\u201cThen a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the
\nLORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the
\ntent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory
\nof the LORD filled the tabernacle.\u201d Exodus 40:34-35.<\/p>\n
The glory of the Lord God is that which distinguishes Him from all
\nothers and all else. It is said of Him in Holy Writ \u201cWho is like unto
\nThee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like Thee, glorious in holiness,
\nfearful in praises, doing wonders?\u201d As there was no room for Moses in
\nthe tabernacle because it was filled with God\u2019s glory, there is no place
\nfor man or the works of the law in the gospel of God\u2019s grace or in the
\nsalvation of the elect. The glory and wonder of God\u2019s grace fills the
\nLord Jesus Christ – \u201cAnd the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us,
\n(and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
\nFather,)full of grace and truth\u201d John 1:14. This simple guide to
\ndistinguish truth from error is perpetual and can never be wrong – \u2018That
\nwhich gives God and His Son all the glory is the truth and that which
\ndoes not is a lie\u2019. The message that is filled with Christ is full of
\nthe glory of God and there is no room for anything else. The message
\nthat enthrones man, his works and freewill leaves no room for Christ.
\nMan is unable to enter into the glorious work of God in Christ. There is
\njust no room! All the glorious virtues and attributes of God in Christ
\npermeate every aspect of the purpose of God in the redemption of
\nsinners. The Lord Jesus Christ is glorious, His righteousness is
\nglorious, His sacrificial death is glorious, His accomplishment is
\nglorious, and His position now as our Sovereign Great High Priest is
\nglorious in Holiness. My friend, if you have a problem with the message
\nthat renders all the glory to God, your problem is with God and is far
\ngreater than you can imagine. Tommy Robbins<\/p>\n
\u201cYE ARE COMPLETE IN HIM\u201d
\nColossians 2:10
\nThe believers standing in Christ does not fluctuate with his feelings,
\nnot even the increase or decrease of his faith or understanding or
\nanything else. He stands complete in Christ. God would never trust any
\nof His children to stand before him at anytime in their own selves –
\nthat is, in their merits or certain good frames of mind. He knows our
\nframe. He remembers that we are yet dust. Therefore, He has on purpose
\nprovided for them this perfect standing in Christ Jesus. \u201cYe are
\ncomplete in Him,\u201d the Holy Ghost said. He says in another place, \u201cYe are
\nperfect in Christ Jesus,\u201d (Col. 1:28.) The very nature of our God
\nrequires us to be perfect and complete before Him at all times. He, out
\nof necessity, therefore provided all this for His children: a
\nperfection, a completeness, which can never be diminished. It is as
\nunchanging as God himself, (Hebrews 6:17; 13:8). Every true believer may
\nwalk through this world in perfect liberty, free from anything and
\neverything – yes, even his sin, fear of condemnation, and all else that
\nwould cause him to doubt of his completeness. He may freely come to God,
\nworship Him, call Him \u201cFather,\u201d and this he may do at all times with the
\nutmost confidence and thankfulness, because in Christ he stands, first
\nand foremost and always, complete before God. \u201cO thanks be to God for
\nJesus Christ.
\nBy Bruce Crabtree<\/p>\n
Washed or Whitewashed
\nSatan’s master plan is to get man religious without Christ. He would
\nrather you be WHITEWASHED than WASHED WHITE in the blood of the Lamb.
\nWhite washing will not save! I must be washed white in the BLOOD OF CHRIST.<\/p>\n
Don Bell<\/p>\n
HOW IS A SINNER SAVED?
\nHow is a sinner saved? The apostle Paul very plainly tells us how! In
\nEphesians 2:8 he said, \u201cFor by grace are ye saved through faith; and
\nthat not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:\u201d Salvation is a work of
\nGod\u2019s grace. It was God\u2019s grace that chose the sinner before the
\nfoundation of the world. It was God\u2019s grace that sent Christ in due time
\nto die on the cross as a substitute for all of His chosen people. And it
\nis God\u2019s grace that sends His Holy Spirit to each one of those
\nparticular people with the gift of faith. Faith believes totally on
\nChrist. Faith believes His Word. Faith causes sinners to believe that
\nThe Father did all of the choosing in salvation, and The Son did all of
\nthe redeeming work in salvation. Faith causes sinners to cry: \u201cIt is not
\nof ourselves\u2026 it is of Christ alone!\u201d A truly saved sinner will know
\nthat he cannot take any credit for any part of his salvation, not even
\nfor the faith that believes. Even that is \u201cthe gift of God\u201d. Pastor Gabe
\nStalnaker<\/p>\n
Law or Grace \u2014 You Cannot Have Both!
