{"id":6987,"date":"2026-01-25T07:11:41","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T07:11:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=6987"},"modified":"2026-01-25T07:11:41","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T07:11:41","slug":"bulletin-edition-january-2026-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/?p=6987","title":{"rendered":"Bulletin Edition January 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A religious man<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Horatius Bonar, “<\/em>The\nDoom of the Double-Hearted”)  
\n
\nThen Balaam uttered this\noracle: “Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my last end be\nlike theirs!” Numbers 23:7, 10
\n
\n“Which have left the right way, and gone astray, following\nthe way of Balaam son of Bosor, who loved\nthe wages of unrighteousness!” 2 Peter 2:15<\/p>\n\n\n\n


\nBalaam is a specimen of multitudes in these last days. An\neducated and intelligent man, shrewd and quick seeing, of respectable\ncharacter, high in favour with the rich and great–a\nreligious man<\/strong> too, after a fashion.
\n
\nBut he is fond of the world<\/em>, fond of money<\/em>,\nfond of preferment<\/em>. He is one who would not let his religion stand\nin the way of his advancement. He could pocket all scruples, if only he could\npocket a little gold along with them. He is hollow of heart, but with an\nacceptable outside.
\n
\nHis worldly interests are the main thing to him. He would rather\nnot risk offending God, but yet he would not like to lose Balak’s rewards and\nhonours. He would rather not take up his cross, nor deny himself, nor forsake\nall for God.
\n
\nSo is it with multitudes among us! They want as much\nreligion as they imagine will save them from Hell–and not an atom more!<\/em>
\n
\n<\/em>The world is their real God.
\n
\nGold is their idol.
\n
\nIt is in mammon’s temple that they worship.
\n
\nLove God with all their heart?
\nThey don’t so much as understand the meaning of such a thing.
\n
\nSacrifice riches, place, honour, friends to Christ?
\nThey scoff at the thing as madness.
\n
\nDon’t trifle with religion.
\n
\nDon’t mock God.
\n
\nDo not love the world.
\n
\nBe pious in your inmost soul.
\n
\nDon’t mistake sentimentalism for genuine piety; or a good\ncharacter for the New Birth.
\n
\nThis world OR the world to come–that is the alternative; not\nthis world AND the world to come.
\n
\nChrist must be all–or nothing!
\n
\nNo middle ground; no half discipleship; no compromise.
\n
\nThe friendship of the world is enmity with God.
\n
\nCome out and be separate.
\n
\nThe New Birth, or no religion at all.
\n
\nThen Balaam uttered this\noracle: “Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my last end be\nlike theirs!” Numbers 23:7, 10
\n
\n“Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray,\nfollowing the way of Balaam son of Bosor,\nwho loved the wages of unrighteousness!” 2 Peter 2:15<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So\nmany truly sincere and religious people<\/strong>
\n
\n(J.C.Philpot, “Answers to Inquiries”)
\n
\n“a<\/em> devout man<\/em>, and one that feared God with all\nhis house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.”\nActs 10:2<\/strong>
\n
\nYet Cornelius and his family weren’t saved! (Acts 11:14)
\n
\n\u2013A generous centurion built a synagogue. (Luke 7:3-5)
\n
\n\u2013A young man keeps the commandments from his
\n  youth up. (Luke 18:21)
\n
