Order of service, announcements, etc, are in
attachment. All articles in the bulletin
are by the pastor unless otherwise noted.
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Practice What You Preach
1 Corinthians 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest
that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a
castaway.
I have heard the saying all my life,
“Practice what you preach.” This saying is commonly used when men and women say
one thing and do another. But this old secular saying now has new meaning to me
as I endeavor to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ. A preacher or any
believer who does not endeavor with all of their heart to live in a way that
would honor his Lord, becomes the man of whom James speaks of as being one who
claims to have faith without works. A true servant of God knows that faith
without works is dead being alone. We exhibit our faith by our works just as
Abraham and Rahab the harlot did. I know that salvation is by grace alone,
through faith alone, in Christ alone. However, the believer, out of love for
Christ who gave Himself for chosen sinners, hates his sin and desires more than
anything in this life to be obedient to God’s Word and pleasing to his Master.
Lord help me to “practice what I preach.”
In preaching grace, may I always be gracious. In preaching contentment,
may I always be content. In preaching forgiveness, may I always forgive seventy
times seven daily. When I speak of love unconditional, may I love
unconditionally. When I speak of true faith may I always be truly faithful.
When I preach obedience, God help me to be obedient. Lord help me to “practice
what I preach.”
Lord help me to forsake all fleshly and worldly lusts, and be an example
to others, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in
purity, always keeping under my body of flesh, and bringing it into subjection,
so that when I have preached to others that I will not myself be a castaway.
May God enable me to give a just representation of Him in whom I proclaim as
God’s only Mediator between God and man.
Pastor David Eddmenson
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IN THE
POWER OF GOD
1 Corinthians 2: 1-5
The truth does not need man’s wisdom. The testimony of God only needs to
be proclaimed. God will quicken and
reveal Christ in whom he will. By the
grace and power of God this was Paul’s resolve…
To
Preach Christ and him Crucified
The gospel is the “testimony of God.”
If someone hears God for the first time today in the heart, God will,
through the gospel, declare, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well
pleased; hear ye him.” (Mt. 17:5) God
has put all into the hands of his Son to go-between his people and the Father
ministering to his elect the good news of Christ’s complete accomplished
atonement through the Holy Spirit. In resurrecting Christ, God said, “I am
satisfied!” Believe on Christ and you shall be saved. Christ’s intercession for his people at the
right hand of the Father is assurance that none for whom Christ died shall be
lost but all shall be brought to repentance. He is coming again to judge this
world in righteousness and to bring his redeemed children home. This is the
message Paul preached. He was resolved…
To Preach Christ Clearly
It would have
pleased men if Paul would have mingled the grace of God with man’s works. Men would not have rejected Paul if he would
have tickled their ears with philosophies of men. If he would have made dead sinners feel like
they could exercise a pretended free-will anytime they got ready it would have
saved Paul much pain. Had Paul declared that Christ blood was shed for all men
without exception making sinners to think they make Christ’s blood effectual by
their decision men would have loved him.
But Paul preached the truth that Christ by himself purged the sin of his
people declaring God just and the justifier of all who believe for as Paul
said, “if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.” (Ga 1:10;
6: 14; Phil 3: 8-10) Paul’s resolve was…
To Trust the Power of God
Most of Paul’s hearers considered his
bodily presence weak and his speech contemptible. (2 Cor 10: 10) I doubt if we saw the apostle Paul in a
line-up of today’s preachers we would think he was the apostle. Yet, Paul knew his strength was not in
himself, but the God of all grace. (2 Cor 12: 9-10) The fear and trembling in which Paul preached
was out of reverence for God and a desire for those who heard to believe on
Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit rather than in the wisdom of men. (2 Cor
11:3; 12:20; Rom 9: 1-3; 10: 1-4)
It is not by
fleshly wisdom or will that the gospel is believed and received but by the
revelation of the Holy Spirit. (Jn 3: 3; Mt 16: 15-17) When the Holy Spirit
does the work then the confidence and assurance of the believer is Christ
alone. That is what Paul wanted for his
hearers. (Rom 2: 29; Phil 3: 3)
My
Resolve
Brethren, you
hear me speak of men who I have a deep love for and thank God for. The reason is that they did not go the way of
the intellectual or the way of the works religionists. They simply declared to me Christ and him
crucified according to the scriptures clearly and plainly.
It is this
means by which God saved this hard-hearted rebel so that I am convinced it is
the means God will bless. I am resolved
to preach Christ and him crucified to you as plainly and clearly as God will
enable me. Your continual petitions to God do not go unnoticed. I greatly appreciate your prayer for this
earthen vessel. Who is sufficient for
these things? But our sufficiency is of God. (1 Pet 4: 11)