Foolish debates, and vain janglings

As I PERUSE THE BLOGS OF SBC PREACHERS, I SEE THEY ARE ALL FULL OF FOOLISH DEBATING AND VAIN JANGLING. Some elevate The Baptist Faith and Message, to the point of correcting God's Word. Others debate close, closed, and open communion. oTHERS ARGUE OVER SECONDARY TEIRS OF DOCTRINE AND DOGMA. All this they are doing, and tearing their cooperative apart. Now there are some things we need to stand up for, Salvation by grace, blood and power, Separation unto the Lord from the world, The inspiration and preserving og The Bible, Christ's virgin birth, substitutionary death. bodily resurrection and ascension,The Church being Christ's bride,Israel being the wife of Jehovah.The priesthood of the believer, the autonomy of the local church, eternal security, and The DOCTRINES OF GRACE, AS THE HEART OF THE Gospel.

FEB. 14-17, 2009

What a wonderful and enjoyable time this past weekend was.... I traveled up to Pelham, Al, to visit and spend some time with my brother David and His wife Janet. I had a very good time with them. They both love and serve the LORD. And they love me. I wish I could see more of them, but that is not possible, at this time. I am so grateful for the time we do have with each other. I JUST WANT TO PRAISE God, AND TO THANK THEM FOR LOVING ME. THANKS FOR ALL YOU DID, OUT OF LOVE. LOVE AND PRAYERS.

STANDING FAST versus FALLING AWAY-PART 2

LIFE IN THE HOME versus WORK IN THE SHOP The Christian life is ''Faith working by love'' [GALATIANS 5;;6]. The faith- life sets up the highest possible control and motivation--the love bond. Grace not only establishes a head and body union; it joins us to Christ in marriage-''married to Another'' [ROMANS 7;4; see EPHESIANS 5;31-32]. Love is the highest motivating power known to personality. Love moved God in the overcoming of the greatest possible obstacles [JOHN 3;16; ROMANS 5;8]. Grace brought us over onto His Side, in the realm of divine love, where ''the love of Christ constraineth us'' [II.CORINTHIANS 5;14]. What a let-down to fall away from grace, drop His love out of our lives and plod along on our own, in dependence upon self-effort and self-motivation. The situation is much like that of a man leaving the home for the shop. He LIVES at home; he WORKS at the shop. As he goes forth his wife's kiss and words of encouragement linger with him. Her love warms his heart. As he enters the shop his eye falls upon rules tacked upon the wall; and there are certain city ordinances to be observed. How different, he thinks, from the life at home. During the day a watch is kept to see that men observe the regulations of the shop. The men are conscious of working by rules, by orders, and by the clock. At the close of the day, is our friend so fond of the shop routine that he asks for a copy to take home and post on its walls-just to see that he doesn't break any of them/ No, indeed. What a relief to enter his home; its atmosphere is love; its life is free. Love regulates and motivates each wishing to please the other. The home is so sacredly sovereign, that no police ever intrudes to ensure that city ordinances are being observed. How beautifully free is the life that flows from a heart filled with true love. Grace has given us such a life; and grace enables us to live it. WHEN A CHRISTIAN FAILS--WHAT/ We are in the realm of practical Christian living. In this realm we meet many disappointments. many embarrassing situations and problems. There are failures, plenty of them. Seemingly true Christians fail to live the life. Every serious lapse is, at root, a case of falling away from grace. It cannot be otherwise. Grace supplies all the resources of God for life's living, even God Himself. ''Christ liveth in me.'' If I am living where grace operates to supply these resources, I am ''kept by the power of God.'' If I move out from the realm of grace, its supply is cut off; I am thrown back upon my own resources, and ''I'' fail. ''I'' do what ''in Christ''I could never do. We all know Christians whose lives are a puzzle. I think with sadness, of preachers who are outstandingly doctrinally sound. They are known as gospel preachers, proclaiming the Word of God and the cross of Christ; but--, here is one, who cheats the government in his tax return; here is one who lies; another is mean, unkind, inconsiderate; another ''gets mad''; another is foul in personal speech; another treats his wife contemptibly; another is guilty of immorality; another is labeled ''crooked.'' How shall we explain such lapses/ Has the CHRIISTIAN FAITH failed/ No, indeed. The explanation is this; doctrinally they are on His Side, in the realm of grace; practically, they are back on Our Side, fallen away from grace. Grace can no longer operate to exercise His control, so ''I'' is back in the saddle, denying in practice the gospel preached from the pulpit. Grace given its freedom never fails, simply because God never fails. If I live ''in Christ,'' then, ''for to me to live is Christ''[PHIL. 1;21]. Christ is not dishonest, or dishonorable, or foul of speech. My responsibility is to ''abide'' in Him, giving Him freedom to express Himself in my personal, practical living. This is the one guarantee of heart and life purity. I could be impure; men far better than I have been, but CHRIST IN ME-NEVER.... The life in grace, the life of faith ministers Christ to the heart every moment-it's the only way to live. Label your life; ''KEPT BY THE POWER OF GOD'' -END-

STANDING FAST versus FALLING AWAY-Galatians 5;1-6

''THEREFORE''.... As in all Paul's church letters this word marks the turning point from doctrine to duty. It gathers into itself the entire doctrinal statement that has preceded, and focuses its full force upon practical day-by-day living. It transmutes the teaching into a practical way of living. CHRISTIAN LIVING is a matter of staying ON SIDE-His Side, with its dearly purchased freedom. It is a matter of resisting every influence that would get us OFF SIDE,back onto Our Side, back to an endless round of self-effort. The sickening failure everywhere evident, in the church, and in the individual, is right here. Our multipled ''activities,'' our fine ''program'' which keeps us so busy--all tends to makke us self-conscious rather than Christ-conscious. We are doing something; we tend to forget what Christ has done and is doing. Even our preaching emphasis upon duty tends to drag us over to Our Side. We talk about the many unsolved problems engulfing society; resultantly, the vast majority of Christian people lose sight of the complete solution of all problems ''in Christ.'' WHAT IS CHRISTIAN LIBERTY / The Christian, born of God, is God's free-born man. He is His Son, His heir; all that God has is his. We read in Romans 8;32-''He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things/'' God has already ''blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ'' [EPHESUS 1;3]. These blessings include His unqualified favor, ''justified from all things,'' the bestowal of His life, the gifts of His Spirit, access to His presence in prayer--everything to be desired. Christian liberty is a life so lived, that these provisions of grace, continue to operate. SAVED BY GRACE INTIALLY, WE MUST BE KEPT BY GRACE CONTIMUALLY. Life imparted by grace, must be sustained by grace. Justified by grace [ROMANS 3;24], we must be sanctified by grace; Standing in grace [ROMANS 5;2], we must walk in grace. We must be taught, trained, and disciplined by grace [Titus 2;11-13]. We are to grow in grace [II. PETER 3;18]. We are to experience the riches of His grace [EPHESUS 1;7, not only now but eternally [EPHESUS 2;7]. In the severest trial His grace proves itself sufficient for us [11. CORINTHIANS 12;9], and as we humble ourselves, He keeps adding more grace [James 4;6]. He calls Himself the God of all grace [1 PETER 5;10], able to make all grace abound toward us, that we may always have all sufficiency for all things [II. Corinthians 9;8]. It is evident that God has a thorough-going program of grace. Grace made us free; grace sustains us in a continuous experience of freedom. This is Christian liberty; staying on His Side, in His favor, where His freeing grace continuously operates. In this freedom we are to ''stand fast'' at all costs. WHAT IS FALLING FROM GRACE / So very many hold a superficial conception of grace. They think of grace as a sort of booster, or bracer, a spiritual vitamin to insure against failure. Do the best you can; God won't fail you; He'll see you through; God helps those who help themselves. Not so. God only has 2 ways of dealing with men, two great principles; law and grace. Grace is God finding a way to set aside the demands of law and our deserts under it, having taken those deserts upon Himself, that He may be free to pour out upon us His goodness anf kindness, even His very life. ''Falling from grace,'' better understood by translating it ''falling away from grace,'' is crossing the line-changing sides-to come under the requirements of law, thereby forfeiting the provisions of grace. Many think of falling from grace as falling into sin, such as drunkenness or some such evil. That is not what falling from grace is, at least initially; however, as we shall soon see, its ultimate result may be something such as that. Falling from grace is giving up God's provisions under grace, as much as to say,''I'd rather depend on what I can do for myself, or on what some one does for me.'' IN THE CASE OF THESE Galatians it was circumcision. This seemed a harmless thing to do, but they had done it because the law prescribed it. Paul says, ''That one thing labels you; you're under the law as a system of life; you've obligated yourselves to keep the whole law; you are severed from Christ; you've served notice on God you are going to do the best you can for yourself; you've cut the supply-line of His grace.'' Today, falling away from grace for many takes the form of depending upon what the church can do for them. they are relying upon church membership--they really and implicitly trust it for their spiritual security. Others depend on water baptism, the Lord's table AND THEIR GOOD DEEDS. If Paul were here today, he would say, to all such, ''Y are severed from Christ; you have left His Side and are busy commending yourselves to GOD... It is all a vain Show.'' What is more, these people, through ignorance of Bible truth, and by reason of the kind of preaching of our day, never really understand God's offered grace and its provision for dealing with them. CHRIST-CONTROLLED or SELF-CONTROLLED This is the issue before us. In terms of practical living we are faced with this Question; ''Do I want Christ to control my life/ Or, do I prefer to run my own life/ That is the choice before us. Life on His Side is, in the provisions of grace, a person-to-person relationship--''I in you''; ''I will dwell in them and walk in them'' [JOHN 15;4; 11. CORINTHIANS 6;16]; the other person is in control. Back on Our Side life becomes a one person affair; that person is thrown upon his own resources. On His Side life is spiritual, with spiritual ideals and aims and experiences that thrill the soul. The fallen-from-grace life, though intensely religious, is a moral life; ''I'' call upon myself to live up to certain standards of conduct that satisfy my religious sense of right and wrong. It is the Romans 7 life as against the Romans 8 life. In Romans 7 the pronoun ''I'' occurs 38 times; ''I'' am trying to live up to a standard set for me, but there is something in ''I'' that foils my best efforts. The attempt ends in a defeatist mood, a sense of wretched failure [7;24]. That mood is seen in church life today. Religious life, a solo effort to solve one's problems, is deadening and discouraging. But ROMANS 8.... Another Person is introduced into human experience, and with Him, a new control--''the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus''; and this control by Him ''has MADE me free'' V.2]. The ''I'' has disappeared; we can now use ''we''-He and I are living a joint life, I in Him [vs. 1] and He in me [vs. 10]. My responsibility, so far removed from the former self-effort, is to so yield to Him that He can realize His life in me. Now life is''we'' living together. How practical this is. IT WORKS.... This becomes more evident when the relationship is carried over into Ephesian truth. a relationship of head and body-He the HEAD, while the believer constitutes the body. THE HEAD IS IN UNDISPUTED CONTROL. THE BODY MAINTAINS AN INSTINCTIVE YIELDEDNESS. Grace has attained a marvelous solution to man's problems; he is free, in the freedom of his Creator-Redeemer living His life in and through man. [to be continued]

PRAY FOR OUR PRESIDENT

We need to pray for President Obama's; 1. Salvation 2. Change on abortion to pro life, anti-abortion 3. To abandon his marxist idealogy on the economy 4. To fully support the nation of Israel 5. That he will make wise choices based on Biblical principles. 6. That he will support the NRA position on guns. 7. That he will freeze gasoline prices at 1.50 per gallon.

