February 24, 2013
SOVEREIGN GRACE BAPTIST
CHURCH
LOCATION
Rocky Hill Firehouse, 2nd
Floor
150 Washington Street
Rocky Hill, New Jersey, 08553
Clay Curtis, pastor
Telephone: 615-513-4464
Schedule of Services
Sunday 10: 15 AM Bible Class
Sunday 11:00 AM Morning Service
Thursday 7: 30 PM Midweek Service
Order of service, announcements, nursery
schedule, etc., are in attachment. All
articles in the bulletin are by the pastor unless otherwise noted.
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The one who is guilty when a sinner
is cut off from God is not God—“He delighteth in mercy!” (Mic 7: 18) When a
sinner is separated from God it is, “for your iniquities have ye sold
yourselves, and for your transgressions.” (Is 50: 1) Sinners are not to be pitied, but to be
blamed. God is not to be blamed,
but to be believed.
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A Law for Religious Legalists
“Ye shall not rule over one another.” (Deuteronomy
25:46)
Religious
legalists, Pharisees, love to invent laws and try to enforce laws upon others.
They love to sit in judgment over others and quickly make determinations as to
whether a person is saved or lost, holy or unholy, sanctified or unsanctified
based upon their observation of that person’s obedience or lack of obedience to
their rules, laws, customs, traditions, and opinions. To all who love law and
like to think yourselves holier than the rest of us poor rakes, here’s a law I
would love for you to at least try to obey. — “Ye shall not rule over one
another.” Wouldn’t that be delightful! Don
Fortner
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DELIVERED AND RAISED AGAIN
Romans 4: 23-25
What the Lord Jesus Christ did while
he walked this earth, hung on the cross, went to the grave and rose again each
elect child of God did in him.
Delivered for our Offences
Christ Jesus gave himself voluntarily into the hands of men, justice,
and death. He did it to finish the
transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to
bring in everlasting righteousness and so that the offences of his people could
never again condemn his people.
In order to do so, Christ had to bear
the sins of his elect in his own body on the tree. Christ knew no sin; Christ never sinned
personally. He bore the sins of those chosen and given to
Christ by God the Father before the world began. (Gal 1: 4) God the Father delivered his Son according to
his determinate counsel and foreknowledge, to declare his righteousness, that
God might be just and the Justifier of him which believes in the Lord Jesus
Christ. God in his strict justice demanded the death of his Son in order to
satisfy justice for his people. (Ro 3:
26; 2 Co 5: 21) So Christ Jesus died in the room and stead of his people. By
dying, Christ made satisfaction for the sins of every elect child of God. His
death obtained, accomplished, satisfied divine justice for each elect child of
God.
Raised Again for our Justification
Remember that what Christ did, each
elect child of God did in Christ. When Christ
died he justified all for who he died.
When Christ raised again, God declared before all that Christ was
legally discharged, acquitted, and justified and so was his church in him. (Is
50: 8)
Christ’s resurrection declares that when Christ passed from death to
life, the Church, purchased with His blood, arose in Him, legally and fully
discharged. The emerging of the Redeemer from the
grave was the emerging of the redeemed from all condemnation. His release from death was our release from
death.
In the Old Testament type, the high priest
slew the lamb at the altar then the living, spotless, high priest, with blood, not
with a dead lamb, went into the most holy place and sprinkled the blood upon
the mercy-seat. Having put away our sin
and obtained eternal redemption for us by his death, Christ our living,
spotless High Priest passed into heaven to present himself before God with his
own blood. It was after Christ had purged our sin that Christ rose into the
presence of God and sat down. He is our acceptance with God. (He 9: 12, 24-28) He is seated in glory because the work is
finished. (He 1: 3) His resurrection declares that his work is accepted by the
Father. (He 1:13; Acts 5: 31; Ro 8: 32-34)
The Righteousness
of Christ is Imputed to Believers
Do you believe Christ was delivered
for your offenses? Do you believe Christ satisfied divine justice for you by his
death? Do you believe that when Christ
arose you were raised in him? (Ro 5: 10)
Faith is not merely to believe in the facts. True faith
believes Christ, that Christ accomplished our salvation so that we rest all our
hope in him. We believe we have been made
the righteousness of God in Christ.
Peter says, “God raised him from the dead, and gave him glory, that your
faith and hope might be in God.” Faith
believes that we died in Christ, and because he lives we live, righteous in
Christ. And we believe we shall live
with him. (Ro 6: 8-14) If we have
been regenerated then we live now by Christ living in us and we shall live forever
by him. (Gal 2:20) Christ told his
disciples, “Because I live, ye shall
live also’. (Jo 14:19) The peace and
hope and rest for the believer is Christ. Our life now and forever is Christ,
and is secure, in Christ our Resurrection and our Life. We have everlasting life now, and shall have
everlasting glory hereafter. (Jn 11: 25-26)
Believest thou this? “She saith unto
him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which
should come into the world.” (Jn 11: 27)
“For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also
which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.” (1 Thess 4: 14)
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John 3:36: He that believeth on the
Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see
life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
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Christ Assures the Church
(Outline of last Sunday’s message)
Christ Jesus our Prophet, Priest and King assures his
church that he shall call, bless and increase his church (Is 51: 1-3). Christ Jesus our Prophet, Priest and King
assures his church that his gospel shall be published effectually from him from
his church (Is 51: 4-6). Christ Jesus
our Prophet, Priest and King therefore gives us the command to not fear the
reproach of men for he shall destroy them but his righteousness and his salvation
shall remain forever (Is 51: 7-8).