"Salvation is of the LORD." -Jonah 2:9

It is not possible that any one attribute of God should ever shadow another.  He is perfect.  Infinitely merciful He is, but He will not be merciful at the expense of justice.  Justice shall never triumph against mercy.  Mercy, on the other hand, shall never cut off the skirts of the flowing robe of justice.  It is in the person of Jesus Christ, and especially in the blood of Jesus Christ, that the great riddle of the ages is unriddled.  God can be just and yet the Justifier of him that believes in Jesus Christ.  We have sinned; God must punish sin. According to the inexorable laws which God has stamped upon the universe, the sinners cannot go unpunished.  But "the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and BY HIS STRIPES WE ARE HEALED ;" and "now in Christ Jesus, we who sometime were afar off are made nigh by the blood of Christ ."   God can be gracious without the violation of the severity of His judgment.  His moral government rem...

One great part of the work of the Holy Spirit in the heart is to empty us, strip us of self, lead us to feel our own weakness, and bring us as poor sinners to LOOK TO JESUS ALONE, as our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption [I CORINTHIANS 1:29-31] . And just in proportion as we feel our need of Christ, and realize our absolute nothingness without Christ - shall we prize Him, enjoy Him, and exercise dependence upon Him. O how little do many of us know our need of Christ, and therefore it is that we make so little use of Christ, receive so little from Christ, and do so little for Christ!  We come to Him at first ­ as poor, lost, helpless sinners ­ that we may be saved by His merit and mercy. And as believers, we must continually come to Him with all our burdens ­ that He may bear them; with all our cares ­ that He may manage them; with all our sorrows ­ that He may sanctify them; with all our foes ­ that He may conquer them; with all our sins ­ that He may cleanse...

"The Spirit of the L ORD spake by me, and H is word was in my tongue." - II SAMUEL 23:2 [KJV] We read that "no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation;" that is to say, it is the public property of the whole family of Jehovah; and "holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost;" the Holy Ghost so influencing and working upon their minds as to make them bring forth out of their hearts that which should be suitable to the whole family of God. For instance, we read in Psalm 51, David's confession of sin; but David's confession of sin applies to every soul that is condemned on account of sin. When Job, too, poured out his piteous complaints, he was speaking; though he might know it not, for the children of God to the remotest time. So when the Lord said to Joshua, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee," it was a promise specially given to Joshua; it seemed to be confined to that individual; it ...

“ For in HIM dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in HIM, which is the head of all principality and power.” -COLOSSIANS 2:9-10 [KJV] What a great and glorious message this is! All the fullness of the Godhead dwells in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and all who are united in Him are complete in HIM! Christ is the fullness of all the wisdom, righteousness, sanctification (holiness), and redemption, God requires, and this is true of all who believe in Him, all who rest in the blessed fact that His righteousness alone entitles them to the whole inheritance of eternal life and final glory in Heaven. If all who believe in Him are complete in Him, and it is all based on the merits of His righteousness alone, then there is nothing left for believers to do in order to attain salvation. They have it completely, and it will never be lost. There is nothing for believers to do in order to be qualified, fit, or entitled to any part of eternal life. CHRI...

“When the Holy Spirit shows us the necessity, the beauty and the sufficiency of the death of Christ, we repent of our own foolish works of self-righteousness, we forsake every other way of seeking to please God, we look to Christ and His substitutionary death as the only ground of our acceptance with God and our conscience rests in the quiet assurance that Christ has satisfied God on our behalf and saved us in a way that glorifies God in all His holy character. Thus the “blood” purges our consciences of every false hope, of natural self-righteousness, and all fear and doubt!” -preacher Gary Shepard Sovereign Grace Baptist church of Jacksonville, North Carolina USA https://www.sermonaudio.com/source_detail.asp?sourceid=allsovgrace

"O L ORD , correct me, but with judgment; not in T hine anger, lest T hou bring me to nothing." -J EREMIAH 10:24 [KJV] "Fury is not in M e," saith the Lord. No; there is no wrath in the bosom of God against the persons of His people. They are for ever "accepted in the Beloved," and stand in Him before the throne of God without spot or wrinkle; but there is displeasure against their sins; and this displeasure their kind and gracious Father makes them feel when He withdraws from them the light of His countenance, and sends his keen reproofs and sharp rebukes into their conscience. But these very "judgments" help them [ P SALM 119:175 ] , for they lead to deep searchings of heart; and as the same blessed Spirit who sets home the reproof communicates therewith repentance, they sorrow after a godly manner, and this godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of [II CORINTHIANS 7:10 ] . If, then, our afflictions, cross...

“For His merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD.” -Psalm 117:2 [KJV] Sinners are unable to save themselves so if anyone is to be delivered from the curse of the law, from sin and from Satan, GOD MUST DO IT . You will concur with that, will you not? Since it is clear from Scripture and from experience that some are indeed saved, then God must have saved them. You are still in agreement with me, aren’t you? And, it being true that sinners are unable to save themselves and yet some are indeed saved and God must have saved them, then is it not evident that the Lord made a distinction between those who are saved and those who are not? That distinction is called divine election.  "For God saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy" [Romans 9:15] . -preacher Jim Byrd Thirteenth Street Baptist church of Ashland, Kentucky USA https://www.sermonaudio.com/source_detail.asp?sourceid=13thstbaptist...

"God is the L ORD , which hath shewed us light." -P SALM 118:27 a [KJV] If God the LORD hath shewed us light, He hath shewed us light both with respect to Himself and with respect to ourselves. He hath shewed us with respect to Himself who He is; He hath stamped something of Himself upon our consciences; He hath discovered something of His glorious character to our souls; and brought us, under the operation of the Holy Spirit, into His presence, there to receive communications of life out of Christ's inexhaustible fulness. Thus in this light we see and feel that we have to do with a heartsearching God; in this light we see and feel that we have to do with a sin-hating God; with a God who will not be mocked nor trifled with. In this light we see and feel that every secret of our heart, every working of our mind is open before Him; and in this light, so far as He is pleased to manifest it, we see what we are in His holy and pure eyes — a mass of sin, filth, and cor...

"A fountain is continually flowing, there are fresh supplies of water coming from the fountain-head continually, so that a man may live by it, and be supplied with water all his life. In the same way, Christ is an ever-flowing fountain. He is continually supplying His people, and the fountain is not spent. Those who live upon Christ, may have fresh supplies from Him to all eternity. They have an increase of blessedness that is ever new, and WHICH NEVER WILL COME TO AN END ." -preacher Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758 A.D.)

CHRIST’S BOUNDLESS GRACE, confronts our deep necessities. Christ’s promised presence, confronts our sad and gloomy loneliness. Jesus thus filled with grace so overflowing, with love so tender, with sympathy so exquisite, with power so illimitable, with resources so boundless, with a nature so changeless—stands before us and says to each trembling heart, “Fear not!” -Octavius Winslow

"And they that use this world, as not abusing it; for the fashion of this world passeth away." - I CORINTHIANS 7:31 [KJV]   Nothing is real but that which has an abiding substance. Health decays, strength diminishes, beauty flees the cheek, sight and hearing grow dim, the mind itself gets feeble, riches make to themselves wings and flee away, children die, friends depart, old age creeps on, and life itself comes to a close. These fugitive, transitory things are then mere shadows; there is no substance, enduring substance in them. Like our daily food and raiment, house and home, they support and solace us in our journey through life. But there they stop; when life ends, they end with it.   But real religion—and by this I understand the work of God upon the soul—abides in death and after death, goes with us through the dark valley, and lands us safe in a blessed eternity. It is, therefore, the only thing in this world of which we can say that it is real. Is not this John...

Weekend Gospel message to follow for All Hands (26-28JUN20) Heads-Up --- Please find enclosed encouragement in SO GREAT SALVATION by the perfect and finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ in saving poor, needy and wretched sinners by His sovereign free grace - God's unmerited favor - from our sins and from Hell: "We are saved out and out at once and wholly by what the Lord Jesus Christ has done, without ourselves having a hand in it. Outside of us is the blood that cleanses from all sin. Outside of us is the obedience which fulfills the law, ears our salvation, and cries, "IT IS FINISHED." OUTSIDE! We have only to look on Christ to be saved. " -George Bishop

"The Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." - I CORINTHIANS 2:10 [KJV]   The Spirit of God which dwelleth in a man, making his body His temple, searcheth the deep things of God; for there is in these deep things a most heavenly treasure, which is to be searched into that it may be found. What depths do we sometimes see in a single text of Scripture as opened to the understanding, or applied to the heart; what a depth in the blood of Christ: how it "cleanseth from all sin," and if from all sin it must cleanse away millions of millions of the foulest sins of the foulest sinners. What a depth in His bleeding, dying love that could stoop so low to lift us so high! What a depth in His pity and compassion to extend itself to such guilty, vile transgressors as we are! What depth in the eternal counsels and unspeakable wisdom of God to contrive such a plan as was accomplished and brought to light in the incarnation and death of His dear So...

Our Lord often spoke of coming to Him. "Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" [ M atthew 11:28] . "In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink " [John 7:37] . "All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out" [ John 6:37] . "No man can come to Me except the Father which hath sent Me draw him" [ John 6:40] . Are you guilty? Come to Him for a full and unconditional pardon. Are you impure? Come to Him whose blood cleanses the foulest. Do you see the worthlessness of your self-righteous rags? Come to Him for perfect righteousness and beauty. Are you ignorant? Come to Him to be taught for He is the Wisdom of God. Are you cut off from God? Come to Him for restoration. O that you would be brought by the Spirit of grace to understand there is no life, no righteousness, no sa...

