God separates you in a time of conviction and repentance, then brings you forth as God’s son or daughter! We have a “short cut” in religion today — men bypass Holy Spirit conviction and Bible repentance, and think they are getting to Christ. How utterly deceived they are! Go back through history to the days of Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, Gilbert Tennet and others during the time of the Great Awakening, and you will see how God separated souls in those times, bringing them through the valley of Holy Ghost conviction and to the place of death at the Cross. You there see sinners who are raised to walk in newness of life in the Lord Jesus Christ!
The same was true among the Baptists of the South, around the year 1800 when their Broad River Association was formed near Spartanburg SC. People heard that the power of God was among them, and came from many miles around to “get in on it.” Some came to mock, to criticize and tear down, only to find themselves no match for the Almighty Spirit of God who cut them down as they approached the area where meetings were in progress! Sinners were literally broken in spirit and brought to mourn over their sins and their old sin nature, and many looked to the Bleeding Lamb of God as their Sin-Offering and were gloriously delivered to walk in newness of life in Christ. Some Presbyterians and Methodists in the area came under the power of the meetings. How we need this in our days! Amen. By Brother W. W. Fulton
October 31, 2005
October 19, 2005
Whips and Chains and Biscuits Tim James
(Mar 5:3-4) Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him.
The treatment afforded the demoniac of Gadara is a treatise on the means used by false religion to keep its converts committed to its cause. In Mark 5:3-4, two words are used to describe this vile religious practice. The religious folks efforts to recover this poor sinner, were two-fold, to bind and to tame.
Their first efforts were to bind this sinner in fetters and chains. There can be no doubt that this is the illegal use of the law to control behavior (which is all the law can do, it never reaches the heart). This approach to life is the tool of those who would "make a fair show in the flesh". These love themselves and no one else, and believe themselves to be responsible for the behavior of others. They operate in the realm of guilt mongering. They keep folk in check with their rules, their regulations, their personal convictions and inability to look at their own behavior. They use scripture as a chain to bind the mind, and fetters to bind the feet, thereby keeping their subjects exactly where they want them.
The other means used to control folk is to tame them. There are only two ways to tame a wild beast, either with a whip or a biscuit. The whip is the slavish fear of wrath. Those who use this tactic hold their "beasts" in fear of loss and fear of punishment. They make God out to be a petty ogre, veritably licking His lips with pleasure at the thought of someone messing up, so He can ravage their lives. The biscuit is the promise of reward, the pat on the back, the public praise for the job well done. It is the carrot on a stick, held before the mule, to keep him pulling the plow while he stupidly chases what he can never attain. These are wicked means of control. THE GOSPEL SETS MEN FREE! BY Tim James
The treatment afforded the demoniac of Gadara is a treatise on the means used by false religion to keep its converts committed to its cause. In Mark 5:3-4, two words are used to describe this vile religious practice. The religious folks efforts to recover this poor sinner, were two-fold, to bind and to tame.
Their first efforts were to bind this sinner in fetters and chains. There can be no doubt that this is the illegal use of the law to control behavior (which is all the law can do, it never reaches the heart). This approach to life is the tool of those who would "make a fair show in the flesh". These love themselves and no one else, and believe themselves to be responsible for the behavior of others. They operate in the realm of guilt mongering. They keep folk in check with their rules, their regulations, their personal convictions and inability to look at their own behavior. They use scripture as a chain to bind the mind, and fetters to bind the feet, thereby keeping their subjects exactly where they want them.
The other means used to control folk is to tame them. There are only two ways to tame a wild beast, either with a whip or a biscuit. The whip is the slavish fear of wrath. Those who use this tactic hold their "beasts" in fear of loss and fear of punishment. They make God out to be a petty ogre, veritably licking His lips with pleasure at the thought of someone messing up, so He can ravage their lives. The biscuit is the promise of reward, the pat on the back, the public praise for the job well done. It is the carrot on a stick, held before the mule, to keep him pulling the plow while he stupidly chases what he can never attain. These are wicked means of control. THE GOSPEL SETS MEN FREE! BY Tim James
October 17, 2005
True faith! By C.H. Spurgeon
True faith is, in every case, the operation of the Spirit of God. Its nature is purifying, elevating, heavenly. Wherever true faith is found, it is: the sure mark of eternal election, the sign of a blessed condition, and the forecast of a heavenly destiny. If you have true faith, you have infinitely more than he who has all the world.
Faith is
the eye of the renewed soul, the hand of the regenerated mind, the mouth of the newborn spirit.
Faith is
the evidence of spiritual life, the mainspring of holiness, the foundation of delight, the prophecy of glory, and the dawn of endless knowledge.
Faith is
the assurance of sonship; the pledge of inheritance; the grasp of boundless possession; the perception of the invisible.