\nGalatians 5:4<\/p>\n
Most religious people attempt to mix man\u2019s works of obedience to the law
\nwith God\u2019s works of grace for sinners, making salvation a mixture of
\nworks and grace. Fallen men have been attempting to mix law and grace
\nsince the days of Cain and Abel. Very few are the blasphemers who openly
\nassert, \u201cSalvation is by works;\u201d but almost everyone believes it. When
\nsalvation by God\u2019s free grace alone is plainly declared, lost
\nreligionists cling to and defend their works, denouncing the one who
\ndares to affirm that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone,
\nin Christ alone as a promoter of licentiousness and a vile antinomian,
\nYet, the truth must be declared in plain, unmistakable terms.<\/p>\n
Mutually Exclusive
\nGrace and works are mutually exclusive. They annihilate one another. If
\nwe are saved by our own works in any way, to any degree, in whole or in
\npart, then we are not saved by the grace of God. If we are saved by the
\ngrace of God alone, then we are not saved by our own works of obedience
\nto the law of God (Romans 11:6). The doctrine of Holy Scripture is
\nunmistakable. \u2014 The whole work of salvation (election, redemption,
\nregeneration, sanctification, preservation and glorification) is by the
\ngrace of God alone (Romans 8:28-30; 2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 2:8-9}.<\/p>\n
Heretical Doctrine
\nAll churches, religions and systems of doctrine which teach salvation by
\nthe works of the law are heretical. I mean to be understood. I am saying
\nthat any teaching that says sinners are justified, given favor with God,
\nsanctified, preserved, or shall inherit the reward of heavenly glory
\nupon the basis of their own personal obedience to the law of God is
\nlegalism, anti-christ and damning to all who receive it (Galatians 5:1-4).<\/p>\n
Sanctification Too
\nThis gospel doctrine of salvation by grace alone does, most certainly,
\nextend even to the believer\u2019s sanctification in Christ. To be sanctified
\nis to be set apart by God for holy service, declared to be holy and
\nactually made holy. If, as all agree, sanctification is that without
\nwhich no man shall see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14), then sanctification can
\nno more be a matter of works than justification. That is precisely what
\nthe Word of God declares. The Bible nowhere presents sanctification as a
\nconditional thing, depending upon the believer\u2019s works. Like every other
\naspect of salvation, sanctification is an unconditional work of grace,
\nperformed for us and in us by the triune God (Jude 1, Hebrews 10:10; 2
\nThessalonians 2:13). \u2014 \u201cBy grace ye are saved!\u201d \u2014 \u201cSalvation is of the
\nLord!\u201d
\nDon Fortner<\/p>\n
THE CONSTRAINING LOVE OF CHRIST
\n2 Corinthians 5: 14: For the love of Christ constraineth us;<\/p>\n
When it came to believing and preaching Christ, some accused the apostle
\nPaul of being beside himself. Others accused him of being too serious.
\nBut by the Holy Spirit of God, he answered, \u201cWhether we be beside
\nourselves, it is to God: or whether we be sober, it is for your cause.
\nFor the love of Christ constraineth us\u201d (2Co 5:13-14). The love of
\nChrist toward his people constrains every believer to do all that we do
\nfor God and for our brethren.<\/p>\n
We see Christ\u2019s love for God his Father and his brethren on the cross.
\n\u201cGreater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for
\nhis friends\u201d (Jn 15:13). The greatest love of all is the love of Christ
\nmanifest when he laid down his life to declare God the Father the
\nJustifier of his elect while justifying his people. Christ\u2019s love is the
\nlove of the law that he declared to be the fulfillment of the law! When
\nthis love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, Christ
\nconstrains his redeemed to believe on him and to love our brethren for
\nwhom Christ redeemed by his precious blood. Faith in Christ and love
\ntoward our brethren is lived out as we, the church and body of Christ
\nwho he has fitly framed together, assemble ourselves together under the
\npreaching of Christ crucified. In love to our brethren we do for one
\nanother whatever our Head enables us to do so that our brethren can
\nfocus on Christ rather than the trials of life which are so distracting.
\nAt the same time, in faith to our Lord, we trust our brethren to their
\nown Master, knowing that Christ alone is able to make them stand and
\nshall make them stand (Rom 14: 4).<\/p>\n
Does the love of Christ really accomplish this in his people? Did
\nChrist\u2019s love for Paul really make him forsake will-works religion and
\npublicly identify himself with the church of our Redeemer? Did the love
\nof Christ really constrain Paul to never forsake assembling together
\nwith his brethren under the preaching of the gospel? Did Christ\u2019s love
\nreally constrain Paul to hazard his own life as he preached the
\nunsearchable riches of Christ? This is not a theory to those Christ has
\nunited. It is not merely a doctrine to those in whom Christ dwells. This
\nis a sure and certain reality that Christ\u2019s sanctified people experience
\nfrom the first hour he calls us to the last. \u201cWhosoever believeth that
\nJesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that
\nbegat loveth him also that is begotten of him\u201d (1 Jn 5:1) Christ\u2019s great
\nlove for us really constrains his people to persevere in faith and love,
\n\u201cendeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace\u201d (Eph
\n4:3).<\/p>\n
Let folks say we are crazy or let them say we are too serious. We say
\nwith Paul \u201cthe love of Christ constraineth us!\u201d
\nClay Curtis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThen a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.\u201d Exodus 40:34-35. The glory of the Lord God is that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bulletin-editions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5189"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5189\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5190,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5189\/revisions\/5190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}