"At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel." -I SAIAH 17:7 [KJV] In the very name "the Holy One of Israel," there is something the sweetness of which melts the heart of a poor sensible sinner. For what is he in himself as a fallen child of Adam? A filthy, defiled, polluted wretch, unfit for the presence of God. And what can fit such an unclean, unworthy, deformed sinner for the eternal presence and enjoyment of the Triune Jehovah, but such a Saviour as the Holy One of Israel, whose blood, as a holy fountain, cleanseth from all sin? The soul that stands in Him, stands complete, without spot or blemish. And must not his heart leap and dance when with a measure of faith he is able to lay hold of this Holy One of Israel? But this living faith in and spiritual reception of the only Mediator between God and man cannot exist until a man is brought into circumstances in which he needs the Holy One of Israel....

"Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot ." -I PETER 1:18, 19 [KJV]   O the unspeakable depths of the goodness and mercy of God! O the riches of H is superabounding grace! When there was no other way of redemption, God sent H is only-begotten Son, that by H is precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, we might be redeemed from all the consequences of our vain conversation received by tradition from our fathers; and not only from all its consequences, but from its power and practice. It is a knowledge, a personal, experimental knowledge of this redemption, which lays us under a spiritual obligation to walk worthy of our high calling. And it acts in this way. A view by faith of the bleeding, dying Lamb of God, a seeing and feeling what H e suffered in ...

The Non-Gospel ‘Gospel Invitation’ by D.G. Miles McKee Every day, sincere, well-meaning Christians unwittingly plunder the gospel. We see this especially in the way they often tell the non-Christian how to be saved. The terms they use, in the context of the Finished Work, demand or imply that human works are a part of the plan of salvation! But works are no part of salvation. Biblical salvation is discovered wholly in the Lord Christ. It is “ Not of works , lest any man should boast” [EPHESIANS 2:9 ] . The following are a few of the terms commonly mis-used in an evangelistic framework. They are, in the context of gospel preaching, A nti - G ospel. Some of these terms are expressions which may be helpful as they relate to the Christian life … but not to salvation by grace . To add these requirements to the unsaved, joins self-effort to salvation [EPHESIANS 2:8-9 ] . However, we must never look to ourselves to find reasons for God's Grace. Here then are a few terms to ...

“ By the grace of God I believe the gospel of God’s sovereign grace, and I have been a believer for many years, but I still remain, in myself, a helpless sinner and in my flesh dwells no good thing. And yet, I am not filled with despair for I have a blessed Redeemer who ever lives for me in glory. In Him I have no sin, my conscience has no sting of guilt and I have no fear of condemnation. Without a doubt, I remain a sinner as touching this present life, but "THE LORD MY RIGHTEOUSNESS" is Jesus Christ, and He is my Prophet, High Priest and King.” -copied

"The just shall live by faith." -R OMANS 1:17 [KJV] A life of faith in Christ is as necessary to our present and experimental salvation as His death upon the cross was to our past and actual salvation. If you are alive to what you are as a poor fallen sinner, you see yourself surrounded by enemies, temptations, sins, and snares; and you feel yourself utterly defenceless, as weak as water, without any strength to stand against them. Pressed down by the weight of unbelief, you see a mountain of difficulty before your eyes, sometimes in providence and sometimes in grace. You find, too, that your heart is a cage of unclean birds, and that in you, that is, in your flesh, there dwelleth no good thing; neither will nor power have you in yourself to fight or flee. How then shall this mountain become a plain? How shall you escape the snares and temptations spread in your path? How shall you get the better of all your enemies, external, internal, infernal, and reach heaven'...

"The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and His ears are open unto their cry. The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth." - P SALM 34:15-16 [KJV]

"Jesus saith, Go to M y brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto M y Father, and your Father; and to M y God, and your God ." -J OHN 20:17 [KJV] Why your Father? Because My Father . Why your God? Because My God . As His only-begotten Son from all eternity, God was the God of our Lord Jesus Christ; as the Father's messenger and servant, doing His will upon earth, even in His lowest humiliation, God was His God; and now that He is risen from the dead and gone up on high to be the great High Priest over the house of God, now that He is entered into His glory and ever lives to make intercession for us, God is still His God. This view of Jesus is most strengthening and encouraging to faith. The great and glorious God, the great self-existent I AM, the God in whom we live and move and have our being, the God before whom we stand with all we are and have, the God against and before whom we have so deeply and dreadfully sinned—this great and glorious God is "the ...

