alone that has the power to make them willing to believe it (Ps110:3). – Allan Jellett, Knebworth, England
F “ He who fears God has nothing else to fear.” -- C.H. Spurgeon
“ He who does not fear God has need to fear everything else.” – anon
What Kind Of Person Do You Reveal Yourself To Be?
A certain Christian gentleman with no sound church nearby considered driving many miles to attend the worship service of a church that had been recommended to him. Before making the trip, he visited the pastor’s page on an Internet social networking service. After viewing the pastor’s “likes” and posts and photos, the gentleman had an unfavorable view of the pastor’s character and personal life. The gentleman therefore did not go to hear that pastor preach.
Brothers and sisters, let this be a lesson to all of us. People judge our character by what we publicize regarding ourselves – just as we do to them. Let us be diligent to publicize nothing that contradicts the gospel we believe and practice, brings reproach to Christ, or makes us look like hypocrites. – Daniel Parks, St. Croix, USVI
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