The EncouragerVolume 10 Issue 4

Salvation God’s Way

Our salvation is not based u p o n o u r i d e a s o r p o l i t i c a l l y c o r r e c t guidelines. It is solely based upon our acceptance of God’s chosen way, which is through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ - Gal. 2:16. It involves our repentance of trusting everything else, and only trusting the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for payment for our sins - I Cor. 15:1-4. You cannot add Jesus Christ to your collection of saviors, He is the only Savior, and it is by His blood that our sin debt is paid - Col. 1:14. Jesus Christ is still the only way of Salvation - John 14:6

Eastern Shore Bible Baptist Churchof Galena, Maryland

“In whom we have boldness and access with confidence b y t h e f a i t h o f h i m ” Ephesians 3:12.

Most of the t ime when “having an attitude” is used, the context is always with a bad connotation. We parents tell our children that they need an attitude adjustment at t imes, and we descr ibe someone who is surly and cantankerous as having an attitude.

Christians are very much berated in our politically correct society if we show any type of outspokenness or boldness. We are told that we, of all people, must have a tolerance and a quiet spirit that should not be offensive to anyone for any reason.

If you have been in our church for very long, you have heard me preach several messages on being kind, compassionate, and quite simply, not a jerk. People will very often reject the truth of the Scripture because they do not want the truth. I don’t think we should give them additional reasons to reject i t because we Christians are acting like idiots.

With that said, I think it is time we Christians “have an attitude”. It is Christianity t h a t g a v e u s We s t e r n Civilization and the prosperity that has come with it. It is Christianity that gave us choice, the dignity of women, the abolishment of slavery, the desire of books and education, and the willingness that has made America the most charitable nation in the history of the world. As the only nation in history that chose the God of the Holy Bible as the God of their nation from its inception [God chose

Sunday Service Schedule

9:30am Sunday School

10:30am Morning Worship

6:00pm Evening Worship

Wednesday Service

7:00pm Prayer Meeting and Bible Study

H a v i n g A n A t t i t u d e

b yPastor Steve Hays, D.Min

July - August 2013

Israel, but America chose God], America has stepped up to the plate and taken an active role in wars that did not involve us so that we could protect the innocent from annihilation, as well as always being the first to offer aid when there is a disaster anywhere around the world.

I realize that Americans can have a bad attitude, but the idea that we should have no attitude at all when we foot the bill for the world is madness. If the other nations want to complain about our attitude as Americans, then maybe they need to stop cashing our checks and expecting our military to lay down their lives for their foreign benefits.

As Christians, what the world calls a bad attitude, we call confidence, trust, and hope. I grow weary of the world dictating to us how we should f e e l , a c t , a n d c o n d u c t ourselves. The world did not save me from hell. It did not give me a peace that passes all understanding, and it did not give me a hope that someday everything will be made right. I refuse to allow this world to dictate what my attitude needs to be.

I. An Attitude of Confidence“… boldness and access with confidence …” Eph. 3:12

A bad attitude comes from having confidence in the wrong thing [Philippians 3:3]. We have no confidence in the flesh. People who do, have their confidence in something that they have to constantly fix, prop up, cover up for, and make excuses.

Christian confidence is what gives us our boldness and our confidence. We are confident that we have the truth.

Several years ago, we had someone in the county trying to push their “gay” agenda in the local paper. I don’t usually react to things like that [Pro. 26:4] but they kept saying that God changed His mind since Bible days. I f inal ly had enough and responded with Scripture by writing a letter to the editor myself. The response of this person to my letter was that “ P a s t o r H a y s n e v e r considered that the Bible might be wrong”.

He was exactly right on that point. It NEVER entered my mind that my Bible was wrong. It is through my Bible that God speaks to mankind. It is through the Bible that we know anything spiritual or eternal. It is through the Bible that we have the promises of God, and it is through the Bible we see the proof of the prophecies, our redemption, and our hope of heaven.

Call it an attitude if you will, but my confidence is in that Book. The world cannot provide an answer, but they want me to throw away the one thing that has never changed or been proven wrong in exchange for their trash that has never been proven right and has only produced more problems.

I do not like a bully, whether on a school yard or holding a Bible. But I certainly don’t like cowards either. We have no reason to run in the face of t h e i r c o n d e m n a t i o n o r intimidation. We have access to the truth, to the Creator Himself through Jesus Christ, and so we have boldness.

II. An Attitude of Trust“Come boldly unto the throne of grace …” Hebrews 4:16

In my reading of popular opinions lately, I have often run into the same thought spewing from the mouth of the skeptics: that when things go our way, Christians claim it to be a blessing from God; and when it doesn’t go our way, we claim it to be the will of God and what is best for us.

Their mocking consists of saying that whatever happens we are going to claim “God” in it. And they are right.

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Several weeks ago I was standing with a group of men listening to their comments about a sixteen year old young man. The y o u n g m a n b e i n g commented on was my wife’s nephew, Daniel, who had passed away as a result of an automobile accident. One of the men was his boss. He runs a fami ly farm and had employed Daniel. Daniel loved to run the tractors and do the field work. A man in the group said, “One thing is for sure, we d idn ’ t have to make excuses for him.”

