WELCOME TO RESCUE BAPTIST CHURCH
27th Annual Sovereign Grace Summer Conference
Sunday Morning, July 8, 2012
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OPENING HYMN
“Revive Us Again” Page 295
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WORSHIP HYMN
“Now I Belong To Jesus” Page 511
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SPECIAL MUSIC
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Message by Pastor Donnie Bell
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WORSHIP HYMN
“I Will Sing The Wondrous Story” Page 508
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OFFERTORY
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SPECIAL MUSIC
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Message by Pastor Don Fortner
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CLOSING HYMN
“Redeemed” Page 521
Christ -- The Angel Of The Covenant (Malachi 3:1).
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“In Isaiah 63:9, our Savior is called ‘the Angel of his presence.’ He is that One who constantly watches over and protects God's elect in this world. The Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, is called ‘the Messenger (Angel) of the covenant’ (Mal. 3:1).
In the Old Testament, when we read of ‘the Angel of the Lord’ appearing to men, as he did to Abraham, Monoah and his wife, and others, the one appearing was the Son of God himself. Those pre-incarnate manifestations of Christ were preludes to the coming of our great Savior to accomplish the redemption of his people. He is the Angel Abraham worshipped (Gen. 18), to whom Gideon built and altar (Judges 6:22-23), and the Man of God who appeared to Manoah and his wife (Judges 13). That man who stood before Joshua as ‘the Captain of the Lord's host’ (Jos. 5:13-15) is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Captain of our salvation.
No Contradiction - To say that Christ is ‘the Angel of the Lord’ does not, in any way contradict the fact of his eternal Deity. He is both Jehovah and Jehovah’s Messenger. In his eternal Deity, our Savior is God himself, over all and blessed forever. In his mediatoral capacity, as our Surety and Substitute, he is ‘the Angel of the Lord.’
As the Angel of the Lord, ‘the Messenger of the covenant’, the Son of God comes to men to reveal and fulfil all the stipulations of the covenant of grace for us (Jer. 31:31-34; Heb. 8:6-13), thereby securing our ‘eternal redemption’ (Heb. 9:12).
Enthroned Mediator - Having fulfilled all the requirements of the covenant as our Substitute, our Savior now sits upon the throne of universal monarchy, ruling all things according to the purpose of God, as our God-man Mediator, to give eternal life to his people (John 17:2; Rev. 10:1-6). He, and he alone, is able to open and fulfil the book of God’s decrees (Rev. 5:1-7). He who rules the universe is God in human flesh, our Savior and Redeemer, ‘the Angel of the covenant.’ Rejoice!
The Angel of the Lord - Our Lord Jesus Christ is pre-eminently the Angel of the Lord. He is the Angel who came with a great chain of omnipotent power and bound Satan (Rev. 20:1-3). He is the Angel by whom all the earth shall be judged at last (Rev. 20:11-15). He is the Angel who sits upon the throne and will, at last, bring all the universe to its divinely ordained completion (Rev. 21:6).”
Pastor Don Fortner
“Knowing, brethren, beloved, your election of God”
--1 Thessalonians 1:4--
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“Writing not only to the saints at Thessalonica, but also writing under Divine Inspiration, Paul the apostle made statements that applies to all of God’s enlightened children. He used these two endearing terms: “BRETHREN”, and “BELOVED”. All of God’s children are the Lord’s BRETHREN, and our BRETHREN. Jesus Christ is BELOVED of God, and all who are in Christ are BELOVED of God. And those who are enlightened by God the Holy Spirit refer to God’s saints as our BELOVED brothers and sisters in Christ.
MOREOVER, Paul said to those saints he was writing to: “Knowing ...... your election of God.” HOW DID HE KNOW THEY WERE GOD’S ELECT? The true Gospel of God’s amazing grace came to them, not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost (1 Thess. 1:5). The Gospel is important. The Gospel is God’s ordained instrument that He uses to call His chosen people out of darkness into His marvelous Light. THE GOSPEL MUST BE PREACHED! But the truth will fall on deaf ears, and will not profit the one who hears it - unless the Gospel is MADE EFFECTUAL BY THE LIFE-GIVING POWER OF GOD THE HOLY GHOST! Our Lord Jesus said: “It is the Spirit that quickeneth (gives life); the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).
How do we know the Gospel has been made effectual in our own heart, and in the hearts of others? True faith is only in Jesus Christ, but will manifest itself in our labor of love and in our patience of hope for the glory of Jesus Christ (1 Thess. 1:3). When we receive the Gospel we will follow the Lord Jesus - even if the whole world turns against us (1 Thess. 1:6). We love those who preach the truth, and our lives will exemplify that (1 Thess. 1:5 - 7). We renounce the false gods of our own imagination, turning from them and our sinful ways when we turn to Jesus Christ, the true and living God. And we faithfully support the true Gospel, praying for our Sovereign Lord to give the increase as it pleases Him, while we wait for His return from heaven (1 Thess. 1:8 - 10).
Pastor
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ANNOUNCEMENTS
ð A Fellowship Dinner is scheduled for this afternoon. Please join us.
