HIS BLOOD ALONE!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The vital thing to understand\nabout the blood of Christ is this: IT IS ENOUGH! Nothing else is needed to\naccomplish the salvation of all for whom His blood was shed. Not His blood plus\nmy works; not His blood plus my \u201cdecision\u201d not His blood plus the ordinances;\nnot His blood plus church membership; not even His blood plus my faith- His\nblood purchased my faith. HIS BLOOD ALONE paid the price required by His\njustice, and His blood alone can make a sinner clean. “By His own blood He\nentered in once into the Holy place, having OBTAINED (not made possible)\neternal redemption for us\u201d (Heb 9:12). \n \n Donnie Bell<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The\nImportance Of The Lord’s Table<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n “As\noft as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till\nhe come.”<\/em> I Corinthians 11:26<\/p>\n\n\n\n This evening, we will enjoy the greatest privilege known to the\npeople of God upon the earth. We will observe the Lord’s Supper. It causes me\ngreat concern that so many of God’s children absent themselves from this\nordinance. Therefore, I thought it might be beneficial for us all to be\nreminded of the importance of the Lord’s table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nPurpose For Observing The Lord’s Supper Is That We Might Show The Lord’s Death.<\/strong> Our\nSaviour instituted the ordinance of Communion Just before his death. It is a\nsymbolic representation of the sufferings and death of our Redeemer in our\nplace. By breaking the bread and drinking the wine, we are reminded of our need\nof a Substitute, by reason of sin. We are reminded of God’s great love to us in\nsacrificing his Son in our stead. And we testify of our faith in that One,\nwhose body was wounded, bruised, and broken, and whose blood was shed for our\neternal salvation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Lord’s Supper Is A Meal which Every True Believer Should\nObserve.<\/strong> Regrettably, many of God’s children have been taught to\nfear coming to the Lord’s table. If you are a true believer, having\nconfessed faith in Christ, you not only can, you should commemorate the\nSaviour’s death. You do not show your reverence for the Lord’s Supper by\nrefusing to take it! Our worthiness to take the Supper is not in ourselves, but\nin Christ. We come, not with perfection, but with faith. By eating and\ndrinking, we show our confidence in the Saviour’s finished work to make us\naccepted in the sight of God. There is no time when a believer is more fully\nmade aware of his sin and his utter dependence upon the redeeming work of\nChrist than at the Lord’s table. No unbeliever, who fails to discern the\nvalue of the Lord’s incarnation and death, should come to the\nLord’s table; but every true believer should.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Lord’s Supper Is To Be Observed Often. <\/strong>We\nneed to be frequently reminded of our Saviour’s loving sacrifice for such\nwretched sinners as we are. Let us eat the bread and drink the wine in\nanticipation of our Lord’s return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\nFortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n “MANY\nFALSE PROPHETS ARE GONE OUT INTO THE WORLD”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I\nJohn 4:1<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nscriptures abound with warnings to God’s elect about false prophets. Satan\nwould rather make you a religious moralist than make you a pimp or a\nprostitute, for it is far more difficult to persuade one who thinks he is saved\nthat he needs a Saviour than it is to persuade one who knows he is an\nabominable wretch. Therefore the Word of God gives plain and repeated warnings\nto us about false religion and false prophets. Here are four marks by which you\ncan always identify a false prophet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. A\nFALSE PROPHET WILL ALWAYS DENY GOD’S ABSOLUTE SOVEREIGNTY IN SALVATION. <\/strong>He\nmay allow that God is sovereign in creation. He may even allow that God is\nsovereign over the elements of the world in providence. But he will not\nacknowledge God’s sovereignty in salvation, though it is most plainly affirmed\nin the Word of God (Matt. 11:20-26; Rom. 9:8-26).<\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. A\nFALSE PROPHET WILL ALWAYS DENY THE EFFICACY OF CHRIST’S BLOOD.<\/strong> He does\nnot deny that Christ died for sinners; but he denies that the blood of Christ\nactually atoned for and put away the sins of those people for whom he died, and\nthat his blood guarantees the salvation of all for whom it was shed. Yet, this\ntoo the Word of God teaches in unmistakable terms (Isa. 42:4; 53:8-11;\nHeb. 9:12, 26; 10:10-14).