{"id":6849,"date":"2025-05-25T11:14:24","date_gmt":"2025-05-25T11:14:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=6849"},"modified":"2025-05-25T11:14:24","modified_gmt":"2025-05-25T11:14:24","slug":"bulletin-edition-may-2025-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=6849","title":{"rendered":"Bulletin Edition May 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Look! Look!
\n<\/strong>
\n>From Spurgeon’s sermon, “The Eternal Name”
\n<\/em>
\nLook!<\/strong> Do you see yonder thief hanging upon the cross?
\n
\nBehold<\/strong> the evil spirits at his foot, with open mouths;
\ncharming themselves with the sweet thought,
\nthat another soul shall give them food in hell.
\n
\nBehold<\/strong> the death-bird, fluttering his wings
\nover the poor wretch’s head.
\n
\n‘Vengeance’ passes by and stamps him for her own.
\nDeep on his breast is written “a condemned sinner.”
\n
\nOn his brow is the clammy sweat, forced from him
\nby agony and death.
\n
\nLook<\/strong> in his heart; it is filthy with the crust of years of sin;
\nthe smoke of lust is hanging within in black festoons of
\ndarkness– his whole heart is hell condensed.
\n
\nNow, look<\/strong> at him- he is dying. One foot seems to be in hell;
\nthe other hangs tottering in life–only kept by a nail.
\n
\nThere is a power in Jesus’ eye. That thief looks to Jesus;
\nhe whispers, “Lord, remember me.”
\n
\nTurn your eye again there. Do you see that thief now?
\nWhere is the clammy sweat? It is there.
\nWhere is that horrid anguish? It is ‘not’ there.
\nThere is a smile upon his lips.
\n
\nThe fiends of hell, where are they? There are none-
\nbut a bright seraph is present, with his wings outspread,
\nand his hands ready to snatch that soul, now a precious jewel,
\nand bear it aloft to the palace of the great King.
\n
\nLook<\/strong> within his heart now; it is white with purity.
\nLook<\/strong> at his breast now; it is not written “condemned,”
\nbut “justified.”
\n
\nLook<\/strong> in the book of life: his name is graven there.
\n
\nLook<\/strong> on Jesus’ heart: there on one of the precious stones
\nhe bears that poor thief’s name.
\n
\nYes, once more, look!<\/strong>
\nDo you see that bright one amid the glorified,
\nclearer than the sun, and fair as the moon?
\nThat is the thief!
\nThat is the power of Jesus to save!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One foot in hell<\/strong>
\n
\n(Horatius Bonar, “The Three Crosses”)
\n
\n“<\/strong>Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in\nparadise.\u201d<\/strong> Luke 23:43<\/strong>
\n
\nThe saved thief is a specimen of what the cross is appointed
\nto do. Sin abounding, grace super-abounding.
\n
\nWhat is yon cross erected for? <\/strong>To save souls!
\nSee, it saves one of the worst; one who had done
\nnothing but evil all his days!
\n
\nWhat does that blood flow for? <\/strong>To wash away sin!
\nSee, it washes one of the blackest!
\n
\nWhat does yon Sufferer die for? <\/strong>To pardon the
\nguiltiest! Not merely to save from hell, but to open
\nParadise to the chief of sinners\u2014to open it at once;
\nnot after years of torment, but “today.” Today “with
\nMe.” Yes, Jesus goes back to heaven with a saved
\nrobber at His side! What an efficacy in the cross!
\nWhat grace, what glory, what cleansing, what healing,
\nwhat blessing\u2014at yonder cross! Even “in weakness”
\nthe Son of God can deliver\u2014can pluck brands from
\nthe burning\u2014can defy and defeat the evil one! Such
\nis the meaning of the cross! Such is the interpretation
\nwhich God puts upon it, by saving that wretched thief.