\n\u2013Balaam prophesies. (Numbers 23:16)
\n
\n\u2013Saul weeps. (1 Samuel 24:16)
\n
\n\u2013Judas preaches the gospel. (Matthew 10:5-8)
\n
\nYet none of these men were saved!
\n
\n
\nIt is at times, enough to fill one’s heart with mingled
\nastonishment and sorrow, to see so\nmany truly sincere<\/strong>
\nand religious people<\/strong>,\nwhose religion will leave them short
\nof eternal life\u2014because they are destitute of saving grace.
\n
\nTo see so much . . .<\/strong>
\n  amiability,
\n  benevolence,
\n  devotedness,
\n  self-denial,
\n  liberality
\n  loveliness of character,
\n  integrity,
\n  consistency of life,
\nall inescapably dashed against the rock of inflexible justice,
\nand there shattered and lost\u2014swallowed up with its unhappy
\npossessors in the raging billows beneath\u2014such a sight, did
\nwe not know that the Judge of the whole earth cannot do
\nwrong, would indeed stagger us to the very centre of our being!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A\nworldly Christianity?<\/strong>
\n(Octavius Winslow, “Morning Thoughts”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Be not conformed to\nthis world.” Romans 12:2<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor of the gospel! guard\nagainst the world; it
\nis your undoing! Watch against conformity to it . . .
\n  in your dress,
\n  in your mode of living,
\n  in the education of your children,
\n  in the principles, motives, and policy that govern you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit\nby . . .
\n  any known inconsistency of conduct,
\n  any sinful conformity to the world,
\n  any inordinate pursuit of . . .
\n    its wealth,
\n    its honours,
\n    its pleasures,
\n    its friendships, and
\n    its great things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pray against the sin of\ncovetousness, that canker worm\nthat feeds at the root of so many souls!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pray against the love of dress,\nthat sin that diverts the mind\nof so many professors from the simplicity of Christ,\nand takes the eye off from the true adornment!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pray against a thirst for light\nand trifling reading, that strange\nand sinful inconsistency of so many, the certain tendency\nof which is to starve the life of God in the soul, to\nengender a distaste for spiritual nourishment, for the Word\nof God, for holy meditation, and for Divine communion\nand fellowship. Yes, pray against the spirit\nof worldly, sinful conformity in everything!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reader! are you a professing\nChristian? Then guard against\na worldly Christianity\u2014a Christianity that wears a\nfair exterior, so far as it is composed of church attendance,\nbut which excludes from it the cross of the meek and\nlowly Lamb of God\u2014a Christianity which loves\nthe world and the things of the world, \u201cmakes a fair\nshow in the flesh,” speaks well of Christ, and yet\nbetrays Him with a kiss. Oh, awful state! oh, fearful\ndeception! oh, fatal delusion!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The world is the sworn enemy of\nyour Saviour; let it not be your\nfriend. No; come out of it and be separate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 IS THE LAW SIN? \u2013 GOD\nFORBID<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I measure a crooked wall\nwith a perfect plumb line, it reveals the<\/p>\n\n\n\n

