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Thursday, January 13, 2005

TEN PROMISES

Brothers and Sisters in Christ, your afflictions in this world may be many, heavy, and long, but they will never destroy, or even harm you. Therefore the Lord your God says, "Fear Not." In accordance with Isaiah 43:1-7, He gives you these ten, blessed promises to silence your fears.


1. "I have redeemed thee!" Christ has redeemed you by the price of His blood and the power of His Grace. If He has redeemed you, nothing and no one can harm you.


2. "I have called thee by thy name!" All whom He has redeemed are called, called with an effectual, irresistible, personal call. This is efficacious Grace!


3. "Thou art mine!" What a blessed word of Grace! You belong to God as His peculiar possession, His new creation. That means you are under His protection and provision.


4. "I will be with thee!" Wherever God by His providence puts you, He will be with you in sympathy and in power to take care of you.


5. "I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel!" The Almighty God, the Holy One, who is always faithfial and true, is as much your property as you are His property, because He has given Himself to you.


6. "I am thy Saviour!" When He says, "I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee," our Lord is saying, I have bought you at such a price that I cannot afford to lose you."


7. "Thou art Precious in my sight!" You are God's treasure, His jewel. Though despised by men, if you are a believer, you are precious to God!


8. "Thou hast been honorable?" You are not honorable by nature, nor by any of your deeds, but God by His Grace has made you honorable. He has washed away your sin by the blood of Christ and robed you with His perfect righteousness.


9. "I have loved thee!" Let men talk all they please about a useless, universal love, this is special love! God so loves His own elect that He will sacrifice men and nations for them!


10. "I have created (you) for my Glory!" The very Glory of the triune God is wrapped up in the Salvation of His people. He will either save everyone of the chosen seed, all who are called by His name, and save them from all evil, or He will lose His Glory; and that cannot be!

Thank you for the word Pastor Don Fortner of Grace Baptist ChurchDanville, Ky.

Elder J. Andres Vazquez
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1 comment:

J.A. Vazquez said...

Amen! I pray God will continue to bless you in a mighty way.

February 12, 2005 4:00 PM

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About Me

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I'm just, a nobody, trying to tell everybody, about Somebody who can save anybody. First I want to give love to the Father for giving me the opportunity to be an instrument for him to live in and live through for the glory that belongs to only him and Him alone. I served in the United States Navy for twenty one years and retired September 2003. During the last 3 years of my naval career, I served as co-pastor of Greater New Refuge COGIC in Fallon, Nevada under the tutelage of Pastor Gregory L. Brown. While there, I diligently served my pastor and church with the construction of a new sanctuary, and caring for the needs of all ministries, while simultaneously striving to stay focused on the mandate that the Lord had placed upon my life to preach the Word of God without compromise. I was licensed to preach November 2002 and Ordained June 2003. While stationed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, I proudly served and as constituent of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church for seventeen years under the leadership of Bishop Elect W. D. Scott, Sr. and presently serve under the leadership of Bishop B. Courtney McBath at Calvary Revival Church in Norfolk, Virginia.

MY THEOLOGICAL TRAINING:

It brings to my face a unadulterated smile each and every occasion I am asked, “Elder Dre, What Theological Training do you have?”

My heart beams with joy at the opportunity to humbly give full glory to God as I reflect on on how the prophets, patriarchs and apostles of old would have respond: Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, Gideon, King David, Elijah, Elisha, Jeremiah, John the Baptist, Matthew, Mark, Peter, James, John and the other disciples, not forgetting the Saviour Himself.

How would they have answered the question: “What theological training do you have?”

The words of the prophet Amos also came to mind: “Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:” Amos 7:14

I surely am not impliedly decrying theological preparation, education or training: I consider it essential, but not as much as some think. For the fact is, the Almighty raises up believers according to His own standards.

Educational qualifications, wealth, fame, talent, social standing, outward appearance etc. are useful; but they are secondary in His sight. Qualities like faith, obedience, holiness, humility, honesty, absolute loyalty to one’s spouse, the ability to raise one’s family to fear God and keep His commandments etc.; these are the things the Most High values.

“Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”

Only on the Day of Judgment will it be known how truly educated, weighty and effective I have been. That is why I have to smile when the question arise.

The vanity of the question is only matched by the foolishness of my answer.

As the wise man wrote: “Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher; all is vanity.” Ecclesiastes 1: 2 or as the apostle Paul commented in 2 Corinthians 11:16-30 when rattling off a long list of impressive qualifications “... I speak as a fool.”

Furthermore, we have seen with our own eyes and now testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. All who proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. 1 John 4:14-15 (NLT)

I am a preacher, but most of all, I proclaim that Jesus is the Savior with various applications of that truth in my everyday life. My dear friend, if you are a Christian, you are a preacher also. Whether you have been ordained or not, hired by a church or not, or ever been recognized as a preacher or not is beside the point. All who have God living in them are called to proclaim the Savior to the world. It is a Holy calling, and a demanding one. It will pull you out of your comfort zone, challenge your commitment, and help to develop you into the person God has created you to be.

John spoke as an eyewitness to Jesus' saving power. We speak as heart-witnesses; ones who have not seen Jesus with our eyes, but have experienced Him through personal transformation. I speak, and you speak, as a representative of Christ on earth. The message that we bring is simple, yet profound; that God the Father sent God the Son into the world to save those who are lost to bring them into relationship with Him. As you tell the story, and I tell the story, some will listen and receive the grace that God has sent us into the world to proclaim.

PRAYER THOUGHT: Father, what a privilege to be a spokesperson for You.

Thank you for stopping by. Stay encouraged and please do come back.