Within your faith there lies glory, even as the oak sleeps within the acorn. Time would fail me to tell of the powers, the privileges, the possessions and the prospects of faith. He that has faith is blessed, for he pleases God, he is justified before the throne of holiness, he has full access to the throne of grace and he has the preparation for reigning with Christ forever. By Charles Spurgeon
Faith is
the eye of the renewed soul, the hand of the regenerated mind, the mouth of the newborn spirit.
Faith is
the evidence of spiritual life, the mainspring of holiness, the foundation of delight, the prophecy of glory, and the dawn of endless knowledge.
Faith is
the assurance of sonship; the pledge of inheritance; the grasp of boundless possession; the perception of the invisible.
Within your faith there lies glory, even as the oak sleeps within the acorn. Time would fail me to tell of the powers, the privileges, the possessions and the prospects of faith. He that has faith is blessed, for he pleases God, he is justified before the throne of holiness, he has full access to the throne of grace and he has the preparation for reigning with Christ forever. By Charles Spurgeon
October 13, 2005
Thy Word Is Truth by Todd Nibert
Jhn 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
These were the words of our Lord in His great High Priestly prayer for His people. In John 14:6 He said, "I am the Truth." But here He says, "Thy word is Truth." This is a reference to the written word of God. The Bible is the inspired word of God. It has no error in it. The Scriptures alone are our only rule of faith and practice.
There are many who profess to believe the Bible to be inspired, but they do not believe "the Scriptures alone". They believe there is truth in other religions. They believe there is truth in man's philosophy. They even believe there is truth in their feelings, impressions, and religious experiences. That is not believing the Scriptures alone. That is believing the Scriptures and...........
The Bible has a monopoly on the Truth. There is no truth in other religions. They are all based upon a false premise. There is no truth in our natural way of thinking, nor in our feelings, nor in any religious experience which is contrary to the word of God. Truth is not subjective. It is not subject to our experience, feelings, traditions, and beliefs. Truth is objective. It is not something we discover internally, in our hearts. "All men are liars." The Bible is the objective standard of truth, and the Bible has a monopoly on the Truth! If we leave this position, then anything goes! Truth becomes subjective. Truth becomes relative. It becomes impossible to know the Truth! By Todd Nibert
These were the words of our Lord in His great High Priestly prayer for His people. In John 14:6 He said, "I am the Truth." But here He says, "Thy word is Truth." This is a reference to the written word of God. The Bible is the inspired word of God. It has no error in it. The Scriptures alone are our only rule of faith and practice.
There are many who profess to believe the Bible to be inspired, but they do not believe "the Scriptures alone". They believe there is truth in other religions. They believe there is truth in man's philosophy. They even believe there is truth in their feelings, impressions, and religious experiences. That is not believing the Scriptures alone. That is believing the Scriptures and...........
The Bible has a monopoly on the Truth. There is no truth in other religions. They are all based upon a false premise. There is no truth in our natural way of thinking, nor in our feelings, nor in any religious experience which is contrary to the word of God. Truth is not subjective. It is not subject to our experience, feelings, traditions, and beliefs. Truth is objective. It is not something we discover internally, in our hearts. "All men are liars." The Bible is the objective standard of truth, and the Bible has a monopoly on the Truth! If we leave this position, then anything goes! Truth becomes subjective. Truth becomes relative. It becomes impossible to know the Truth! By Todd Nibert
October 10, 2005
My church by Donald Fortner
Your people, Master, I would serve choose the best place for me;
Give me the gifts most needed now, that I might useful be.
My all I consecrate to you, my God, my sovereign Lord,
Oh let me serve your cause on earth to spread your gracious Word.
Your church on earth I take to be my family in this world;
A faithful member make of me, to honor you, my God.
When I have served my usefulness in your kingdom below,
I would to your triumphant church in heaven’s glory go.
There I shall serve you as I would, with that great ransomed throng,
To whom I hope, by grace divine, I rightfully belong.
By Donald Fortner
Give me the gifts most needed now, that I might useful be.
My all I consecrate to you, my God, my sovereign Lord,
Oh let me serve your cause on earth to spread your gracious Word.
Your church on earth I take to be my family in this world;
A faithful member make of me, to honor you, my God.
When I have served my usefulness in your kingdom below,
I would to your triumphant church in heaven’s glory go.
There I shall serve you as I would, with that great ransomed throng,
To whom I hope, by grace divine, I rightfully belong.
By Donald Fortner
October 05, 2005
Walking with God... by Don Fortner
"Enoch WALKED with God...." Genesis 5:24
I am not an ambitious man. But I am ambitious for these four things. For the attainment of these four things I am prepared, by the grace of God, to sacrifice everything else. I count all other things to be but rubbish by comparison.
1. I want to know Christ (Phil. 3:10). Yes, I believe that in measure I do know him. God has revealed his grace and glory to me in the Person of his dear Son. Still, I want a growing, spiritual, experimental knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to know all that he has done for me. I want to know him. I want to know him fully.