That statement was in reference to Daniel’s work e th ic . H is boss was always satisfied with the effort Daniel gave and would quickly and easily add how hard a worker he was; that he was willing to put in many long and difficult hours; that he was d e p e n d a b l e ; w o u l d always show up; was an

i ndependen t worke r ; could think for himself; did not need anyone to baby sit him; would do what he w a s t o l d ; c o u l d b e counted on to do the job right; looked out for his employer’s benefit; never cheated on his time but would instead always charge you less than the amoun t o f hours he actually worked; that he was loved and is going to be sorely missed.

Those are qu i te the statements to be spoken about a sixteen year old young man. Over the next few days I heard many similar comments from various other people and it is true, no one needed to make any excuses for him.

Thereafter, I thought about that often and began to reflect on how important it is in my own life that others be able to say that about me, not only in my work ethic but in other subjects as well.

For a born again child of God, what areas in his life should there not be any excuses made? There are m a n y b u t I w a n t t o discuss three categories where we do not want others to have to make excuses for us.

I. Character.The sum of your character can be demonstrated in those qualities which are particular to you. They should include honesty, dependability, punctuality, a good attitude, making right decisions, the ability to positively interact with others, courage, etc.

Andrew Willis preached a message recently and used Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as illustrations in his message. In the book of Daniel those four men displayed good character. For example, knowing the c o n s e q u e n c e f o r disobeying an ungodly command the three made the decision not to bow to

by Pastor Rob

NO EXCUSES FOR HIM

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the image regardless of their outcome. A person does not arrive at a s i t u a t i o n o f t h a t magnitude and suddenly develop good character. It must be previously deve loped. A l though changing character flaws in yourself is difficult, it is a n e c e s s a r y a n d worthwhile effort.

II. Conduct.Your conduct is obviously those things that you do. It involves how you come across, your manner, and y o u r b e h a v i o r. B a d character will display bad conduct. Good character will display good conduct. What you do or do not do is important. It does matter. Even just a “little” can inf luence much. Many small steps make up a journey. You never get to the end without a series of “little” steps. Personal disasters come o n l y a f t e r m a n y c o m p r o m i s e s a n d unconfessed sins. As well, victories come only after many obediences and right decisions.

T h e o p i n i o n a n d testimony of others about y o u h a s a d i r e c t

c o n n e c t i o n t o y o u r conduct. 1 Cor 8:3 says, “But if any man love God, the same is known of him.” If a man loves God others know that about him. How do they know? They see his conduct. It becomes very apparent. If any man does not love God, others know that too.

III. Christianity.A Christian is a follower o f C h r i s t w h i l e Christianity is the process of following Christ. Your Christianity is YOUR relationship with the Lord and YOUR walk with G o d . I t i s n o t a n organization and you do n o t r e c e i v e a t i t l e . Christianity is more of an action verb rather than a noun. It is not something that we turn on or turn off d e p e n d i n g o n t h e circumstance we happen to be in.

Paul told Timothy in 1 Tim 6:12 to, “Fight the good fight of faith.” To do a good job in a fight you m u s t b e s o m e w h a t aggressive and also committed. Christianity is a fight that involves faith not fists but just the

same, being half in and half out is not good Christianity. The half that is in does not make your C h r i s t i a n i t y g o o d because there is no way to separate yourself from the other half that is out. Do those things that a Christian should do and your Christianity will take care of itself.

P a u l r e m i n d e d t h e Corinthians - 2 Cor 5:14 - that “the love of Christ constraineth us;” It is the very thing that compels u s a n d m o v e s u s . Without His love for us and without our love for Him we will not get much accompl ished. Verse fifteen says, “that they which live should not hencefor th l ive unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.”

We have a choice in everything we do and in al l the decisions we make. Be conscientious of those choices so that no one has to make excuses for you. Be g e n u i n e i n y o u r character, your conduct, and your Christianity.

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ESBBC HappeningsBy Cindy Hays

Vacation bible school

July 29 - Aug. 2 6 - 8 pm

Ages 4 - Grade 12

Plan to join us for a great t ime o f B ib le Stories, games, crafts and snacks.

Encouragement........... from the hymnsBy Cindy Hays Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,,, Eph. 5:19

! One of my favorite hymns is “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”. I did a bit of research on this hymn and was surprised to find out the words were written by Robert Robinson at age 22 in the year 1757. Here is a clip of the article from www.sharefaith.com. At 17, Robert and some of his drinking buddies decided to attend an evangelistic meeting, with a plan to make fun of the proceedings. When George Whitfield began to preach, Robert felt as if the sermon was just for him. He did not respond to the altar call that night, but the words of the evangelist would haunt him for the next three years.

On Dec. 10, 1755, at age 20, Robert finally yielded his life to Christ, and very soon

thereafter answered a call to the ministry. Three years later, as he was preparing to preach a sermon at the Calvinist Methodist Chapel in Norfolk, England, Robert wrote Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing to complement his sermon.