BITTERNESS

''Looking diligently lest any root of bitterness. . .'' Bitterness is a terrible sin. Bitterness is self-induced misery and self-punishment. Bitterness does not hurt the person you are bitter against, it only hurts YOU. Today people have bitterness against someone who has wronged them, or over a church situation. But a Christian HAS NO RIGHT TO HOLD ANYTHING AGAINST ANOTHER PERSON, SAVED, OR LOST. We are to be ''tenderhearted, forgiving one another'' even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven us. Forgiveness means to treat the other person, as you did before he sinned, or wronged you. It is to forget, to act as if that offence never happened. If you are bitter, GOD WON'T HEAR YOUR PRAYERS, until you get right with the other person ans with God. If you continue harping on a sin, or situation in the past, you are bitter, and unforgiving, and out of fellowship with God.

FEB 5,2009

Looking back on Yesterday, all I can say is ''Wow, What a Day...'' It all started at the local restarant ''Sally's'' in Ponce De Leon, FL. Upon entering there was a Birthday card on the table. Then another pair came in with a card and a red velvet cake, which I shared with all there. At 11;00 am I went to the home of some Christian friends, who served me a steak dinner and gave me 20 Dollars. Later that day there were 2 cards in theb mail from church members with another 20.00. When I ARRIVED AT CHURCH THERE WAS A NEW SHIRT AND ANOTHER CARD WITH 20,00 MORE DOLLARS IN IT. Never have I ever had such a good Birthday. The Lord has blessed me with both unsaved and with saved friends,Praise His Name.

FEB. 4, 1945

On Feb. 4th, 1945 at Pringce George County Hospital, in Chevorly, Maryland, there was born to Zelsbur Larwence Foltz, and Margaret Cecilia Becker Foltz their 6th son, and 8th child, Paul Wayne Foltz. My parents kept me under the means of Grace, and at an early age, the Lord reached down and saved this wretch of a sinner. Praise His glorious Name.... Today I am 64 years old, and praise the Lord for His goodness and providential care, all my life.

HELL OR HEAVEN/ WHICH/

I recently read in a blog the false charges that preaching ''Fire and brimstone'' goes against the effectual call and particular redemption. When God issues the inward, effectual call to the elect sinner, The Holy Spirit makes that sinner to know, and to feel, Who he is, What he is, and the Judgmment, he is under. there are two calls, the outward call, and the inward call to the heart. THE OUTWARD CALL CAN BE RESISTED AND REFUSED, THE INWARD, EFFECTUAL CALL IS IRRESISTIBLE. Although Christ atoned for the sins of His sheep, He spoke more about Hell than he did about Heaven. As the Master Evangelist, He set the pattern for our preaching, teaching and witnessing. He was not being petty, nor was he jesting. But He warned sinners of their impending doom. THEREFORE IT BEHOOVES US TO SPEAK ON HELL AS HE, and do it, not glossing it over, nor pulling any punches, but with a strong ''THUS SAITH THE LORD.'' It's either Turn or Burn, Repent or Perish, there's no middle ground.

GOD'S ORDER IN THE APPLICATION OF SALVATION-PART 3

In our last post we said that the presence of faith may be made known amid all the workings of unbelief. Just as that is true, so our salvation from the love of sin may be ascertained notwithstanding all the lusting of the flesh after that which is evil. But, how is thiis initial aspect of salvation to be identified/ We anticipated this question in our first post when we said that God saves us from delighting in sin by imparting a nature that hates evil, and loves holiness, which is given to us, at the new birth. THEREFORE, THE REAL QUESTION, TO BE SETTLED IS;''How may the Christian positively determine whether the new and holy nature has been given to him/ The answer is; by observing its activities, especially the opposition it makes, under the control of the Holy SPIRIT, TO INDWELLING SIN. Not only does the flesh lusts against the Spirit, but The Spirit against the flesh. FIRST, OUR SALVATION FROM THE PLEASURE, OR LOVE OF SIN MAY BE RECOGNIZED BY SIN'S BECOMING A BURDEN TO US. This truly a spiritual experience. Many people have burdens of worldly worries, but know nothing of being weighed down by a sense of guilt. But when God takes us in hand, the iniquities and transgressions of our past life are made to lie as an intolerable burden upon the conscience. When we are given a sight of ourselves, as we are before God, we will exclaim with the Psalmist; ''For innumerable evils have compassed me about; mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head; therefore my heart faileth me'' [PSALM 40;12]. So far from sin being pleasant, it is now felt as a cruel incubus, a crushing weight, and unendurable load. The soul is ''heavy laden'' [MATTHEW 11;28], and bowed down. A sense of guilt oppresses and the conscience cannot bear the weight of it. Nor is this experience restricted to our first conviction; it acutely continues throughout the Christian's life. SECOND, OUR SALVATION FROM THE PLEASURE OF SIN MAY BE RECOGNIZED BY SIN'S BECOMING BITTER TO US. It is true, that there are millions of unregenerate who are filled with remorse over the harvest reaped from the sowing of wild oats. Yet that is not hatred of sin, but dislike of its consequences--ruined health, squandered opportunities, financial strictness, or social disgrace. No, what we have reference to is that ANGUISH OF HEART which ever marks the one the Spirit takes in hand. When the veil of delusion is removed and we see in the light of God's countenance; when we are given a discovery of the depravity of our very nature, then we perceive that we are sunk in carnality and death. When sin is opened to us, in all its secret workings, we are made to feel the vileness of our hypocrisy, self-righteousness, unbelief, impatience, and the utter filthiness of our hearts. And when the penitent soul views the sufferings of Christ, he can say with Job,''God maketh my heart soft'' [23;16]. IT IS THIS EXPERIENCE WHICH PREPARES THE HEART TO GO AFTER CHRIST; those that are whole need not a physician, but they that are quickened and convicted by the Spirit are anxious to be relieved by the great PHYSICIAN. ''The Lord killeth, and maketh alive; he bringeth down to the grave and bringeth up. The Lord maketh poor, and maketh rich; he bringeth low, and lifteth up'' [I SAMUEL 2;6-7]. God slays our self- righteousness, by making sin to be an intolerable burden to us. There can be bo saving faith until the soul is filled with evangelical repentance-IE. a godly sorrow for sin, a holy detestation of sin, a sincere purpose to forsake it. It is impossible for the Gospel to be good tidings to those who are in love with sin, and would rather perish, than to part with their idols. THIRD, OUR SALVATION FROM THE PLEASURE OF SIN MAY BE RECOGNIZED BY THE FELT BONDAGE, SIN PRODUCES. It is not until GOD SAVES US FROM THE LOVE OF SIN, THAT WE ARE CONSCIOUS OF THE FETTERS, IT HAS PLACED AROUND US. Then we see that we are ''without strength'' [ROMANS 5;6], unable to do anything pleasing to God.

