Proof and Evidence of Our Discipleship

“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples” (John 15:8).

When believers walk in truth and love, when they adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour with generous, gracious, and exemplary lives and behavior they glorify God. The fruit of righteousness, by the indwelling Spirit of Christ, displayed by a believer, not only glorifies the power, grace, and mercy of God in them, but causes others to glorify God.

“So shall ye be my disciples.” Our obedience and fruitfulness do not make us disciples of Christ but are PROOF AND EVIDENCE that we are His disciples. Good fruit does not make a tree good; the tree is first good and the fruit is evidence that the tree is good.

Pastor Henry T. Mahan (1988)

HIS GLORY - Ephesians 1:1-14

The Glory of the Triune God is paramount in all things. This Glory is magnified in the electing of a people by the Father in Christ. It is magnified in the saving of that people through the blood of Christ. And it is magnified in the revelation of our Savior, in our new hearts, through the Holy Spirit. When the child of God is finally brought home, we will forever sing praise to His Glory in perfection and for eternity.

Pastor Kevin Thacker

The Green Pastures Bleed Red

Once while walking in a green pasture after a rainstorm, I looked down at my feet and noticed red water coming up wherever my feet made an impression. Such is the nature of Virginia soil that, even in green pastures, the red clay will somehow be revealed, especially after a good rain.

The “green pastures” spoken of by the psalmist (Psalm 23:2) are the Word of God. Upon walking through His Word, if God the Holy Spirit is pleased to shower a blessing upon you and anoint your steps, you will find that the green pastures bleed red. Such is the nature, the sum and substance, the purpose, rhyme, and reason of all Scripture. — The Blood! — The Blood! — The Blood!

As Moses took the blood of the sacrifice and “sprinkled both the book, and all the people” (Hebrews 9:19), so God has covered every page of His book (and His people) with the blood of His Son. As you study God’s Word, as you walk through His Word, if your feet are “shod with the preparation of the gospel” and you ponder the path of your feet, you will find that the ground of all your hope, and the foundation upon which you stand is red; for — “It is the blood that maketh atonement for the soul!” Look for it . . . the blood, as you read God’s Word . . . look unto Him, the Lamb Whose blood cleanseth from all sin.

Pastor Paul E. Mahan

HE NEVER CHANGES

“Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” (Heb. 13:8).

I am so thankful that as I grow older and things change, inside and out, that there is One who never changes.

1). His love never changes with time, for He loved me with an everlasting love that knows no change.

2). His power never changes. He is just as able to keep me from falling today as when I first began.

3). His Word never changes: “God is not a man, that He should lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent: hath He said, and shall He not do it? Or hath He spoken, and shall He not make it good?” (Numbers. 23:19) Has He not magnified His Word above His Name?

4). His election of me shall never change. He will never cast off those whom He has chosen, for they will never do anything that He did not know about and has not already taken care of.

5). The power of His blood shall never change. It still cleanses from all sin. No matter how deep the stain has gone, His blood washes it away.

6). His Sacrifice will never change, it will never lose its effectiveness because it is always fresh in the midst of the Throne of God: “And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain….” (Rev. 5:6).

We have a living sacrifice standing in the midst of the Throne of God. When we rise out of our beds in the morning and go through our changes, just remember that there is One who remains the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Rock Christ Jesus!