22
May '20
There is Joy in the Morning
22
May '20
Psalm 30:5, “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favor is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
To know and trust Jesus is to know real and lasting joy. This does not exempt the believer from sin, or sin’s consequences. God is perfectly just and completely loving. He is never one or the other. He never leans more in one direction than the other. God disciplines His children, just as any good father should. That discipline is justly balanced, perfectly administered, and as soon as confession is made, our fellowship with the Father is fully restored. For those who trust God, mourning – for whatever reason – only lasts until morning. Have you trusted Jesus? Are you trusting Him?
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21
May '20
God Never Disappoints
21
May '20
Ruth 2:12, “The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.”
Grace has no conditions. God’s grace and favor do not operate on the basis of an employee and employer relationship. Ruth found grace and favor, not because of her good attitude and model character traits. Ruth found grace and favor because she sought refuge under God’s wings. She trusted the character and promises of God. Her example is one to follow. Seek refuge under God’s wings. Count His protection better than all others. Trust His promises from the core of your being, and you will not be disappointed.
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20
May '20
Grace is Greater
20
May '20
God’s grace is greater than your sin. That’s what the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 5:20, “Moreover the law entered, that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound.”
All those who have experienced this great news are eager to share it with as many people possible. This is true whether you’re an ordinary person or royalty. Nebuchadnezzar ruled an empire renowned for its military, cultural, and artistic superiority. What could possibly be greater than building and ruling such a kingdom?
Nebuchadnezzar discovered that answer. When he did, he enthusiastically shared the news with the entire empire. This evening at 7pm we will read and learn from Nebuchadnezzar’s testimony. We also learn, once again, from Daniel’s example. You see, the truth about God’s amazing grace will only be truly appreciated by the one who recognizes his utter sinfulness. In other words, the Good News is so good because the bad news is so bad. Daniel did not shrink back from communicating the TIMELESS TRUTH of God’s grace to his king. That required him to also be willing to describe why his king – like all of us – required grace.
Our text tonight will be Daniel 4. The Bible study will be live-streamed. While we have not officially relaunched the Wednesday night service, you are free to join us and welcomed.
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19
May '20
The Supremacy of Christ
19
May '20
Colossians 1:17-18, “And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”
The Lord Jesus Christ is preeminent. In all the New Testament, that powerful word is only used here. It means “far surpassing all others; to be first – not in order but in rank.” Jesus is superior to and towers above all others! The Lord Jesus is preeminent in every conceivable category of comparison. His superiority has no restrictions. Jesus is greater than humanity. Jesus is superior over principalities and powers; indeed, over all created things. His dominance is not restricted to time or space. Jesus is preeminent in all times, everywhere, over what’s seen and what’s unseen. It’s always the right time to trust Jesus.
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18
May '20
Fear and Doubt or Faith and Confidence
18
May '20
The way of life for an individual believer and a local church is the way of faith. We must choose to trust God, and that trust must be unlimited. Follow the link to read Proverbs 3:3-10, and consider…
Proverbs 3:5:
- “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart…” – Deliberately turn from doubt to God and His promises. Make a discernible choice to walk by faith instead of being trampled by doubt.
- “And lean not unto thine own understanding…” – We cannot trust God with all our heart and depend on our own abilities at the same time. Our confidence is either in God or in ourselves. If we catch ourselves saying stuff like: “I know how to fix this” or “I don’t need any help” then we have a limited rather than unlimited trust in the Lord. We are not claiming the victory inherent to this promise if we doubt God’s Word and lean only on what we can see or figure out for ourselves.
Proverbs 3:6
- “In all thy ways acknowledge him…” – In every choice, in every decision, in every detail of life, recognize God and factor in His participation. Seek to please God. In everything put Him first. That honors Him. Here is a real practical – and often contentious – example of doing this. It is called giving a tithe and offering. When the money is flowing or when the well runs dry, always give first to God. That means giving a tithe (10%) and an offering (anything above 10%) to your local church. If we acknowledge God in all our ways, then we will be confident that 90% (or 85%) with God’s help is more than 100% on our own without God. Put God first – even with your finances – and trust Him to keep His promises.