GOD'S ORDER IN THE APPLICATION OF SALVATION-PART 2

Most people would resent being told that they delighted in EVIL... They would indignantly ask if we supposed them to be moral perverts. But that is not always the case. A person may be completely chaste, and yet delight in evil. The Bible says in Jeremiah 17;9 that ''the heart is DECEITFUL above all things'' and what the Bible says is not open to any argument; the plain teaching of Scripture decides the point once and for all, and beyond its verdict, there is no appeal. What, then, does the Bible say/ So far from the Bible denying that there is any delight to be found in sin, it expressly speaks of ''the pleasures of sin.'' The Bible warns that those pleasures are for ''but a season'' [HEBREWS 11;25], and the aftermath is painful, and not pleasant; and unless God intervenes in HIS SOVEREIGN GRACE,they shall entail eternal torment. Also, The Word refers to those who are ''lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God [2 Tim. 3;4]. This discordant note is struck often in Scripture. It mentions those who ''love vanity'' [Psalm 4;2]; ''him that loveth violence'' [PSA. 11;5]; ''thou lovest evil more than good'' [PSA. 52;3];''HE LOVED LIES''[PSA. 62;4]; ''scorners delight in their scorning'' [PRO. 1;22]; ''they which delight in their abominations [ISA. 66;3]; ''their abominations were according as they loved'' [Hosea 9;10]; ''if any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him'' [I JOHN 2; 15]. To love sin is far worse than to commit it, for a man may be suddenly tripped up or commit it through fraility. The Fact is that we are not only born into this world with an evil nature, but with hearts that are thoroughly in love with sin. Sin is our native element. We are wedded to our lusts, and of ourselves are no more able to alter the bent of our corrupt nature than we could shange our skin color, or the leopard his spots. But what is an impossibility with man, is possible with our God [LUKE 18;27], and when God takes us in hand, He begins by saving us from the pleasure, or love of sin. This is the great miracle of grace, for the Almighty stoops down and picks up a loathsome leper from the dunghill, and makes him a new creature in Christ, so that the things he once loved he now hates, and the things he once hated, he now loves. God begins by saving us from ourselves. He doesn't save us from the penalty until He has delivered us from the love of sin. You may ask, how this miracle of grace is accomplished, or more specifically, What does it consist of/ NEGATIVELY, NOT BY ERADICATING THE EVIL NATURE, nor even by refining it. POSITIVELY, BY COMMUNICATING A NEW NATURE, which loathes that which is evil, and delights in all that is truly good. To be more specific, FIRST, God saves His people from the pleasure, or love of sin, by putting His holy awe in their hearts, for ''the fear of the Lord is TO HATE EVIL'' [PROV. 8;13], and again, ''the fear of the Lord is to depart from evil'' [PROV. 6;6]. SECOND, God saves His people from the pleasure of sin by communicating to them a new and vital principle; ''the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit [ROM. 5;5], and where the love of God rules the heart, the love of sin is dethroned. THIRD, God saves His people from the love of sin by The Holy Spirit's drawing their affections unto things above, thereby taking them off the things which formerly enthralled them. THE BELIEVER'S STRUGGLE If on the one hand, the unbeliever hotly denies that he is in love with sin, many a believer is hard put to persuade himself, that he HAS BEEN SAVED from the love thereof. With an understanding that has been partly enlightened by The Holy Spirit, he is better able to discern things in their true colors. With a heart that has been made honest by grace, he refuses to call sweet bitter. With a conscience that has been sensitized by the new birth, he more quickly feels the workings of sin and the hankering of his affections for that which is forbidden. Moreover, the flesh remains in him, unchanged, and as the raven constantly craves carrion, so this corrupt principle in which our mothers conceived us, lusts after and delights in that which is the opposite of holiness. It is these things which occasion and give rise to the disturbing questions that clamor for answer within the genuine believer. The sincere Christian is often made to seriously doubt if he HAS BEEN delivered from the love of sin. Questions like these agitate his mind; ''Why do I so readily yield to tempation/ Why do the vanities and vanities of the world attract me still/ wHY DO I chafe against restraints placed on my lusts/ Why do I find mortification [ROMANS 8;13] so difficult and distasteful/ COULD THESE THINGS BE, IF I WERE A NEW CREATURE IN CHRIST/ Could such horrible experiences happen, if God saved me from the pleasures of sin/'' What do you say to these questions/ How is this distressing problem to be solved/ THE BELIEVER'S ASSURANCE How may one be assured that he has been saved from the love of sin/ Let's point out, first, that the presence of that within us, which still lusts after and delights in evil things, IS NOT INCOMPATIBLE with our having been saved from the love of sin. It is part of the mystery of the Gosoel that those who be saved are yet Sinners in themselves. THE PRINCIPLE OF FAITH IN THE HEART DOES NOT CAST OUT UNBELIEF. Faith and doubts exist side by side with a quickened soul, as seen in these words, ''Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief'' [MARK 9;24]. In like manner the Christian may pray, ''Lord, I long after holiness; help my lustings after sin.'' He can pray this because of the 2 opposing natures within him. The presence of faith can be known, not by the ceasing of unbelief, buy by it's OWN fruit and works. fruit may grow amid the thorns, as flowers among weeds, and yet it is fruit nonetheless. Faith exists amidst many doubts and fears. Notwithstanding outside and inside forces, faith still reaches out after God. FAITH CONTUNUES TO FIGHT REGARDLESS OF DEFEAT AND DISCOURGAEMENT. Faith's presence is seen, when it causes one to come before God as AN EMPTY-HANDED BEGGAR beseeching Him for mercy and blessing.

GOD'S ORDER IN THE APPLICATION OF SALVATION

When God begins to apply salvation to the elect sinner, He begins by saving him from the pleasure or love of sin, long before He delivers him from the penalty or punishment of Sin. This is necessarily so, because it would neither be an act of holiness, nor of righteousness were He to give a full pardon to one who was yet a rebel against Him, and who loves that which He hates. God is a God of order, and nothing more evidences the perfections of His works than their orderliness. Now, the question arises, ''How does God save His people from the pleasure of sin/ The answer is; ''By imparting to them a nature which hates evil and loves holiness.'' This takes place when they are born again, so that salvation begins with regeneration. You see, fallen man can never perceive his desperate need of salvation, nor come to Christ for it, until he has been renewed by the Holy Spirit. Solomon wrote in Ecc. 3;11, that ''He hath made everything beautiful in his time.'' Much of the beauty of God's spiritual handiwork shall be lost to us, unless we duly oberve their ''time.'' The Holy Spirit emphasized this in Romans 8;29-30. In verse 29 Divine foreordination is announced, while verse 30 states how it is actualized. How strange it is that with this before them, many preachers begin with our justification, instead of with that effectual call [from death to life, our regeneration] which precedes it. Regeneration must first take place in order to lay a foundation for our justification. Justification is by faith [ACTS 13;39; ROMANS 5;1; GAL. 3;8],and the sinner must be divinely quickened before he is capable of believing savingly. Preachers today are so thoroughly imbued with free-willism, that they have departed from the sound evangelism pf our forefathers. The radical difference between Arminianism and Calvinism is that arminianism revolves around the creature, whereas Calvinism has the Creator as its centre of orbit.

A REVELATION versus A REASONING

I. A QUESTION OF AUTHORITY-GALATIANS 1;11-12; 2;2-''But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by revelation of Jesus Christ.'' ''And I went up by revelation.'' If the CHRISTIAN FAITH IS NOT A REVELATION OF GOD it is merely another religion; possibly the best, but still one of the many, on the human level, subject to man's alterations and altercations. The Judiazers of Paul's day wanted to make the Christian faith a revised version of the Jew's religion, subject to its regulations and requirements. Then it would be THEIR Religion; they could keep it within the realm of their own reasoning. Their successors of our day are doing the same. What the CHRISTIAN FAITH NEEDS is a return to its birthright--an authoritative revelation. Take it, or leave it ALONE.... THE DAMASCUS ROAD EXPERIENCE To discredit Paul's message, these Judiazers must discredit the man. He is not an apostle, they said; he cannot qualify; he has never seen the risen Lord. Paul devotes a chapter and a half to a detailed refutation of this charge. He had seen the Lord, as He revealed Himself on the DAMASCUS ROAD. He had also heard the Lord speaking to him. It was a crisis experience. From being determined to destroy the faith, he became its most ardent and convincing advocate. Paul was no neurotic, easily swayed; he was schooled in all the learning of his day. This right-about-face, traced as it is here in Galatians to its supernatural source, was utterly disconcerting to the enemies of the faith, as indeed it has been ever since. A CHRIST-CENTERED VIEWPOINT From that day forward Paul was a changed man. He had a new outlook upon life. He experienced an utter reversal of values; ''What things were gain to me''--his attainments in the Jewish religion--''those I counted loss for Christ'' [Phil. 3;7, with vv 4-6]. What he formerly prized he now esteems as dung--PHIL. 3;8-9-[TURN]. Paul's repeated ''but'' carries the antithesis of a crisis experience. No trends here; no groping for something better. He knows himself taken out of the column of self-effort [V. 3], and flesh-confidence to the column of God's beneficiaries in the bestowment of His righteousness. It was a clear-cut break with OUR SIDE over to HIS SIDE. Not by a process of reasoning but ''by revelation of Jesus Christ'' Paul acquired a complete system of Christ-centered thinking and living. Through Christ's words from heaven, ''Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me/'' [ACTS 9;4], he saw Christ indwelling His Church, fully identified with HIS PEOPLE, SUFFERING IN ALL THAT THEY SUFFERED. In the silent years that followed, the quiet times spent in ARABIA [GAL. 1;17], this realization of identification matured into the intimate conception of the Church as the body of which Christ is the Head [EPH. 1;22-23; COL. 1;18;etc]. A head and body constitute an organism. It is complete in itself, with its own laws of growth, ''building itself up in love'' [see EPHESIANS 4;12-16]. A GREAT CONCEPTION IS THIS.... NOTHING can be added to a body.... Controlled by its head, it requires no external laws for its regulation. The Christian life is Christ-centered and Christ-controlled. So constituted, it is self-sufficient. Paul will defend its sufficiency against all comers. MAN SEEKS FREEDOM OF THOUGHT The chief enemy of the Gospel is human nature. Man is proud. He is especially proud of his own thinking. HE DOESN'T WANT TO BE TOLD.... He dislikes having a supernatural revelation handed to him; it leaves no room for speculation. He likes to ''discover truth''; then IT'S HIS, Something he can be proud of. Many Who willingly acknowledge that man's MORAL NATURE IS PERVERTED BY SIN--the evidence is incontrovertible--still refuse to realize, that man's MENTAL processes are likewise warped, biased and undependable because of sin. The Corinthians prided themselves on their thinking. Read 1 CORINTHIANS 1-2 for God's estimate of human thinking that set aside divine wisdom, climaxing in a statement of man's utter incapacity for spiritual things; I CORINTHIANS 2;14--''But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of GOD; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them because they are spiritually discerned''. Today's average preacher is feeding his mind upon human thoughts; and, naturally,these mold his own thinking and preaching, when the charge is, ''Preach the Word.'' The reason men today, repudiate Paul's theology and turn to the teaching of Jesus is clear. By ridding themselves of a supernatural interpretation of those teachings, climaxing in His death and resurrection-they leave themselves free to give their own interpretation. THEY ARE FREE TO SPECULATE AS TO WHAT JESUS TEACHINGS should MEAN FOR ''THE MODERN MIND.'' What we need today is a renewed fear of God's anathema upon all perversions of the Gospel;only this will bring us back to its unadulterated purity.

