Sovereign Grace Missionary Baptist Church "Where The Truths Of God’s Word Have Been Taught For More Than Fifty-Two Years” 1217 Dillon Texarkana, Texas 75501 August 03, 2014 Newsletter Number 476 Brother Randy Johnson, Pastor Brother Ronnie Henderson, Song Director Pastor E-Mail: pastor@sgmbaptist.com Web Site: ww.sgmbaptist.com

Our Prayer Request: All of Our Military, Their Family’s & All the Civilian Workers in The Middle East, Zee Mink Fuller and Family, Her son’s Bryan Armstrong and Hunter Hackie, Daughter Shannon, and Brother Philip & Sondra Thornsberry, Helen Maggard, Johnnie Stephens, Alecia Stephens, and children, Frankie Baldridge and daughter, Buckie Thompson, Frank & Sonya Trusty, Frank & Dawana Reigel, Andrew Preston, Larry & Martha Mollette, Larry Mollette II & Family, Kerry Pennington, Kim Poole, Danny & Nita Mollette, The Muncy Family, Robert Riggs, Wendell Henderson, Judy Dunn, Martha Gray, Joshua Kidd, Matthew Kidd, Ronnie and Sarah Henderson, Ronnie Henderson Jr. & Children, Ricky Henderson and Family, Jacie Henderson, Velma Hammond, Charles, Don Hammond and Families, Archie & Barbara Griffin, Bro. & Sister Bob Keller, Donna Johnson, Fay Johnson, James and Luann Reynolds, Timothy Fails, Nathan & Claire Fails, Jacob Ramsey, Jerry Hughes, Teresa Bookout, Pastor G. L. Burr, Melody Carr, Janie Capps, Imajo Tracy, Linda Hughes, Roy Lemmon, Rosie Tomlin, Pat Abercrombie, Donna Jones, Dale Trahan, Ricky and Margaret McCoy, Brother David O’Neal, James & Diane Thomas, Gina Peel, James and Lynn Tomlin, Brother Kelley and Sister Hinson, Megan Whitaker, Manual Seymour, Sr., Brother Jerry and Sister Jean Dodson, Brother Curtis Pugh, Brother Dan Sullivan and the work in Thailand, Brother Raul and the work in Romania, and Bro. Sergey Mochalov and the Churches in Russia.

A Thought From Pastor Johnson: You Cannot Hear Without Spiritual Ears. Matthew 11:15 "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear." If one is totally deaf then they cannot hear anything, no sound at all. It is the same with spiritual deaf people, they hear nothing spiritual. In the world learning is easy, 1+1=2 or spelling cat is simple, or hearing and understanding an average conversation, but it is not as simple with God’s word. God said in 1 Corinthians 1:23 "But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;" as a “stumblingblock” to the Jews a stumblingblock means - something that offends them – but why? Because they totally reject Jesus Christ as the Messiah, they hated Him so much they hung Him on the cross like a criminal, and today is no different. The Greeks are anything not Jew, in other words it means the Gentiles, and to them it is “foolishness”, that’s right to preach Christ crucified is foolishness because simply His crucifixion could never be enough to save a sinners. There must be more than just the crucifixion of Christ Jesus in order to be saved. The Jews stumble at the crucifixion of Christ Jesus and the Greeks thinks its foolishness because they are both with deaf ears. How many times does the bible say we are not saved by works and they must include works of some sort into their salvation. It would be foolishness to believe that salvation is totally in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, foolishness to say that the spilt blood of Christ cleanses all our sin’s, but God said it is true. It is too simple when God said "That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:15 but that is just too simple. Salvation as a gift is also too simple, they cannot believe that Christ’s death was enough to save a sinner, no we must also do something, but I ask what? Do we not sin once we are saved? Is our works for salvation better than our life before salvation? Folks, we are never perfect in this life whether saved or lost unless Christ blood cleanses all our sins. The problem is they have no spiritual ears to hear and then Christ as Saviour becomes foolishness to them. So, since they don’t like God’s plan of salvation, since they have not the ability to hear the truth, they set out to “establish their own righteousness” which is foolishness to God. "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God." Romans 10:3 they have called God a liar, when they themselves are the fools. 1 John 2:22 “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.” Brethren, we can preach and argue until Jesus Comes and it will accomplish nothing until the Holy Spirit gives those ears to hear. This is why I stopped arguing years ago, it does no good unless the Holy Spirit gives them ears to hear. I have been told in laughter that believing that Christ is Saviour and enough to save a sinner simply is too simple. However, to us who have ears to hear let us hear, let us hear the Pastor when he preaches, hear the teachers when they teach, these are God’s messengers delivering God’s messages to the hearing ears. While the Lost may not hear or understand, as Christians we ought to hear and heed Gods messages, and His word. What a blessing it is to be able to hear Gods word, and what sadness it is to ignore what is said. "He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."

A Thought From Oscar Mink, Our Former Pastor: WHY A HELL? Why a hell? All governments of the earth have prisons for the transgressors of their laws, and the voice of decency in universal concert cries out, saying, "This is as it should be." Then I ask, shall not God have His? Sin did not merely exile man from God, but made him a fugitive, and a rebel against all that is holy and good. God's laws are not only violated, but are scornfully flaunted and outraged by man. In God's sight, sinners are criminals, and it would be inconsistent with God's holiness and justice to have His laws broken and blasphemed, and not invoke the penalty annexed to His law. God will not excuse the guilty (Nah. 1:3). In spite of the incessant rage of the cults against the Bible doctrine of hell, thousands upon thousands of people are every day learning of the reality of hell by dropping off of the precipice of time "into the fire that never shall be quenched" (Mk. 9:43). The Jehovah Witnesses so called believe Christ's resurrection resulted in His evaporation, and that there never was nor shall ever be a hell. Armstrongism teaches that those who die in their sin shall experience annihilation, and the mainline denominations are at an accelerated rate imbibing the doctrine of the total restoration of mankind. But the Scriptures clearly teach that all who die outside of Christ shall suffer eternal damnation. "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" And it is right for spiritual criminals to be punished? "The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). Dan. 12:2 "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." John 5:28-29 "Marvel not at this, for the hour is coming, in the which all that are the graves shall hear His voice, and come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." Death and resurrection does not change the spiritual character of man. The Lord says of man's post resurrection state, "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still" (Rev. 22: 11)

A Quote To Think About By Thomas Watson: Fervency in prayer is as fire to the incense — it makes it ascend to Heaven as a sweet perfume. To induce believers to pray in faith, let them remember the bountifulness of God. He often exceeds the prayers of His people: Hannah asked a son — God gave her not only a son, but a prophet. Solomon asked wisdom — God gave him not only wisdom, but riches and honor besides. Jacob asked that God would give him food and clothing, but the Lord increased his riches to two bands. The woman of Canaan asked but the life of her child, but Christ not only gave her that — but the life of her soul also! ------------------------------------------------------------- A godly man will as soon live without food, as without prayer.