\n
\nSee how near to hell a man may be\u2014and yet be
\nsaved!<\/strong> That thief, was he not on the very brink of the
\nburning  lake\u2014one foot in hell<\/strong>; almost set on fire by
\nhell? Yet he is plucked out! He has done nothing but
\nevil all his days\u2014down to the very last hour of his life;
\nyet he is saved. He is just about to step into perdition,
\nwhen the hand of the Son of God seizes him and lifts
\nhim to Paradise!
\n
\nAh, what grace is here!
\n
\nWhat boundless love!
\n
\nWhat power to save!
\n
\nWho after this need despair?
\n
\nTruly Jesus is mighty to save!
\n
\nSee how near a man may be to Christ\u2014and
\nyet not be saved. <\/strong>The other thief is as near the
\nSaviour as his fellow\u2014yet he perishes. From the
\nvery side of Christ\u2014he goes down to hell. From
\nthe very side of his saved fellow\u2014he passes into
\ndamnation. We see the one going up to heaven
\n\u2014and the other going down to hell.
\n
\nThis is astonishing\u2014and it is fearful!
\n
\nOh, what a lesson\u2014what a sermon is here!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two Thieves<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luke 23:32-43<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How willing, how anxious the Lord Jesus Christ is to save poor,\nlost sinners! The cross of Christ is a vivid declaration that \u201cwhere sin\nabounded grace did much more abound!<\/em>\u201d What is the meaning of the cross? Why\nwas our Lord Jesus nailed to the cursed tree? Behold the dying thief and hear\nthe answer. The Son of God came into the world to save sinners. Christ came to\nseek and to save that which was lost!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Dying Thief<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dying thief is a true specimen of God\u2019s elect. This man\nappears to have done nothing but evil all his life. We know nothing about him,\nexcept that he was a thief, a thief who had executed his crimes with violence,\na thief who continued to blaspheme, even as he was being executed, a thief who\nwas loved and chosen of God (1 Corinthians 1:26-31).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Why was Immanuel\u2019s blood poured\nout at Calvary? Christ Jesus poured out his life\u2019s blood upon the cursed tree\nto wash away sin. Here I see it washing away the sins of one like myself, whose\nheart and life were as black as hell. Why did Christ suffer and die? It was to\npardon the most guilty. It was not merely to save us from hell, but to open\nParadise to the chief of sinners, to open it at once; not after years of\ntorment, but \u201ctoday<\/em>.\u201d Today \u201cshalt thou be with me<\/em>.\u201d Yes, the\nLord Jesus went back to heaven with this saved thief in his hands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      By his death upon the cursed\ntree, the Son of God delivers and saves his people from their sins. Satisfying\nthe justice of God, He plucked us as brands from the burning, conquered hell,\nand defeated the devil and cast him down to hell. The first sinner saved by the\ncross, after it had been erected upon Calvary\u2019s hill, was a wretched, justly\ncondemned thief; and the Son of God went up to heaven with him to join in that\njoy that is in heaven over one sinner who repents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Brink of Hell<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How near a person may be to hell and yet be saved! That thief\nwas, as it were, upon the very brink of hell. He had one foot in the pit. Hell\nwas in his heart. Hell had been his life. Soon, hell must be his portion\nforever! He had done nothing but evil continually all the days of his life. In\nthe very last hour of his life, he is heard blaspheming and railing against the\nLord Jesus. Yet, he was plucked from the fire by omnipotent mercy! \u2014 Saved by\nthe Son of God! He was just about to step into everlasting damnation when the\nomnipotent hand of the Son of God seized him and lifted him up to Paradise! Oh,\nwhat grace is here! What boundless love! What power to save! Who after this\nneed despair? Truly our Lord Jesus Christ is mighty to save!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Other Thief<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How near you may be to Christ and yet be lost forever! The other\nthief was as near the Saviour as the one who was saved. Yet, he perished. He\nwent to hell from the very side of the Son of God, from the very presence of\nImmanuel! Can anyone be nearer to Christ than that thief was? Looking at him,\nhearing him, speaking  to him,  he was lost after all!  Be\nwarned.  Outward nearness,  religious duties, familiarity with the\nWord of God, baptism, eating and drinking the symbols of the Saviour\u2019s body and\nblood, none of these things can save. You may be very near Christ, and yet not\nbe in Christ. Salvation is not being near Christ. Salvation is being found in\nChrist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Here are two men. Both are\nthieves. Both are damned. Both are lost. Both are without God, without Christ,\nwithout hope. Both are in the immediate presence of the crucified Christ. One\nis taken up to glory. One is taken up to heaven. The other is cast down to\nhell. What made the difference?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two Facts<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s the difference. \u201cThe wages of sin is death;\nbut the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord<\/em>\u201d\n(Romans 6:23). \u2014 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout the Word of God, we are constantly assured of two\nfacts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. If anyone goes to hell,\n it is his own fault alone, his own responsibility, altogether the result\n of what he has done, and that for which he alone must bear the blame\n forever. <\/li>
  2. If anyone is saved, if\n anyone goes to heaven, it is God\u2019s work alone, altogether the result of\n that which God has done, and that for which God alone must have the praise\n forever.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Wages Paid<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cThe wages of sin is death!<\/em>\u201d \u2014 Sin is what we all are by\nnature; and sin is all that we do in a state of rebellion against God. It is as\nimpossible for a sinner to do good as it is for water to be dry. Our corrupt\nnature corrupts all our thoughts, feelings, words, and deeds. As a corrupt\nfountain only brings forth corrupt water, so a corrupt heart only brings forth\ncorruption. That means that the very plowing of the wicked is an abomination to\nGod, and even our righteousnesses are filthy rags in his sight (Proverbs 21:4;\nIsaiah 64:6). Sin is also our choice. We all drink iniquity like water (Job\n15:16). And that which sin deserves is death, eternal death, which is eternal\nseparation from God and the eternal vengeance of his holy wrath. Death is the\ndebt God owes to sin. And God always pays his debts. The reprobate thief went\nto hell because he ate the fruit of his own way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Gift Bestowed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u201cBut the gift of God is eternal life!<\/em>\u201d \u2014 Eternal life\ncomes to guilty sinners not as a debt, or a reward for something we have done,\nbut as the free grace gift of God. The new birth, which is the beginning of\neternal life in the soul, is the gift of God. Faith in Christ is the gift of\nGod. Heavenly glory, which is the consummation of eternal life, is also the\ngift of God. Death, hell, and judgment are things we earn by sin. But\ngrace, life, and heaven are things freely given to sinners \u201cthrough Jesus\nChrist our Lord!<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          Christ paid the debt of sin for\nhis people by his death upon the cross, making it right and just for the holy\nLord God, who must punish sin, to give eternal life to all for whom he died.\nThrough the merits of his blood and righteousness, God gives eternal life to\neveryone who believes on him. Even the faith by which we receive this gift is\nthe gift of God and the result of his operation of grace (Ephesians 2:8;\nColossians 1:12). Faith in Christ is not the cause of God\u2019s gift, but the\nresult of it. If you now believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, God has given you\neternal life. It is altogether his work. \u2014 \u201cSalvation is of the Lord!<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Don Fortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    “LOVE\nONE ANOTHER”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I\nJohn 4:11<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The\nwhole law of God is summed up in this one word – LOVE<\/strong>. Love is the\nreflection of God’s character. Love is the reflection of God’s mercy. Love is\nthe reflection of Christ’s substitutionary work as our Redeemer. And love is\nthe reflection of saving grace in the heart. If I have truly experienced grace\nin my heart, there will be a manifest love in my heart for the children of God.\nThis love reveals itself in many practical ways. Love is FORGIVING.<\/strong> Love\nis not easily OFFENDED<\/strong>. Love is PATIENT,<\/strong> LONG\nSUFFERING,<\/strong> and KIND<\/strong>. Love is THOUGHTFUL<\/strong> and MERCIFUL<\/strong>.