SHREVEPORT GRACE CHURCH
2970 Baird Rd., Shreveport, LA 71118
CHRIST ALONE-SCRIPTURE ALONE-GRACE ALONE
AUGUST 5, 2007
OPPORTUNITIES FOR WORSHIP
SUNDAY
Scripture Reading/Prayer: Psalm 58 (Mike)
Call to Worship: ‘It is finished!’ Sinners hear it!
Scripture Reading/Prayer: I Corinthians 15 (David)
Hymn:
# 16- ‘The Lord is King’
Message: SPIRITUAL BABYLON-
Revelation 17
Hymn: #70- ‘Holy, Holy, Holy’
AFTERNOON WORSHIP – 12:30PM
Hymn: #-66- ‘Jesus, Thou Joy of Loving Hearts’ ‘
Scripture Reading: Esther 2 (Jim)
Hymn: #- 293- ‘The Lord’s My Shepherd’
Message: JOURNALS AND JOURNEYS- Numbers 33
Hymn: # 256- ‘It Is Well With My Soul’
WEDNESDAY
7:00 PM- Mid-week Service
Nursery care available for all services for ages 4 and younger
Ken Wimer, Pastor- ( (318) 687-4943
E-MAIL: pastor@shrevegrace.org
WEB SITE: http://www.shrevegrace.org Updated weekly with audio messages now available on-line.
RADIO BROADCASTS: 9:00 AM (CST)Sunday on KWKH, 1130 AM, Shreveport, LA or live streaming at http://www.am1130thefan.com/pages/listen_live.html
CALL TO WORSHIP
(Tune: ‘#99- ‘Angels From the Realms of Glory’)
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t is finished!’ Sinners hear it;
‘Tis the dying Victor’s cry;
‘It is finished!’ Angels bear it;
Bear the joyful truth on high;
‘It is finished!’ ‘It is finished!’
Tell it through the earth and sky.
Justice from her awful station,
Bars the sinner’s peace no more;
Justice views with approbation
What the Savior did and bore;
Grace and mercy, Grace and mercy
Now display their boundless store.
Hear the Lord himself declaring
All performed He came to do;
Sinners, in yourselves despairing,
This is joyful news to you.
Jesus speaks it, Jesus speaks it,
His are faithful words and true.
‘It is finished!’ All is over;
Yes, the cup of wrath is drained;
Such the truth these words discover;
Thus the victory was obtained;
‘Tis a vict’ry, ‘Tis a vict’ry,
None but Jesus could have gained.
DEFILING THE TEMPLE OF GOD
“If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.’ 1 Corinthians 3:17
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he most common interpretation of defiling the temple of God is that the temple represents the individual bodies of believers, and therefore you better be careful what you put in them. It is true that our bodies are the Lord’s, and we should care for them (health and sanity) being ever mindful that we are not our own, but we are bought with a price-1 Corinthians 6:20. Nevertheless, in this context, the temple is not the individual body of believers, but the Church of the redeemed. When Paul writes, ‘which temple ye are,’ temple is singular and ‘ye’ is plural. It is referring to that body of believers that the Lord Jesus Christ redeemed at Calvary, and whose righteous obedience imputed once for all to them upon, completion of His death at the cross, is ALL their holiness.
So how is it that any man might be guilty of defiling the temple, and in so doing God will destroy? The previous context is with reference to preachers who rather than exalt the Person and work of the Lord Jesus, and uphold His honor and glory, bring into the church strange doctrine (Leviticus 10:1), and thereby introduce a way of worship and doctrine that is contrary to what God has ordained and revealed in His Word. Here are three different ways that men have historically defiled the temple of God and God has destroyed the works of their hands
1. By the wisdom of the world, and through philosophy, and vain deceit, Col. 2:8. A little leaven leavens the whole lump, and there are those who introduce it quietly and subtly into their preaching that eventually leads hearers’ minds away from the inspired word into traditions, customs, and natural thinking regarding God, salvation, and eternal matters. Slowly but surely, men and their commentaries or denominational traditions become the standard, and not the Word of God.
2. By bringing in false doctrines, errors, and heresies, and corrupting minds from the simplicity that is in Christ. Beware of those who would diminish in any way the sanctity, honor, glory and perfection of Christ’s person as the sinless one- Heb. 7:26 Beware of those who would make righteousness, holiness, or acceptance with God on any other foundation than that imputed in His effectual death alone- 1 Cor. 1:30, and revealed in the heart by the Spirit of God- Romans 1:17. Beware of those who insist on conditions of righteousness and what men must do, or have in them, in order to make their acceptance with God a reality. NO! The temple IS holy because of its great High Priest and His effectual sacrifice alone, by whom we have been made, accepted in the Beloved, Eph. 1:7.
3. By causing factions and divisions among the brethren, preferring their own honor, or the honor of men above the truth, John 5:44-47, and putting their own authority above the Lord’s in their dealings with His sheep, forgetting whose sheep they are, I Peter 5:2,3.
Thankfully, all that are the Lord’s, whom He has chosen in grace, redeemed and justified by His blood and righteousness imputed, and called by His blessed Holy Spirit, can never be removed from that foundation. All others will find themselves in opposition to God Himself, and must most certainly be destroyed. KEN WIMER
GOOD TIDINGS
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he word ‘gospel,’ literally translated means ‘good tidings.’ As God’s ambassadors we have the privilege to tell sinners who are trying their best to gain or maintain salvation by their religious attempts that Christ did ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING NECESSARY to obtain the salvation of ALL of God’s elect. Christ fulfilled every legal requirement of God’s law and justice for His people, and He actually justified them at Calvary when He cried, ‘IT IS FINISHED!’ ‘Being (literally ‘having been) justified freely (without any cause on our part) by his grace through the redemption (release obtained by payment of the ransom price) that is in Christ Jesus,’ (Romans 3:24). This is good news to a sinner! Christ said, ‘Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,’ Matthew 11:28. Now, I have that ‘peace that passeth all understanding,’ and now I know I am as sure of heaven as if I am already there, because of HIM who is ALL my salvation- 1 John 5:12,13.
‘Run, run, the Law commands,
But gives me neither feet nor hands.
A sweeter song the Gospel sings,
It bids me fly, and gives me wings.’
RICHARD WARMACK- Ruston, LA