- “And he shall direct thy paths.” – This is a conditional promise from God. He will direct our paths – make the way passable – but only if we trust, lean on, and acknowledge Him. God will pave the way. This does not mean it will be easy breezy. It does mean it will be possible with God’s help. All things are possible with God. He promises to do His part. Will we do ours? Do we think we will do better than God with our problem? God always proves true, because God is always in control. No matter what happens or comes our way, God is in complete control – that is what sovereignty means. God is never blind-sided. God is never caught flat-footed. His hold never slips, and you are in His hands, if you’ve trusted Him.
Trust God with all your heart. Do not lean on your own understanding. Refuse to take your cues from what life looks like at the moment. Do not listen to – or speak – the doom and gloom theories that dominate our news. Instead, acknowledge God in all your ways, and He will pave the way for you.
He is in control.
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17
May '20
Bless the Lord
17
May '20
Psalm 103:1, “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.”
What does “Bless the Lord” mean? It means to speak well of His greatness and goodness. It is synonymous with praise. Psalm 34:1 puts them together like this: “I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Notice the word mouth. To “Bless the Lord” is to speak, sing, and live according to His goodness and greatness. Psalm 103 is a personal, public, and pervasive exhortation to bless God. The psalm is stuffed with reason after reason why God should be blessed, honored, praised, and treasured.
Call to and Inspiration for Praise!
Psalm 103 is the wellspring for so many hymns and songs of praise from far back in the past right up to the present because the psalm is pure praise and worship from start to finish. These twenty-two verses are focused on one person: Yahweh. That is the tetragrammaton, the covenant making and never breaking name of God. This is the only name of God used in the 103rd and it is not a descriptive name like Jehovah-jireh (Genesis 22:14) or Jehovah-shalom (Judges 6:23-24, “Peace be unto thee, fear not). Yahweh is His own name – the I AM. The One who eternally exists. No beginning. No ending. He is constant and independent and sovereign. God is truth, love, light, life, beauty, perfection, holiness, and joy. He is everything, and He alone is worthy of worship. All praise is riveted on the Eternal God and His gospel truth.
Together Again!
The 103rd Psalm will be our text this morning, our first one back since March 15. Follow this link for information about today’s service. We look forward to worshipping together, up on the hill once again. If you do not feel comfortable gathering, or if you do not feel well, please remain at home and follow along on the live-steam.
Following the time of worship we will honor our 2020 graduates: Bailee Allen, Kylee Fain, Jesse Eaton, and Will Isaacs. That will also be live-streamed.
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16
May '20
Saturday with Spurgeon
16
May '20
ACQUIRING PERSEVERANCE
“The Lord thy God will put out those nations before thee by little and little” Deuteronomy 7:22
We are not to expect to win victories for the Lord Jesus by a single blow. Evil principles and practices die hard. In some places it takes years of labor to drive out even one of the many vices which defile the inhabitants. We must carry on the war with all our might, even when favored with little manifest success.
Our business in this world is to conquer it for Jesus. We are not to make compromises, but to exterminate evils. We are not to seek popularity, but to wage unceasing war with iniquity. Infidelity, popery, drink, impurity, oppression, worldliness, error; these are all to be “put out.”
The Lord our God can alone accomplish this. He works by His faithful servants; and, blessed be His name, He promises that He will so work. “Jehovah thy God will put out those nations before thee.” This He will do by degrees, that we may learn perseverance, may increase in faith, may earnestly watch, and may avoid carnal security. Let us thank God for a little success, and pray for more. Let us never sheathe the sword till the whole land is won for Jesus.
Courage, my heart! Go on little by little, for many littles will make a great whole.
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15
May '20
Safety and Security
15
May '20
Psalm 16:1, “Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.”
