It's All Grace

Over these past two weeks we have been slowly drinking in the truths contained in Titus 3:4-7 about our Saving God. We have seen that salvation is by God’s kindness, His love, His mercy, by regeneration, by the Holy Spirit, and through Jesus Christ our Savior. If you missed any of these you can read them here on my blog.

Today we conclude by looking at Titus 3:7 which says we are justified by God’s grace. God’s grace deals with the guilt of our sin. Through His grace God pardons and forgives sin. By His grace the guilt of sin is removed. Those whom God saves get something for which they are totally undeserving. It is by grace that we are saved and it is all of grace. This grace certainly is amazing.

We have clearly seen that salvation is totally a work of God. I trust that you know God as your Savior.

Visit us as we worship or contact us. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Jesus Christ Our Savior

We have been considering the rich truth contained in Titus 3:4-7 which teaches us about how God saved us. We have seen that salvation is by His kindness, His mercy, regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Spirit. Salvation is all of God. There is nothing we do to save ourselves.

In Titus 3:6 we’re told that salvation is also through Jesus Christ our Savior. Our salvation is not as a result of our work but the work of our Savior, Jesus Christ. When Christ hung on the cross He said it is finished, not I did my part now you do yours. No, he did it all.

Christ being the perfect God-man is the only one who could be a mediator between God and man. Only He could have died for our sins to satisfy God’s justice. And it is only through faith in Him that anyone can be saved.

Feel free to visit or contact us. All of our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

The Abundance of Blessings

In Titus 3:5-6 we see that salvation is a renewing of the Holy Spirit whom God pours out on us richly. There was nothing that we did to get saved. Salvation is a work of God. It is God who pours out His Spirit on those He is saving. Every believer receives the Holy Spirit.

And the Scripture tells us that the Spirit was poured out on us richly. This tells us of the abundance of blessings that each believer receives through the Spirit of God. God has made ample provision for the new life that He has given us.

That means that we can live out the kind of life He has called us to live. Believers have no excuse for falling short in their duty to live a godly life. The fact is that God has richly poured out His Spirit on us.

Let us rejoice in what we have and live to the honor of our saving God.

Visit us Sunday and go online to believers-fellowship.org.

Renewed by His Spirit

Recently we have been looking at Titus 3:4-7. Let me give you those verses once again:

But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Christ Jesus our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

You’ll notice that salvation involves the renewing by the Holy Spirit. We have the ongoing, renewing work of the Spirit in our lives as believers. We are born again at a point in time but the renewing of the spirit, that transforming process is ongoing. Through the Spirit we have new longings and desires. Our life takes a totally different direction.

Join us as we worship our saving God. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

The Necessity of Humility

Last week we began to look at Titus 3:4-7 which describes how God saves people out of their sin. This is a truth that needs to be proclaimed often especially since we live in a culture that is more and more leaving God out of the picture.

As Christians we need to be careful that we don’t look down on our culture with a condemning attitude. The only reason we are any different is because God saved us. It isn’t because we were smarter. It isn’t because we did something to save ourselves, but only because God in His kindness, mercy and love saved us. He gave us new life through the power of His Word.

Christians shouldn’t be surprised by what unbelievers do because those are the same kind of things we did before God saved us. As Christians we need to always maintain a humble attitude and tell others about our saving God.

Feel free to visit or contact us. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Born Again

Salvation is from the Lord. It has to be because we cannot save ourselves. This is a truth we’ve been looking at this week as we have considered Titus 3:4-7. We are carefully looking at each phrase in this text as it unfolds for us the nature of God’s saving work.

The phrase for today makes it crystal clear that God saves us. Titus 3:5 says we are saved by “the washing of regeneration.” Regeneration means to be born again. It is to receive new life. As sinners we were dead in our trespasses. But God gives us life – spiritual, eternal life.

And God does this through His Word. 1 Peter 1:23 says that we have been born again by the living and enduring word of God. God washes us from our sin and gives us new life through the power of His Word.

Have you been born again by the life giving Word of God?

Feel free to visit or contact us. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Great and Rich Mercy

We have been looking at that great explanation of how God saves which is recorded in Titus 3:4-7. So far we have seen that God saves people by His kindness and His love. Today we’ll see that God saves according to His mercy.

