Grace Baptist Church of Danville

July 20, 2008

 

The gospel is not good advice, but good news. Grace is not an offer, but an operation. Salvation is not by man’s decision, but by God’s decree.

 

Daily Readings for the Week of July 20-27

            Sunday                      Isaiah 28-30                                                             Thursday                   Isaiah 42-44

            Monday                     Isaiah 31-34                                                             Friday             Isaiah 45-48

            Tuesday                    Isaiah 35-38                                                             Saturday                    Isaiah 49-53

            Wednesday  Isaiah 39-41                                                             Sunday                        Isaiah 54-58

 

·      I am scheduled to preach Wednesday – Friday for Buck Mountain Baptist Church in Roan Mountain, TN, where Bro. Gary Perkins is pastor. — Telephone 423-725-2969 — Email ritap@preferred.com

·      Conference Offering Next Sunday

 

NURSERY DUTY THIS WEEK

Today: Jenny Bartley (AM) Debbie Bartley (PM) Tuesday: Jayalita McCormack

 

A Good Hope by Grace Don Fortner

(Tune: #44 — And Can it Be? — LM)

 

1.    Bold shall I stand on judgment day,

Though millions shall be cast away.

Since Jesus Christ my ransom paid,

No charge against me shall be made.

While through my Savior’s blood I am

Absolved from sin, and guilt, and blame,

I cannot be condemned to die,

For by free grace I’m justified.

 

2.    Robed in my Savior’s righteousness,

My soul cannot be in distress,

For with His spotless garments on

I am as holy as God’s Son!

The Holy Spirit sheds abroad

Within my heart the love of God. —

His blessed gift of life and faith

Has freed me from the fear of death.

 

3.    Made fit for heaven by God’s grace

Imparting Jesus’ righteousness,

Washed in His blood and born of God,

I have good hope by grace from God.

While unbelieving rebels die,

“Salvation to the Lord!” I’ll cry.

My worth and works I’ll still deny,

“Salvation to the Lord!” I’ll cry.

 

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“If you really want to get folks to open their wallets…”

 

Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks?” (Ezekiel 34:2)

 

            While eating lunch at one of our favorite restaurants yesterday, we could not help overhearing the conversation of two men sitting next to us. They were preachers. One was a young pastor. His guest was a middle-aged evangelist. I listened as the older man gave instructions to the younger. He talked about one trick and then another to get men and women to give their money, having special meetings to teach people to give, and more about money. Then, he said, “If you really want to get folks to open their wallets, you should,” and proceeded to suggests another method of religious thievery, as the young pastor sat spell-bound before his advisor. In the thirty or forty minutes it took us to eat, not one word was spoken about God, his Son, his glory, his grace, his salvation, or the souls of men. The whole conversation was about raising money!

 

            Because it was a public place and I was not a part of the conversation, I chose to say nothing; but I said to Shelby, “I would like to say to that young man, ‘If you will preach the free, saving grace of God in Christ three times a week to them, God’s people will give generously because they want to. You will not have to get them to.’”

 

My abhorrence of such men is inexpressible. They are self-serving thieves! The Lord God declares that he is against them and that he will require his flock at their hand in judgment (Ezekiel 34:10). God’s people do not have to be tricked into opening their wallets, or talked into being generous; and they will not be threatened into tithing.

 

Givers, not Tithers

 

God’s people are givers, not tithers. Nowhere do I find in the New Testament that believing men are commanded to tithe. Such a commandment would be contrary to the gospel of grace and the spirit of the new covenant. Legal commandments are good enough for children of bondage, like Ishmael. But the children of promise are motivated from a better principle. For them it is enough to say, “Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 8:9). We do not divide out our tenth, like religious misers. We give ourselves and all that we have to Christ. Cheerfully we give all that we can for the cause of Christ and the support of the gospel ministry. Why? Because we know his grace.

 

His Grace

 

Here is what Christ has done for us. This, according to 2 Corinthians 8:9, is his grace. — “Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor.” The wealth

 

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of God, the treasures of the infinite, the riches of eternity are the possession of our blessed Savior. From the highest throne of glory to the lowest pit in hell, the Lord Jesus Christ owns it all. It is true that Christ became the lowly man of Nazareth. But he is more. He is the eternal God, possessing all the riches of divine wisdom, power and glory.

 

Yet he became poor” (Philippians 2:5-8). The eternal Son of God took manhood into union with himself. The God of glory robed himself in human flesh. Behold the depths of his poverty at Calvary! He was betrayed, mocked and beaten. He was crucified. God made his Son to be sin for us! There he was robbed of all the joy of heaven and the comfort of his Father’s presence. His dying bed was a malefactor’s cross. His resting place was a borrowed tomb. What was the reason for such humiliation?

 

That ye through his poverty might be rich.” — What riches are ours through the mediation of Christ! In him we have all and abound. The riches of grace and redemption, time and eternity are ours. Do men who know such grace need to be tricked into giving or threatened by the law to make them tithe? No! The love of Christ constrains us. And in everything grace produces more than the law. Let us then give cheerfully and bountifully.

 

 

 

 

Fill the waterpots with water” (John 2:7)

 

In the story of our Lord Jesus turning water into wine we have a good picture of God’s method of grace, a picture of the way God saves sinners.

 

It was the Son of God who performed the miracle. Yet men were called to fetch the pots, fill them with water, draw off the wine, and carry it to the governor of the feast. The means used were human; though the power that performed the miracle was Divine. It may have seemed foolish to fill the pots with water, but water is a symbol of the written Word (Ephesians 5:26); and the way to bring joy and comfort to the human heart today is to fill it with the preached Word. God makes it effectual to whom he will (Isaiah 55:11; Romans 10:17).

 

            Of course, we know that the Son of God could have supplied all the wine that was needed without employing these servants. He did not need them! But they would have missed the blessed benefit of being instruments by whom the Son of God brought his miraculous boon of mercy to the wedding guests. Before anyone else knew what the Master had done, “the servants which drew the water knew.

 

            What a high honor it would be for the Son of God to use you and me to draw water from his Word and carry it to one of his chosen as the wine of his grace!

 

 

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Grace Bulletin

 

July 20, 2008

 

Grace Baptist Church of Danville

2734 Old Stanford Road-Danville, Kentucky 40422-9438

Telephone (859) 236-8235 - E-Mail don@donfortner.com

 

Donald S. Fortner, Pastor

 

Schedule of Regular Services

 

Sunday

10:00 A.M. Bible Classes

10:30 A.M. Morning Worship Service

6:30 P.M. Evening Worship Service

 

Tuesday

7:30 P.M. Mid-Week Worship Service

 

 

Television Broadcasts in Danville

 

Channel 6 - Sunday Morning 8:00 A.M.

Channel 6 - Wednesday Evening 6:00 P.M.

Channel 6 - Friday Evening 7:00 P.M.

 

Web Pages

http://www.donfortner.com

http://www.freegraceradio.com

http://www.sovereign-grace.com/gracechurch.htm

 

 

 

 

Don Fortner

 

 

Listen to sermons at FreeGraceRadio.com