February 8, 2015
SOVEREIGN GRACE BAPTIST
CHURCH
LOCATION
Rocky Hill Firehouse, 2nd
Floor
150 Washington Street
Rocky Hill, New Jersey, 08553
Clay Curtis, pastor
Telephone: 615-513-4464
Schedule of Services
Sunday 10: 15 AM Bible Class
Sunday 11:00 AM Morning Service
Thursday 7: 30 PM Midweek Service
Sermons on Video @ www.youtube.com
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NURSERY
We have
a nursery equipped with a digital flat screen television broadcasting all
services live, for children four and under.
Check the announcements.
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All articles in the bulletin are by the
pastor unless otherwise noted.
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OVERCOMING THE WORLD
While
browsing through a manila folder full of sermon notes taken over the years, I
came across the following points on ‘overcoming the world.’ I do
not know who said these things but they are good. He said: “Overcoming
the world is:
1.
To have no
interest in the wisdom or philosophy of this world.
2.
To have no
interest in the approval or recognition of this world.
3.
To have no anxious
care about the materialism and prosperity of this world.
4.
To have no
interest in the glory or fame of this world.
5.
To be conscious of
the fact, that, every relationship in this world will end.
6.
To have no
interest in, but only disdain for the religions of this world.
To believe God’s Word
only and to believe Christ only in spite of all in the world: “This is
the victory that overcometh world, even our FAITH” – I John 5:4. –Paul Mahan, pastor of Central Grace Church,
Rocky Mount, VA
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TRUE SAVING FAITH
The faith of
the natural man, the unregenerate man, is reasonable and logical, and often
very influential (Matt. 7:21-23); but the faith of a Christian is a gift of
God, a miracle, and always produces a radical change in those who possess it.
A man cannot
possibly possess saving faith, whose thinking and attitude has not been
radically changed concerning God and righteousness, man and sin, and Christ and
grace (II Cor. 5:14-17). The difference
between the two kinds of faith, natural and spiritual, biblical and spurious,
is the difference between shadows and substance, words and reality. Natural faith believes, but saving faith
knows. Natural faith merely acknowledges
what saving faith experiences. As J.C.
Philpot once said, “The religious professor receives doctrines because he sees
them in the Bible. The believer not only
sees them in the Book, but he feels them in his heart, put there by the Holy
Spirit.” So you see, the difference is
great. The difference is the difference
between a professor of Christ and a possessor of Christ, one who believes in
the Son and one who “hath the Son.”
The world is
filled with religionists who “believe in Jesus” and live as if He were dead;
(Their Jesus is dead, a mere figment of their imagination) but the child of God
has fellowship with the resurrected, living Lord Jesus who sits upon His
sovereign throne of glory and grace. Maurice
Montgomery, pastor-emeritus Bible Baptist Church, Madisonville, KY
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A VALUABLE PETITION
Ephesians 1: 15: Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the
Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, 16: Cease not to give thanks for you,
making mention of you in my prayers; 17: That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in
the knowledge of him:
As we
concentrate on verse 17, we see what a valuable petition Paul makes for his
brethren.
THE GOD OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST—Paul calls God the “God of our Lord
Jesus Christ.” Christ is God. He never ceased being God. But while serving as our
Mediator, God is the God of our Lord Jesus Christ. When Christ arose from the
dead our Savior sent word, saying, “Go to my brethren, and say unto them, I
ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” (Jn 20:
17) The great blessing in this for
believers is that God, being satisfied in Christ, has given to Christ all covenant
blessings which he promised. Therefore, all blessings that are Christ’s belong to
all for whom Christ died by the everlasting covenant union and redemption we
have in Christ. (Gal 3: 22; Rom 8: 17)
THE FATHER OF GLORY—Paul calls God “the Father of glory.”
This title is connected with Paul’s petition for “revelation in the knowledge
of him.” The life of faith begins when the Father of glory shines light into
our hearts. (2 Cor 4: 6) This light is “the knowledge of the glory of God in
the face of Christ Jesus.” What a transforming effect this glory of the Father has
within us! By beholding his glory we are changed, or recreated, into his image by
the Spirit of the Lord. (2 Cor 3: 18) If the glory of the Father does that through
the dim eye of faith, imagine the transformation when we behold the Father of
glory face-to-face in Christ Jesus. (1 Cor 13:12) Then the glory of the Father shall
make us completely like Christ. (1 Jn 3: 2) And it is certain we shall behold his
glory because Christ intercedes for us, “Father, I will that they also, whom
thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which
thou hast given me; for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.”
(Jn 17: 24)
MAY GIVE UNTO YOU—Paul asks that God may “give” to his people. Everything
the child of God has, we are given freely from God. (1 Cor 4: 7) Until we
are given light to know our utter darkness, we are too proud to ask God to “give”
us anything. But once we know we are noting and can produce nothing then we are
not ashamed to be a beggar before God, then we rejoice that salvation is all of
God’s free and sovereign grace. Someone
said that God is more delighted to give us grace than we are to ask. That may be true. But God has truly given
us a great blessing to make us even willing to ask.
THE SPIRIT OF WISDOM AND REVELATION—The gospel is known only by divine
revelation. In our natural state, the Bible was a sealed book to us. It was like trying to read in the dark. We
have the spirit of wisdom and revelation when the Holy Spirit enters within us.
Then the word becomes alive. Notice that it is not wisdom and revelation alone
for which Paul asks but “the spirit” of wisdom and revelation. The Holy Spirit abiding
within, sealing us, giving us unction is the difference between head knowledge
and heart knowledge, between knowing doctrine and knowing Christ himself.
IN THE KNOWLEDGE OF HIM—The wisdom and revelation we are
given is God’s Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Cor 2: 9-12; Jer 9: 24; Jn 17: 3) The righteousness
of God is Christ Jesus. (Rom 10: 3-4) We we are given this understanding then we
believe that Christ is grace, life, justification, sanctification, redemption,
even all things that pertain to life and godliness. Likewise, all growth in grace is given us according
to the measure of the gift of the Spirit in the knowledge of Christ. (2 Pet 3:
18; Eph 4: 7)
What a petition! For the good of our brethren let us not cease to ask “that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the
spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him”, that God might make
us know more and more that “Christ is
all, and in all.” (Col 3: 11)