JUSTIFIED BY FAITH plus NOTHING

GALATIANS 3;24-''Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.'' God has left us but one way into His favor, namely, by faith and by faith alone. If we resolve to do our very best, all that we can do leaves under law with its unmet demands, therefore, under the curse of the law, even death and condemnation. We are still on OUR SIDE, with no ability to get ourselves out of our trouble. Only faith will transfer to us to HIS SIDE, where He can deal with us in grace, as His own children, heirs of His gracious promises, partakers of His own life, possessed of His Holy SPIRIT. This conclusion is definite and decisive, with no middle ground, sealed to us by this solemn, summary declaration, found in GALATIANS 3;22--''But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.'' This verse is saying the Scripture has everything completely imprisoned under sin,so that the promise might be given the believers through faith in Jesus Christ. If the Bible speaks God's Mind, and it does, then all who think to commend themselves to God by their conduct, all who seek to come into HIS FAVOR BY TRYING TO BE GOOD, are simply trying to get out of prison. THEY ARE GUILTY OF attempted jail-break... They are making their condition worse, inviting a more severe sentence. There is but one way out. WHAT IS JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH/ All that man can do leaves him helplessly on Our Side, lawfully ''imprisoned under sin.'' IF ANYTHING IS TO BE DONE ABOUT IT GOD WILL HAVE TO DO IT. So the Scriptures mercilessly show man his condition that, ceasing from his own doings, he may fasten his attention upon what God has done--done to lift man over onto His Side, JUSTIFIED FROM all these ugly charges against him. Justification, then, has three steps; 1-Man has sinned, and God declares ''all under sin,'' deserving the death penalty. 2-God provided a Sinlless One, having no need to die for Himself but purposing to take our death penalty upon Himself. This He did, and God accepted of His death, in that He raised Him from the dead. 3-All who will accept what HE HAS DONE for them and come over ''into Christ.'' Good is free to declare righteous in His sight, and deal with them as such. By faith they have changed sides; they are now on His Side, in His favor. That is, JUSTIFICATION IS A DECLARATIVE ACT ON GOD'S PART. He has declared us all sinners ''in Adam''; now HE IS FREE TO DECLARE us all righteous ''in Christ.'' FAITH ALONE CAN MAKE THE TRANSFER. The Westminister divines stated it well; ''Justification is an act of GOD'S FREE GRACE, WHEREIN he pardoneth all our sins,and accepteth us as righteous in His sight, only fot the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.'' This stament is supported by many scriptures, such as; EPHESIANS 1;7; ROMANS 3; 24; 4;6; 5;18; GALATIANS 2;16; II CORINTHIANS 5;21. ''By faith alone'' is especially enforced by these; ''Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law''; ''Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness'' [ROMANS 3;28; 4;4-5]. It is clearly evident that God's plan is such as admits no admixture of man's efforts; on man's part they are futile;on God's part they are an offered affront. Why is the ''faith alone'' principle so offensive to man/ Why does he so persistently revert to the law principle/ Faith alone hurts his pride; law affords him an opportunity to do something. He will accept God's plan of salvation if only he can do something toward it. God says, No. Take it by faith, or leave it alone. THE GOSPEL PAUL PREACHED The ppreaching that brought salvation to these Galatian Christians is recorded in ACTS 13;14-43. Having first of all obtained audience with the children of Israel, Paul rehearsed with them God's dealings with their fathers through Moses and David, leading on to David's greater Son, pointing out that they had fulfilled the Scripture in putting Him on the cross, but that God also had fulfilled the Scripture in raising Him from the dead. Having dwelt upon these two great saving facts--''Who was delivered for our offebces, and was raised again for our justification''--Paul comes quickly to his conclusion, that salvation is to be had only in HIM; ACTS 13;38-39-''Be it known therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which they could not be justified by the law of Moses'' [ACTS 13; 38-39]. NOTE THE TWO ALLS; ''All justified from all,''; something which no law and no adherence to law could accomplish. Why/ LAW'S FATAL FUTILITY The great desideratum of human existence is LIFE. There is nothing man values so highly as life. Not having life, he has nothing. At any cost man must have life. THE INDICTMENT OF LAW IS THAT IT CANNOT MEET THIS, man's greatest need; it cannot produce life. Man is spiritually dead--''dead in trespasses and sins''-and law leaves him dead. Do,do, do all that the law demands,yet all the doing fails to generate a spark of life. So we read; ''If there had been a law fiven which could make alive, verily righteousness would have been of the law'' [GALATIANS 3;21]. The notable fact is that man, in a scientific age, has never been able by scientific process to produce life. God still holds the secret of life within His own wisdom and power, yes, within Himself. God is life; God is its source. Man's story is that he began with God-breathed life. God ''breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul'' [Genesis 2;7]. The life man had was God's life, God-breathed, God-imparted. God was its source. But man allowed Satan and sin to separate him from God, from his source of life, even though he was warned, ''in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die'' [Genesis 2;17]. That day his spiritual life was snuffed out, and his physical life was shortened to a brief sopan of years. That is Man's history, a history of death, death, death and darkness. What he desperately needs is life, and the light which life enables him to see. So, now, ''what the law could not do. . .God sending his own Son'' delivered us from this state of death by placing us under the control of the Spirit's life; ''For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law--the control--of sin and death'' [ROMANS 8;2-3, with 7;24]. So the Gospel is this; The same God Who breathed life into man, at the beginning brings the Good News to life-bereft man, saying, ''I am come that they might have life'' [JOHN 10;10]. ''I am the life'' [JOHN 14;6]. How shall we obtain this life/ Work for it/ No, indeed; even our physical life did not come that way. Be good for it/ We have no goodness; that comes with the life. No, it must be a gift. ''I give unto them eternal life''; ''The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord'' [JOHN 10;28; ROMANS 6;23].

THE POSITION OF A GOD-CALLED PASTOR

The average preacher, today, is only a ''moral officer'' in his church. To him it is not a commission from Heaven to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to dying people; it is just a matter of building up his church, getting along with his folks, marrying the young, burying the dead, collecting his salary, drawing his breath and letting his congregation go to Hell. Now, let's see the position of a God-called pastor, as set forth in God's Word, as he walks before God and before his people and leads them. FIRST, He is instructed to ''Preach the Word; be instant in season, out of season, REPROVE, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine.'' A God-called pastor is to REPROVE, that is, to lay blame on, to rebuke, to persuade, to convince, to convict, to disclose the hearts of both saints and sinners, to lay bare the guilty hearts. This isn't pleasant. Many times this is embarrassing. SECOND, He is to REBUKE both saint and sinner; rebuke means to reprimand, to give a sudden blow. It means to sharply reprove or censure, so that the individual is checked, and made to think and turn his steps toward the Lord. The God-called man will lay aside all his feelings; he will not court the love or favor of any man, so that he may deliver GGood's message without compromise. Elijah is an example, when he walked into Ahab's court one day and delivered God's message to that wicked king. John Baptist is another example, when he stood and rebuked the Pharisees by calling them a ''GENERATION OF VIPERS,'' and when he stood before Herod and rebuked him sharply for living with his brother's wife. THIRD, a God-called pastor is to EXHORT, that is, he is to urge by appeal or by argument, that the individual may throw himself on the side of truth and Christ, and he is to do this with all longsuffering, patience and doctrine-that is, the teaching of God's Word. In other words, he is to wield the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God with authority. A God-called pastor, according to Titus 1;13, will rebuke SHARPLY; ''Wherefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith; not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.'' Then he is to speak with AUTHORITY, according to Titus 2;15-''These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.'' God's messenger stands with a message from Heaven, from the courts of the King, and he is to deliver it regardless of how man may take it. Lastly, he is to rebuke OPENLY. ''Them that sin rebuke before all, that others may fear'' [1 Timothy 5;20]. This is no easy task. THE AVERAGGE PASTOR TODAY, HAS NO VOICE OF AUTHORITY, because he is afraid either of his job, or his salary, or a clique of men in the church, or of a petticoat who controls him, or else, he is afraid of a rotten spot in his life might be exposed.

THE SPIIRIT versus THE FLESH--5

--''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIIT IS FAITH, MEEKNESS, TEMPERANCE.''--''The fruit of The Spirit is FAITH''--God has dealt every man a measure of natural faith. However, Saving Faith is His gift to His elect [Ephesians 2;8-9]. The Greek word here can be rendered as ''Faithfulness.'' WHERE DOES FAITHFULNESS COME FROM/ It is an attribute of God. God is faithful. ''Great is thy faithfulness'' [Lam.3;23]. Under the New Covenant this Faithful One has found a way of living in us to make His faithfulness a characteristic of His children. A man says, I'm so undependable; I disappoint myself and my friends.'' A worthy confession for ALL of us... We can all distrust ourselves. But the Holy Spirit in living us is a complete remedy. The Holy Spirit makes a man wholly dependable, in keeping engagements with promptness, in keeping promises, in meeting obligations, so that, staying on His side whhere He can work, we display His faithfulness in us, to the praise of the glory of His grace. ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS MEEKNESS.'' Meekness is the spirit of humility. Of Himself our Lord says,''I am meek and lowly of heart'' [Matthew 11;29]. Paul beseeches the proud Corinthians ''by the meekness and gentleness of Christ'' [2 Cor. 10;1]. Our Lord's earthly life was one long refusal of pride and self-seeking climaxing in the voluntary self-abasement of The Upper Room and The Cross. God seeks humility in His children; it is the cornerstone of Christian character. ''God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble'' [James 4;6]. Man is naturally proud. Pride is in his nature. Turning to James 4;5 we find the Spirit ''lusts'' against the proud, in His desire to make man humble. Left to himself, on Our Side of the cross, the self-effort will continually crop out in native pride. When we live on His Side the Spirit graciously takes all this native tendency in hand and produces a humble meekness that displaces pride. ''The fruit of the Spirit is Temperance''. Where does this temperance or self control come from/ Surely, we think, this is somethiing I must do for myself. But, no; thiis, too, is the Spirit's business. ''I'' would fail, so He has taken over even this. The Greek word has a prefix, EN, in. It means to be controlled by an inward strength, an inward mastery. it is an IN-control, in the realm of the spirit, where the Spirit does His work. IT DEALS WITH SELF DESIRES. Spirit-controlled you will be genuinely, inwardly self-controlled.

THE SPIRIT versus THE FLESH--4

--''LONGSUFFERING,GENTLENESS,GOODNESS''--''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS LONGSUFFERING.'' And you are lacking in it/ You are quick-tempered and easily provoked/ What are you doing/ You are successfully checkmating the Spirit's aim to develop Christ-likeness in you. Consider your Lord, ''Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not'' [I PETER 2;23]. Hear your Lord proclaiming HIMSELF; ''The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth'' [Exodus 34;6]. The Holy Spirit has taken up residence in you to make you like Him,like Himself. ''But I get so impatient,'' or''Ihad such an exasperating experience and lost my patience'' says one. LOST MY PATIENCE.... Friend, the best of us have very little patience. But WHO gets impatient/ You wouldn't accuse The Holy Spirit of being impatient. No, it's YOU. There is just one remedy--only one. Confessing that you, left to yourself, will always fail. Don't try to be patient;then you might be at times. Live on God's Side, availing yourself of HIS STRENGTHENING. LISTEN.... ''Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power''--one might think he was being equipped for some great undertaking, but no--''unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness'' [COLOSSIANS 1;11]. A double fruitage of the Spirit is ours; His patience, and His joy along with whatever suffering we are called to endure. ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS GENTLENESS [kindness].'' Why is there so much unkindness, even among believers/ There is only one explanation. We brush aside the Spirit to indulge in the self-life. We get back on Our Side where the flesh holds sway. ''Love suffers long, and is kind'' [I CORINTHIANS 13;4]. Kindness follows with longsuffering. iN OUR CARE NOT ''TO GRIEVE THE sPIRIT'' WE PUT AWAY THE HARSH THINGS, SUCH AS BITTERNESS, ANGER, AND MALICE, AND MAKE ROOM FOR KINDNESS; ''AND BE YE KIND ONE TO ANOTHER, TENDERHEARTED'' [EPHESIANS 4;;30-32]. ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS GOODNESS.'' Where shall we go for goodness/ Not to ourselves; ''In me, that is, in my flesh dwelleth no good thing'' [ROMANS 7;18]. How gracious of God to find a way to fit Himself into our lives, that through a vital proocess of appropriation His goodness becomes ours. This is the woork of the Spirit, and is the blessed result of walking in the Spirit. END

