Sovereign Grace Baptist Church

Free Grace Media

Of Princeton, New Jersey

 

AuthorClay Curtis
TitleWeekly Bulletin 6-19-2016
Bible TextEphesians 3:3-12
Date17-Jun-2016
Article Type Bulletin
PDF Format pdf
Word Format doc
Audio HI-FI Listen: Our Desire (32 kbps)  /  [go to notes]
Audio CD Quality Listen: Our Desire (128 kbps)  /  [go to notes]
 

June 19, 2016

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

 

Services Broadcast Live @ www.FreeGraceMedia.com/live

 

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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.  

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All articles by the pastor unless otherwise noted. As you read the bulletin at home with your children be sure to look up the scripture references.

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This week, Wednesday-Sunday, June 22-26, I am scheduled to preach five days in the annual meeting of Sovereign Grace Baptist Church in The Dalles, Oregon where Brother Norm Wells is pastor.  Scott Keller and Eric Lutter are scheduled to preach for you Thursday and Sunday.

 

Our annual summer meeting is scheduled here for Friday, July 22—Sunday, July 24.  We will meet at firehouse unless otherwise noted. Each day our speakers will be Don Fortner, pastor of Grace Baptist Church of Danville, KY and Frank Tate, pastor of Hurricane Road Grace Church of Ashland, KY.  Meetings will begin at 7:30pm Friday and 10:15 am Saturday and Sunday. We will plan to have ice cream after Friday night’s service and full meal after Saturday and Sunday’s service.

 

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CHRIST THE LAMB

 

And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a Lamb for a burnt offering (Genesis 22:7-8).

 

     When the Gospel is preached, there is one thing that one will always hear...Christ the Lamb. He is the message. The issue is the glory of Christ, His work, His holiness, and His satisfaction of the law for His sheep. When any man stands up to preach, let this test be set upon the words that you hear: "Where's the Lamb?" If I don't hear Him, I haven't heard the only message that the Holy Ghost will bless to the salvation of a sinner.

                                                                                              Marvin Stalnaker

 

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SANCTIFICATION AND PURIFICATION

Isaiah 66: 17: They that sanctify themselves and purify themselves…shall be consumed, saith the LORD.

“Sanctify” means “to consecrate for God’s holy use, to be prepared, to be holy, to be separate.” “Purify” means “to be clean, to be pure.” Every sinner that God saves are in ourselves unholy and impure, unsanctified and unclean. Can a sinner sanctify and purify himself? No!  God alone must sanctify and purify each one he saves.

     Let me give you an experiment to illustrate why God must sanctify make a sinner clean.  Take a rag and soak it entirely in dirty motor oil.  Then use that oil-soaked rag and try to clean that oil-soaked rag.  You say, “That is impossible!” It is just that impossible for a filthy sinner to purify ourselves using our filthy flesh.  “Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? not one.” The Sanctifier and the sanctification of his people said, “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak they are spirit and they are life.” (Job 14: 4; Jn 6: 63)

    The triune God receives all the glory for sanctifying and purifying his people. Each person in the Godhead has part in each other’s part but scripture gives each person a distinct glory for this work: God the Father sanctified his people by electing us in Christ before the world was made (1 Pet 1: 2; 2 Thess 2: 13), God the Son sanctified and purified God’s elect by his blood on the cross. (Heb 2: 11; 7: 19; 10: 1-2; 10: 14; Eph 5: 25-26), and God the Holy Spirit sanctifies and purifies his people through the water of the word when he regenerates us and causes us to believe the gospel that Christ has made us pure. (Titus 3:5; Heb 10: 22)

    For a sinner to attribute any aspect of sanctification or purification to the sinner is the impure hearts attempt at robbing God of his glory through the disguise of holiness.

 

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Many, in the name of the priesthood of believers, declare that since all believers are priests before God then each religious order or denomination, each local church, and each believer has the right to believe, do, and practice whatever they see fit. Nothing could be further from the truth! While we must never make any effort to force others by law or social pressure to practice our faith, we must never tolerate or embrace as Christian those who disregard the teachings of Holy Scripture. Though every man has a civil, political right to do so, no one has any right before God to believe and practice what he chooses. The priesthood of the believer is not a priesthood in rebellion to God, but a priesthood in submission to him.  Don Fortner

 

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OUR DESIRE

Ephesians 3: 3-12

Believer, do you have a hunger in your heart to know the Lord Jesus Christ more?

     In time past the gospel of Christ was not revealed to the sons of men as it was to the apostles and prophets in the apostle Paul’s day. (Eph 3: 10).  Therefore, the prophets of old desired to know more of Christ. (1 Pet 1: 10-12) We even have a fuller revelation in that we have the word of God in its entirety, “which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently.” (1 Pet 1: 10)

    Likewise, the holy angels desire to look into the things of Christ. (Eph 3: 10-11; 1 Pet 1: 12) Since the beginning they have been diligently searching God’s eternal purpose unfolded by Christ works in his church. (1 Pet 1: 12) They beheld God declare Christ the “Seed of woman” in the garden. Angels diligently gave heed when Christ was “made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death that he should taste death” for each of God’s elect (Heb 2: 9). They diligently beheld our Substitute accomplish our eternal redemption. Angels beheld him crowned with glory and honor “being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” (Heb 1: 4)  When Christ calls out one of his redeemed, our Savior said, “There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” (Lu 15: 10)  Spurgeon said, “The church becomes as a museum which angels may visit with ever expanding interest and ever-increasing delight.”    

    Therefore, brethren, if holy men of old desired to know more of the things that are given to us, if angels continually diligently look into God’s working in his church, what is our desire? We have greater light and privileges than the prophets and saints of old.  The scriptures are a more sure word of prophecy, more to be desired than that sight Peter saw when Christ was transfigured on the mount. (2 Pet 1: 16-21) The words of God are more valuable than anything else, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” (Ps 19: 10) Our Master said, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness.” (Mt 6: 33) Do we do as holy men of old and search diligently to know more of Christ? Do we have the desire of the holy angels? God has put us in a country where we are free to read the Bible and hear his gospel; there are countries where men and women risk their lives for this privilege which we are prone to take for granted. Christ shed his blood to give us access to God’s throne so our Savior says, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” (Eph 3: 12; Mt 7:7) May God give us the same desire he gave to the holy men of old and to his holy angels to hear his gospel and diligently search his word!