Titus 3:5 says, “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy.”

Mercy is another word of compassion like kindness and love. God has a great compassion towards those who are in the misery of sin. By His mercy God saves people from the judgment that they deserve.

Did you notice that He saves according to His mercy? That means He saves in proportion to His mercy. So what is God’s mercy like? 1 Peter 1:3 says God has great mercy. Ephesians 2:4 says God is rich in mercy.

God demonstrates great and rich mercy when He saves.

Join us Sunday as we worship our merciful God. All of our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Have You Received Christ?

We are looking this week at that incredible passage in Titus 3:4-7 which describes the saving work of God. This text clearly says, “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness. “ We did nothing to save ourselves. God did it all.

Today let’s consider the fact that, as these verses tell us, God saved us by His love. The word that is translated love is the Greek word that we get our word philanthropy from. It is a word that speaks of pity and compassion. This word describes a willingness to deliver from distress because of a strong affection.

And this love has appeared to mankind. How did it appear? In the person of Jesus Christ. The love of God for mankind appeared in the coming of Christ – but it does you no good unless you have placed your faith in Christ. Have you received Christ?

Feel free to visit or contact us. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org

God Bless You, Matt Rehrer

Today is a big day for Matt Rehrer. Tonight Matt graduates from medical school and can begin to officially wear the title, Dr. Rehrer.

Roberta and I were fortunate enough to be able to join Matt and other family and friends at a luncheon held today in honor of the graduates.

I am extremely thankful for Matt and all that the Lord has done in his life. He has been a real testimony to me of God's grace and sustaining power.

Many of you know that Matt lost his parents and two sisters in a car accident almost three years ago. The accident occurred while his family was on their way to visit Matt and his wife, Kara. Matt's father, Bill, was a close friend to me. We worked side-by-side at Believers Fellowship for many years. Our families were very close and Matt has been a great friend to our three sons.

While Matt's family has been in heaven for these past three years, Matt has continued to faithfully serve the Lord. Today is a day to rejoice with Matt as he passes this significant milestone.

Matt and Kara have moved to California where Matt will begin his residency. I look forward to what the Lord will continue to do in Matt's life and where He will eventually direct him. I am confident that Matt will continue to faithfully serve His Lord wherever that may be.

All I can say is, "God bless you, Matt Rehrer!"

Saved by God's Kindness

Yesterday we began to look at Titus 3:4-7. This is a wonderful passage that talks about how God saves people out of their sin. This passage uses a number of rich words and phrases to describe God’s saving work. Today we’ll look at the first word – kindness. We are saved by God’s kindness.

This kindness refers to the goodness of God’s heart toward sinners. God has a concern in His heart towards people who are in the misery of sin. The Bible tells us that God takes no delight in the death of the wicked. He is referred to throughout this book of Titus as God our Savior. He is a saving God. He sent His Son to seek and to save the lost.

This is a reflection of God’s kindness toward helpless and hopeless sinners. We rejoice in the kindness of God.

Join us this Sunday at Believers Fellowship as we worship God our Savior and you can find all our information on line at believers-fellowship.org.

He Saved Us

When the Apostle Paul wrote to Titus, he explained how our salvation is a work of God. Listen to what the Apostle says in chapter3, verses 4-7:

But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

These are wonderful and encouraging words which express the richness of the salvation that God has given to us in Christ. In the days to come we will look closely at what these verses teach about spiritual life. I know that we’ll be blessed.

Join us this Sunday as we rejoice in our salvation and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

Powerful to Save

This morning 20 men met at Believers Fellowship to study theology. Nothing can move the heart of a believer more than a deep contemplation of the character of our God.

We have been learning about God’s sovereignty in salvation. The Bible clearly teaches that man is born with a sinful nature. That nature affects the way we think, what we say, and what we do. Our nature is totally affected by sin. Our desires and motives are impure. Because of our condition we are absolutely unable to please God on our own. The Scripture clearly teaches the absolute inability of man.

Therefore, God must, in His sovereignty, take the initiative in drawing people to Himself. The Bible teaches that God is calling people from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation to Himself. He is saving powerfully and permanently.

We can thank God for His sovereign grace by which He has saved us.

