Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. The Bible contains all of the
information that is needed for the children of God to grow up
into mature believers, completely equipped to walk in the good
works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
The first part of that verse says, for we are His workmanship
created in Christ Jesus unto good works. So it is obvious
that if He has begun a good work in us, He will perform it until
the very end. God is pleased to perform good
works in and through His elect children as they dwell upon this
earth. He works in them by His Spirit to give them a ready mind
and a willing heart to do His will. And He is pleased to reveal
the truth of His word, which He sets forth before them in
the pages of the Bible. It is impossible to prove to
the natural man that the Bible is the Word of God. Yet at the
same time, it is impossible to convince the true children of
God that it is not. The Spirit of God bears testimony
through the written Word by His power of the eternal truths contained
in it, just as He convinces men in the matter of creation. Through
faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word
of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things
which do appear. So He convinces His sheep of
the veracity of His Word. Religious men debate the reliability
and completeness of it, but the sons of God receive it as the
very words of life and depend upon it for instruction and comfort.
Paul said the scriptures are given to us for the purpose of
thoroughly furnishing the children of God with all of the information
that they need in order that His exact purpose be accomplished
in them. "'til we all come in the unity
of the faith "'and of the knowledge of the Son of God "'unto a perfect
man, unto the measure of the stature "'of the fullness of
Christ. "'He could have just matured, that is, perfected us,
"'immediately, totally, without any participation by us, "'but
it has pleased Him to involve us in a process "'whereby we
are exercised in these bodies "'in which we now live. "'He
is presently working in His sons "'through the admonitions and
exhortations of His Word "'that we might be first of all instructed
in sound doctrine. Sound doctrine does not change
with the times, nor can it be altered or modified to suit the
taste of natural man. The truth of the gospel will
always be a savor of life to some and of death to others.
The cross of Jesus Christ will always be offensive to religious
men, because they are determined to find some way to merit God's
favor. The gospel of Jesus Christ is
only discovered in the scriptures, which contain the record of who
he is, what he has done, and what he shall yet do. Sound doctrine
begins and ends with Jesus Christ, who is the author and finisher
of our faith. He gives us the exhortations
of his word so that we might be reproved by its power. The
Lord Jesus said that when the Holy Spirit was come, he will
reprove the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment.
He performs this work in the children of God through the scriptures.
as they are made aware of the perfections of Christ revealed
there. His people are convicted of their own unholiness and convinced
of His absolute righteousness. His command must drive His sons
to their knees in repentance, as His perfect law reveals to
them their sinfulness and innate ability to keep its precepts.
These admonitions are given so that they might be corrected
by its truth. The Scripture is full of many admonitions and
warnings for the sons of God. It is by this means that the
Holy Ghost is pleased to apply His Word to their minds and hearts,
and they are thereby chastened and corrected. He does not leave
His children to wallow and die in their sin, but chastens them
through the application of His Word. And the word of God is
given to the children of God that they might be instructed
in practical holiness. Now we're quite sure that all
men shall remain sinners until they die. However, it is equally
clear that the Lord has made changes in the lives of those
he has visited with the new birth. After listing the description
of the men of this world and their characteristics, Paul says,
and such were some of you, but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified,
ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the
Spirit of our God. Those who are manifested as the
true children of God are singled out from the world as being made
new creatures in contrast to what they once were. As these
new creatures, they have a desire to be instructed in the lifestyle
which the Word of God describes as good. They are reminded that
there are some who, after they have escaped the pollutions of
the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, they are again entangled therein and overcome, and the
latter end is worse with them than the beginning. God will
apply his word to his children so that such may never be said
of them. Rather, he intends that they
should hear these words from the scripture. Fear not, little
flock, for it is your father's good pleasure to give you the
kingdom. Do you love his word? For a free CD containing 15 of
these radio broadcasts, send an email to forthepoor at windstream.net.