<\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. A\nFALSE PROPHET WILL ALWAYS DENY THE SUFFICIENCY OF GOD’S GRACE ALONE TO SAVE\nSINNERS. <\/strong>He would never openly make such a denial. But he asserts that\nGod deals with all men alike in grace, though some perish and some are saved.\nIn other words, it is not God’s grace alone that determines salvation, but\nGod’s grace and man’s will or man’s works. This also is in direct opposition to\nHoly Scripture (Rom. 9:16; Eph. 2:8-9; II Tim. 1:9).<\/p>\n\n\n\n 4. A\nFALSE PROPHET WILL ALWAYS GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO DO TO MERIT GOD’S FAVOUR.<\/strong> He\nwill have you to understand that your works, to one-degree or another do merit\nsomething from God, either in justification, or in sanctification, or in your\nheavenly reward. Yet, the Word of God everywhere denounces man’s works as\nuseless and abominable (Isa. 64:6; Rom. 11:6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\nFortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your\neyes will see the King in His beauty!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n “Thine\neyes shall see the King in His beauty!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Isaiah\n33:17<\/p>\n\n\n\n Where\nin heaven or on earth can there be found such<\/p>\n\n\n\n a\nlovely Object as the Son of God? If you have never<\/p>\n\n\n\n seen\nany beauty in Jesus . . .<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nyou have never seen Jesus,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nHe has never revealed Himself to you,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nyou never had a glimpse of His lovely face,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nnor a sense of His presence,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nnor a word from His lips,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nnor a touch from His hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But\nif you have seen Him by the eye of faith\u2014and<\/p>\n\n\n\n He\nhas revealed Himself to you even in a small<\/p>\n\n\n\n measure\u2014you\nhave seen a beauty in Him beyond<\/p>\n\n\n\n all\nother beauties, for it is . . .<\/p>\n\n\n\n \na holy beauty,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \na divine beauty,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nthe beauty of His heavenly grace,<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nthe beauty of His uncreated and eternal glory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How\nbeautiful and glorious does He show Himself to be<\/p>\n\n\n\n in\nHis atoning blood and dying love. Even as sweating<\/p>\n\n\n\n great\ndrops of blood in Gethsemane’s gloomy garden,<\/p>\n\n\n\n and\nas hanging in torture and agony upon Calvary’s<\/p>\n\n\n\n cross\u2014faith\ncan see a beauty in the glorious Redeemer,<\/p>\n\n\n\n even\nin the lowest depths of ignominy and shame!<\/p>\n\n\n\n ” What is<\/em> thy\nbeloved more than another<\/em> beloved, 10 <\/sup><\/strong>My\nbeloved is<\/em> white and ruddy, J.C.Philpot<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nreligion of a dead professor . . .<\/strong> J.C.Philpot<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Beatific Vision<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n John MacDuff John Newton’s Letters<\/p>\n\n\n\n Union with Christ<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Dear Sir, In our natural state, we are\ndriven and tossed about, by the changing winds of opinion, and the waves of\ntrouble, which hourly disturb and threaten us upon the uncertain sea of human\nlife. But faith, uniting us to Christ, fixes us upon a sure foundation, the\nRock of Ages, where we stand immovable, though storms and floods unite their\nforce against us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By nature we are separated\nfrom the divine life, as branches broken off, withered and fruitless. But\ngrace, through faith, unites us to Christ the living Vine, from whom, as the\nroot of all fullness, a constant supply of sap and influence is derived into\neach of his mystical branches, enabling them to bring forth fruit unto God, and\nto persevere and abound therein.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By nature we are hateful and\nabominable in the sight of a holy God, and full of enmity and hatred towards\neach other. By faith, uniting us to Christ, we have fellowship with the Father\nand the Son, and joint communion among ourselves; even as the members of the\nsame body have each of them union, communion, and sympathy, with the head, and\nwith their fellow-members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In our natural estate, we\nwere cast out naked and destitute, without pity, and without help, Ezek.