The longer I live, the more I feel that if there were one thing left undone, if the devil were not conquered, sin not expiated, justice not satisfied, the law not honored and magnified, death not overcome, and every burden not carried, I should not have a ray of hope. I used to think I saw this as clear as the noon day thirty or forty years ago; but I saw it very differently then to what I see now; for I see and feel now that if one hair-breadth is left for me to do to merit heaven, or bring as a plea before God, I am undone for ever and ever. But on the Mount of Calvary, the Lord Jesus Christ undertook the cause of His people; and there is not a jot nor a tittle that He left undone, but "by one offering HE PERFECTED FOR EVER them that are sanctified," and "there is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Here is complete perfection. "SAVED IN THE L ORD WITH AN EVERLASTING SA...

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to H is abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." -I PETER 1:3 [KJV] The resurrection of Jesus Christ was God's grand attestation to the truth of His divine mission and Sonship, for by it He was "declared to be the Son of God with power." It therefore set a divine stamp upon His sacrifice, bloodshedding, and death, shewed God's acceptance of His offering, and that sin was thus for ever put away. Now, just think what would have been the dreadful consequences if Christ had not been raised from the dead, or if we had no infallible proofs [ A CTS 1:3 ] of His resurrection. There would have been, there could have been no forgiveness of sin [I CORINTHIANS 15:17 ] ; and therefore, when the conscience became awakened to a sense of guilt and condemnation, there could have been nothing before it but black and gloomy despa...

Treaty of Grace Faith has signed the “Treaty of Grace” which is a treaty of unconditional surrender. This treaty has been WRITTEN IN THE BLOOD OF CHRIST, therefore, God, the King and Judge of all has granted a pardon - no more - the status of a righteous man to every believer. The war is over! There is peace. – Gospel report by preacher Joe Terrell Please find enclosed link to audio Gospel sermons & Contact Info: https://www.sermonaudio.com/source_detail.asp?sourceid=gccrvia

LOOKING UNTO JESUS, OUR INBOUND KING OF GLORY "God resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble. Submit yourselves, therefore, to God." -James 4:6,7 [KJV] The way to over come pride, envy, and the spirit of carnal ambition is to submit yourselves to God! Submit to His will and purpose regarding gifts, talents, and possessions; to His place of service, be it lowly or great; to His will to prosper or empty us, to honor or humiliate us. There is ONE NAME to be praised, ONE WILL to be done, ONE LIFE to be imitated, ONE PERSON who must have the pre-eminence... our LORD JESUS CHRIST! -preacher Henry Mahan (1926-2019 A.D.)

"Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies." -P SALM 103:4 [KJV] The coronation of a king puts the last and highest seal upon his reigning authority. This made the spouse say, "Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold  king  Solomon with the crown wherewith his  mother crowned him in the day of  his espousals, and in the day of  the gladness of his  heart" [SONG OF SOLOMON 3:11 ] . And what a day will that be when the anti-typical Solomon is crowned Lord of all. Thus there is a crown put upon the soul which is healed of all its diseases, and whose life is redeemed from destruction. It is as if God could not be satisfied till He had put the crown of His lovingkindness upon the soul, until He had Himself crowned the heart with His own love. And what is the effect? The soul puts a crown of glory upon his head. So the soul has the crown of grace, and God has the crown of glory. This is being crowned with lovingkindness and tender m...

Weekend Gospel message to follow for All Hands (19-21JUN20) Heads-Up --- Please find enclosed encouragement in SO GREAT SALVATION by the perfect and finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ in saving poor, needy and wretched sinners by His sovereign free grace - God's unmerited favor - from our sins and from Hell: "But how may you know that any doctrine is that of THE TRUE GRACE OF GOD?" I answer, " If it exalts the glory of the grace of God as the sole and entire cause of salvation, if it humbles the creature and excludes all boasting, if it provides for the honor of God's holy law and justice, if it is a solid and sure ground of strong consolation to the saints, and if it is a doctrine according to godliness . These are the infallible rules whereby you may form your judgment of the truth of the doctrines you preach. No principle can be true which is not calculated to sub-serve and secure those important ends. It will be your wisdom to examine well all senti...

"For H e shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul." -P SALM 109:31 [KJV] How cheering, how comforting it is, to have a friend to stand by us when we are in trouble. Such a friend is Jesus. In the hour of necessity, H e comes as a friend to stand by the right hand of the poor creature, whose soul is condemned by guilt and accusations. But H e stands in a far higher relation than that of a friend; H e stands too as a Surety and a Deliverer . He goes, as it were, into the court; and when the prisoner stands at the bar, H e comes forward and stands at his right hand as his surety and bondsman; H e brings out of H is own bosom the acquittance of the debt signed and sealed with H is own blood, H e produces it before the eyes of the court, and claims and demands the acquittal and absolution of the prisoner at whose right hand H e stands. He stands there, then, that the prisoner may be freely pardoned, and completely justified...