THE SPIRIT versus THE FLESH-3

--''LOVE, JOY, PEACE''-- One of the most illuminating words of Jesus concerning the work of The Spirit is this;''He shall glorify Me'' [JOHN 16;14]. He will magnify Christ in human living. Whatever Christ desires a follower of Him to be, The Spirit will set about to make him. He will produce Christ-flavored fruit. He aims at Christ-likeness in the child of God. ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS LOVE.'' It is bound to be. ''God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God., and GOD IN HIM'' [I John 4;16]. Was Jesus concerned about our loving one another/ ''A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another''[John 13;34]. But what makes it new/ ''As I have loved you, that ye also love one another.'' That is, His love is setting a new standard for love that outmodes all others. Love, not those who love you, but those who hate and despise you. Do you say, ''I CAN'T DO THAT/'' A good confession. ''Very well,'' says The Spirit, ''I will supply the love; I will love that way in you.'' I go into churches where they seem free to ''bite and devour one another.''One would think this command of Jesus was not in their Bible. How can they/ Only because they are living on the human side, dependent upon human affection that fails,cut off from the supply of divine love that never fails. A man confesses to cherishing ill-will in his hrart. He says,''That nan wronged me, and I hate him.'' There are many such wrongs, and life is pretty much that way. Let's analyze the matter. Who does the hating/ Would you say, The Holy Spirit/ Would you dare lay it to Him/ No. Then it is I, myself, the self life. Put the blame where it belongs. ''I'' have failed. Why/ Beause I was not abiding in him; I got back on our side where such feelings can be cherished. Gladly, thankfully, I yield myself to the Holy Spirit to work His love in me, that the lustings, the tendecies of the flesh under whatever provocation--anger, ill-will, envy, quarrelsomeness, may not be fulfilled in me. ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS JOY.'' And you don't have joy/ What are you doing / Surely refusing The Holy Spirit His freedom to do what He came into your life to do. That is extremely serious; far more than a mere defect in Christian character. Christ expects it; ''These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that, your joy might be full'' [JOHN 15;11]. God commands it; ''Rejoce alway'' [I Thessalonians 5;16]--at all times, under all circumstances. ''The JOY OF THE lord''--His joy, ministered by the Spirit--''is your strength [NEHEMIAH 8;10]. Then, the lack of it is our WEAKNESS. ''But,'' someone says, ''I am so difficultly circumstanced; I am discouraged-- I can't help.'' Very well. Ask yourself, who is discouraged/ Is it The Holy Spirit/ Is He havimg such a hard time that HE HAS GROWN DISCOURAGED/ Never. You are discouraged. YOU are consulting your feelings, your fears, your circumstances, and your failure, to abide. The Holy Spirit can't have His way and produce HIS FRUIT. Have we considered the paradox of Christian living; naturally, we sorrow; supernaturally, we have joy. WHERE WAS JESUS WHEN He bequeathed to us His Joy/ Under the shadow of the cross, with the sorrows of the world's sin about to engulf Him, ''a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief,'' His face ''so marred more than any man''; yet He says, ''MY JOY.'' The Holy Spirit, faithful to Him under trial, kept ministering strength to hIM, EVEN His joy. Paul experienced this paradox and demonstrated joy under great trials [II Corinthians 6;4-10--[Turn]. He says, ''As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing''--Paul practiced the joy he preached--then he adds, to enlarge upon the paradox, ''As poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things'' [V. 10]. Friend, read your Bible for its joy. I recently went through the Psalms, marking every note of joy and gladness. WHAT A REBUKE TO SADNESS... Paul from the Roman prison writes the Philippians a prolonged appeal to rejoice. ''REJOICE IN THE Lord; and again I say, Rejoice'' [4;4]. But the Greek is, ''I will say, Rejoice.'' Circumstances may be against it, but since the Lord expects it, ''I will say, Rejoice,'' in the strengthening of The Spirit. A sad, long-faced Christian only advertises himself and the fact that he is failing; therefore ''I will rejoice.'' ''THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS PEACE.'' And you don't have peace/ What are you doing/ Frustrating the express purpose of the Spirit in coming to live in you. Jesus left us His peace saying,''Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you'' [John 14;27]. It is a proven peace, persisting under great trials; ''These things have I spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world'' [JOHN 16;33]. UNQUESTIONABLY Christ expects us to have peace and display it; but, knowing human failure, the Spirit says, ''I will make it MY BUSINESS TO PRODUCE PEACE.'' Read your Bible for its peace. Talke Philippians 4;6-7, to heart, and practice it. Peace is the twin sister of Joy; one can't live without the other. Peace is the badge of a Spirit-indwelt believer. Christian, you were called to peace, the opposite of worry; called to perpetuate Christ's peace on earth; called to display His peace as evidence of your loyalty to Him.

THE SPIRIT versus THE FLESH-2

THE POTENTIALITIES OF THE FLESH The variety of ways, in which the self-life expresses itself, or may find expression for itself, is given a full listing, in a catalogue, not complimentary to human nature in Galatiand 5;19-21. It is a startling list; we are ashamed of it before we read it. It begins with the baser sins of sex and passion, but it takes full account of the more refined sins that ''get by'' in polite society. A more comprehensive arraignment of fallen human nature is found in Romans 1;26- 32. Another is in 2 Timothy 3;1-7. They are a valuable part of the ''all scripture'' that is inspired of God and ''is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness'' [2 Timothy 3;16]. Dear Friend, If you would understand yourself and the workings of your nature that so often have baffled you and even alarmed you, study your Bible; know what it has to say about YOU, apart from the Spirit. Paul did not invent these charges, but was only following our Lord, Who had this searching word for the men of His day; ''That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness,wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness; all these evil things come from within, and defile the man.'' [Mark 7;20-23]. In these 4 lists, the children of Adam are charged with sex sins, social sins, and spiritual sins. Not that any one person would be guilty of all of these; they are the potentialities of human nature, the evil channels through which it may find expression. I have never been a drunkard; but I have a nature capable of drinking. I have never murdered; but I share with the race a nature that is capable of murder. I do not get angry; but if my nature were not disciplined, I would. Thank God, we of America did not commit the atrocities, laid at the door of the Germans and Japanese in WWII, BUT WE SHOULD HUMBLY ACKNOWLEDGE THAT WE HAVE A NATURE THAT APART FROM THE RESTRAINT OF CHRISTIAN IDEALS IS CAPABLE OF SUCH DEEDS; for God ''hath made of one blood all men'' that live on the earth [Acts 17;26]. We are left no room for boastfulness, but much reason for thankfulness. ''BUT'' [Galatians 5;22] What God can put in ONE WORD... BUT.... It stands here, between the flesh and the Spirit,as the focal point of the Galatian antithesis. If we have ever doubted that the teaching of this epistle is essentially and sharply antithetical, this crucial ''but'' dispels such doubts. It is this antithesis that largelly characterizes Scripture; there is no middle ground. Read the 1st Psalm; its 3 ''but's'' carry the whole teaching. There are many ''buts'' of salvation, notably, John 1;11-13; Romans 6;23; Philippians 3;7; I Peter 1;18-19; Romans 3;21 [the turning point from condemnation to Justification]; so likewise Ephesians 2;4. Here we are facing the ''but'' of sanctification. Christian living is an equally sharp transition from the old to the new, from trying to make the flesh behave to allowing the Spirit His full freedom to work. Again we face Paul's crucial question; ''Are you so foolish/ having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh/'' Have you, my friend, had a clear-cut ''but'' between your former and present way of living/ Not to have, spells defeat. Vital to our problems is the distinction unfolded in the two words, ''fruit'' [singular] as against ''works'' [plural]. The flesh provokes a wide-range gamut of works; the Spirit produces a blended whole of Christian character. The flesh has its variety of expression, destructively working this and that, with no necessary connection between them. A man be a thief, but not a murderer; a liar, but not a drunkard. He may experience anger, but not envy; passion, but not pride. Some of these works are in disrepute among us, such as adultery, drunkenness, murder, and the like. Others are quite respectable. One may be quarrelsome, and retain the full esteem of his fellows. Yet, let's note, they are all, in the same class. They are all equally in disrepute with God. They all remind Him of man's fall away from Him; they are the outbursts of life ''in Adam.'' So He warns us, ''that they who practice such things''-not just a few of the worst--''shall not inherit the kingdom of God'' [Galatians 5;21]. Is there no remedy/ Yes, indeed. God has provided a way out. ''Walk in the Spirit,'' Stay, ''abide'' every moment on His Side, and these things of Our Side will never have a chance. Abide ''in Christ,'' and you will be overjoyed at the ''much fruit'' resulting [John 15;1-5]. The Fruit of The Spirit, reproducing Christ in us, is Christ-flavored fruit. Galatians 5;22 tells us that the FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IS LOVE, JOY, PEACE, LONG SUFFERING, GENTLENESS, GOODNESS, FAITH, MEEKNESS AND TEMPERANCE. What are these qualities/ Not the nice exhibition of Christian character, nor yet the casual result of the Holy Spirit living in us. They are the dead-in-earnest product of the Spirit's setting about to checkmate the works of the flesh. This is His way of doing it. This is the Spirit lusting against the flesh so that we do not fulfill its lusts. These traits are His answer, HIS ''BUT,'' to the cravings of the flesh. They are His means of keeping us ''0n side.'' Suppose we are lacking in these qualities. It is not merely a lack of Christian character; we are sinning against the Spirit;we are defeating His declared purpose in coming to live in us. Suppose we still have the workings of the flesh. It is not merely that these things are wrong and we ought to get rid of them. FAR FROM THAT. We are grieving the Spirit; we are blocking His New Covenant program; we will not let Him carry out the purpose for which HE CAME TO LIVE IN US. [TO BE CONTINUED]

