March 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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“…as a preacher I cannot
be very proud of my diseased prayers and sin-stained sermons. Neither can I
boast much of my daily backslidings, hardness of heart, discontent, vileness,
and abominable filthiness. I at times know not what will become of me, and fear
I shall live and die a reprobate. I find sin has such power over me, and,
though I call on the Lord again and again for deliverance, seem to be as weak
as ever when temptation comes. "O you hideous monster, sin, what a curse
have you brought in!" I love it, I hate it; I want to be delivered from the
power of it, and yet am not satisfied without drinking down its poisoned
sweets. It is my hourly companion and my daily curse, the breath of my mouth
and the cause of my groans, my incentive to prayer and my hinderer of it, that
which made a Savior suffer and makes a Savior precious, that which spoils every
pleasure and adds a sting to every pain, that which fits a soul for heaven and
that which ripens a soul for hell…I at times quite despair of salvation, and
then again am as careless as if hell had no wrath and heaven no love; as if sin
had no wormwood and pardon no sweet; as if there were no God to mark evil, and
no devil to tempt to it. So my friend you must not expect to find your winter
fireside companion much grown in progressive sanctification and creature
holiness.”
JC Philpot
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OBSTACLES
TO FAITH
Hebrews 11: 1-6
What if this gospel I have been
declaring to you is true? What if you woke
up early this morning thinking you were waking up in your bedroom, but opened
your eyes to find yourself standing before holy God? What if you heard God say to you that everything
you heard was true? If what I preach is
true then where does that leave you?
Your unbelief would not have altered God’s truth and faithfulness one
iota, but you would have been in outer darkness now since early this morning.
Sinner, I want to meet you right where you are. This is not grand theology just simple common
sense. Here are obstacles to avoid which will keep you from believing on the
Son of God.
Avoid
Being Wise in Your Own Eyes
The person who reasons himself qualified
to judge God and truth by that imperfect, depraved light that you call your
reason will never know God or believe God by that vain reason. “Faith is the
substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” If we come to hear the gospel and the
scriptures with such a high opinion of ourselves that we think we can
understand what this book teaches without God the Holy Spirit teaching us then
this book will remain sealed to us. We do not even reason correctly until God
gives us light. We have to drop our so-called knowledge and come to Christ “in
whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Col 2: 3) If we come with a simple, elementary faith
that God alone is able, depending upon God to teach us, saying with David, “Open
thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” (Psalm 119:
18) then God will teach you. But “he that cometh to God must believe that he
is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Mt 7:
7; 11: 28-29; Ja 1: 5-8)
Avoid Coming to the Word Expecting to Understand All
When I was a child my earthly father did not tell me all his business. Not all
God’s business is our business. “The secret things belong unto the LORD
our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and
to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.” (Deut
29: 29) The haughty man reads the word and says, “No God.” The contrite heart
of faith reads and says, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high, I cannot attain unto it…I will praise thee; for I am
fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that
my soul knoweth right well.” (Ps 139: 6-14)
Do not question yourself out of faith because you are unable to account
for everything, “Through faith we understand…”
Men can make all their excuses for not believing the word but God says “this
is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness
rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil
hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be
reproved.” (Jn 3: 19-20; Jn 3: 3; 1 Cor 2: 9-12) God
has purposely made it so that man will never be able to come to him any other
way than by faith. God
the Son was made flesh, born of a virgin. He who
knew no sin, was made sin for his people that we
might be made the righteousness of God in him. Christ died, was buried and rose from
the dead. Men watched the GodMan ascend up into
the heavens. He will come again and our bodies
shall arise from the graves. There
will be a new heaven and a new earth. There is
a place of outer darkness. These
are things too big to fit inside a peanut brain such as ours. How do you know they are so? “Faith is the
substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Heb 11:1)
Avoid Missing Hearing the Gospel Preached
Hear the gospel consistently. We will be
accountable not only for what we did hear but also for what we could have heard.
The Lord says, “Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto
you, I will make known my words unto you.” (Pro 1: 23) He promises, “I will pour water upon him that
is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground.” (Is 44:3) But Christ also
promises, “walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled.
This shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.” (Is 50: 11) Walk
in the Light God has given you. God may just give you more light.