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Sovereign
Grace Missionary Baptist Church 1217 Dillon Texarkana, Texas 75501 Elder Randy Johnson, Pastor Bro.
Ronnie Henderson, Song Director "Where The Truths Of God’s Word Are Still
Taught" |
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You Were Asked To Pray For: All
of Our Military, Their Family’s & All the Civilian Workers in The Middle
East, Zee Mink Fuller and Family, Her son’s Bryan Armstrong and Hunter
Hackie, Daughter Shannon, and Brother Philip & Sondra Thornsberry,
Virgil & Alice Hoskins, Grandchildren, and his daughters Liz Janis and
Debbie Gray, Derrick & Alecia and sons Coty
& Carson Clements, Bryndon Thomas, Frank & Dawana Reigel, Andrew Preston, Helen Maggard,
Renee Jackson, Larry Mollette, Larry Mollette II & Family, Kirby
Mollette, Kerry Pennington, Kim Butler, Danny & Nita Mollette, Verna Mae
Allen, Wendell Henderson, Judy Dunn, Joshua Kidd, Matthew Kidd, Kevin
Henderson, Ronnie Henderson Jr., Vickie Sims, Debbie and Morgan Farmer, Jim Stagner, Bro. & Mrs. Hammond, Don & Neil Hammond,
Charles Hammond, Eric Hammond, Archie & Barbara Griffin & son Daniel,
Bro. & Sister Bob Keller, Wanda Fowler, Kathy Rosinbaum,
Brenda Galusha and Jewel, Mary Ramsey, Donna
Johnson, Fay Johnson, Luann Reynolds, Bro. & Sis. Curtis Pugh, Timothy
and Nathan Fails, Jacob Ramsey, Jim & Linda Meier, Brother David &
Sister Anne Shortt, Brother Manuel Seymour &
Family, Doris Hammock, Letha Langford, Brother & Sister Kelley Hinson and
Kelley Lee, Billy and Jo Hobbs, Jerry Hughes, Sister Nita Bookout and her
Niece, Roger Bookout, Pastor G. L. Burr, Melody Carr, Betty, Janie Capps, Scott
and Gina Sillivan, Katie Norton, Sadie a child, Imajo Tracy, Sister Jean Dodson and Family, Helen Rowe, Linda
Hughes, and Bro. Sergey Mochalov and the Churches
in Russia. |
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A Thought From Pastor Johnson: Our God Is Sovereign! For the next several weeks we are going to look at several words from
Romans 8:29 – 30. Every one of these words deals with the Sovereignty of God
as far as salvation is concerned. We must understand that salvation that is
preached from most pulpits is a myth at best. It clouds the mind with a
fairytale of somehow man being able to change his own will and make a choice
to follow Christ and this is done by the sinner himself. However as God
brilliantly told us through the Apostle Paul in Romans 3:10 - 12 “As it is
written, There is none righteous, no, not one: (11.) There is none that understandeth, there is none
that seeketh after God. (12.) They are all gone out of the way, they are
together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
This means that no one, not one single human being will ever be able to make
a choice for Christ, EVER! However there is hope God said in Ephesians 2:8 -
9 “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is
the gift of God: (9.) Not of works, lest any man should boast.” This means that salvation is possible
because God by His loving grace has elected to save some, not all but some by
grace through faith and that faith is not of themselves (or within their own
means) but by grace is the gift of God. It is also not by works because that
praises the sinner instead of God. Salvation is not something we can boast
about but rather something we can praise God for, because it is His gift to
all that have it. With this being understood we now want to look at the word
“Foreknowledge” and that is the “The Foreknowledge of God”. Paul said in the
29th verse of Romans 8 “For whom he did foreknow…” The word “whom” tells us that
he is speaking of a people but who; well if this verse and verse 30 are taken
in context he is speaking of those who are going to be saved and those are
the ones that God foreknew. The word “foreknow” means - to know beforehand or
to ordain” now most of those fairytale Pastors will tell you that God looked
into the future and saw who would make a choice for Christ and foresaw their
choice of faith and chose them to salvation, however this whole theory makes
no biblical sense because God cannot look into the future if He is already in
the future, and this fairytale is not taught anywhere in the entire bible.
What this word means is that all things from eternity past, to eternity
present, to eternity future are known to God. There is no future with God as he
defined by calling Himself “I AM” in Exodus 3:14 “And God said unto Moses, I
AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto
the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.” When God called Himself
“I AM” here He expresses as absolute, unchanging and the eternal Being. God
cannot change therefore before the creation of all creation known unto God
was all His works Acts 15:18 “Known unto God are all his works from the
beginning of the world.” This is the facts; God chose them that were going to
be saved before the world was created and in time called them to come to
Christ, this is why we say God saves sinners. It is not up to man to change
his own heart but God Who will change it for him. It is not up to man to
choose Christ God chose us in Him before the world began. This is in the
“ordained will of God” as stated in Ephesians 1:11 “In whom also we have
obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him
who worketh all things after the counsel of his own
will:” and Jesus prayed “As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he
should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.” John 17:2 or those
foreknown of God or those ordained to eternal life before the world began. |
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Experimental Salvation, By A. W. Pink: SALVATION may be viewed from many angles and contemplated under various
aspects, but from whatever side we look at it we must ever remember that
“Salvation is of the Lord.” Salvation was planned by the Father for His elect
before the foundation of the world. It was purchased for them by the holy
life and vicarious death of His incarnate Son. It is applied to and wrought
in them by His Holy Spirit. It is known and enjoyed through the study of the
Scriptures, though the exercise of faith, and though communion with the
triune Jehovah. While it is true that Holy Scripture insists on man’s responsibility,
and that all through them God deals with the sinner as an accountable being;
yet it is also true that the Bible plainly and constantly shows that no son
of Adam has ever measured up to his responsibility, that every one has
miserably failed to discharge his accountability. It is this which
constitutes the deep need for GOD to work in the sinner, and to do for him
what he is unable to do for himself. “They that are in the flesh cannot
please God” (Romans 8:8). The sinner is “without strength” (Romans 5:6).
Apart from the Lord, we “can do nothing” (John 15:5). This is where the sinner shows what an incorrigible rebel he is, and
demonstrates that he is deserving only of eternal torments. But it is just at
this point that God manifests His sovereign and wondrousGRACE.
He not only planned and provided salvation, but he actually bestows it upon
those whom He has chosen. |
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Happy Birthday: Larry Mollette – June 23rd |