THE SPIRIT versus THE FLESH

''This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh'' Galatians 5;16]. These are the two antithetical ellements of life, the two opposing resources upon which life must depend. If we are living OUR life, it's flesh; if we are living HIS life, it is Spirit. These are the basic terms of our identification with the human family and with the divine family. ''In Adam'' we all inherit the flesh; ''In Christ'' we all inherit, by covenant right, the Spirit. The flesh has its way of living and expressing itself. The Spirit has His way of expressing Himself. The two are ''contrary.'' Now our antithesis becomes a sharply drawn antagonism. These words are addressed to Christians, to those who have undertaken to live the Christian life, for only believers have the Holy Spirit; but such, also have the fllesh--persistently so. IT IS EXPLAINED THAT ''THESE ARE CONTRARY THE ONE TO THE OTHER.'' Their aims and purposes are diametrically opposed. eACH SAYS ''No'' to the other. Each checkmates the other's moves. The result is a stalemate for the Christian--''ye cannot do the things that ye would''--until this problem finds a solution. Evidently, in one sense, the Christian has a harder time than other folks. If I am an unsaved man and want to do a thing, I go ahead and do it. If I am a saved man, I may want to do it, and the Spirit may say,''No, you are not to do it.'' WHAT A MISERABLE WAY TO LIVE. . . Is there no solution/ The solution, our way out is, ''Walk in the Spirit.'' Give the Spirit a free hand, the full right of way. Let YOUR life be the practical day by day expression of HIS life. ''Flesh'' is the Bible's word for human nature. Leaving off the ''h'' and spelling it in reverse, we have ''self.'' Flesh is the self-life. It is what man is, left to himself. At times self behaves itself very commendably; again, it behaves very SELFISHLY. When not well in hand it shows itself off. evening TV NEWS reveals that human nature is out of hand much of the time. Man tries to educate it, to train it, to discipline it; he passes laws to compel it to behave. But God/--God unsparingly condemns it. He says it is incurably bad. The flesh has a mind of its own and that mind is ''not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be'' [Romans 8;7]. God makes clear that He has no confidence in the flesh. Therefore His children are described as those who ''have no confidence in the flesh'' [Philippians 3;3], but rather join Him in self- condemnation, saying, ''I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing'' [Romans 7;18]. It is a great thing for a Christian, especially one reared in the church, Who has never been, as we say, ''deep in sin,'' when he humbly and whole-heartedly accepts God's estimate of his inheritance ''in Adam,'' thus to be thrown in complete dependence upon the Spirit, his inheritance ''in Christ.'' His gain is that, being now ''Led Of The Spirit'' and under His control,he has no need of being ''under the law'' [5;18]. The Holy Spirit has come into his life to take the self-life in hand and keep it under complete control. [TO BE CONTINUED].

''THAT HE MIGHT DELIVER''

GALATIANS 1;4--Who gave Himself for us, that He might DELIVER us from this present evil world.'' DELIVER.... If ever you feel depressed, or discouraged, and need a thrilling uplift, trace the use of ''DELIVER''through the Bible. In the Hebrew and Greek some 40 words are used to get the idea across to us. Sin has created such an ''evil world'', with so many by-products of suffering, physicall, mental, spiritual, circumstantial--yes, financial, that men are its victims at every turn. How gracious that our Saviour delivers from such ''according to the will of God and our Father.'' The Psalmist says, ''Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivereth him out of them all'' [34;19]. The Lord invites us, saying, ''Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me'' [Psalm 50;15]. When the 3 faithful Israelites were condemned to the fiery furnace they testified,''Our GGod whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of thine hand, O King'' [Daniel 3;17]. The result/ The seven times hotter fire, while leaving hair and clothing untouched, burned off their bonds as they walked free in the flames of their affliction. WHAT A DELIVERANCE.... And the same Lord is able to deliver you. Similarly Paul, faced with death testifies to a past, present, and future deliverance; ''Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver; in whom we trust that He will yet deliver us'' [II CORINTHIANS 1;10]. Jesus seeing men under the power of death, bereft of life, said, ''I am come that they might have life;'' ''I give unto them eternal life'' [john 10;10,28]. Seeing men in darkness He cried,''I am the light of the world; he that followeth Meshall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life'' [JOHN 8; 12]. Seeing men hungry and thirsty, He cried, ''Iam the bread of life''; ''If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink'' [John 6;48; 7;37]. Seeing men in bondage--though they vehemenly resented the implication--He cried,''If the Son, therefore, shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed'' [JOHN 8;36; see VV. 32-34]. How can we adequately thank God our great Deliverer for so all-inclusive a deliverance and transference/ ''Giving thanks unto the Father . . .who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of His dear Son'' [COLOSSIANS 1;12, 13].

DISTINGUISHING MARKS OF A CHRISTIAN, AS FOUND IN GALATIANS

A Christian is one who has the living Christ living in him [2;20; 4;19]. He has had a transforming experience. A Christian is one who has The Holy Spirit [4;6]. He begets IN the believer new characteristics that are productive of Christian conduct [5;22, 23]/ A Christian is one who has shared the Cross experience with Christ, as the basic solution of his personal problems. [2;20; 5;24; 6;14, 17]. A Christian is one possessed of a life so divine, so ideal, that it cannot be pressed into the mold of external regulations [4;9-11, 19-21; 5;1-6]. IN OTHER WORDS, THE CHRISTIAN LIFE CONSISTS NOT IN BEHAVING, BUT IN BEING,a life out of which behavior naturally proceeds; not something external, but internal, the root producing the fruit. It is a LIFE that must be free to express itself; to impose regulations upon it, is fatal to it.

THE 2ND COMING OF ELIJAH

MATTHEW 17;9-11-''and as they came down from the mountain, Jesus charged them saying.Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead. And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come/ And Jesus answered and said unto them,Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.'' Notice the word ''restore'' [restoration], as you always find it in connection with the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ [Acts 3;20-21]. The statement of the Lord Jesus Christ is that Elijah is going to come. MATTHEW 17;12-13--''But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. Then the diciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.'' because of these verses, some say that Christ is already come, that John the Baptist was Elijah. Therefore they say all the Old Testaments Prophecies were fulfilled at the first coming, and they are to be spiritualized, if they refer to the 2nd Coming. But NOTICE THE PASSAGE CAREFULLY, ''Elias truly SHALL first come, and restore all things. But [apparent contradiction I say unto you.'' Here we have an apparent contradiction, but is not really a contradiction at all. LUKE 9;18-20--''And it came to pass, as he was alone praying, his disciples were with him; and he asked them, saying, Whom say the people that I am/ They answering said,John the Baptist; but some say, Elias;and others say, that one of the old prophets is risen again. He said unto them, But whom say ye that I am/ Peter answering said, The Christ of God.'' Then there is confusion about John the Baptist, Jesus Christ, and Elias. Although Jesus said John was Elias. let's look at John's testimony. JOHN 1;19-21--''And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou/ And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. And they asked him, What then/ Art thou Elias/ And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet/ And he answered, No.'' Is that clear/ Here is an apparent contradiction, Jesus said John was Elias, John says he wasn't. but this is not a REAL contradiction-- LUKE 1;15-17--''For he [John]nshall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God; And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.'' God's plan covers all possibilities and contingencies. If the people had reveived the message and Christ as their Messiah, in Acts 2-7, John would have been Elijah.... Prior to the cross and their commission, Jesus said to His disciples--''But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another; for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come'' [Matthew 10;23]. He did not come, yet they went over the cities of ISRAEL, TO THE ENDS OF THE WORLD. Now, let's see how THE Holy Spirit gave the teaching that John was a type of Elijah, as we compare Malachi 4 with Luke 1. MALACHI 4;4-6 CP LUKE 1;17; The commissions aren't the same. John Baptist was only a type of ELIJAH, WHO WOULD HAVE FULFILLED THE PROPHECY IF CHRIST HAD RETURNED. BUT SINCE ISRAEL DIDNOT REPENT AS A NATION, GOD CALLS OUT PAUL TO PREACH TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH, AND THE CHURCH AGE IS USHERED IN. Elijah will come in the Tribulation period [Revelation 11;2-6].

THE FINDINGS OF THE FIRST CHURCH COUNCIL

In Acts 15, we have the story of the first church council, held at Jerusalem. they assembled to deliberate upon spiritual matters. they found in the council, that to understand this age, they must understand that GOD WAS NOT seeking to convert the world, but to call out from among the Gentiles, a people for HIS NAME. This was to be done by grace, through faith in His Son. Never one time, was it God's purpose to convert the world to Christ. it never has been, nor will it ever be. It is God's only purpose to call out a people for Christ, and when this calling is completed; when every one of God's elect of this age has been brought into the fold, then the Lord will come back. In Acts 3;14-19, we see that if ISRAEL had repented as a nation, when Peter called upon them as a nation, to do so, The Lord would have come back then. But they did not repent, therefore God chastised them [ZECHARIAH 12-14]. The early Church labored in the Gospel to reach every one of God's elect, and waited for His Son from Heaven. When the last one of GOD'S elect has been called out by the Holy Spirit and justified by faith in Christ, then we will hear the shout of the Lord in GLORY, coming for HIS OWN.

THE BIBLE OR DREAMS/ WHICH /

Because of the failure to rightly divide The Word of God, many think that the signs given to Israel apply to us today. We don't need a man coming with signs and wonders, to know that He is sent from God, or NOT. We can tell that he is from God, by the way he handles, reacts to, and treats it. I Corinthians tells us that The Jews require a sign, while the Jews seek after wisdom. The Word of God is what God uses during this age of grace. In Acts 2 [Peter quotes from Joel] which will be fulfilled regarding Israel during the coming tribulation. The dreams and visions will be used because the Antichrist will destroy all available Bibles. DURING THIS DISPENSATION, GOD'S WORD WILL DO GOD'S WORK.

BEHOLD THE KING

Seventy four years ago, a man, whom many called The King was born in Tupelo, Mississippi--Elvis Pressley. But in reality there is only one king, The Wise, Immortal King-Jehovah God. As such, He is worthy of our adoration, veneration, and praise. He requires our utmost obedience and submission. He is absolute holiness and purity, who cannot look upon sin. His perfect Justice demands the death of every rebel. But being also, perfect LOVE, He chose to save an remnant of Adam's fallen race, to bring glory to His grace. This number He gave as a gift to His Son, Who became their Surety, and discharged their debt to God's Justice, completely satisfying God's Wrath. These chosen ones, are regenerated by The Holy Spirit, in which they are granted saving faith and repentance, which are exercised in their conversion to Christ. By Creation and Redemption, they belong to God. Behold The King...

