Come and Worship with us at 8256 Promise Land Road Mountain Home, Arkansas 72653 Our
Worship Schedule is
Sunday Bible Study - 9:45am
Sunday Worship - 11:00am
Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting
- 6:00pm Wednesday Night Bible Study - 7:00pm
Today's Memory Verse "For
thus says the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him
also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite
ones."
ISAIAH 57:15
PROFESSOR
LOUIS BOUNOURE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL CENTER OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
"Where did Cain get his wife?"
Many ask this
question thinking they've found a "mistake" in the Bible-that there must have been other people besides Adam and
Eve. However, Scripture tells us that Adam is "the first man" (1 Corinthians 15:45); that there were no other humans
when he was created, because God said, "It is not good that the man should be alone" (Genesis 2:18); and that Eve
is "the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20). Cain and Abel, then, must have married their sisters. All of the first-generation
siblings married each other in order to populate the earth. At that time there was no law against incest. But as the population
grew large enough, and as the risk of genetic problems increased due to sin's curse, God outlawed marriage between immediate
family members.
Cameron, K., & Comfort, R. (2004). The school of biblical evangelism: 101 lessons: how
to share your faith simply, effectively, biblically-the way Jesus did (p. 426). Gainesville, FL: Bridge-Logos Publishers.
Point to Ponder A magnificent doe stands with its foal
and drinks cool water from a mountain stream. The sun sparkles off the dew on deep green leaves of native tree branches. The
mother gently caresses her offspring as it begins to drink from the brook. The scene is one of incredible serenity ... the
picture of innocence. What more could optimize the beauty of God's creation?
Suddenly a mountain lion leaps from a tree
and digs its sharp claws deep into the mother's neck, dragging the helpless creature to the ground. As it holds its terrified
prey in a death grip, its powerful jaws bite into the jugular vein, turning the mountain stream crimson with the creature's
blood.
It is a strong consolation to know that this isn't the way God planned it in the beginning. Animals were not created
to devour each other; they were created to be vegetarian (Genesis 1:29, 30). The original creation was "good" and
was not filled with violence and bloodshed. We live in a fallen creation (Romans 8:20-23). As a result of Adam's sin, the
perfect creation was cursed and death was introduced into the world (Romans 5:12). The day will come when the entire creation
will be delivered from the "bondage of corruption" and there will be no more curse. In the new heaven and new earth,
"the wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock ... They shall not hurt nor
destroy in all my holy mountain" (Isaiah 65:25; see also Isaiah 11:6-9).
Day by Day by Grace God Fulfilling the Work
of Faith with Power Therefore we also pray
always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling,
and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work
of faith with power, that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified
in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12) These verses provide another opportunity to reflect upon the central
point in our last sequence of devotions (from Hebrews). Therein, we examined the extensive consequences of walking by faith
(and thereby drawing upon the effective grace of God). The good things that appeared in these lives were
the result of God fulfilling the work of faith with power. The
opening words remind us of the need for intercessory prayer for one another. "Therefore we also pray
always for you." The following terms remind us of what to pray about: "that our God would
count you worthy of this calling." God counts us worthy to be
His children and His servants on the basis of faith, not performance: "not having my own righteousness,
which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which
is from God by faith" (Philippians 3:9). The following words from our present text also indicate that true faith in the Lord results in proper performance: "and
fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work
of faith with power." God wants to develop in us the good things that His
own goodness desires for us. Of course, He desires godliness for us. He accomplishes this by "the work
of faith with power." When
we trust in the Lord, the glorious works of God are manifested in and through our lives "with power."
The power involved in this process is His power. "Now to Him who is able
to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power
that works in us...To this end I also labor, striving according to His
working which works in me mightily" (Ephesians 3:20 and Colossians 1:29). This is the process that is vividly portrayed in the lives we have looked at in Hebrews. They trusted in God: "By
faith Noah...By faith Abraham...By faith Sarah" (Hebrews 11:7, 8, 11). The God upon whom they relied worked mightily in them, by means of His great grace: "according to the grace
of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ." Our God wants to fulfill the work of faith with power in
our lives-"according to the grace of our God." This is what brings glory to the Lord on
earth, while reminding us that we will enter into His glory some day in heaven: "that the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him." Lord God of great power, please fulfill in me the work of faith with power. As I look to You for the grace that is
needed for godly living, glorify Your name through my life. I eagerly await dwelling forever with You in the glories of heaven
above, Amen.
Here at Promise Land Bible Church We don't change the message, the message changes us.
