70th Anniversary Program - Part 2

The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. O for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise! The praise of my God and King, the triumph of His grace! This is LeSaire Bradley, Jr. inviting you to stay tuned for another message of God's sovereign grace. Last Sunday, we brought you our 70th anniversary program, but since we're looking back over 70 years, we can't get everything we would like into one broadcast.

So today, we're going to continue with that format and hear portions of some messages from past years. This is anniversary month, and our theme is grace, grace, and more grace. The message of sovereign grace is such a wonderful truth. It honors God, it lifts up the name of Jesus, and it gives hope to unworthy sinners. We look at Ephesians chapter 1 verse 5, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace. What a beautiful portion of Scripture, speaking of the riches of His grace. In 1 Peter 4-10, we read of the manifold grace of God, and in James 4-6, it says He gives more grace. One of our messages was entitled Abounding in Grace. And then in verse 2, it speaks of grace. Salvation is brought to us by grace. By grace, He gives us what we do not deserve. Many people are great complainers.

They constantly complain because they feel like they have not received what they deserve, what they are entitled to. Well, the fact is, if we all receive what we deserve as fallen sinners, as rebels against God, we would receive nothing but condemnation. But grace means that He brings us something we do not deserve. Grace means that He comes to us in our fallen and ruined state, does for us marvelous things, transforms us, rescues us, puts in us His Holy Spirit to make a difference in our daily walk in life. 1 Peter 5-10, But the God of all grace, and I'd like to just pause there a minute.

That's a wonderful expression. The God of all grace. We need all kinds of grace. Saving grace, living grace, praying grace, grace to overcome temptation, grace to overcome our discouragements and our depressions, dying grace we'll need someday. Well, He's the God of all grace.

He's the source of it. Who have called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus. After ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, established, strengthened, settled you. This God of all grace has called you. He's called you unto eternal glory. What a wonderful thing to anticipate that time when at last we're at home with Him and enjoy eternal glory.

Living in the new heaven and the new earth where there will be no distinction but total peace, where there will be no sadness but eternal joy, where there will be no complaint but constant thanksgiving and praise given to the name of our God. He has called us unto this eternal glory by Christ Jesus. It's by Him that we are called and drawn. And He says after you suffer a while, you're going to have some sufferings here, you're going to have some trials.

But what's the purpose of it? To make you perfect or mature or complete, to establish you, to strengthen you, to settle you. Then there is more grace. You think about the grace by which you are saved, the grace by which you were brought to life in Christ Jesus, the grace by which you were given faith. 2 Corinthians chapter 12 verse 9, my grace is sufficient for thee. It's talking about grace and peace being multiplied, so we're talking about more grace. Here He's telling Paul, when you prayed for the thorn of the flesh to be removed, my grace is sufficient for thee. And whatever your trial may be, if it's physical suffering, if it's mental anguish, if it's financial difficulties, whatever it is that may be casting you down at the moment, this text is applicable, this promise can be yours. My grace is sufficient for me.

Jesus blessed Mark of ages, I will hide myself in thee. Not only are we to rejoice in grace, we are to be strong in grace. Then in 2 Timothy chapter 2 verse 1, the apostle writing to this young man in the ministry saying, Therefore my son, be strong in the grace that is in Jesus Christ. The grace is given you.

It is unmerited favor. It is an amazing demonstration of God's mercy. But he says to Timothy, be strong in this grace. You've been given grace, but you're to be strong in it.

This shows us some responsibility. Sometimes the person gets the idea, well I hear man preach salvation is by grace. I read of the scripture, salvation is by grace. So I just coast along.

I just await that happy day when it lasts. I'll enjoy the ultimate culmination of all of God's mercies and his abundant grace for me when I'm living in heaven. But Paul is writing to this young man saying right now, right here, I want you to be strong in the grace of God. You may say, well how am I going to do that? But you come back with the realization that if I'm going to be strong in God's grace, I've got to be dependent upon him. I've got to be called upon him. I've got to be in communion with him.

I've got to be asking for his help. Hebrews chapter 4 verse 16 puts it this way, let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Alright, if this is a time of need and if we really understand our weakness, we know that that's not just some special unique day that all of a sudden we have a time of need.

We have it every day. Every day and everything that we do and every decision we make, it's a time of need. And so we turn to him. Paul says be strong. How am I going to be strong?

