CENTRAL BULLETIN 5/13/18

Central Grace Church

3596 Franklin Street . Rocky Mount, Virginia

May 13^th. 2018

9:30 am ---------------------------------------------------------------------Dead To Sin – Romans 6

10:00 am ---- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- ----- -----

Birthdays: May 14^th – Mike Anderson, 16^th – Melanie Hudson, 18^th – Olivia Holland , 23^rd – Edwin Berry

Cleaning: This Week – Hudson, Next Week -- Hollands

Nursery: Today - Mary P. Wednesday: Lauren

Listen to WYTI Radio, 1570 AM - 104.5 FM, Sundays 8:00 am

Listen to live audio of services on: www.mixlr.com/centralgracechurch Website: www.centralgracechurch.com

Buried and Risen To Walk In Newness of Life . – From a sermon by Henry Mahan

“Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory

of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his

death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.” – Romans 6:4-5

Now men who are not in Christ are the servants of sin. Men who are not in Christ are under sin’s power. Men who are not in Christ are slaves to a master called sin! They can’t do otherwise because they don’t want to. They love their master just like you love yours. They are the servants of sin. They are the slaves of sin. We are not a people who have had a religious experience and are not the bond slaves of Christ. I worry about people who have religious experiences who have never heard any gospel. That’s dangerous. It’s impossible to have an experience in grace without hearing the gospel. . . .

. . . “If you have not the spirit of Christ you are none of His!” Now that’s just being honest. If we are dead with Him we are raised with Him and if a man is NOT raised with Him he didn’t die with Him!! Christ never left His sheep in the grave. He brought every one of them out! That’s true! But there are a whole lot of unsaved church members. Well that’s a fact too. I’m just being perfectly honest, that’s all. Just being honest with you. If we have been planted in the likeness of His death we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection. The power that raised Christ from the dead raised us too!

. . . Knowing this! I KNOW this! That our old man is crucified with Christ. That the body of sin might be destroyed. Men who are not in Christ are the servants of sin. They are under sin’s power. They are slaves to a master. We have been willingly, lovingly, delivered from that bondage. We KNOW who we have believed. We are not saying that sin is not in us. I’m not saying that. I know better and you know better. Sin is in us. There is a battle which we have. There is a conflict but sin is not our master. Christ is our Master. Our delight is NOT to serve sin. Our delight is to serve Him who bought us! Who loved us! Who redeemed us! Who sits on the throne in our heart with our full consent. We wouldn’t have it any other way

“Only be thou strong and very courageous.” (Joshua 1:7) – From Spurgeon’s Morning & Evening

Our God’s tender love for His servants makes Him concerned for the state of their inward feelings. He desires them to be of good courage. Some esteem it a small thing for a believer to be vexed with doubts and fears, but God thinks not so. From this text it is plain that our Master would not have us entangled with fears. He would have us without carefulness, without doubt, without cowardice. Our Master does not think so lightly of our unbelief as we do. When we are desponding we are subject to a grievous malady, not to be trifled with, but to be carried at once to the beloved Physician. Our Lord loveth not to see our countenance sad. It was a law of Ahasuerus that no one should come into the king’s court dressed in mourning: this is not the law of the King of kings, for we may come mourning as we are; but still He would have us put off the spirit of heaviness, and put on the garment of praise, for there is much reason to rejoice. The Christian man ought to be of a courageous spirit, in order that he may glorify the Lord by enduring trials in a heroic manner. If he be fearful and fainthearted, it will dishonour his God. Besides, what a bad example it is. This disease of doubtfulness and discouragement is an epidemic which soon spreads amongst the Lord’s flock. One downcast believer makes twenty souls sad. Moreover, unless your courage is kept up Satan will be too much for you. Let your spirit be joyful in God your Saviour, the joy of the Lord shall be your strength, and no fiend of hell shall make headway against you: but cowardice throws down the banner. Moreover, labour is light to a man of cheerful spirit; and success waits upon cheerfulness. The man who toils, rejoicing in his God, believing with all his heart, has success guaranteed. He who sows in hope shall reap in joy; therefore, dear reader, “be thou strong, and very courageous.”