October
13, 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.
Sermon
or Prayer?
Charles Spurgeon
It is said that among Church people the prayers are the
main thing, and among Dissenters the sermon. I believe that in both cases this
would be a fault. Praying should not eclipse preaching; for to preach or to
listen to preaching, is as true an act of worship as to pray. We never worship
God better than when we hear his Word, reverently receive it, and are moved
thereby to love and gratitude. To hear preaching is, in a sense, praying; since
the true effect of all preaching that is worth the listening to, draws us into
a spirit of devotion, and makes us ready for prayer and every other form of
worship.
*******
The
Stony Ground Hearer
Pastor
Scott Richardson
In the parable of the sower, our Lord said that the stony ground was
people who heard the gospel and received it “IMMEDIATELY.” There were no
conflicts, questions nor doubts. Someone told them about Heaven, and they
wanted to go there; warned them of hell, and they wanted to avoid that; told
them that Jesus Christ would take them to Heaven, so they accepted
Him. They received this good news that they were saved with
gladness and went forth saying, “Praise the Lord!” every other
breath. They sprang up and made rapid progress in religion, often
wondering why older Christians did not match their enthusiasm.
Then came the trials, outward trials, inward trials; for faith will be
tried! Untried faith is no faith at all. Persecution arose because
of the Word. The true doctrines of God’s Word were encountered. The
shallow vessel was taken into deep waters of sorrow, temptation, personal
sacrifice, and it fell apart. “IMMEDIATELY THEY WERE OFFENDED”. They
took their religion hot from the oven and dropped it just as quickly.
Somebody cried, “Believe, Believe!” and they were excited and believed.
Now somebody else said, “Do not believe” and they have gone that way.
They did not stop to count the cost and determine why they should believe, and
now they do not count the cost of departing from their profession. The
preacher was anxious to take them in at the front door. Now they are
offended and slip out the back door. Their sudden house built on sand has
been washed away.
This is the error of rushing men and women into a profession of
religion. However real Christ is to us, He must make Himself real to
them!
*******
RICHES OF GOD’S GRACE
Ephesians
2: 1-7
We delight in the gospel of our Redeemer because through the gospel God
shows his child our sin and shows the believer “the exceeding riches of his
grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.” We can never appreciate
the riches of God’s grace until we know the depths of our sins. Truly in proportion as we see how great a
sinner we are the more we will value the riches of God’s grace.
Riches
of Grace Even When We Were Dead
The text describes all men as we are born the first time as “dead.” “Dead”
says it all. We were not hurt, we were dead;
not wounded dead; not paralyzed, dead; not almost but completely dead! When you
see life go out of a body so that there is no pulse, no heartbeat, not a spark,
or twitch, just a cold lifeless corpse—that is dead. That is the spiritual
condition of every natural born child.
We are born with no ability to save ourselves from this condition for we
are as spiritually lifeless as a corpse in a coffin. Dead men are not looked to or depended upon
for anything. Such is the case with ever sinner as we are born the first time,
God’s elect included. But here are the
riches of God’s grace, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love
wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead…”
Riches of Grace Even When We Were Dead in Sins
Yet, our condition was worse than dead.
If being spiritually dead was on a scale with dead being “0”, our text
says we were further backwards into the minus direction. We were “dead in
trespasses and sins.” A dead carcass is bad enough. But it is worse when a dead carcass is
covered in ants and maggots and rot. Our
condition was not only spiritual death we were also covered over in corruption,
crawling with the filth of our trespasses and sins. Sin is an abomination to
God—a stench, a thing abhorred by God. When we come upon a dead animal in the
woods covered with maggots just the stench and the vileness of it forces us to
turn and go the other way. Could you
love something like that? But here are
the riches of God’s grace, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love
wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins.”
Riches of Grace Even When We Were Swept Away
Still, our natural condition was worse.
We were swept away with the current of this world like a rip tide sweeps
you away in the ocean. And we were backwards even further because we were also under
the dominion of the devil. Some of these
lusts and desires were the obvious polluting pleasures of the flesh. Others had
a form of godliness or intellectualism. But our natural heart was enmity
against God, deserving of the wrath of God like every other sinner. But here
are the riches of God’s grace, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great
love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins.”
Riches of Grace in his Kindness Toward us through Christ Jesus
Brethren, why was God so longsuffering toward us? God put his elect in Christ before the
foundation of the world purely by his sovereign grace. (Eph 1: 3-4) God accepted
us in Christ our Surety before the foundation of the world purely by grace.
(Eph 1: 6) So while were dead, and worse
than dead, God suffered long until the appointed hour when he quickened us
together with Christ. The mercy and love
of God is never at the expense of justice. He never loves us in our sin but in Christ who
stood as our Surety who would make us righteous by his obedience unto the death
of the cross. (Rom 5: 6-11) Christ Jesus is our Salvation. He is the One Holy and Righteous Man of
God. He fulfilled his own law for us, justified
us, purged all our sins and because this Faithful Man is God the Son, everything
he accomplished for us is eternal.
Nothing can be added to it, nothing can be taken from it, not now, not
ever. Oh, thank God for “the exceeding
riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.