\n16:1-63; but faith, uniting us to Christ, interests us in his righteousness,\nhis riches, and his honours. Our Redeemer is our husband; our debts are paid, our\nsettlements secured, and our names changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus the Lord Jesus, in\ndeclaring himself the foundation, root, head, and husband, of his people, takes\nin all the ideas we can frame of an intimate, vital, and inseparable union. Yet\nall these fall short of truth; and he has given us one further similitude, of\nwhich we can by no means form a just conception until we shall be brought to\nsee him as he is in his kingdom. John 17:21: “<\/strong>that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art<\/em> in\nme, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us:<\/strong>“<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well may we say, What has\nGod wrought! How inviolable is the security, how inestimable the privilege, how\ninexpressible the happiness, of a believer! How greatly is he indebted to\ngrace! He was once afar off, but he is brought near to God by the blood of\nChrist: he was once a child of wrath, but is now an heir of everlasting life.\nHow strong then are his obligations to walk worthy of God, who has called him\nto his kingdom and glory!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" HIS BLOOD ALONE! The vital thing to understand about the blood of Christ is this: IT IS ENOUGH! Nothing else is needed to accomplish the salvation of all for whom His blood was shed. Not His blood plus my works; not His blood plus my \u201cdecision\u201d not His blood plus the ordinances; not His blood […]<\/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-7000","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\/7000","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=7000"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7000\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7001,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7000\/revisions\/7001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7000"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7000"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7000"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nO thou fairest among women?
\nwhat is<\/em> thy beloved more than another<\/em> beloved,
\nthat thou dost so charge us?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nthe chiefest among ten thousand.!”\nSong 5:9-10<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\nHow different the religion of a child of God
\nis, from the religion of a dead professor!
\n
\nThe religion of a dead professor . . .<\/strong>
\n begins in self, and ends in self;
\n begins in his own wisdom, and ends in his own folly;
\n begins in his own strength, and ends in his own\nweakness;
\n begins in his own righteousness, and ends in his own\ndamnation!
\n
\nThere is in him never any going out of soul
\nafter God, no secret dealings with the Lord.
\n
\nBut the child of God, though he is often faint, weary,
\nand exhausted with many difficulties, burdens and
\nsorrows\u2014yet he never can be satisfied except in living
\nunion and communion with the Lord of life and glory.
\n
\nEverything short of that leaves him empty.
\n
\nAll the things of time and sense leave a child of God
\nunsatisfied. Nothing but vital union and communion
\nwith the Lord of life, to . . .
\n feel His presence,
\n taste His love,
\n enjoy His favour,
\n see His glory;
\nnothing but this will ever satisfy the desires
\nof ransomed and regenerated souls. This the
\nLord indulges His people with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong>
\n
\n(J. C. Philpot, “Contemplations and Reflections”)
\n
\nStanding at the\ncross<\/strong> of our adorable Lord, we see . . .
\n the law thoroughly fulfilled,
\n its curse fully endured,
\n its penalties wholly removed,
\n sin eternally put away,
\n the justice of God amply satisfied,
\n all His perfections gloriously harmonised,
\n His holy will perfectly obeyed,
\n reconciliation completely effected,
\n redemption graciously accomplished,
\n and the church everlastingly saved!
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong> we see . . .
\n sin <\/strong>in its blackest colours, and
\n holiness <\/strong>in its fairest beauties.
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong> we see . . .
\n the love <\/strong>of God in its tenderest form,\nand
\n the anger <\/strong>of God in its deepest\nexpression.
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong> we see the blessed\nRedeemer lifted up,
\nas it were between heaven and earth, to show to
\nangels and to men the spectacle of redeeming love<\/strong>,
\nand to declare at one and the same moment, and by
\none and the same act of the suffering obedience and
\nbleeding sacrifice of the Son of God\u2014the eternal and
\nunalterable displeasure of the Almighty against sin,
\nand the rigid demands of His inflexible justice, and
\nyet the tender compassion and boundless love of His
\nheart to the elect.
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong>, and here alone, are obtained\npardon
\nand peace.
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong>, and here alone, penitential\ngrief
\nand godly sorrow flow from heart and eyes.
\n
\nAt the cross<\/strong>, and here alone, is . . .
\n sin subdued and mortified,
\n holiness communicated,
\n death vanquished,
\n Satan put to flight, and
\n happiness and heaven begun in the soul.
\n
\nO what heavenly blessings, what present grace, as
\nwell as what future glory, flow through the cross!
\n
\nWhat a holy meeting-place<\/strong> for repenting sinners\nand
\na sin-pardoning God! What a healing-place<\/strong> for\nguilty,
\nyet repenting and returning backsliders! What a door<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>of hope<\/strong> in the valley of Achor for the self-condemned
\nand self-abhorred! What a blessed resting-place<\/strong> for\nthe
\nwhole family of God in this valley of grief and sorrow!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see\nGod<\/em>.” Matthew 5:8
\n
\nHere is Heaven! This promise of Jesus represents the future\nstate of the glorified to consist not in locality, but in character; the\nessence of its bliss is the full vision and fruition of Go<\/em>d. Our attention\nis called away from all vague and indefinite theories about the circumstantials\nof future happiness. The one grand object of contemplation-the “glory\nwhich excels,” is the sight of God Himself! The one grand practical lesson\nenforced on His people is the cultivation of that purity of heart without which\nnone could see<\/em>, or (even could we suppose it possible to be\nadmitted to see Him) none could enjoy<\/em> God!
\n
\nWhat will Heaven be, but the entire surrender of the soul to\nHim, without any bias to evil, without the fear of corruption within echoing to\ntemptation without; every thought brought into captivity to the obedience of\nChrist; no contrariety to His mind; all in blessed unison with His will; and\nthe whole being impregnated with holiness:
\n the intellect<\/em> purified and ennobled,\nconsecrating all its powers to His service;
\n the memory<\/em>, a holy repository of pure and\nhallowed recollections;
\n the affections<\/em>, without one competing rival,\npurged from all the dross of earthliness;
\n the love of God<\/em>, the one supreme animating\npassion;
\n the glory of God<\/em>, the motive principle\ninterfused through every thought, and feeling, and action of the life immortal.\nIn one word, the heart a clear fountain-no sediment to dim its purity. Yes,\nthis is Heaven-purity of heart and “God all in all!”<\/em>
\n
\nMuch, doubtless, there may and will be of a subordinate kind, to\nintensify the bliss of the redeemed: communion with saints and angels;\nre-admission into the society of death-divided friends. But all these will fade\nbefore the great central glory, “God Himself shall be with them, and be\ntheir God; they shall see His face!”
\n
\nBelievers have been aptly called ‘sunflowers’-turning their\nfaces as the sunflower towards the Sun of Righteousness, and hanging their leaves\nin sadness and sorrow when that Sun is away. It will be in Heaven that the\nemblem is complete. There, every flower in the heavenly garden will be turned\nGodwards, bathing its tints of loveliness in the all-excelling glory of God!\nReader, may it be yours to know all the marvels contained in these few glowing\nwords, “We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is!”<\/em>
\n
\n“I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Your\nlikeness.” Psalm 17:15
\n
\n“And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth\nhimself, even as He is pure.” 1 John 3:3<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nThe union of a believer with Christ is so intimate, so\nunalterable, so rich in privilege, so powerful in influence, that it cannot be\nfully represented by any description or similitude taken from earthly things.\nThe mind, like the sight, is incapable of apprehending a great object, without\nviewing it on different sides. To help our weakness, the nature of this union\nis illustrated, in the Scripture, by four comparisons, each throwing additional\nlight on the subject, yet all falling short of the thing signified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n