Join us Sunday as we worship our sovereign God and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

Our God Reigns

On Friday mornings, the men of our church are engaged in a serious study of theology. We are currently studying the sovereignty of God. The Bible clearly teaches that God created all and He actively rules over all.

The Bible clearly teaches that all of God’s plans and purposes will be fulfilled perfectly. That is an amazing thing to consider. There are over 6 billion people on earth. Each of us is making decisions and doing what we want to do. Also, we are all responsible for our actions. Yet all of these actions are fulfilling God’s plans perfectly. That is amazing.

The best example is found in the crucifixion of Christ. The Jewish and Roman leaders were doing just what they wanted to do and at the same time God was fulfilling His plan for the redemption of sinners. Acts 4:27-28 makes this point clear.

What comfort we get from knowing Our God reigns.

Join us this Sunday and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org

We Are All Theologians

At Believers Fellowship we have a good group of men who meet at 6 am on Fridays to study theology. That’s right, theology. We do this because we believe that doctrine matters. Serious study isn’t just for theologians. The reality is that we are all theologians. We all have thoughts about God and those thoughts determine how we live our lives.

We want to make sure we have a biblical view of God. We want to think right thoughts about our Lord so that our lives are in line with His will. And we are not afraid to wrestle with the hard questions like trying to understand the relationship between the sovereignty of God and human responsibility.

We live in a day when precise doctrine is not highly valued in the church but a biblical theology is vital to a holy life that can be used by God in this world.

Come join us as we study the Bible and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

How Big Is Your God?

Today I am in California. My wife and I are visiting with our youngest son who is about to go to Uganda on a six week missions trip. During his time in Uganda, our son will be involved in ministering on a university campus, an orphanage, and a refugee camp. Talk about a variety of experiences.

I’m glad that my son gets to go on this trip and I am thankful for these kinds of ministries. These kinds of opportunities provide exposure to what the Lord is doing around the world. It gives a person a bigger picture of God and His work in our time.

So whether a person who goes on one of these trips winds up being a full time missionary or not, their experience on these trips will strengthen them in the Lord and help them as they serve in their local church.

At Believers Fellowship we promote missions work around the world.

Join us this Sunday or visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

The Happiest Place on Earth

Today I am in California. I’m at Disneyland, to be exact. Disneyland is known as the happiest place on earth. It’s a place where you can go, forget about everything else, and have some fun. There are rides and shows and lots of good food to enjoy.

However, I have been to Disneyland many times and observed children who apparently were not told that Disneyland was the happiest place on earth. These children didn’t look too happy. Neither did their parents.

The truth is that while Disneyland can be fun, it is not the happiest place on earth. I would recommend somewhere else.

It is the church. Actually it was Charles Spurgeon who first referred to the church as the happiest place on earth.

In the church we enjoy the fellowship of the saints as we join together to worship and serve our savior – the Lord Jesus Christ.

Join us on Sunday at the happiest place on earth and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

God Bless the Moms

This week on Grace to You you can hear John MacArthur teaching on the family. This is a timely series in many ways but especially since this Sunday in Mother’s Day.

There is a lot of confusion in our culture over the role of a mother in her family. Women today receive a lot of different messages. Fortunately, the Bible provides us with timeless truth.

The role of the mother is highly regarded in the Scripture. She complements her husband in teaching and leading their children. Many children grow up to faithfully serve the Lord because of the influence of a godly mother.

I would encourage you to pray for your mother or wife and that you would appreciate her importance in your family. Do something special for her this Sunday to let her know how much you love her.

At Believers Fellowship we have a strong women’s ministry which encourages moms. Feel free to visit or contact us. Our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Check It Out

Roberta is blogging again back at her old blogging spot. Please check it out and leave a comment to encourage her.

You can find her blog by clicking the link to the right.

God Bless!

Grace and Truth

We have the pleasure of following Grace To You, John MacArthur’s radio ministry. Dr. MacArthur was my first pastor and I graduated from the seminary of which he is the president. Two of my sons have graduated from the college which Dr. MacArthur is also president and my third son is attending there now.

The Lord has blessed my wife and me with three godly sons. We affirm 3 John 4 which says, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth.”

