t                   oPastor John and wife Kathy  
 

 
 

Preaching God's Sovereign, Electing Grace   

RESCUE BAPTIST CHURCH


WELCOME TO RESCUE BAPTIST CHURCH

Sunday Morning, January 14, 2018

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SCHEDULED MEETINGS

Sunday Morning Bible Study   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10:00 AM

Sunday Morning Worship        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11:00 AM

Sunday Evening Worship        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6:30 PM

Friday Night Bible Study        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7:30 PM

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OPENING HYMN

 

"Redeemed"                                                         Page 521  

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SCRIPTURE READING

 

Psalm 69:1 - 15

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OFFERTORY

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WORSHIP HYMN

"I Will Sing of My Redeemer"                                  Page 506  

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SPECIAL MUSIC

 To be announced.

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Message Title 

"The One And Only Acceptable Sacrifice"

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CLOSING HYMN

 "It Is Well With My Soul"                                         Page 493

 

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"For the transgression of my people was he stricken"

--Isaiah 53:8--

 

"Without question these words teach us that the Lord Jesus Christ died for and redeemed a particular people. It gives me no particular pleasure to tell people that there are some in this world for whom Christ did not die, but I must insist upon it. If I told you that Christ died for all men alike, in an effort to redeem all men, the implication of my doctrine would be that salvation is determined not by what Christ has done for men, but by what men do for themselves. And that is totally contrary to the plainest statements of Holy Scripture (Romans 9:16). It does give me great pleasure to tell sinners, as the Word of God plainly asserts, that Christ Jesus died for some perishing sinners, and all of those for whom he died will be saved by the merits of his sin-atoning sacrifice.

   The Word of God plainly teaches that our Lord Jesus Christ died as a Substitute in the place of some of Adam's fallen race, but not all. Christ himself said, 'I am the good Shepherd: the good Shepherd giveth his life for the sheep... I lay down my life for the sheep.' Then he turned to some who were in the crowd, and said, 'Ye are not of my sheep' John 10:11; John 10:15; John 10:26).

   Christ died to make propitiation for our sins, to satisfy the justice of God for his people, so that God might be just and the justifier of all who believe (Romans 3:24 - 26). Because God is just, we know that he cannot punish sin twice, once in the sinner's Substitute and again in the sinner himself. If God punished my sin in Christ, he cannot punish sin in me too. That would not be just and equitable.   Belief in God's justice and righteousness will not allow us to accept the notion that Christ died for any who ultimately perish under the wrath of God. That would be a travesty of justice. There would be a holiday in hell; Satan and the demons would rejoice and mock the Son of God for ever, if it should ever come to pass that one for whom Christ died and whom he tried to save perished in spite of his redemptive work. The fiends of hell will never have such a holiday. Every soul for whom Christ died will be with him in glory. He will see to it!"

                                                                                                                         Pastor Don Fortner

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"The Lord is my portion, saith my soul."

--Lamentations 3:24--

   "It is not 'The Lord is partly my portion', nor 'The Lord is in my portion'' but he himself makes up the sum total of my soul's inheritance. Within the circumference of that circle lies all that we possess or desire. The Lord is my portion.   Not his grace merely, nor his love, nor his covenant, but Jehovah himself. He has chosen us for his portion, and we have chosen him for ours. It is true that the Lord must first choose our inheritance for us, or else we shall never choose it for ourselves; but if we are really called according to the purpose of electing love, we can sing--

 

               'Lov'd of my God for him again

                 With love intense I burn;

                 Chosen of him ere time began,

                 I choose him in return.'

 

The Lord is our all sufficient portion. God fills himself; and if God is all sufficient in himself, he must be all sufficient for us. It is not easy to satisfy man's desires. When he dreams that he is satisfied, anon he wakes to the perception that there is somewhat yet beyond, and straightway the horse leech in his heart cries, 'Give, give.' But all that we can wish for is to be found in our divine portion, so that we ask, 'Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.' Well may we 'delight ourselves in the Lord' who makes us to drink of the river of his pleasures. Our faith stretches her wings and mounts like an eagle into the heaven of divine love as to her proper dwelling place. 'The lines have fallen to us in pleasant places; yea, we have a goodly heritage.' Let us rejoice in the Lord always; let us show to the world that we are a happy and a blessed people, and thus induce them to exclaim, 'We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you'."

--C. H. Spurgeon

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

  • A sincere "THANK YOU" to all who were able to contribute to yesterday's Work Day. Much was accomplished in preparation for our upcoming winter conference. A hearty "WELL DONE"!
  • Our monthly Music & Testimony Night is scheduled for this evening.

