It\nhas been my experience that focusing on whether or not I am saved always leads\nto confusion and doubt, but focusing on whether Christ is the Saviour has\nalways led to simplicity of thought and confidence. \n Joe Terrell<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It has been often said that\njustification is the article upon which a church stands or falls. While I\ndo not disagree with that statement, it certainly is not complete. \nPerhaps a better word would be sanctification. Sanctification (being set\napart to be holy) encompasses the whole spectrum of salvation. The\nbeliever was set apart by the Father in eternal election to be holy. The\nbeliever was set apart and declared to be holy by the redeeming work of Christ\non the cross. The believer is set apart from the rest of the world in\nregeneration when he is given a holy nature by the Spirit of God.\nSanctification describes the work of all three Persons of the Godhead and\nencompasses every aspect of salvation from election to glorification. \nYes, justification is of infinite importance. But so is every other part\nof God\u2019s salvation. What word is used most in Scripture to describe God\u2019s\nchildren? ….. Saints (Sanctified Ones). \n <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Todd Nibert<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saving\nFaith<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Saving\nfaith is not based upon one\u2019s feelings but upon God\u2019s faithfulness. It embraces\nand rejoices in the promises of God. It needs no evidence or proof, only a word\nfrom the living God of the Bible; being \u201cfully persuaded that what God has\npromised, he is able also to perform\u201d (Romans 4:21); and realising that the\nonly difference between God\u2019s faithful promise and its perfect fulfilment is\njust a little time…His appointed time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \n~Maurice Montgomery<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\nchallenge anyone to put his or her finger on one scripture in the Holy Bible\nwhere Christ ever turned away a truly repentant sinner. You won\u2019t find one!\nMany came in pride that were turned away. Many came in religion that were soon\ndrawn away. Yet never was there one desperate sinner who came with great need\nand desire to be healed that was ever denied His grace.\n ~David\nEddmenson<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nWarning <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 2\nPeter 2:1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As there were many false\nprophets among the children of Israel in the Old Testament, so there\nshall be many false teachers rising up in\nthe church of Christ until he comes again. Though they\nprofess to be redeemed by Christ and claim to love him and trust him, though\nthey seem to be most amiable and kind, the poison of asps is under their lips.\nTheir doctrine is damning! Their doctrine is a denial of Christ, not of his\ncoming, but of his accomplishments, not of his Being, but of his character, not\nof his death, or atonement by it, but of the efficacy of it! To deny Christ the\nLord is not a mere denial of the title Lord, but a denial of his character as\nLord, rightful Master and absolute Sovereign! “Beware of false\nprophets!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don Fortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who\nIs Jesus Christ? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Matthew\n24:22-24<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Satan\nis a master deceiver. His methods of destroying the souls of men are numerous,\nbut none is more successful than false religion.He transforms his ministers\ninto angels of light and preachers of righteousness (I Cor. 1:13-15). He\ninvents false christs, builds a refuge of lies, and persuades people to\ntrust a christ he has invented and make lies a refuge for their souls. Then he\ngives his captives peace and assurance with which he drags them to hell.Salvation\nis to be had only by trusting the Christ of Holy Scripture. Any other christ is\na false christ, antichrist. “The One who is to be enshrined in our minds\nand hearts must be the true Christ of the Bible. Otherwise we have an idol at\nthe centre of our faith” (John Legg). We must know who Jesus Christ is and\nwhat he has done if we are to trust him and be saved by him. Faith in a false\nchrist, (no matter how sincere, life changing and comforting it is), is a\nfalse faith that will drag your soul to hell at last. I do not say that a sinner\nmust have any depth of theological knowledge and understanding before he can\nbelieve on the Lord Jesus Christ. That would be to preach a subtle form of\nworks salvation. There are no preconditions to be met by the sinner before he\nmay believe on Christ. However, I do say, true faith must have the true Christ\nfor its object.You cannot be saved trusting a false christ! Many false\nprophets have gone out into the world in the spirit of antichrist preaching a\nfalse christ (I John 4:1-4).It is therefore vital that God’s servants clearly\nidentify the Christ of Holy Scripture.JESUS CHRIST IS THE SOVEREIGN GOD (Rom.\n9:5). Being himself God, our Saviour has absolute power, dominion, and control\nover all creation. He always does what he will. He cannot fail to accomplish\nhis will to any degree. A god who fails is no God at all! JESUS CHRIST IS THE\nEFFECTUAL REDEEMER OF HIS PEOPLE (Gal.3: 13). By his incarnation, obedience to\nGod and death upon the cross as their Substitute, Christ has established\nperfect righteousness and fully satisfied the justice of God for his elect. By\neffectual redemption he secured the eternal salvation of all his people. JESUS\nCHRIST IS THE SUCCESSFUL SAVIOUR (Matt. 1:21). All whom he purposed to\nsave in eternity and died to save at Calvary he will save at his\nappointed time. All who trust him do so because he is a successful Saviour!