ð Our worship service for this evening has been cancelled, We have also cancelled our Friday Night Bible Study for this week.
ð A sincere THANK YOU to all who were able to attend this year’s summer conference. A special word of THANKS to our visiting preachers for their labor of love in preparing their messages and preaching the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord for His glory and for our eternal good. May our Sovereign Lord be pleased to give all of you a safe trip back to your homes.
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SUGGESTED BIBLE READINGS FOR THIS WEEK
Monday Wednesday Friday
Psalm 22 Psalm 23 Psalm 24
Genesis 37 Genesis 38 Genesis 39
2 John 3 John Jude
1 Corinthians 9 1 Corinthians 10 1 Corinthians 11
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FOOD FOR THOUGHT
CHRIST IS LORD
“The Lord Jesus Christ, because of His Godhead, has always had rule over the universe. Yet in His incarnation, God the Father bestowed or conferred on Him, (His Son, the office of King (Luke 1:32; Psalm 2:6). His office as King, or His Lordship, is what every believer bows to first, His right to rule over them. So His kingship commences in the hearts and lives of those who truly bow to and come by faith to the Lord Jesus Christ. After His resurrection, the Father turned over the reigns of this universe and all that is in it, to His Son, to dispose of, to govern, to reign over till all His enemies are made His footstool and the last enemy is destroyed (1 Corinthians 15:25 - 27; Matthew 28:18).”
Pastor Donnie Bell
“Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.”
--Hebrews 10:22--
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“Assurance of salvation and a saving interest in our Lord Jesus is NOT A FEELING cultivated by thinking good thoughts and doing good deeds. Paul calls it ‘full assurance of faith.’ It has to do with faith, with BELIEVING GOD! Assurance is born of CONFIDENCE IN THE FATHER as our covenant God; ‘Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.’ Assurance is born of CONFIDENCE IN THE SON as our God and Saviour; ‘By His stripes we are healed.’ Assurance is born of CONFIDENCE IN HIS PROMISES; ‘Abraham was fully persuaded that what God had promised, He was able also to perform.’ So your assurance of redemption is not enhanced by the MORE YOU WORK, but by the MORE YOU TRUST AND REST IN HIM. ‘Let us labor therefore to enter into THAT REST’ (Hebrews 4:11).”
Pastor Henry Mahan
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When the self-righteous religionist believes that what he has done has made him acceptable before God (including those who believe in their so-called free will), they not only blatantly deny the Gospel of the perfect redeeming work of Jesus Christ for His chosen people, they deny the sovereign power of God the Holy Spirit in the miracle of THE NEW BIRTH (John 3:5 - 8; 6:63). Our Sovereign God delivers His people from the power of Satan, the power of darkness, the power of sin and the prison house of unbelief. And when He does, we’ll bow down before a thrice-holy God, AND GIVE HIM ALL THE GLORY FOR HIS UNSPEAKABLE GIFT.” Pastor
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DO YOU BELIEVE ON THE SON OF GOD?
“If you trust Christ as your Lord and Savior, your faith in Him is the fruit and evidence of His grace bestowed upon you and wrought in you. Faith is the empty hand that receives God’s salvation, not the mighty arm that performs it. Faith in Christ is the result of eternal life bestowed, not the cause of life.”
Pastor Don Fortner
“And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, Who is this?” (Matthew 21:10).
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“The greatest obstacle we face today in the church is indifference. People do not openly hate the Gospel, they just do not care to hear it, or care for what it teaches. We are satisfied with anything that will calm our conscience. I am not saying people are not religious. They are. We need the preaching of the Gospel to stir up our hearts, our homes, this church, and this area. THERE IS ONLY ONE THING THAT WILL DO IT. A reigning Saviour riding in triumph in our hearts and churches. Jerusalem was never moved until the Lord Jesus Christ rode into it as King. There is a lot of Jesus preaching today, but not the Jesus of the Scriptures. There is a lot of salvation preaching today, but not the salvation of the Scriptures. There is a lot of god preaching today, but not the God of the Scriptures. So on all this you can write Ichabod, for ‘the glory of the Lord is departed’. There is no glory in a place unless Christ alone is preached as the sinner’s only hope.”
Pastor Milton Howard
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“WHAT DOEST THOU HERE?”
“Can you imagine a person entering heaven without a new heart, without a love for Christ, unable to give Christ all glory and preeminence? He comes within the gates and hears a song of praise, ‘Worthy is the Lamb’, but he cannot join the song, for he knows not the tune nor the Lamb. He sees a throne and on it One who is glorious beyond words; but it is CHRIST, whom on earth he refused to worship and acknowledge as King of kings and Lord of lords. He sees a host of angels and an innumerable company of saints, all rejoicing in the grace and mercy of the Beloved and glad to HONOR THE SON. He stands motionless, silent and still, for he knows not the Son nor His glory! His dark, dirty rags of vain self-righteousness appear even darker before their white robes. There are no palms of victory in his hand nor crown of righteousness on his head; and he hears a voice louder than ten thousand thunders, ‘What doest thou here? How camest thou hither not having a wedding garment?’ Speechless, they cast him away!”
Pastor Henry Mahan