I'm weak in myself, alright? You come boldly to the throne of grace and then you're seeking grace to help in time of need and God has promised to give it to you. John chapter 1 verse 16 says, and of his fullness have all we received and grace for grace. Every time I read that verse I just like to think about it as though it's the waves of the ocean.

You stand there by the seashore and the waves come in and as soon as one comes in there's another following. And so it is, so it is with this grace that God gives us. We receive grace for grace. One wave comes in. One blessing of grace is there but there's another immediately following.

It is made clear in scripture that grace is not only sufficient for the salvation of our soul, but to sustain us in all the trials that we encounter in life. Oh, sometimes it seems they come so rapidly and they're so severe. The cold waters are so deep. The dark night is so long. The hurt is such that we can hardly bear it. And the question is sometimes raised, why Lord, why?

Why all of this? If I'm one of yours and if you love me, why have you suffered all these trials to touch my life? But you can endure them and bear them because I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. The apostle Paul was given that thorn in the flesh. And while there's a lot of speculation about what that thorn may have been, some really believe that when he talks about it was a messenger of Satan to buffet him, he's talking about the enemies that constantly opposed him and made his life difficult. You say, why would the Lord do that? For this great servant, why wouldn't he give him a smooth path?

I'm not sure of all of the ramifications of it but I do know what part of it was because here Paul reveals it in 2 Corinthians chapter 12. He says, There was given me this thorn in the flesh lest I should be exalted above measure. Verse 8, For this thing I besought the Lord thrice that it might depart from me.

And he said unto me, Look what the Lord said, This is God's answer to this great preacher, this apostle, this great servant. My grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made perfect in weakness. You say, I'm weak. I can't handle it. I'm emotionally distraught.

I'm mentally disturbed. I can't take much more. My grace is sufficient for thee. Awake, ye saints, to praise your King, your sweetest accents raise. Your pious pleasure while you sing, increasing with the praise. Great is the Lord, and works unknown are his divine employ. But still his saints are near his throne, his treasure and his joy. No wonder he can say, I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me because this same power is in you. Chapter 3 verse 20, Ephesians 3, 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. There's a power in you. There's a work going on. Well, somebody says, I seem to have difficulty being in tune with it.

I'm not even aware of it. How does this occur? Well, obviously, if this power is in you, because Christ is in you, because you have been born of the Holy Spirit, you have been regenerated, there's new life in you. By his Holy Spirit, he often enables you with a power that is beyond your comprehension as to how it occurred. Have you not had moments in your life where physically you were absolutely at the point of exhaustion and said, I can't go any farther, but you came before the Lord and said, Lord, the task is in front of me, the things I must do, I beg for the strength, and he gave it to you, and you stood back in amazement.

Say, I don't know how I ever got through that. Couldn't have done it on my own, but the Lord enabled me to do it. Times that your spirit was so low, you said, I can hardly function in life, I can hardly face the challenges of the day, but you called unto the Lord, and he gave you that enabling grace of his Holy Spirit. In every trying hour, my soul to Jesus flies, I trust in his almighty power when swelling billows rise. There are many things we don't understand, but we find great comfort when we remember, my times are in thy hand. The trials that come your way are for a purpose. There are many things about his providences that we struggle with.

We can't figure it all out. Somebody says, why am I struck with this illness at this particular time when I have so many things that I need to do? I've got so many responsibilities, and it may well be that the things that you need to do are good and worthwhile.

So you say, why should I now be confined to the hospital or to the sick bed, and why am I unable to go on? The answer can't be readily discerned, but you can know this, my times are in thy hands. This thing hasn't come up unawares. This thing didn't overtake the Lord by surprise.

He's in charge. Somebody says, why do I have to struggle so with financial burdens? I've tried so hard to keep up with things and pay my bills, but it just seems like it's a trouble that never goes away. Get one thing taken care of and something else falls apart. Seems like it's the most inopportune times. I have repair bills and medical bills and all kinds of things that are distressing to me. Now obviously some of these things can be brought on by our own carelessness and our failure.

The failure to follow biblical principles and the use of our money and the use of our time, but some of them come over which you have no control. And then somebody will say, which I've heard this over the years a number of times, a wife will say, I just don't understand why the Lord would take my husband at this time. I needed him so much. I depended on him. We had such a good marriage.

I don't understand it. And then the heartbreak and devastation that comes when a child dies. I guess those have been some of the most difficult funerals I've preached over the years.