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\nFortner<\/p>\n\n\n\n Through the inward conflicts,<\/strong> J.C.Philpot<\/p>\n\n\n\n We get no better, but rather worse<\/strong> J.C.Philpot<\/p>\n\n\n\n The fatal mistake of thousands<\/strong> J.C.Philpot<\/p>\n\n\n\n False\nReligion and True<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Philippians\n3:1-3<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Philippians 3:1-3 sets\nbefore us a distinct contrast between false and true religion. The message of\nthese three verses is of tremendous importance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An Exhortation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This\nchapter begins with an exhortation (v. 1). Paul says, \u201cFinally, my\nbrethren, rejoice in the Lord.\u201d <\/em>No matter what our providential\nexperiences and circumstances are, we always have reason to rejoice in the\nLord.Here is an exhortation to joy. What a blessed command!\n\u2014 \u201cRejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say rejoice!\u201d <\/em>Rejoice\nin the greatness of his person as our all-sufficient Substitute, in the power\nof his blood that cleanses us from all sin, in the perfection of his\nrighteousness imputed to us for justification, in the abundance of his\nall-sufficient grace, in the immutability of his unfailing love, in the rule of\nhis providence working all things together for our good, in the fact of his\nall-prevailing intercession on our behalf, and in the fact that our names are\nwritten in heaven. May God give us grace ever to \u201crejoice in the Lord<\/em>\u201d\nfor the glory of Christ and the good of his people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A\nWarning<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 5<\/p>\n\n\n\n In\nverse 2, the apostle gives us a serious warning. \u2014 \u201cBeware of\ndogs.\u201d <\/em> He warns us to beware of false prophets. He calls them\ndogs because that is what the Word of God calls male prostitutes. False\nprophets are men who have for their own sakes prostituted the gospel of Christ\nand the glory of God (Deut. 23:18; Isa. 56:10-11). Then he tells us to \u201cbeware\nof evil workers,<\/em>\u201d referring to those same \u201cdogs<\/em>\u201d (preachers) who\nteach, preach, and promote any system of man centered, works based, free will\nreligion (Matt. 7:22-23). Man centered, works based, free will religion is the\nsingle greatest cause of evil in this world. The good works of religion without\nChrist are the most abominably evil works done in this world. They rob God of\nhis glory, trample under foot the blood of Christ, do despite to the Spirit of\ngrace, and gradually abase man to his lowest, most contemptible state (Rom.\n1:25-31). Next, he speaks of these men as \u201cevil workers,\u201d <\/em>referring\nto all who teach that God\u2019s salvation depends upon and is determined by man.\nThe apostle goes on to call these work-mongers \u201cthe concision,\u201d<\/em> warning\nus again to beware of them. Those who are of the concision are men and women\nwho teach us to cut, mutilate, and otherwise punish our bodies in hope of\nwinning God\u2019s favour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In essence, Paul is saying, \u201cBeware of Christless religion.\u201dBeware\nof any religious custom, doctrine, or service that is centered in yourself and\nencourages you to focus attention on yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n True\nReligion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In\nverse 3 we are given a description of true religion. \u2014 “For we are the\ncircumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and\nhave no confidence in the flesh<\/em>.” True religion is not man centered,\nbut Christ centered. True religion is not ceremonial, but spiritual. True\nreligion is not a matter of creed, but of conviction. True religion is not\noutward, but inward. \u201cFor we are the circumcision,\u201d<\/em> God\u2019s\ntrue, covenant people, the Israel of God, Abraham\u2019s true children, which \u201cworship\nGod in the Spirit.\u201d<\/em> We worship God as he is revealed in the\nScriptures, by the power of his Holy Spirit, in our spirits, and in a spiritual\nmanner. True worship is spiritual worship, not carnal, ceremonial ritualism\n(John 4:23-24). \u2014 \u201cAnd rejoice in Christ Jesus.<\/em>\u201d We trust the Lord Jesus\nChrist alone, placing all our confidence in him as our Saviour. We are complete\nin him (1 Cor. 1:30-31; Col. 2:9-10). \u2014 \u201cAnd have no confidence in the\nflesh.\u201d<\/em> We place absolutely no confidence in our flesh, the\nexperiences, emotions, or (imaginary) excellencies of our flesh. The privileges\nof the flesh, the feelings of the flesh, and the works of the flesh are no\nbasis of confidence before God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\nDistinction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In\nall false religion the hope of salvation and eternal life is, in some measure,\nfound in the flesh. In true religion \u201cChrist is all,<\/em>\u201d all hope is found\nin him alone. That is the great distinction. True religion is religion that\ntrusts Christ alone. False religion trusts Christ, and\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\nFortner<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It has been my experience that focusing on whether or not I am saved always leads to confusion and doubt, but focusing on whether Christ is the Saviour has always led to simplicity of thought and confidence. Joe Terrell It has been often said that justification is […]<\/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-7067","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\/7067","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=7067"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7067\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7069,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7067\/revisions\/7069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7067"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7067"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shoalhavengospelchurch.org.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7067"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nsecret workings<\/strong>
\n
\nThrough the inward conflicts, secret workings<\/strong>,
\nmysterious changes, and ever-varying exercises
\nof his soul, the true Christian becomes established
\nin a deep experience of . . .