THE SAINT'S DAY OF DEATH

The day of Death for a child of God is better than the day he was born physically, into this world. We were born, as children of wrath, without God and without hope in this world. We were born with ADAM'S OLD SINFUL NATURE, thus were children of wrath. We sinned and became the children of disobedience. We were born totally depraved, dead in trespasses and sins. We were on our way to The Lake of Fire. But HALLELUJAH, PRAISE THE LORD, one day the Holy Spirit was sent to Quicken us, and to give us the Graces of repentance and faith. UNDER HOLY SPIRIT CONVICTION WE SAW WHAT WE WERE, THE JUDGMENT WE WERE UNDER, AND THAT Christ was our only hope. We bowed to His Lordship, and He graciously saved us. HE DIDN'T HAVE TO SAVE US, BUT DID BECAUSE THE FATHER CHOSE US TO SALVATION, IN ETERNITY PAST, AND GAVE US TO HIS SON, AS A GIFT. SO WHEN, WE LEAVE THIS WORLD, IT WILL BE BETTER FOR US, THAN THE DAY WE WERE BORN PHYSICALLY INTO THIS WORLD.

SIN KNOWS NO DEGREES

Contrary to popular opinion, there are no degrees to sin. One sin is just as heinous and distasteful to God as another. James 2;10 says if we offend in just one point of the Law, then we are guilty of breaking every point of the Law. Hence if we sin once, we are guilty of every sin in the eyes of God. How sad it is that those who profess to know the Lord sit in judgment, as if God gave them His Son's position, upon others. We still have the Pharisees among us, those plaster saints who have set up their own quota system, with its varying degrees of sin. We are not qualified to judge, because 1. We don't have full knowledge 2. WE ARE SINNERS OURSELVES. 3. We are prone to overlook ours, while looking on other people sins. Just why a tongue speaking charismatic, would join a Baptist Church, and then sit in judgment upon what goes on there shows a ''holier then thou'' attitude. Search The Bible, it alone has the answers, and Jesus is going to judge according to it. NO CHRISTIAN HAS THE RIGHT TO JUDGE ANYONE...

AMERICA, THE CROWN HAS FALLEN

America, once the crown jewel of representative democracy is quickly turning into a socialistic state, which will find her place in the coming one world government. America after WWII shifted her emphasis from Nationalism to one worldism. THE SEEDS OF THIS ARE EVEN FOUND IN THE REALM OF SO-CALLED Christendom. Political correctness, and turning the objective message of the Gospel into a subjective one can be seen on every hand. Where are those who will stand up for God, and Country/ Where are those, who are bold enough, to stand up and say ''Thus saith the Lord God,'' without fear of man/ The pusssy footing, free willers, are destroying our land, and sending folks to Hell. We need also men in the Government, who are not ruled by greed, nor by lust for power. It's time to stand up for God and FOR America, AS ONE NATION UNDER GOD.

TRUE, PURE, AND THINGS OF GOOD REPORT

Paul in Philippians admoishes us that, whatsoever things are pure, true, and of good report. to think upon them. Now, while there is a place for negativity, we are not to put our emphasis on it. The Message of The Bible is a positive one. Being negative all the time turns people off. Dwelling on past sins gets one nowhere. As A believer I have no right to judge, or criticize another believer. I have enough to answer for and of myself. Too many CHRISTIAN BLOGS ARE NEGATIVE AND ABRASIVE, AND WILL AMONT TO NOTHING, AT THE JUDGMENT SEAT. Paul said ''Who art thou that judgest another man's servant, to his own master, he standeth or falleth.'' So, let's be positive, and leave the Judgment where it belongs, in God's Hands. NO ONE HAS THE RIGHT TO DO THE HOLY SPIRIT'S WORK.

NO SUBSTITUTES PLEASE

WE LIVE IN A DAY OF SUBSTITUTES. THERE ARE SUBSTITUTE SUGARS, SALTS,EGGS, AND EVEN MOTHERS. IN THE CHURCH WORLD IN ORDER TO REACH PEOPLE, WORLDLY MUSIC, DRESS, AND AMUSEMENTS HAVE BEEN INCORPORATED IN TO THE ''WORSHIP/'' SERVICES. BUT THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR GOD'S ORDAINED MEANS TO REACH THE LOST, THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL BY GOD'S MAN, STANDING IN THE PULPIT. THE WORD OF GOD WILL DO THE WORK OF GOD. THE HOLY SPIRIT HAS PROMISED TO BLESS ONE THING ONLY, THE PREACHING OF THE WORD. NO GENUINE REVIVAL OF THE SAINTS, NOR A SPIRITUAL AWAKENING WILL EVER COME UNLESS WE RETURN TO PREACHING ''THUS SAITH THE LORD,'' FROM THE AV 1611 BIBLE.

3 Characteristics of A God-called Preacher

There are certain characteristics of a God-called Preacher, or true minister of the Gospel. For the sake of space, we will cite 3 of the most outstanding ones. Number 1-He is born again--born of the Spirit, born from above, made a new creature in Christ Jesus--and Christ is a living reality to his heart. The God called, ordained preacher knows when he was saved, where he was saved, what he was saved from, and what he was saved to. In other words, he knows the Way of Grace. Number 2-He is chosen, ordained, and called of God to preach the unsearchable riches of the Grace of God, as set forth in God's Word, The Holy Bible. The Ministry Today has been commercialized until it is no longer a calling,and men as a whole, don't believe in The Divine Call to The Ministry. Christ said, ''Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you...'' [John 15;16]. Again, it is said, ''According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world'' [Ephesians 1;4], and according to Romans 1;1, ''called...and separated unto the gospel of God''. God's ministers are divinely called; they do not enter the ministry of their own accord. That call is as definite to them as can be. God doesn't call a preacher by visions, or dreams, or such like. God calls them by His Spirit through the Word, not by audible voices. Number 3-Every true minister of the Gospel is commanded to, and will, preach the Word. No born-again, God-called minister will preach his own opinions or ideas. God's command to every preacher is, ''PREACH THE WORD.'' He will preach The Whole Counsel of God, without fear, or favor--preach it to men as they are. A Hireling, or lost Religionist, will seek to cover up, or explain away,or minimize Blood Redemption in Christ, or Salvation by Grace, and Christ's Second Coming. God never calls a man to misrepresent Him, or preach anything except His Word. God nevers calls a man to exalt anyone but the Lord Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour. God's preacher won't preach error, nor go astray.

ENDING 2008

The year 2008 is fast drawing to a close, and when it does, we will close the book on the year. we need to also close the book on our failures, sins, and unrealized dreams. The New Year, If God ordains to give it, is another opprtunity to serve Him, and to glorify Him, in all, that we do and say. He has graciously provided the filling of The Spirit, and the divine operating assets of His Word, so that we can do so. God has chosen to use means and men, to accomplish His Purpose and Plan. He is The Potter, and we are the clay. Life is the wheel. The breaking is the marring. Trials and troubles are His appointments.

What to do in Hard Times

Hard times are coming. The financial situation is getting bad,indeed. What are we to do, Where are we to turn, To who can we turn/ We can do what my parents did,and what your Grandparents did in the 1930's. We can trust in God, we can turn to His church,and we can turn to Him. He has promised to take care of His Children.His power is still the same as it was then. During the 30's people filled the churches, realizing that material things were not so important. Today human government has taken God's place. It can and never will satisfy the vacuum in man's heart. Hard times give us the opportunity to trust God, and to share with others, the Gospel of the Grace of God. So, do not let hard times to discourage you, but let it be an incentitve to keep on serving our Lord.

CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS

I have noticed that this year, there are blogs debating How to celebrate Christmas. But nowhere does the Bible say, or tells to observe Christ's Birth. Christmas is not The Babe in The Manger, nor is it, Santa and his pack,but it is Christ, and His Cross. ''Twas the night before Christmas,And all through the world, A message was preached, A challenge was hurled, Believe on The Son and thou shalt be saved; The Road to Heaven, with His Blood was paved. Out of the darkness of sin and despair, Shone God's Light of Salvation, The Fairest of Fair. He was born in a stable, no room in The Inn, And He died on The Cross, to save us from sin.''

WHAT IS WRONG WITH PROFESSIONS OF FAITH

A Individual may make a profession, without ever having his or her confidence in his or her own ability shattered. That's because he, or she has been told nothing of his or her need of having a new nature imparted, which is not within his or her power, and consequently,if he or she does not recieve it, he,or she, is not dismayed. He, or she, has never been told it is essential, so he or she sees no reason, to doubt whether he or she is A Christian. In deed, the teaching he or she has come under, militates such doubts arising. It is frequently said, that a man, who has made a decision with little evidence of a change of life may be a ''Carnal'' Christian, needing instruction in holiness, or if the same individual should gradually lose his new found interests, the fault is frequently attributed to lack of ''Follow-up,'' or Prayer, or some other deficiency on the part of the church. The Possibility that these marks of worldliness and falling away are due to the lack of a saving experience, at the outset is rarely considered. If this point were squarely faced, then the whole system of appeals, decisions, and counseling would collapse. This is because it would bring to the fore, the fact, that obtaining a new nature, is not in man's power. It would also show that it takes much longer then a few hours, or days, to establish whether a professed response to the Gospel is geniune. But instead of facing this, it is protested that to doubt whether one who has ''accepted Christ'' is A Christian, is tantamount to denying God's Word, and that to give up altar calls, is to give up EVANGELISM ALTOGETHER.

HOLINESS

The Understanding of The Godhead's transcendent purity is necessary to understand Biblical Doctrine. Having The Righteousness of Christ, imputed and imparted, is the only way one can be reconciled to God. We are living in a day, where little is preached, or taught, on the Holiness of God, and as a result, the church's doctrine and ethics have been tarnished. Entertainment has replaced worship, the gospel is misunderstood and neglected, and the church assimilates herself to the culture, instead of seeking to transform it, through the teaching and preaching of the Word of God. Something has to be done, if the church is to regain her saltiness. She must return to holiness, which affects our worship, doctrine, and personal walk in Christ. Today, the sinfulness of sin is not grasped, because the holiness of God is not grasped. Sin will only be understood for what it is, When God is understood for who He is. In both Testaments God calls His people to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Just as the Levtical Priest represented the individual before God, so we represent the lost before God in prayer. Therefore we must be holy, as He is holy.

