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Whose Righteousness Saves Us?
“This is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.” Jeremiah 23:6“… to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” II Peter 1:1 Present day evangelicals tend to believe that the fierce Calvinist-Arminian controversy of the eighteenth century was merely a question of whether God chose the elect or the elect chose God. This is an oversimplification. Then the point of discussion was not so much the broad question “Who are the elect?” as the more basic question “Whom does God consider righteous?” Our brethren in those days were more interested in the means of salvation rather than the outcome. How the Calvinist-Arminian Controversy of the Eighteenth Century Began The…
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Job’s Faith In The Resurrection
A Sermon Preached By John Hazelton, At Mount Zion Chapel, Chadwell Street, Clerkenwell, On Lord’s-Day Evening, 14th February, 1875 “Yet in my flesh shall I see God.”—Job 19:26 Job had spiritual breathing times before the throne of God. There were moments in his sufferings, when his spirit was buoyant, and his feelings lively; when his thoughts were carried on high, and he was more than a match for Satan, and equal to all his pains and afflictions. Sometimes we see him plunged as it were, into the greatest depths, and then we hear the language of deep and bitter complaint. Again, we see him rise to the surface, and breathing sentiments of joy. The hand of his covenant God was underneath him, and the Spirit…
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Phil Johnson On Christ Being Made Sin Only Figuratively
Following Theological Fashions Our modern theology has apparently become a matter of fashions. In my youth, Christians kept to their theological opinions closely. Whether a Plymouth Brother, Particular Baptist, Wesleyan Methodist or an Evangelical Anglican, they remained true to their affiliations all their Christian lives. Nowadays, Christians seem to be changing their theological bent regularly. I have friends who have adopted one supposedly modern fad after another, going through Hyper-Fullerism, Hyper-Calvinism, New Covenant Theology, New Perspectives, Dispensationalism and other old warmed up errors within a few years. I have even received letters from irate brethren scolding me for not keeping up to date with new theological trends myself. Being made sin and being made righteous refers to facts not fictive pictures When browsing through magazines,…
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Enjoy The Righteousness Of Christ
Our standing as Christians is founded upon the Lord Jesus Christ alone. We say it, we hear it, and nodding affirmatively we agree that it is true. Yet, all too often we fail to grasp the implications of this fact. All too often our actions and our attitudes, our feelings, our hopes and fears are motivated by something quite different. Instead of looking to Christ we look to ourselves. We imagine that if we could better overcome temptation we would be happier, if we could subdue our sin we would find more peace. We suspect that our interest in God’s love is hindered by our lack of faith and wonder if our conviction for sin has been deeply enough felt. So we become pre-occupied with…
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Why So Particular?
To be described as being particular about things is not always a compliment. In fact it is sometimes used as a polite put down as much as to say, ‘He’s very fussy’, or ‘She’s hard to please’. This is often the impression given when some Christians, usually Baptists, describe themselves as ‘Strict and Particular’. One can imagine someone new to the phrase wincing slightly at the expression. The picture of an austere old aunt or a disciplinarian teacher might spring to mind. Hair combed, laces tied and sitting quietly. Overly strict and very particular. Strict Of course the real meaning of the term is quite different and has more to do with the historical development of theology in certain churches. Congregations who practise strict communion…
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Salvation By Grace
Substance Of A Sermon Preached By John Kershaw At Zoar Chapel, Great Alie Street, London, On Lord's Day Morning, April 12th, 1846. "For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.”—Ephesians 2:8,9 My beloved friends, as we had this precious portion of God's holy Word under consideration last Lord's day, we will come at once to the second part of our subject, that the enjoyment of our interest in the salvation of Christ is by faith. What a blessing, beloved, for us that the work of salvation is finished. The poor sinner is made to feel his lost, ruined and undone state. It is necessary in this…