\n his own folly and God’s wisdom,
\n his own weakness and Christ’s strength,
\n his own sinfulness and the Lord’s goodness,
\n his own backslidings and the Spirit’s recoveries,
\n his own base ingratitude and Jehovah’s patience,
\n the aboundings of sin and the super-aboundings of\ngrace.
\n
\nHe thus becomes daily more and more confirmed in . . .
\n the vanity of the creature,
\n the utter helplessness of man,
\n the deceitfulness and hypocrisy of the human heart,
\n the sovereignty of distinguishing grace,
\n the fewness of heaven-taught ministers,
\n the scanty number of living souls,
\n and the great rareness of true religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n“Accepted in the Beloved.” Ephesians 1:6
\n
\nWe are ever looking for something in SELF to
\nmake ourselves acceptable to God\u2014and are
\noften sadly cast down and discouraged when
\nwe cannot find . . .
\n that holiness,
\n that obedience,
\n that calm submission to the will of God,
\n that serenity of soul,
\n that spirituality and heavenly mindedness,
\nwhich we believe to be acceptable in His sight.
\n
\nOur crooked tempers,
\nour fretful peevish minds,
\nour rebellious thoughts,
\nour coldness,
\nour barrenness,
\nour alienation from good,
\nour headlong proneness to evil,
\nwith the daily feeling that we\nget no better,<\/strong>
\nbut rather worse<\/strong>\u2014make us think\nthat God<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>views us just as we view ourselves<\/strong>. We
\nseem to lose sight of our acceptance in Christ,
\nand get into the miserable dregs of SELF. We<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>are so vile, and only get worse as we get<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>older.<\/strong>
\n<\/strong>
\nNow the more we get into these dregs of SELF,
\nand the more we keep looking at the dreadful
\nscenes of wreck and ruin which our heart presents
\nto daily view\u2014the farther do we get from the grace
\nof the gospel\u2014and the more do we lose sight of
\nthe only ground of our acceptance with God.
\n
\nIt is “in the Beloved” alone, that we
\nare accepted\u2014and not for any . . .
\n good words,
\n good works,
\n good thoughts,
\n good hearts, or
\n good intentions
\nof our own.
\n
\nAnd a saving knowledge of our acceptance “in
\nthe Beloved,” independent of everything in us
\neither good or bad, is a firm foundation for our
\nfaith and hope\u2014and will keep us from sinking
\naltogether into despair.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n
\nThe fatal mistake of thousands<\/strong> is\nto offer
\nunto God the fruits of the flesh<\/strong>\u2014instead of
\nthe fruits of the Spirit<\/strong>.
\n
\nFleshly holiness,
\nfleshly exertions, fleshly prayers,
\nfleshly duties,
\nfleshly religious forms,
\nfleshly zeal\u2014
\nthese are what men consider good works,
\nand present them as such to God.
\n
\nBut well may He “who is of purer eyes than to
\nbehold evil, and cannot look on iniquity”, say
\nto all such fleshly workers, “If you offer the blind<\/strong>
\nfor sacrifice, is it not evil? And if you offer the
\ncrippled<\/strong> and the diseased<\/strong>, is\nit not evil?\u201d Mal. 3:8
\n
\nAll that the flesh can do is evil, for “every
\nimagination of man’s heart is only evil continually;\u201d Gen. 6:5
\nand to present the fruits of this filthy heart<\/strong> to\nthe
\nLord of hosts, is “to offer defiled food upon His\naltar.”
\n
\nA broken heart,
\na contrite spirit,
\na tender conscience,
\na filial fear of God,
\na desire to please Him,
\na dread to offend the great God of heaven,
\na sense of the evil of sin,
\na desire to be delivered from sin’s dominion,
\na mourning over our repeated backslidings,
\ngrief at being so often entangled in our lusts and passions,
\nan acquaintance with our helplessness and weakness,
\nsimplicity and godly sincerity,
\na hanging upon grace for daily supplies,
\nwatching the hand of Providence,
\na singleness of eye to the glory of God,
\n\u2014these are a few of the fruits of the Spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n