One part that stands out to me every time I hear this song is, “prone to wander, Lord I feel it” Even after being saved for 47 years the tug of the world can still try to pull us away from God. It is then that we need to once again, as the song says “take my heart, oh cleanse and seal it, seal it for thy courts above”. One day we will be in our eternal home where we will not be prone to wander from the Lord! Even at the young age of 22, Robert’s desire was to not stray from the Lord.

The work continues:

I happened to catch these two working on the walls in the gym last week and wanted to give an update. They are framing up the walls now and soon the rest of the wiring will be finished, then the dry wall will be going up. If you haven’t seen it in a while, go take a look!

It was a blessing t o h a v e Missionary Matt Leathley and his family attend our I n t e r n a t i o n a l Missions DInner a n d M i s s i o n s Sunday on June 29 & 30. We had a great dinner and great time of fellowship on Saturday. It is a blessing to be active in our missions program and know that our efforts

have done a wonderful work in Congo and South Africa. Bro. Leathley gave us an update on the three churches they have had a part in starting and working in for the last several years while serving the Lord on the other side of the world. On Sunday during the Sunday school hour Pastor Steve brought a message about us doing our part in missions. Bro. Leathley preached on Sunday morning about our service

to God. These were a great reminder and challenge to keep working and being a part of spreading the gospel here and around the world. Remembering that our labor is not in vain in the Lord.

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Ta k i n g G o d ’s W o r d a r o u n d t h e w o r l d .Miss ions

By Cindy Hays

The Saturday Saints tour at Herr’s Potato Chip Factoryon June 20, 2013.

What they see as foolishness and excuse for our religion, I see as an attitude of trust.

My Lord and Savior said He would never leave me - Heb. 13:5-6. He said He would always do what is best for me, even when I don’t get my way - Romans 8:28. God said that He would always supply what I need to be in the will of God - Phil. 4:19. And I have lived the last 30+ years seeing the hand of God work in my life and that of those around me.

Whatever the world wants to say, they cannot change the fact that I have seen too much to believe there is no God or that He does not care, and I trust Him.

When things go the way I would like, I thank God for it. I have honestly walked around my house, and thanked God for the comforts we live in. I have asked God to bless the “stuff” that I have in this life, and give Him the thanks for allowing me to have it, as well as the people He has brought into my life.

When things don’t go my way, I trust that God knows more than I do. The relationship I have with God is that of a child and His Father.

I trust that my Father knows more than I do seeing how He created me and the universe. I

trust that God really does care for me, seeing how He became flesh and paid for my sin on Calvary. I really don’t believe God is going to go through all of that just to play games or throw us away if we mess up. I’m the kid who draws a crayon picture of my life with everything out of proportion and wrong, and yet, my Father touches the picture with His mercy and grace, makes it perfect, and hangs it on His refrigerator for all to see.

My attitude needs to be that when the world rages, God knows best. When I don’t understand something in the Bible, I figure Someone smarter than me wrote the Book and I just need to study more. When things don’t work out the way I planned, God is too wise to ever be wrong, and too loving to ever be mean.

III. An Attitude of Hope“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” Philippians 1:6.

The society we live in has their hopes built on the fantasy that we will solve all the world problems. They think they will legislate away the problems of racism, poverty, pollution, sexism, and any other “ism” out there.

They want us to believe that if their political party is in control, all the problems will be solved, and they pressure us into being politically correct and go along with the dream.

What they call a bad attitude and not a team player, I simply see as having my hope in the Creator of the world rather than the creature that was created.

I don’t hate everything in this world, God truly gave us some tremendous blessings down here. But my hope is that one day the Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in His wings [Malachi 4] and fix the stupidity of this world. Mankind is the problem, they are not going to fix anything, but Jesus Christ will.

I don’t have a bad attitude, but I certainly am not going to trade the promises of God in which I hope for the promises of a politician or the latest fad that is sweeping across the news media. I enjoy being a gentleman, but I want to be a gentleman that holds my head up high with confidence in the Almighty God. As the three Hebrew children said to the king, our God is able to deliver us, but if He chooses not to, we still won’t bow the knee to your idol. That is the attitude I want to have in my life.

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13984 Gregg Neck Road Pastor Steve Hays, M.Min,D.Min.Galena, MD 21635 Assistant Pastor Rob Manaraze410.648.6744

Reaching the World, Beginning with the Homew w w . e s b b c . o r g

S a n c t i f y t h e m t h r o u g h t h y t r u t h , t h y w o r d i s t r u t h . J o h n 1 7 : 1 7

Fellowship of the SaintsThe front page article of this edition is on our attitude. When people come to church, they see our attitude as much as anything else. They need to see that we really believe these things. Put some “umph” into the singing and pay attention to the words. Walk out of church knowing the point of the sermon. Appreciate the brethren who still believe God in a society that is working hard at not doing so.

This can be some of the best encouragement we can give to others even if we don’t have long conversations with them.

The EncouragerA ministry of

Ea s t e r n S h o r eBIBLE BAPTIST CHURCH

Standing for theIncorruptible Word of God

AV 1611

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