From parenting I have learned that God is gracious and His word is true. God graciously gave us our sons and He has been gracious to them because they don’t have perfect parents. However, we have found that when we faithfully apply God’s word, we always find it to be true.

At Believers Fellowship we are committed to learning God’s word. Feel free to visit us or contact us. Our information is online at believers-fellowship.org

Happily Married?

This week you are hearing John MacArthur teach on the family right before us on Grace to You. These broadcasts will provide rich biblical instruction and I would encourage you to follow along.

In seventeen years of pastoral ministry I have done a lot of marital counseling. A common issue is that one spouse will express that they can’t be happy in the marriage unless their spouse does what they should do. Now they may have a valid point about what their spouse should be doing, but they are dead wrong about whether or not they can be happy.

Happiness in marriage is not dependent upon my spouse’s response. It is dependent upon my obedience to the Lord. If the Lord says, “Well done” then it really doesn’t matter what my spouse says. My pleasure comes in pleasing the Lord.

At Believers Fellowship we’re committed to helping you learn to please the Lord.

Feel free to visit or contact us. All our information is online at believers-fellowship.org.

Investing In Your Family

(The Cutting It Straight radio spot comes on right after Grace to You on KSLR AM 630)

This week on Grace to You, you are hearing John MacArthur teach on the family. I am glad that he is doing this. I know that his teaching is biblical and I know how important the family is. I tell young men preparing for the ministry that the number one counseling issue they will deal with is the family.

Why are family issues so common? The answer is because sin is so pervasive. Pride and selfishness are killers in family relationships. Harmony in the home requires that we not listen to the world but that we humbly submit to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

I encourage you to keep listening to Grace to You and learn all that the Bible teaches about the family. You won’t regret investing in your family. There is no greater joy than that found in a godly family.

At Believers Fellowship we seek to encourage healthy homes. Feel free to visit or contact us. You can find all of our information online at believers-fellowship.org.

Godly Marriages

(The Cutting It Straight radio spot comes on right after Grace to You.)

You just heard John MacArthur start a new series on the family on Grace to You. The family is instituted by God as the most basic and foundational of all human relationships. The family is very important to God.

This past weekend I had the privilege of performing a wedding for a godly young couple. It is always encouraging to see a couple commit themselves to following the Lord’s way in their marriage.

Sadly, many marriages struggle, even within the church. Many believers need to reorient their thinking to the biblical pattern. These broadcasts on Grace to you will help strengthen any marriage.

I know that my own marriage has been greatly helped by the biblical teaching of John MacArthur and other men on the staff of the church he pastors. I encourage you to listen to these broadcasts.

At Believers Fellowship, we are committed to the family. Feel free to visit or contact us. All our information can be found online at believers-fellowship.org.

Is the Lord All You Want?

This week we have been looking at Psalm 23:1. We have seen that only those who can say, “The Lord is My Shepherd” can also say, “I shall not want.”

Now there may be Christians who do not always experience that perfect contentment that the Lord gives. That is because even though they know the Shepherds voice, they are not always tuned in. They allow His voice to be garbled by static interference from other sources.

The key to this contentment is found in walking in the shadow of the Shepherd, listening to His voice. The sheep that are closest to the shepherd receive the best of the shepherd. How closely are you walking to Him?

One day in Sunday School a little girl recited Psalm 23:1 this way, “The Lord is my shepherd, that’s all I want.” She didn’t say it right, but she got it right.

Is the Lord all you want?

Feel free to join us this Sunday and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.

Is The Lord Your Shepherd?

In Psalm 23 David describes a peace and contentment that he knew even when he faced deep darkness or imminent danger. How could he say, “I shall not want?” Because he could first say, “The Lord is my shepherd.”

David had been a shepherd as a young man and he knew that the well-being and security of the sheep depended entirely on the quality of the shepherd. And David knew that there was no more secure place than to be one of the Lord’s sheep.

With the Lord as your shepherd, you can know tranquility and safety even among the troubles of life. How can we want when we are united to Him?

Is the Lord your shepherd? David said, “The Lord is my shepherd.” Can you confidently say that? He is not everybody’s shepherd. Only those who have heard His voice and turned from their sinful wanderings to follow Him are His sheep.

Join us Sunday as we follow the Shepherd and visit us online at believers-fellowship.org.