crookedness of the wall, but\ndoes not remove it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I take out a bright light on\na dark night, it reveals to me all the<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pitfalls and hindrances, but it\ndoes not remove them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now the plumb line and the lamp\ndo not create the evils which they<\/p>\n\n\n\n

point out. They neither create\nnor remove, but simply reveal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So it is with the law. It does\nnot create the evil in man\u2019s heart;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

neither does it remove it. But\nwith unerring accuracy, it reveals it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat shall we say then? Is the\nlaw sin? God forbid. Nay, I had<\/p>\n\n\n\n

not known sin, but by the law:\nfor I had not known lust, except the law had<\/p>\n\n\n\n

said, Thou shalt not covet.\u201d\nRomans 7:7<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Scott Richardson<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No oil?<\/strong>
\n(Bonar, “Religion Without the Holy Spirit”)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“<\/strong>They that were<\/em> foolish\ntook their lamps, and took no oil with them:<\/strong>\u201d Matthew 25.3<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This parable has many sides and\naspects.
\nIt is prophetical; it is also practical.
\nIt suits all ages, but especially the last days.
\nIt suits the world, but especially the church of God.
\nIt is searching and sifting.
\nIt is also quickening and comforting.
\nIt suits us well in these days of . . .
\n  profession,
\n  fashionable religion and
\n  religiousness.
\nIt is a parable for the church.
\nIt comes into the inner circle of Christian
\nprofession, and sifts it, divides it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are points of likeness\nbetween the two classes.
\n    They get the same name, virgins;
\n    they wear the same dress;
\n    they are on the same errand;
\n    they both have lamps;
\n    they both slumber and sleep.
\nThey have thus many features in common.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The peril of mere externalism\nis that which our Lord\npoints out here. This externalism may not always\nbe hypocrisy, but it is imitation. It is not the\nflower in its natural colour and growth, but painted,\nartificial. Let us watch against an
\nartificial life, and an artificial religion. What does it profit now? What will it profit in the day of wrath? The name, the dress, the lamp, the outward show, will all go for nothing in that day of universal discovery and detection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though in most respects they\nwere all alike, yet\nthere was a difference. It was within; it was\nimperceptible from without; it could only be\ndiscovered when the bridegroom came. Up until\nthen all were completely similar. Only then the\ndeficiency came out in the foolish. Then was\nit seen who were wise, and who
\nwere foolish. That day is the day of certain and unerring detection. It is the day of weighing in the balances! It is the separation of the false from the true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The difference was confined to\na single point, the lack\nof oil. The oil is the Holy Spirit. Thus a man\nmay be very like a Christian, and yet not be\none. He may come very near the kingdom, and yet\nnot enter in. He may have all the outward features\nof a Christian, and yet be lacking in the main\none. He may have the complete dress of the\nsaint, and yet not be one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He may have a good life, a\nsound creed, a strict profession;\nhe may be one who says and does many\nexcellent things; he may be a subscriber to all\nthe religious societies in the land, a member of all\ntheir committees, or a speaker at all their meetings,\nand supporter of all their plans; he may\nprofess to be looking for Christ’s coming, and\ngoing forth to meet the bridegroom, yet
\nnot necessarily a Christian!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He may lack the oil, the Holy\nSpirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A religion without the Holy\nSpirit profits nothing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is the religion . . .
\n    of the intellect,
\n    of the sense,
\n    of the imagination,
\n    of the flesh,
\n    of the creed,
\n    of the liturgy,
\n    of the catechism,
\n    of nature,
\n    of poetry,
\n    of sentiment,
\n    of mysticism,
\n    of humanity.
\nBut what are these without the Spirit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Christianity without Christ,\nwhat would that be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Worship without God, what would\nthat be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So religion without the Holy\nSpirit, what would that be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The five who were foolish took\nno oil for their lamps.
\n“Sir! Sir!” they said. “Open the door for\nus!”
\nBut He replied, “I tell you the truth, I don’t know\nyou.”
\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n


\n<\/strong>\u201cThe Error of Balaam\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jude 11<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Balaam\u2019s error was greed, the love of money.  As all false\nprophets crave praise and are motivated by envy, so all false prophets are\ngreedy for gain. They fleece the Lord\u2019s sheep to line their own pockets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

           \nRunning \u201cgreedily after the error of Balaam<\/em>,\u201d men who have abandoned the\ngospel of God lead poor, deluded souls under their influence into idolatry,\nteaching them to mix law with grace, works with mercy, and logic with\nrevelation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

           \nMake no mistake. \u2014 These deceivers know exactly what they are doing. Balaam\nknew that God\u2019s people were blessed of God and could never be cursed. Yet, he\ntook Balak\u2019s money, prayed, acted very pious, and sought the destruction of\nGod\u2019s church, teaching Israel to worship idols and call it worshipping Jehovah.\n\u2014 God\u2019s servants are not like them (2 Corinthians 4:5-7).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three\nThings That Demand Our Constant Attention  <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Matthew\n6:19-34<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