2. I want to be totally committed to Christ. I want to totally lose my life to Christ and in Christ, so that I can truthfully say with the Apostle Paul, "For me to live is Christ." I want to be committed to Christ as he was to the Father, so that my heart says to him in all things, "Not my will, thy will be done" It is my continual prayer that God will give me a heart-- committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, committed to his will, committed to his gospel, committed to his people, committed to the cause of his glory in this world.
3. I want to be like Christ. My heart longs to be like him, conformed to him, made into his likeness. I want to be like him love, tenderness, and thoughtfulness, in zeal, dedication, and devotion, purity, holiness, and righteousness.
4. I want to live in communion with Christ. Like Enoch of old, I want to walk with God. I know these goals are not attainable in this life. Yet, they are the things for which my soul hungers and my heart thirsts. I cannot be satisfied with less. "I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:13-14). "I shall be satisfied when I awake with Christ's likeness" (Psa. 17:15), but not until then. "Enoch WALKED with God...."
By Donald Forter
I am not an ambitious man. But I am ambitious for these four things. For the attainment of these four things I am prepared, by the grace of God, to sacrifice everything else. I count all other things to be but rubbish by comparison.
1. I want to know Christ (Phil. 3:10). Yes, I believe that in measure I do know him. God has revealed his grace and glory to me in the Person of his dear Son. Still, I want a growing, spiritual, experimental knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. I want to know all that he has done for me. I want to know him. I want to know him fully.
2. I want to be totally committed to Christ. I want to totally lose my life to Christ and in Christ, so that I can truthfully say with the Apostle Paul, "For me to live is Christ." I want to be committed to Christ as he was to the Father, so that my heart says to him in all things, "Not my will, thy will be done" It is my continual prayer that God will give me a heart-- committed to the Lord Jesus Christ, committed to his will, committed to his gospel, committed to his people, committed to the cause of his glory in this world.
3. I want to be like Christ. My heart longs to be like him, conformed to him, made into his likeness. I want to be like him love, tenderness, and thoughtfulness, in zeal, dedication, and devotion, purity, holiness, and righteousness.
4. I want to live in communion with Christ. Like Enoch of old, I want to walk with God. I know these goals are not attainable in this life. Yet, they are the things for which my soul hungers and my heart thirsts. I cannot be satisfied with less. "I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 3:13-14). "I shall be satisfied when I awake with Christ's likeness" (Psa. 17:15), but not until then. "Enoch WALKED with God...."
By Donald Forter
October 04, 2005
What Have I Done? By C.H. Spurgeon
What have you done for him who died to save your wretched soul? What have you done for his church? What have you done for the salvation of the world? What have you done to promote your own spiritual growth in grace?
Ah! I might hit some of you that are true Christians very hard here; but I will leave you with your God. God will chastise his own children. I will, however, put a pointed question to you-- Are there not many Christians who cannot recollect that they have been the means of the salvation of one soul during this year? Come, now; look back. Have you any reason to believe that directly or indirectly you have been made the means this year of the salvation of a soul?
I will go further. There are some of you who are older Christians, and I will ask you this question: Have you any reason to believe that ever since you were converted you have ever been the means of the salvation of a soul? It was reckoned in the East, in the time of the patriarchs, to be a disgrace to a woman if she had no children. And yet, there are some of you here that have been spiritually barren, and have never brought one convert to Christ. You have not one star in your crown of glory, and must wear a starless crown in heaven. Oh! How many have you brought during this year?
Come, Christian, what have you done?
Alas! alas! you have not been barren fig-trees, but still your fruit is such that it cannot be seen. You may be alive unto God, but how many of you have been very unprofitable and exceedingly unfruitful? by Charles Spurgeon
Ah! I might hit some of you that are true Christians very hard here; but I will leave you with your God. God will chastise his own children. I will, however, put a pointed question to you-- Are there not many Christians who cannot recollect that they have been the means of the salvation of one soul during this year? Come, now; look back. Have you any reason to believe that directly or indirectly you have been made the means this year of the salvation of a soul?
I will go further. There are some of you who are older Christians, and I will ask you this question: Have you any reason to believe that ever since you were converted you have ever been the means of the salvation of a soul? It was reckoned in the East, in the time of the patriarchs, to be a disgrace to a woman if she had no children. And yet, there are some of you here that have been spiritually barren, and have never brought one convert to Christ. You have not one star in your crown of glory, and must wear a starless crown in heaven. Oh! How many have you brought during this year?
Come, Christian, what have you done?
Alas! alas! you have not been barren fig-trees, but still your fruit is such that it cannot be seen. You may be alive unto God, but how many of you have been very unprofitable and exceedingly unfruitful? by Charles Spurgeon
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