Yes it is a good article. Btw. I’ve been working through Pastor Dilday’s 23 sermons on Church Unity. He makes interesting points, Sermon #18 has a particular church description I find useful. The second half of the sermon gives good perspective on the Scottish church. His previous sermons, clarified the terms, Invisible, Visible and Particular… Continue reading Denominations & Division
Category: Westminster Larger Catechism Study
The Abomination of Easy-Believism – Part 2 – The Nature of True Faith
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Thanks Mike, still well spoken. I could not help but visualize the constant encouragement and direction give by Evangelist in John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. If one scans just his statements to Christian, you see the need to stay on the path, but it’s certainly narrow and difficult.
“…Mr. Worldly-Wiseman is an alien guide, and Mr. Legality a cheat; as for his son Civility, in spite of his simpering [smiling] manner, he is yet a hypocrite and cannot help you. Believe me, there is no substance in such blustering talk that you have heard from this sottish [works intoxicated] man. His only design has been to deprive you of your salvation by means of turning you from the way along which I sent you.””
Through Grace and the Sovereignty of God the Christian will persevere!
by Mike Ratliff
37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never cast out. John 6:37 (LSB)
What a glorious Biblical truth it is that sinners may come to Christ just as they are! They come on the basis of faith and He saves them all (John 3:16). Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:1-10 that salvation is by grace through faith alone, apart from works. God saves His people this way so that none may boast. This means that no one whom He saves must do any work or attain any merit in order to be worthy to come. No, God saves sinners. However, in “today’s gospel” these wonderful truths have been twisted or extended to say that not only does Christ receive sinners just as they are, but He also will let them stay that way.
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The Narrow Path and Walking by Faith
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Bunyan remains a favorite. Has anyone ever seen a list of all the ways to get off the narrow path?
Btw, Mike that’s a gift! “ I can now listen to or read the work of a professing Christian and can almost instantly tell if that person is focused on God and His glory and the edification of the Body of Christ for God’s glory or if all they are about is just more religiosity and taking people captive by philosophy and empty deceit according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. This is where God has this ministry and me now.”
You use it as well as any I know.
We had the Purpose Drive movement in our Church, there are many others today. Each has its path, almost gnostic like way to follow. I’ve read many accounts of the issues, but I’ve never heard a clearly articulated Elevator Talk of what was/is wrong with the Purpose Driven Methodology. Is there one out there, for those with ears to hear?
by Mike Ratliff
4 For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life. 5 Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.
6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord– 7 for we walk by faith, not by sight– 8 we are of good courage and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one…
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Thanksgiving Thoughts
This was a good note… A short but good word from our interim Pastor about Thanksgiving worth reading… A NOTE FROM PASTOR RICK - Be Ye Thankful! “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18 One of the reasons I love the Thanksgiving… Continue reading Thanksgiving Thoughts