A RESPONSE TO THE FLYSWATTER

Yesterday, I said, on a post, on one of Tim Brister's blogs, that because of the apostate state of the Convention, all who adhere to the Doctrines of Grace should withdraw and with other Baptists who adhere to sovereign grace, form a new fellowship of churches and pastors. An Anti-Calvinist, Bob Ross, sent me a link to his blog. He quoted my post, and then went on to say, that Calvinists do not grow by preaching, or by witnessing, but only by stealing members from Southern Baptist Churches, by calling the churches, ''Armenian.'' What a lie.... Those who believe in The Doctrines of Grace, know that through their preaching of the truth of these doctrines, God will bring in His sheep, and the doctrines encourage evangelism on all levels. Independent Baptists, who believe in Sovereign Grace, have built large, substantial works, numbering in the thousands, all over this land. Men such as Harold Sightler, Ralph Sexton Sr, Larry Montgomery, Henry Mahan, and a host of others, have built large local churches, with evangelism, burning in the hearts of the people, by teaching The Doctrines of Grace. Shame on Bob Ross and Charles, in their ''Calvinistic Flyswatter'' for propagating such a lie. Their hatred for the truth, is so intense, that they lie, to advance their unjust, unfounded prejudice against it. May they repent, and God have mercy upon them.

ARE YOU A LITTLE DOG/

In Matthew, Chapter 15. a woman from the coasts of Canaan, a Canaanite, a Gentile worshiper of idols, came to Jesus, to seek healing for her daughter, who was sorely vexed with a devil. She cried to Him, ''Jesus, Thou Son of David, have mercy upon me. What was Jesus' response / He answered her not a word. She had no right to use that title. It was the title for the Messiah, promised to the nation of Israel. The disciples who were full of self-importance, said to Jesus, ''Send her away for she crieth after us.''She was not crying after them, but after The Lord. But our Lord answered and said that, He was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then she came and worshiped Him, she prostrated herself at the feet of Jesus, saying, ''Lord, help me.'' That is, ''My Creator, I come, as one of Your creatures, needing Your help. If You don't help me, then nothing can be done.'' Jesus answered that it was not meet to take The Children's bread, and throw it to the little dogs. She said,''That's true, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their master's table.'' Then Jesus said, ''O Woman, Great is your faith, let it be to you as you will.'' And her daughter was healed that very hour. I am grateful for the crumbs from Jesus' table. As A Gentile, I was counted as a dog. I had no portion in the covenant and promises made to Israel. I was without God, and Without hope in this world, but one day Jesus came to where I was, and by His death, made me a partaker of the blessing promised to Israel. HALLELUJAH... GLORY TO HIS NAME.....

FREE WILL OR FREE GRACE/

Only God now has free will. Adam had it, and fell. When Adam fell, his will became enslaved to his old sin nature. John 1;13 tells us, we are not saved by the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. God saves freely by His Grace-Ephesians 2;8-9; Romans 11;6. In regeneration God's people are made willing by the power of The Holy Spirit. Psalm 110;3 says They are made willing in the day of his power. Keep in mind, God is not obligated to save any one. He could have left the whole human race go to Hell. But, in His Mercy and Grace, and to fulfill His Eternal Purpose, He chose to save a certain number of the race, chose them in Christ, and wrote their names in the Lamb's book of life before He created this world [Rev. 13;8]. PRAISE HIS NAME. HALLELUJAH.....

THE NEED FOR BIBLICAL HOLINESS

We are commanded by God, ''Be ye holy, for I am holy.'' Paul in The Book of Hebrews says that ''without holiness no man shall see the Lord. We were sanctified [set apart] positionally at the moment of our initial conversion experience. This is our Standing before God. Now we need to set ourselves apart unto God from whatever comes in between us and Him, in our daily living. Worldliness runs unchecked in our churches. Worldliness has made us dress and act like the world, and go to the same places, and seek the same pleasures as the lost do. Christ died that we might be His people, and the sheep of His pasture. He tells us ''Come out, and be ye separate from the world, and touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you.'' To be an effective witness, we must be separated unto God from the World. The world is watching us, and when we give in to our old natures, they will say, ''I thought you said you were A Christian, that Christ has changed you.'' This brings reproach not only on us, but on our Lord. So Be ye holy, as He is holy, in all things, you do or say.

Abortion is premeditated murder

Since The Bible says, God knew us, when we were in our Mother's womb, abortion other than to save the life of the Mother is premeditated Murder. Our Nation has innocent blood on its hands, that God will soon judge. God hates and must punish sin. Believers are free, For Christ bore their punishment. Our Nation has forgotten The God of its founding Fathers, and will soon bear God's Wrath. God may use sin to punish its sin. God's Mercy is holding back His Judgment. When we turn our back on Israel, we will be cursed of God, and will be punished for our many national sins. Our only hope is a revival and a spiritual awakening. May God send it in His Mercy, is my fervent prayer.

SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE

As born again ones, we are to always speak the truth, and lie not one to another. But we are to speak the truth in love, not belittling or ridiculing others for their lack of light and knowledge. No two believers are at the same level of maturity and have the same degree of light, as the other. Therefore, we are to use meekness and humility in dealing with others. But too often we are guilty of having a cocksure and a combative spirit. we are not to compromise the truth, but we are not to be contentious in our contending for the body of truth, God has committed to us.

Baptists and Catholics

Today my comment was refused on a blog because I said, ''A Catholic and a Baptist can not sleep in the same bed unless one is asleep.'' Catholics believe in salvation by works; Baptists believe Salvation is by grace. Catholics believe Mary is the mother of God; Baptists believe she is the mother of Christ's humanity. Catholics bow before statutes in worship;Baptists believe in worshiping God ''in Spirit and in truth.'' Catholics pray to Mary; Baptists pray to the Father in the name of Jesus Christ. Catholics believe in Baptismal Regeneration; Baptists believe in Spirit Regeneration. Catholics say Mary was virgin born, and was sinless; Luke says she worshiped God her Saviour. Catholics SAY THERE IS NO SALVATION OUTSIDE OF THEIR CHURCH; Baptists used to believe salvation is only in Christ. Catholic believe the bread and wine are changed into the literal blood and flesh of Christ; Baptists believe that they are only symbols. Catholics believe the pope is the vicar of Christ; Baptists believe Christ Himself is is reigning,

TUESDAY, NOV 25, 1980

Tuesday, November 25, 1980 is a day that will forever be etched on mind and heart. On that day I lost my greatest friend on this earth, and my greatest prayer warrior, my Momma. She had gone into the hospital on election day, after voting , to get her legs operated on. But her kidneys were giving out, and they couldn't operate. on the Saturday night, NOV 19TH, SHE HAD AWAKENED AND WAS COMPLAINING OF A HEADACHE. THE NEXT AFTERNOON I FOUND HER IN A COMMA. SHE WAS PUT ON A DIALYSIS MACHINE ON MONDAY, BUT IT WAS TOO LATE. My brother Stan had to make the hard decision to take her off. Tuesday while at the church, where I was associate pastor, I received the call that she was going to die. I rushed to Holy cross Hospital, to wait. I waited all day. Finally shortly after 10;00 pm eastern time, the nurse came out and said she was going. my late brother and sister, Vernon and Irene, her Daughter Delores and I went into her room. I took her by the hand, and prayed that the Lord would help her make the crossing over Death's river. at 10;15 HER HEART STOPPED BEATING, and SHE was gone. She wasn't perfect, but she would often pray all night long. Many times I saw her kneeling when I went to bed, and when I got up, she was still kneeling in prayer. SHE LOVED ALL HER CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN. I Thank God I had a praying Momma. Here's remembering you, Momma. I love you and miss you. I will see you soon.

Receiving God's Word

The Lord, through James bids us, ''receive with meekness the engrafted word'' [James 1;21]. Our first duty is NOT to understand The Word, but to receive it. So many fail at this point; they are not prepared to receive what The Bible says--on election, on baptism, on separation from Christ-dishonoring churches, on The Law etc-until they think they have understood it. That is, because of PRIDE. Scripture must be made to bow to their intellect, rather than their intellect to the BIBLE.... Another reason Why many fail, is SELF-WILL; What the Bible says crosses their desires and conflicts with their views. That's why James says ''receive with meekness.'' meekness is pliability of spirit, moldablleness of heart, being clay in the potter's hands.

''Come Ye Thankful People Come''

From the Pilgrims in the Bay Colony, to the Thanksgiving Proclamation of Abraham Lincoln, to our day, our nation has celebrated Thanksgiving Day. But for those, who know Jesus and the free pardon of sin, everyday is a day for thanksgiving. Someone has so aptly said. ''Thanksgiving calls for Thanks Living. Just think, our God loved us so much, as to reach down, in love, and save us. He didn't have to save us. He could have left us in our sin, and sent us to Hell. But, Praise The Lord, He didn't. He let us be born in a land, with the freedom to worship Him in public, with out fear of death or imprisonment, or torture. As we gather with our loved ones and friends, let us thank our God for His multiplied blessings. If you know Him, you will not be alone this Holiday. HE WILL NEVER LEAVE, NOR FORSAKE YOU. HALLELUJAH, WHAT A SAVIOUR....

Why I Believe The Doctrines of Grace

People have called me A Calvinist. I have never read any of John Calvin's works, nor do I intend to. I believe what is called The Doctrines of Grace, for I find them interwoven throughout the Word of God. I AM NOT FOLLOWING ANY MAN OUTSIDE OF JESUS CHRIST, THE GOD-MAN. What I know I know by Divine Revelation. The Holy Spirit revealed the truths to me as I read The Holy Bible. I did not receive the doctrines through men, but through God's Spirit illuminating the page. Therefore I am A Biblicist. I BELIEVE THE BIBLE IS GOD'S WRITTEN, PRESERVED WORD TO MANKIND.

A PRACTICAL CHRISTIAN LIFE

''Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might'' [Ecclesiastes 9;10], which means, put your very best into it, do it as unto The Lord Himself, whether it be manual labor, work in the office, or domestic things. Now, Listen; SLACKNESS AND CARELESSNESS ARE INEXCUSABLE IN A CHILD OF GOD. He should always present a model and example of conscientiousness, painstaking care, and exactness. God requires obedience to His commands. Unless your reading of the Bible, make you a better worker in the office, more conscientious and reliable, it has profited you very little. And unless you obey Him in little things, God will not call you ever to minister from a pulpit.

Why do we allow Satan to divide us /

I am a firm believer in The doctrines of Grace. Yet I realize, unless The Holy Spirit reveals these truths, one will never know them. No one has the corner on ALL the Truth. And what I know, I know by revelation. But Baptists fighting one another, is a diversion of Satan to keep us from our real task, evangelizing the lost. As long as one does not fight the doctrines of Grace, I can, and will work with him, realizing that everything done in the energy of The Spirit, and only that done through His anointing, will accomplish God's Will and Purpose. The hour is late, Christ's Coming draws nigh, it's time for all Baptists, to quit their differences, and unite, to carry out The Great Commission. WHAT DO YOU THINK/ DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE/