God's Blessings

Many of you have asked about the Spring Revival, so let me report the good news.

Each service (5 in all) had a wonderful time of invitation. Overall, the invitations averaged 30 minutes with people being saved, re-dedicating their lives to Christ, asking for forgiveness, confessing sins, etc. In fact, we now have 7 baptisms to administer (we have already administer 3 in the last 3 weeks...10 baptisms in a month! Praise God!).

Bro. Lawrence Thompson was the evangelist, and he spoke mightily from the Word of God. God convicted and pierced our hearts with His Word. In fact, it seems as though Ebenezer has been revived (of course, time will tell)! Praise the Lord for His goodness!

Well, I'm physically tired but spiriturally recharged. May God use me in a mighty way and use Ebenezer Baptist Church for His honor and glory.

Salvation is...

Salvation is by grace through faith based upon the redemptive work of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus took upon Himself the sins of all mankind in His death on the cross, and His resurrection from the dead provides the hope to all who believe. All who receive the Lord Jesus Christ through faith are born again of the Holy Spirit and thereby become the children of God.

Here We Go Again...

Well, I have spent quite a bit of time studying the Calvinism-Arminianism debate and would like to report back to you.

The more I study Calvinism the more unbiblical it becomes to me. Calvinism and Scripture do not "line up." Calvinism is one man's (okay, two men...Augustine & Calvin) distorted view and misapplication of Scripture. However, don't think that I believe the Arminianists are 100% correct either. There are some problems they have concerning being biblical. So, here's my thoughts on the "TULIP."

Total Depravity - It's half-right according to the Bible.
Unconditional Election - Totally wrong according to the Bible.
Limited Atonement - Totally wrong according to the Bible.
Irresistable Grace - Totally wrong according to the Bible.
Perseverance Of The Saints - It's half-right according to the Bible.

Now, I know some of you will not understand exactly where I stand (especially when I say it's half-right). But, just so, I believe it is important for you to know that I cannot condone the Calvinistic view of salvation especially when it contradicts Scripture. Having said that, I do not condone the Arminian view of salvation because it also does not answer questions or it contradicts Scripture as well. So, why follow two men...who are after all men? Let's go by what the Bible says and not what some man has taught as systematic theology.

Quit Straddling The Fence!

We should want all people to be saved and to be a part of the family of God. We probably even hope that our encounters with unbelievers and heresy-believers are peaceful and pleasant, and when they hear the truth of the Gospel from us they will believe. However, such a hope is not very realistic.

In the first place, people do not often ask you to share the Gospel with them, for the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is an offer of forgiveness. Such an offer presupposes that a person is guilty of something that they need forgiveness for. In this case, it is an offer which presupposes that all people are sinners against God and deserve His wrath.

When people are confronted with the claims of the Gospel, they may respond by saying that it is not true, or they say it is an interesting hypothesis which might be true. It is at this point that the child of God may be most tempted to compromise the claims of Christ and not offer a ready defense. One may do this by trying to prove that Christianity is true. People must "reason" in order to believe. However, if we are not careful, we may promote the false idea that the lost person is a neutral observer who has the "right" to evaluate and judge the claims of Christ and any decision he/she comes to is both understandable and acceptable. As sinners, they are anything but neutral regarding the truth of God's Word. They are lost! Despite the popularity of books such as Evidence That Demands A Verdict, it is not Jesus who stands awaiting the judgement of any man, it is man who must be cleared.

The fact is that all people everywhere already know of the existence of God. Furthermore, they understand the overall meaning of that testimony. Consider Romans 1:18-21: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
"hold" = katecho = hold down, retain.
"manifest" = phanerro = to render apparent, to make clear

There is no excuse for not believing because of the evidence which God has implanted within man. Still, people rebel against God. They do this by not only disbelieving the Bible, but by denying God's general revelation (in nature and history) and coming up with rationalizations to justify themselves. Such rationalizations we know as false prophecies and false religions.

Therefore, according to God's Word, can anyone who has reached a place of spiritual accountability in his life truly be classified as legitimately ignorant? No! When we argue as if an unbeliever is legitimately ignorant as to whether Christianity is true or by treating him as a "neutral" seeker of truth, we are denying the real situation. We are implicitly agreeing that reality (of God being God and man being a sinner) is not a personal revelation of God, but an impersonal environment or emotion, which is not true. Even the fact that some seemingly sincere people deny the truth makes sense because the Bible explains that people practice self-deception in spiritual matters (James 1:22).

What lost sinners need is not new evidence but a desire to stop suppressing the evidence they have already. They are working against God. We must be working for God and not "beat around the bush." We must be bold and unrelenting in our sharing of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the world. This is one issue where we can not sit on the fence!

(Thanks to Bro. Mike Rice for putting together most of this material.)

The Great Baptism Debate

Well, I received an email the other day informing me of a debate over whether or not baptism is necessary for salvation. While I'm sure you know where I stand on that issue (it's not necessary!), there was something funny I found in the email:

"The Bible teaches that a person must be baptized (immersed in water as a believer) to be saved, that is, to become a Christian."

The funny part to me is that in the parenthesis. If someone is immersed in water "as a believer" then wouldn't they already be saved? Remember, the Philippian jailer asked Paul what he must do to be saved. Paul answered by saying, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." Therefore, if one is a "true" believer, then the parenthetical phrase above has destroyed the Church of Christ debater. And well it should! To teach that baptism is necessary for salvation IS heresy. To add anything to the Gospel of Jesus Christ takes away from His wondrous work.

You CANNOT work for your salvation, speak your way into salvation (tongues included!), get wet enough for salvation (baptism is obedience not salvation), nor join enough churches to "get saved."

[Surely between this and the King James only debate, I'll have somebody mad at me!]

It's Good To Be Saved

Well, let's try something a little different. Since we've somewhat "argued" about Calvinism, Arminianism, and whatever-ism I am, let's share with those who might visit this site what your favorite verse concerning salvation and the security of the believer is. Now, just to be fair, I will not post mine for a day or so. This way it'll give everyone a chance to be first to use a certain verse. So let's go! Don't be shy! Give me your favorite verse!

Maybe I'm Not Naive

Well, now that I've made the Calvinists mad (well, not really...but work with me), let me get the Arminianists stirred up. While I have differing views with the Calvinists concerning "predestination, foreknowledge, etc.," I can say that I appreciate their view on security of the believer (well, at least most of them). While many come to that conclusion through different routes, there is no way that a person who is saved can lose that salvation. It is an impossibility. No where in Scripture do we see an example of someone who is a believer losing their salvation. In fact, according to the words of Christ Himself, He cannot lose them, for only a strong man could take them, and no one is stronger than God. I mean, after all, if eternal life is not "eternal," then what is it?

Wow...where has the time gone?

It seems just like yesterday that I posted my last article (well, maybe two days ago). Anyway, it's been so hectic that I haven't had time to read or post much on the blogosphere. So here we go (and yes, forgive me for being sad - ABC has probably cancelled my favorite show.)!

Easter - what a wonderful time to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. You know, without the resurrection, our entire faith would be in vain. If Christ had remained in the grave, then in all actuality, we would not have had a Savior. [He prophesied that He would rise from the grave, and if He hadn't, then He would have been lying, thus no perfect, sinless substitute.] Furthermore, we would have no hope. And how any "Christian" can deny the resurrection is beyond me. If Christ is still in the grave, then let's go fishing instead of going to church to worship! There's no point for us wasting time is there? But fortunately, Christ did come out of the grave, and He is alive today. One day He will return. Are you ready? If not, check out this website (www.ebenezermbc.com), and it will explain how you can accept Christ as your Savior.

Because He Lives!

Bro. Matt