     Here\nour Lord identifies three snares by which satan seeks to destroy our\nsouls and rob us of the joy and peace of faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     WORLDLINESS\nis the love of the world (I John 3:15). It is not, as most assume, a\nconformity to the world in dress style. Unless such conformity involves\nimmodesty, we ought to dress the way other people do.  It is\nconformity to the self-serving principles, aspirations, and behaviour of the\nworld. It is an immoderate attachment to the things of this world. Worldliness\nis one of the greatest dangers we face. It is one of satan’s most\ncleverly disguised snares. It seems an innocent thing to pay close attention to\nbusiness and seek advancement and prosperity in the world, so long as we avoid\nthe open sins of immorality. Yet, our Lord warns us that worldliness is the\nrock on which many have made shipwreck of their souls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     DOUBLEMINDEDNESS\nis the foolish attempt of religious men to serve God and the world at the same\ntime. It is impossible to do so. The ark of God will not allow Dagon to stand\nin the same house with it. Christ must be King in our hearts, ruling over us,\nso that his will, his glory, and his kingdom receives the devotion of our\nhearts and the commitment of our lives. Unless our lives are so ordered,\neverything is confusion. “Thy whole body shall be full of darkness.” We\nmust be a people of “one thing” (Psa. 27:4; Lk. 10:42;\nPhil. 3:13). “Set your affections on things above!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

     FRETFULNESS\nis the result of an overly anxious spirit concerning the matters of divine\nprovidence. Four times our Lord says, “Take no thought.” He is\ntelling us to stop worrying and fretting about earthly concerns. Prudent\nconcern and care about earthly responsibilities is proper. We are to work,\nprovide for our families, and fulfil our responsibilities in this world. But\ngreed, worry, and self-tormenting care about earthly\nthings is contrary to the faith we profess to have.Worry is a useless\nthing.It never changed anything (v. 27). If our heavenly Father feeds the\nsparrows and clothes the wildflowers, why should we question his provision\nfor us. Seek his kingdom, his righteousness, and his glory, and\n“my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by\nChrist Jesus!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

What is\na successful ministry?<\/strong>
\n
\n(Don Fortner)
\n
\n“Now it is required that those who have been given a trust\nmust prove faithful<\/strong>.” 1 Corinthians 4:2
\n
\nThe desperate need of the hour is faithful men<\/em> in\nthe pulpits of our churches. We have an over-abundance of preachers. We do not\nneed any more slick, polished, well-educated professionals in “the\nministry”. But we do, most desperately, need some faithful men<\/em> –\npastors after God’s own heart, who feed His people with knowledge and\nunderstanding. Thank God, we have a few!
\n
\nIn this day of big business religion<\/em>, when churches\nare measured not by their orthodoxy, but by the opinions of men; when a\npreacher’s success is measured not by his faithfulness, but by the number of\nnames added to the church roll – it might be wise to consider what a successful\nministry is according to the measure of Holy Scripture.
\n
\nAccording to the Word of God, those preachers and churches are\nsuccessful who are faithful<\/em> to the work to which God has\ncalled them. Never in the Old Testament or in the New was a prophet, apostle,\nor preacher measured by the opinions of men. God’s servants never courted the\nfavour of men, and were never favoured by the majority of the people. The\nchurch of God has always been out of step with society. The servants of God\nhave always been looked upon as peculiar, bigoted dogmatists, intolerant and\nincapable of compromise. But they were faithful – faithful to God, faithful to\nHis truth, and faithful to the souls of men.
\n
\nDo not be so foolish as to measure God’s work by man’s\nyardstick<\/em>. Do not measure the success or failure of preachers and churches\nby men, by numbers, or by popular opinion. The only measure of success for\nchurches and preachers is faithfulness<\/em>. Those who faithfully seek\nand promote the glory of God, who faithfully proclaim the truth of God, and who\nfaithfully serve the eternal interests of immortal souls are successful. Those\nwho are not are failures. The one will stand the fire of judgment. The other\nwill not.
\n
\nThe greatest blessing God can ever bestow upon any people in\nthis world is to establish in their midst a faithful Gospel church with a\nfaithful Gospel preacher as his messenger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Tychicus . . . is a dear\nbrother, a faithful minister<\/em> and fellow servant in the\nLord.” Colossians 4:7<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A religious man (Horatius Bonar, “The Doom of the Double-Hearted”)   Then Balaam uttered this oracle: “Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my last end be like theirs!” Numbers 23:7, 10 “Which have left the right way, and gone astray, following the way of Balaam son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness!” 2 Peter 2:15 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6987","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6987","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=6987"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6987\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6988,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6987\/revisions\/6988"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6987"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6987"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6987"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}