****Cleaning duty this week: Gene and Judy Harmon****

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SUGGESTED BIBLE READINGS FOR THIS WEEK

Monday                 Wednesday                   Friday

Job 28                    Zechariah 13                  Titus 2

Job 29                    Zechariah 14                  Titus 3

Job 30                    Malachi 1                        Philemon

Job 31                    Malachi 2                        Hebrews 1

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Our Lord Jesus has never delivered one of His lost sheep from the power of darkness under the preaching and teaching of what is referred to as "Practical Godliness". God has ordained the preaching of Jesus Christ and Him crucified as the instrument He uses to bring His chosen, blood-bought children into a living union with Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour. By His Sovereign Grace, and His Spirit working in us, our new Master gives His enlightened saints a sincere desire to live godly lives for the glory of Jesus Christ our Blessed Redeemer.

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"As Christ's righteousness is the only merit that can exalt us to the presence and to the kingdom of God; so that doctrine alone is to be considered as evangelical which depresses the righteousness of man, and exalts the righteousness of Christ: leading us to trust, not on what we do, but singly on what He has done and suffered for us. The business of the Law is to knock us down from the pedestal of self-confidence, and to grind us small; as Moses ground to powder, and dispersed the materials of the Israelitish Idol. The business of Grace is to lift us from the dust, to settle us upon Christ the rock of ages, to put a new song of free salvation into our mouths ...."

--August Toplady

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WOULD YOU BE JUSTIFIED BEFORE GOD?

 

"Then learn one thing! Jesus Christ is ALL in our justification before God! Only through Christ can a sinner have peace with the Holy God. Only by Christ alone can a sinner be accepted and admitted into God's presence. HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS is the only robe which will cover us. HIS BLOOD is the only mark that will save us from eternal death. HIS NAME is the only name by which we shall obtain an entrance through the gate of eternal glory. I pity those who try to obtain God's favor by their works; and I sound a clear warning--you are building on sand; you are spending money for that which is not bread; you will hear Him say, 'Depart from me, ye that work iniquity' BUT THIS I KNOW--not one person has ever entered heaven's courts with any testimony but this: 'Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood--to Him be the glory" (Rev. 1:5, 6)."

Pastor Henry Mahan

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THE WONDERFUL LOVE OF GOD

 

"How wonderful is the love that is manifested in giving Christ to die for us. For this is love to enemies. 'When we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son' (Romans 5:10). How wonderful was the love of God the Father in giving such a Gift to those who not only could not be profitable to Him, but were His enemies, and to so great a degree! They had great enmity against Him; yet so did He love His people that He gave His own Son to lay down His life in order to save their lives. Though they had enmity that sought to pull God down from His throne; yet He so loved them that He sent down Christ from heaven, from His throne there, to be in the form of a servant; and instead of a throne of glory, gave Him to be nailed to the cross, and to be laid in the grave so that we might be brought to a throne of glory.

   How wonderful was the love of Christ in thus exercising dying love towards His enemies! He loved those that hated Him, with hatred that sought to take away His life, so as voluntarily to lay down His life that they might have life through Him. 'Herein is love; not that we loved Him, but that He loved us, and laid down His life for us' (1 John 4:10)."                                                                                                                                                      

                                    Jonathan Edwards

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FOR THE LORD HATH CHOSEN

"For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure" ( Psalm 135:4).

 

   "All throughout the Scriptures, the doctrine of election is plainly declared, and yet, how many so-called 'preachers of the gospel' tell their hearers this blessed truth: God saves whom he will! (Rom 9:9 -29). 'For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.' God did not choose Esau, though, in many ways, he was much better than Jacob (Gen 25:23,28, Mal 1:3). 'For the LORD hath chosen Jacob,' is the final word on the subject! No one can stop God from sovereignly choosing to bless whomever he will, nor can they call him into question! (Job 9:12; 42:2, Psalm 115:3;135:6, Isaiah 14:27, Dan 4:35, Eph 1:11). 'For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself,', – not only to heaven, or to divine favor, but 'unto himself' – that Jacob might know him, and that he might make himself known in Jacob! That he might manifest his grace in him, and that Jacob might make the grace of God known to others! That the Lord might commune with Jacob, and reveal his truths to him, and bless him with his divine presence! 'For the LORD hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.' How plainly, again, is it revealed here that our God sovereignly chooses some and not others! That our God has chosen Israel 'for his peculiar treasure' is to say that he has not only separated them from all others, but that they are precious in his holy sight! As he has redeemed them and washed them and sanctified them through the blood of his own darling Son (Romans 3:24, 1 Peter 1:18-19, 1 Cor. 6:11), so he delights in them, as much as he delights in his own darling Son! (Psalm 149:4, Proverbs 11:20; 12:22, John 17:19-26, 1 John 3:1; 4:17). And at the time of his love, he makes them to know that they are the special objects of his saving mercy and grace, by the Spirit of adoption, and by calling them out of darkness, under the preaching of the gospel (Romans 8:15-17, Ephesians 1:3-14)."

Michael Smith

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"Children of God, the paths of our lives are well ordered; for they are ordered by our heavenly Father, who is too wise to err, too strong to fail, and too good to do wrong."

Pastor Don Fortner