Sovereign Grace Baptist Church

June 11, 2023

 Weekly Schedule of Services

UPCOMING BIBLE CONFERENCES

• June 30-July 2  Rescue Baptist Church               Rescue, CA
• July 7-9             Sovereign Grace Baptist Church  Ewing, NJ
• July 28-30        Redeemer Grace Church             Sellersburg, IN
• Oct 27-29         Grace Baptist Church                  Lewisville, AR

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Proverbs 20:14: It is naught, it is naught, saith the buyer: but when he is gone his way, then he boasteth.

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If you want to see the height of the hill of God’s love you must go down into the valley of humility.

–Rowland Hill

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Unbelief is infectious! The unbelief of one strengthens the unbelief of another just as the faith of one strengthens the faith of another.

–Arthur Pink

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Before God made Christ wisdom unto us, we boasted in men as wise, which in comparison is like calling a candle the sun.  May God make us the fool that we may be wise (1 Cor 3:18; Rom 1:22).

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Many preach and speak of the forgiveness of sin but God’s people practice it.  They do so for one reason.  They experience the continual forgiveness of God for the sake of His Son.  Therefore, they deem their own sin to be vilest of all and esteem others better.

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“A WORM, AND NO MAN”

Psalm 22:6

Hanging upon the cursed tree as our Substitute, our Savior cried, “I am a worm, and no man.” Shall we for whom he suffered and died esteem ourselves higher than he esteemed himself? Yet, we act more like snakes than worms. Strike at a snake and he will lift his angry head, hiss at you, and strike back. Strike at a worm, and what does he do? Nothing. The worm is a humble creature, without any inclination or ability to defend itself or attack another. It is totally dependent upon its Creator. Its only defense is to retreat and take refuge. May God give us that spirit. It is the spirit of Christ. Let us, when attacked, retreat to and take refuge in him. He alone is our Rock, our Salvation, and our Defense.

–Don Fortner

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Galatians 3:2: This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 3: Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? 4: Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain. 5: He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 6: Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.

The law of Sinai was not given in Abraham’s day. (Gal 3:17)  Abraham was made to believe on Christ by the hearing of faith, the hearing of the faithfulness of Christ who redeemed his people from the curse of the law.  The same hearing of Christ’s works is the message by which we are made obedient to follow and honor Christ.  But it was not Abraham’s works that made him righteous but Christ’s righteousness accounted to him through faith.

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BY WHOSE LIGHT DO YOU WALK?
– Isaiah 50:10-11

At the end of Isaiah 50 the Lord addresses two distinct groups of people. The children of God are described in vs 10 as a people “that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light.” When a verb ends in “eth” it means there is a continuous action. The children not only fear, but they continue to fear their God. They continue to obey and walk.

     The fear of God is one of reverence and awe. They highly esteem the Lord in their lives. They obey Christ, for he is the servant of God spoken of in this verse. They hear his voice and believe on Christ. Their obedience is believing the testimony of God concerning his salvation by Jesus Christ. The continue in the hope of Christ.

     We also find they are described as a people “that walketh in darkness, and hath no light.” It is true that the Believer experiences times of darkness. They feel themselves to be in darkness as they walk through adversity and trouble in this life. But the description is that they “walketh in darkness,” as in continually. We have times of joy and great light, so what does this really mean?

     The child of God “that walketh in darkness, and hath no light” is a child that walks by faith. We have no righteousness of our own. We have no confidence in our works. Confidence in our works is the description of the wicked in vs 11. They make a fire and walk by that light. They compass themselves with the sparks of their fire. Meaning they stoke their fire to be encouraged and feel safe that they are pleasing their god.

     The child of God, however, knows that they are sinners. They have no righteousness of their own to appease God’s wrath. They simply believe God. And they believe the voice of God’s servant, Jesus Christ. Therefore, they make no fire of their own. They walk in darkness without their own light (Phil 3:3). By faith, they walk by the light of Jesus Christ. His righteousness is their righteousness. And he will lead them home safely. By whose light do you walk?

–Eric Lutter