CALL TO WORSHIP

MY DEBT IS PAID

Tune to "AMAZING GRACE" CM
Words by Jim Byrd

1. Unto the Lord this sinner owed
A debt I could not pay;
My sins were such an awful load,
But Christ put them away.

2. His blood has washed away my shame,
And satisfaction made;
O bless the dear Redeemer’s name,
My ransom price is paid.

3. Salvation unto Christ I owe,
O what a gracious Friend;
He washed and made me white as snow,
On Him my hopes depend.

4. Someday in heav’n I’ll sing His praise,
With all the ransomed throng;
And joyfully my voice I’ll raise,
To sing redemption’s song

Today’s Speaker: Brother Mark Pannell will conduct the 11:00 am service today. Pray for him as he delivers God’s word.

Television Broadcast: Our Reign of Grace Television program is being broadcast on WFXL Fox 31, Channel 4. The program will air every Sunday morning at 11 AM.

Radio Broadcast: Sunday morning at 9:30am on 98.7 FM –WISK. To hear sermons click here

Web Sites: Visit our web site at: www.rofgrace.com

Also visit us at: www.Sermonaudio.com\reignofgrace

Birthdays: Kathryn Cox – Aug. 19^th , Jane Sparks – Aug. 19^th , Mariel Moore – Aug. 20^th

JUSTI FICAT ION

God the Father contrived the scheme and method of justification; it would have been a puzzling question to angels and men, had not He resolved it; "How should man," sinful man, "be just with God?" But God, in His infinite wisdom, "found a ransom," a Ransomer, a Redeemer of His people, to bring in everlasting righteousness for them, and thereby acquit and discharge them, and "deliver them from going down to the pit" of ruin and destruction. "God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself." God was with Him, forming the scheme of their peace and reconciliation, of their redemption, justification, and salvation. "Not imputing their trespasses," but the righteousness of His Son to them (Job 33:24; 2 Corinthians 5:19).

--- John Gill

The resurrection, ascension, enthronement and mediatoral reign of our Lord Jesus Christ testify that He successfully redeemed His people. God’s elect have been bought with His blood, justice has been satisfied, sin has been put away and everlasting righteousness has been brought in. The fact that our Lord is seated upon His throne is undeniable evidence that the work has been accomplished to the Father’s full satisfaction.

--- Pastor Jim Byrd

Spiritual life, faith, repentance, love, the obedience of grace, and perseverance in the faith are not in part or in whole the ground, cause, or condition for our justification before God. These graces of the Holy Spirit are the fruit of our justification by the grace of God based on the righteousness of Christ imputed (charged) to a sinner. It is the obedience unto death of Christ, God the Son incarnate that lays the ground, provides the cause, and fulfills every condition for which God justifies and saves His elect.

--- Pastor Bill Parker

“BE YE TRANSFORMED”

The apostle gives this command by the Spirit of God in Romans 12:2: “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Believers in Christ have been “delivered from this present evil world, the world is crucified unto them and them unto the world, and are to love not the world.” Christ said, “the world hates you because it hated me.” Though we are “in the world” we are not “of the world.” For this reason we are not to be conformed to the worlds religion, the worlds standard of morality, the worlds goals or the worlds favor. No, he says, but “be ye transformed..” The Greek word here is the word we get our word “metamorphosis” from. It is the word used to describe the transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly. The transformation he speaks of here is through “the renewing of your mind.” He is not talking about regeneration or conversion which these believers had already experienced but the renewing “of the spirit of your mind.” (Eph. 4:23) As Paul said to the Corinthians, “though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” Someone has said, “we are what we eat.” Surely this is true in the spiritual sense. This spiritual renewal of the mind is accomplished by the continual hearing of the gospel, study and mediation on the word of God, prayer to God and constant fellowship with God’s redeemed people. That which fills our minds determines how we look at things, the attitude we have, how we respond to God’s providence in our lives and how we see our standing before God. If Christ “gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:,” then this is our motivation to seek to know and do His revealed will. What we are to believe, how we are to conduct ourselves before this world and how we are deal with God’s people and providence are all in his word. Our minds are like a well, whatever they’re filled with is what comes up in the bucket! Old unbelief creeps in, old self-righteousness and old care and anxiety, all come slipping back and our minds have to be renewed. O God, fill our minds with Christ, with the promises of scripture which speak of His shed blood and imputed righteousness. Gospel things renew our minds, transform us and move us to “prove” (demonstrate) that “good, acceptable and perfect will of God.” “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus… who humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”