June 12^th, 2016

9:30 am __________________________________ Put Them in Mind To Obey – Titus3:1-2

10:00 am ______________________ The Kindness & Love of God Our Saviour – Titus 3:3-7

*** Tuesday Night Service – 7:30 pm - - Dan Parks preaching (D.V.)

Nursery Today: Second Service: Aimee, Alt. -- Mary P.

Cleaning Schedule: This week - Steven & Mary, Next Week: Debra & Polly

Birthdays: June: 22^nd – Nancy Parks, 23^rd – James Holland, 24^th – Patrick Holland, 25^th – Walter Groover

“They That Observe Lying Vanities Forsake Their Own Mercy” – Jonah 2:8

WHAT are the lying vanities of which the scripture speaks? The wise man wrote: “Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, all is vanity” (Prov.12:8). The flesh, the world and the devil promise many things, but are all liars! Riches are deceitful¸ promising happiness and contentment, when in fact they gender the opposite. The world talks of wisdom, knowledge, enlightenment, when in fact they lie about most things (not revealing the facts, bringing up false ‘witnesses’, manufacturing ‘findings’ and ‘sources’). David said in his haste “All men are liars.” God’s people are not liars, but the world is so full of them, that all seem to be so. And David’s son said: “Money answereth all things” i.e. . behind every lying scheme is the love of money. The devil, who is the father of lies, is perpetrating all his lies in the name of truth. Behind the façade of religion is the smiling face of the devil, who has his ministers of righteousness, who are all liars, evil men and seducers, waxing worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.

For us to observe lying vanities, is to listen to the world and put stock in what it is saying. To observe lying vanities is to listen to and participate in the world’s religions. To observe lying vanities is to walk with, talk with and commune with the liars of this world (evil communications corrupt good manners), for you cannot really believe anyone except a believer. To observe lying vanities is to think that anyone or anything in this world can be of some good to us. Fact is, there is nothing truly good in this world except the things of God and the people of God. God says of this world, “They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, NO, NOT ONE!” (Psa.14:3).

To forsake our own mercy is to absent ourselves from the preaching of God’s Word, which exposes all lies within us and without us, and reveal to us the vanities of this world. The Word of God is His mercy to hell-deserving sinners. It is full of warnings, rebukes, reproofs and corrections to save us from being destroyed with this world . . . to save us from this untoward generation.

Yes . . . They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. To listen to, pursue and court the things of this world and the people of this world rather than the things of God and the people of God, is to cut your own throat . . . it is to cut off your own life-line . . . it is to commit spiritual suicide. Wherefore . . . “Flee Idolatry” . . . “Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord” . . . “Come thou with us and we will do thee good” . . . “Desire the sincere milk of the Word that you may grow thereby” . . . “Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher, all is vanity.”

“They Repented Not To Give Him Glory” – Revelation 16:9

All things were created by God for His glory. “The heavens declare His glory”, and the created things in the earth, the trees clap their hands, the birds sing, all things declare God’s glory as they were made to do. All but man that is! Man rejects God’s glory. Man attributes the glory of God’s creation to evolution and the glory of God’s salvation to man. Rather than glorify God’s choice of men, man glorifies his choice of God. Rather than glorify God’s mercy to guilty, hell-deserving sinners, man glorifies himself for letting God into his life. Rather than glorify God’s sovereign Spirit and power which quickens, grants repentance, faith and fruit, man glorifies his supposed free-will and works. And so God created a Hell to put these vain glorious creatures in. And even though they will clearly see God’s holiness and power, yet they still do not repent to give Him glory! In the words of Thomas Adams: “They curse Him for their pains and sores, but repent not of their deeds. They weep not for the cause of their sufferings, but for the loss of their comforts. I believe it will be found that the repentance of most men is not so much the sorrow for sin as sin, or real hatred of it, as sullen sorrow that they are not allowed to sin.”

May God be pleased to reveal unto us His glory. And may He grant us true repentance and faith.