The Lord Jesus Christ is the ultimate place of security and safety. No other source of protection can equal Him. Here David used the Hebrew name for God “El,” a name describing God as the almighty, all-powerful One. David was aware of the fact that he had great protection. He understood that he was safe in the care of Almighty God, the Sovereign Lord and Savior. In whom or in what do you put your trust? Only God is able to preserve a soul. He is able to do that for you. Only trust Him, and He will.
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14
May '20
Together Again!
14
May '20
Dear Bible Baptist Church Family,
We are opening up again! On Sunday, May 17 at 11am we will gather together to worship for the first time since March 15. Praise God! This is wonderful news. Cause for rejoicing.
This is terrific because we understand that a church is not a specific place we desire to be “in” but a particular people we long to be “with.” 100 Higher Ground Lane, Mount Vernon, KY is not where Bible Baptist Church is. That is where we regularly meet. We are thankful for the property and facilities with which God has blessed us, and understand that the church is a local body of baptized believers who have covenanted together for the proclamation of the gospel, the discipleship of believers, the observance of the ordinances, all for the glory of God.
During the outbreak of this novel coronavirus we voluntarily stopped gathering. This was done to honor the requests of our national and state governments, and with a desire to protect one another and our community from a virus we did not understand. Now it is time to begin the return to normalcy.
That return will be a journey. May 17 will not be a typical worship service. Here is what will be the same. We will be worshipping the Most-High God, our Savior and King together in spirit and in truth. AMEN! With that as our foundation, here is the plan for this coming Sunday, May 17.
- We will have only one service. No Sunday school, SHinE, Children’s church, or evening service. No staffed nursery either.
- We will not be passing the offering plates. They will be available in the lobby for you to leave your tithe/offering.
- We will not be observing our usual time of greeting. In this early stage of our return to normalcy, handshaking, back-slapping, and hugging will be on hold.
- We will not have a choir. This will create a huge hole in our worship, one that is necessary at the moment, but this too shall pass.
- We will observe the suggested distancing, and we will do this to the best of our ability. There will not be marked seating areas. No one will be keeping count at the door. Nobody will be walking around with a tape measure. You are expected to be personally responsible for this. Family units should sit together. This means, if you sleep in the same house, sit in the same pew.
- We will use all of our seating space. The balcony, the choir loft, even the front two pews of each section should be used. If necessary, we will fan out into the lobby and/or the choir room and Fellowship Hall.
- We will not have an altar call, but the invitation is always open. Following the service, if you desire counsel or prayer, come and see me. I will be available.
- We will be singing. Wear a mask if you desire. If you do not have a mask but would like one, they will be available.
- We will recognize and honor our graduates at the conclusion of the service.
I want to leave you with this thought. As a local church body, we have the same Savior, same indwelling Holy Spirit, same baptism, same mission, and the same authority – God’s timeless truth, His Word. These are the issues that matter most.
But we do not all have the same mind about this novel coronavirus. We are not all alike regarding our nation’s and state’s response to this virus or even how our church is reopening, and we do not have to be. Philippians 2:3 is required. “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” In this specific case, that means each of us will humbly consider our fellow church members more important than our personal views on the virus, the response to it, and the reopening. I am confident that we will do just that.
I am always available if you need to speak with me, about this issue or anything else.
Grace and Peace to You!
Pastor Travis
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14
May '20
Pray Constantly… Wait. What?
14
May '20
1 Thessalonians 5:17, “Pray without ceasing.”
This is not a command for perpetual kneeling or living with our eyes shut only talking to God. To pray “without ceasing” is a life marked by a continual attitude of prayer. To pray constantly is to stay in continual communication with the Lord. Are you continually aware of His presence in all of life; not only at church meetings, but at work, at school, at play, when you go out with friends, when you are alone, when you travel and there is no one there to hold you accountable?
We are always dependent on God, no matter what. Let’s live like we understand that. Trust Him in all things, and you will pray without ceasing.
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