MOTHER’S DAY SUNDAY AT 10:00 AM
INVITE FAMILY & FRIENDS TO HONOR HER ON THIS SPECIAL DAY!
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Daily Beats From Your Pastor’s Heart:
1 John 2:1, “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:”
We have the privilege of calling “Jesus.”
This call is not a work to establish something with God.
This call is a direct participation in His life.
Of course, no human being dares to participate in God’s life unless he is qualified.
What then qualifies us to participate?
We are qualified by the blood of Jesus (Heb. 10:17-20).
Knowing this truth sets us free from trying to establish our own righteousness.
Being in this reality takes away all pretense.
Without this reality I will be trying to establish my own righteousness.
For example, I may be in a bad mood and want to get to the Lord.
My getting to the Lord can be like a little ritual that I go through.
I have to call ten times before I can feel accepted by God.
So even my calling upon the name of the Lord becomes a work of attaining to something, rather than a participation in the Lord’s life through the merit of His blood.
First John 2:1 says, “And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father.”
It does not even say, “And if anyone repents, we have an Advocate with the Father.”
This means that the moment sin enters the picture and breaks our fellowship with the Lord, there does not need to be any time lost in restoring that fellowship.
“We have [present tense] an Advocate with the Father.”
When sin occurs, in that moment we can turn and look to our Advocate who is before the blood-sprinkled throne.
Then it also may follow that the Holy Spirit will move within you concerning your sin.
He will pass through you, and you will weep and weep.
But your weeping will be tears of joy because you are a forgiven person.
Yet at the same time you will find that you loathe yourself.
Ezekiel chapter 36 indicates that when we have “a new spirit,” indwelt by the divine Spirit, we will spontaneously loathe ourselves (vv. 26-27, 31).
This loathing of ourselves is the activity of the Spirit.
It does not come from morbid introspection and shedding many tears over our poor condition.
Martin Luther passed through this kind of introspection in his own experience.
He shed tears, thinking that this would wash away his sins.
But he discovered that his tears did not work to cleanse his conscience.
Then one day from Romans 1:17 he saw Christ as his total righteousness and became a new man.
Romans 1:17, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”
The sight of Calvary releases our spirit to participate in Him.
Until Tomorrow,
With a Shepherd’s Love
Pastor
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TODAY’S PRAYER LIST
Don Slate – Angela Bryan’s Dad – Hospice
Debra Roberts – Home in need of prayer
Hanna Hall – Pray For Grace
Amy Garner’s Mother
Ashley Burn’s Sisters
Barbara Shed’s Family
Bill Lawhead – Prayer Needed
Bill Moody
Charlie Sessom –Waiting
Colby/Connor – Allison’s G’sons
Denise Stubbs – Kim Allison’s Mom
Doug Fritzel
Greg & Keith Payne – Lisa’s Brother
James Garner – Home
James Garner’s G’Son
John Burnette
Joyceann – James Garner’s Daughter
Kimberly – Dustin’s Sister
Larry Barker – Hip Replacement
Linda Breedlove’s Sister – Sarah
Lynn – Nancy Brown’s Daughter
Mary Sims
Michael Stanley
Nancy Brown’s G’Daughter
Nora Allison – Dustin’s Mom
Pastor Stucke– Nikki’s Dad
Paula Ferus’ Missionary Friend
Ricky Stubbs
Roseleigh Osborn
Scott Lanier – Lisa’s Cousin
Sharon Blalock
Sherry Yoachum – Recovering
Shaelyn – Jill’s Friend
Sheila Simmons Cousin
Todd Bailey
Todd Roberts
Tom Witcher
Wanda Galanti