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Here at Promise Land Bible Church, we are
honored that you are visiting our web site at www.plbcmh.com It is our hope at Promise Land
Bible Church that you will be encouraged by the preaching and teaching of God's Word presented here. For it is our desire
to teach the whole council of God, so that the body can be edified and above all that God may be glorified. For it is our passion and desire to share the Gospel message with everyone who will hear, in obedience
to God's word.
Welcome to our site here at www.plbcmh.com The fellowship of believers who call Promise Land Bible Church home would like to welcome you to
our website. We believe that salvation is by grace alone, thru faith alone, in Christ alone, and that the Holy Scripture is
our sole source of authority for what we do and how we live, and that everything we do, should be done for the glory of God.
This is commonly called the 5 Solas of the Reformed Faith. So here is our invitation
to you; If you are looking for a church that affirms the sole authority of the Holy
Scriptures for all of faith and practice, the pre-eminence of the preaching of the Word of God, the glorious truths of salvation
called the Doctrines of Grace, the necessity and responsibility of evangelism and a serious approach to the joyful worship
of God, then we warmly invite you to come and visit us. Join us as we look to the truth of scripture
and Worship the Lord. At www.plbcmh.com we do our best to present the truth of the gospel.
A high esteem of yourself?
(Charles Spurgeon)
A high esteem of yourself?
You are not a mature Christian, if you have a high esteem of yourself.
He who boasts in himself is but a babe in Christ--if indeed he is in Christ at all.
Young Christians may think much of themselves.
Growing Christians think themselves nothing.
Mature Christians know that they
are less than nothing.
The more holy we are, the more we mourn our infirmities,
and the humbler is our estimate of ourselves.
"Though I am nothing."
2 Corinthians 12:11
"Although I am less than the least of all God's
people . . ." Ephesians 3:8
"Christ Jesus came into the world to save
sinners--of whom I am the worst." 1 Timothy 1:15
Wonderful was
the grace that taught the once proud Pharisee thus to speak!
Pride may be set
down as "the sin" of human nature.
The demon of pride was born with us--and it
will not die one hour before us!
We are never so much in danger of being proud--as when
we think we are humble.
There is no sin into which the heart of man so easily falls as
pride--and yet there is no more vice which is more frequently, more emphatically, and more eloquently condemned in Scripture.
We are all proud. Pride can hide under a beggar's rags--as well as under a minister's
robes. Pride is a weed that will grow on a dunghill--as well as in a palace garden; but it ought never to be allowed
to grow in the heart of a Christian!
No matter how dear you are to God--if pride is harbored
in your heart, He will whip it out of you!
Word of the Day
November 18 Friend philos
Our dear Lord uses a word in Joh_15:15 that should warm our souls like few words can: "Henceforth
I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that
I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you." While we are
still "servants" of God (see February 11), our Lord here makes the startling statement that as His disciples we
are also His friends. Friend is philos (G5384) and simply means friend, that is, someone
for which there is "tender affection" (see also January 21). At
various stages in Classical Greek, philos referred to "‘followers' of a political leader," "‘clients'
who cluster around a prominent and wealthy man," and even "legal assistants and political supporters." Later
it took on a much deeper meaning in that "the supreme duty of a friend is to sacrifice himself for his friend even to
the point of death." It's that latter picture that lays the foundation
for the NT usage of philos. As Joh_15:13 declares, in fact, "Greater love hath no man than this, that
a man lay down his life for his friends." Our Lord did, indeed, give His life for us out of His true, perfect, selfless
love (agapē; see January 19). Likewise, philos appears in the Septuagint in such verses as
Pro_17:17: "A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity."
So, my dear Christian friend, if I may use that term sincerely, what is your relationship to your
Lord? Can you be called, as was Abraham according to Jas_2:23, "the Friend of God"? (Cf. 2Ch_20:7;
Isa_41:8.) Why was Abraham called the friend of God? Because of his obedience, which brings us right back to Joh_15:14:
"Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." While
we all have many acquaintances, a smaller number of closer relationships, and perhaps even a smaller cadre of associates or
colleagues, we will have very few true friends (Pro_18:24). But the Friend who cannot be equaled by any other
is our Lord. Scriptures for Study: What might
allegiance to Christ cost you, according to Luk_21:16-17? What kind of friendship means enmity with God (Jas_4:4)?
Famous Last Words: Robert Burns (1759-1796), the
Scottish poet, ranks as one of the two greatest figures in Scottish literature. That he appreciated, but failed to experience,
the power of the Christian faith is apparent in his works. To his attendant, he said:
"Be a good man; be virtuous, be religious; nothing else will give you any comfort
when you come to be here."
Thanks for visiting our site
here at www.plbcmh.com
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