Shock and Awe

22 July 2014

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“Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?” (John 3:9-12)
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By this point, Nicodemus is probably standing there with his mouth hanging open in complete confusion. He is hearing things from Jesus that sound so foreign to his system of religion. And he is right.

The doctrines of sovereign grace cannot be mixed with the doctrine of the Pharisees or any other works or will-based system of salvation. It must be grace and grace alone!

However, Jesus is not saying anything new. Nor has he said anything that is difficult for men to understand. Jesus is saying the same things that John the Baptist said and the same words of God found throughout the Old Testament.

The theme of Israel's disobedience and God's merciful restoration is all over the Old Testament. He has also used metaphors such as birth that are easy for Nicodemus to understand. Nicodemus is confused because he cannot reconcile what Jesus is saying with what he has always believed and taught.

But it is only going to get worse!

Jesus is about to really take up His doctrine several notches. He is going to basically declare to Nicodemus that He is the Messiah, Who is the Son o God. He is going to describe how Jesus will die for the sins of all of God’s people. And He will show how Christ came not only for the elect among the Jews but also the Gentiles.

It is no wonder that the ministries of John and Jesus were prophesied this way;

“Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:" (Isaiah 40:4)

The doctrines of grace turned the religious world upside down!

And we should preach them so they do it again!

Tags: doctrine, harmony_of_the_gospels, jesus, john, nicodemus

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.

Living in Liberty

Elder Bryce Lowrance

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