\nLove will cause a man to PRAY FOR HIS BRETHREN<\/strong>. Love will cause a\nperson to SEEK THE COMPANY AND FELLOWSHIP OF HIS BRETHREN.<\/strong> Love\nwill cause us to CARE FOR ONE ANOTHER, <\/strong>sharing each other’s\njoys and sorrows, bearing each other’s burdens, seeking each other’s welfare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Do I\nhave this LOVE?<\/strong> Do you? It matters not what else we have, or\nwhat else we may experience – IF LOVE IS ABSENT, CHRIST IS ABSENT,\nGRACE IS ABSENT, SALVATION IS ABSENT!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Don\nFortner<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    “Bear ye another’s\nburdens\u2014and so fulfil the law of Christ<\/em>.” Gal 6:2<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Author unknown
    \n
    \nThe law of Christ<\/strong>\u2014is the law of love. “A new commandment,” said\nHe to His disciples, “Love one another. As I have loved you, that ye also\nlove one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye\nhave love one to another.” Jn 13:34, 35<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Love, manifesting itself\nin practical <\/em>sympathy and in deeds <\/em>of\nkindness\u2014should characterise the followers of Christ. They are exhorted to look\nnot only on their own things, but also on the things of others; to be pitiful\nand tender-hearted one towards another; to lighten each other’s loads, to\n“bear one another’s burdens\u2014and so fulfil the law of Christ.”
    \n
    \nO Lord, give unto us more of the spirit of Christ, who, though He was rich, for\nour sakes became poor, that we, through His poverty, might be rich. Help us, as\nwe have opportunity, to do good unto all men\u2014but especially unto those who are\nof the household of faith. Oh that it may be manifest to the world that we are\nthe disciples of the loving Saviour\u2014by our love one to another!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So mighty \u2014 yet so\nloving!<\/strong>
    \n
    \n(John MacDuff, “Ripples in the Twilight” 1885)
    \n
    \nWhat a wonderful Saviour! So mighty \u2014 yet so loving!<\/strong>
    \n
    \nSpurning<\/em>, indeed, all baseness and vileness, all mere lip-homage and\nhypocrisy.
    \nUpsetting all false human ideals and empty philosophies.
    \nAt war with conventional empty religious rituals.
    \nDenouncing every white-washed sepulcher that serves only to screen spiritual\nrottenness.
    \n
    \nBut welcoming . . .
    \n  many of those who were looked at askance by their fellows;
    \n  some who were the subjects of social ostracism;
    \n  those deemed fit only to be trampled, as bruised battered flowers,\nunderneath the feet;
    \n  the repentant harlot and sinner, the prodigal, the outcast, the lost.
    \n
    \nHis heart is a very hive of tenderness<\/em> . . .
    \n  washing His disciples’ feet in token of humility;
    \n  standing by the grave of buried affection;
    \n  wiping away the tear of bereavement;
    \n  calming the paroxysms of untold sorrow;
    \n  arrested by the penitential sighings of the contrite spirit.
    \n
    \nIn a word, imparting . . .
    \n  rest <\/em>to the weary and heavy-laden,
    \n  hope <\/em>to the desponding,
    \n  sympathy <\/em>to the mourner,
    \n  healing <\/em>to the brokenhearted; and
    \n  finally showing, in the scenes of Gethsemane and Calvary which\ncrowned that Incarnation of suffering love<\/strong> \u2014 what He the\nDivine Man could do and dare for perishing sinners.
    \n
    \nThe kindness of the kindest on earth <\/em>has a limit \u2014 His had\nnone.
    \nHuman affection and love may come and go \u2014 but His flows on forever!
    \n
    \n“Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love; therefore with\nlovingkindness I have drawn thee!” Jeremiah 31:3<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Look! Look! >From Spurgeon’s sermon, “The Eternal Name” Look! Do you see yonder thief hanging upon the cross? Behold the evil spirits at his foot, with open mouths; charming themselves with the sweet thought, that another soul shall give them food in hell. Behold the death-bird, fluttering his wings over the poor wretch’s head. ‘Vengeance’ passes by and […]<\/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-6849","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\/6849","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=6849"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6850,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6849\/revisions\/6850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}