Preached the funeral of a lot of little babies, of young children, of teenagers. And you see parents lean over that casket and shed tears until you can tell they feel their heart is going to break. We certainly are not saying that those events can be made easy to bear. They are painful.

They are devastating. But suppose you had to travel that path by yourself. Suppose you had to say this is just a bad turn of luck. But if you can say, my times are in thy hand. What a difference.

Do you remember? That you're in his hand means that when you go through these dark times. And the grief is so intense that you feel physical pain from it.

You're not left alone. God says in Isaiah 43 verse 2, when thou passes through the waters I will be with thee. You go through those cold chilly waters of the deepest of sorrows. And God says you're not going to be by yourself. I will be with thee. And through the rivers they shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

He's there. He can give you strength to bear up under the losses that you never thought possible. I've had people give that kind of testimony.

I've had them say my heart is broken. But I'm amazed at how the Lord has given me strength and how close I feel him to be at this dark time. First Peter 5, 7 he says, casting all your care upon him for he careth for you. He cares for you. He knows all of your pains, all of your hurts, all of your disappointments.

He cares for you. My times are in thy hand. In shady green pastures so rich and so sweet, God meets his dear children of all. Where the waters will flow with the way everyone speaks, God meets his dear children of all.

Some through the waters, some through the flood, some through the fire, but all through the flood. Some through great sorrow, but God gives a song in the night season and all the day long. As I mentioned earlier, this is anniversary month for the Baptist Bible Hour and so we encourage all our listeners to write and mention the call letters of the station or the name of the website where they hear the program. And if you will request it, we will send you a CD with a message on grace along with a selection of hymns. Address your letter to the Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217.

We depend on our listeners for support, so if you would like to help keep the program on your local station, we will greatly appreciate your assistance. Not only did Paul preach the doctrines of grace, he understood it was by grace that he was able to labor in God's service. Paul expressed it this way in the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 15. Here's a man that was mightily used of God, worked and labored diligently, but he recognized the source of the blessing that made it all possible. Verse 10 of 1 Corinthians 15, For by the grace of God I am what I am, and by His grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain, but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. You see, believing in the sovereignty of God, believing that your times are in His hands does not discourage, if you understand it correctly, does not discourage activity, does not discourage diligent labor.

It gives you an incentive, it gives you an encouragement to go forward because you know you're not by yourself. And then in the concluding part of that chapter, it says in verse 57, But thanks be unto God which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for as much as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. From our vantage point, we cannot see the future, but as we trust in God, we need not fear what lies ahead. Proverbs 27, 1 says, Boast not thyself of tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. We don't know what's going to happen tomorrow, much less what's going to happen next year, but we can know my times are in thy hands. Whatever the future holds, we are not left to fate or chance or luck.

Aren't you glad for that? Our times are in His hand. We are in the hand of Him who guides the future. And He is our loving Heavenly Father that cares for us. His mercies are new every morning. Jeremiah said in Lamentations chapter 3 verses 22 and 23, It's of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed because His compassions failed not.

They are new every morning. Great is thy faithfulness. You can't know what's coming tomorrow, but you can know this, His mercies will be there.

His mercies are new every morning. Who knows what it might be six months from now? Some in this audience may already have gone on to be with the Lord. Some of you may have to go through deep trials and sorrows.

And if you knew all the ramifications of it now, you'd throw up your hands in despair and say, I can't make it. But His mercies are new. And here's something about the future that you can know. When you reach the end of the journey and you come to the valley of death, you'll not be alone. We sometimes sing that hymn, How Sweet to Die, and there is a sweetness about going home to be with the Lord.

But the thought of death itself can cause little anxiety because it's something we haven't experienced. What would it be like when I come to that moment? Will I die in my sleep? Will I die in the hospital?

Will I be in a car wreck? All of these questions may sometimes cross our minds. But here's the comforting thought. My times are in thy hand. Sometimes I've had people say, Oh, I had wanted so much to be there when my loved one died. And I got the call from the hospital and I was on my way, but they died before I got there.

I couldn't be there. But here's one who will always be there at the moment his children die. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me. And then on the other side, what's it going to be like?

People like to speculate. There's some things we know because they're revealed in scriptures and some we don't know. But when you die, not only is the Lord with you in the hour of death, he's there on the other side. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 5, 8, we're confident to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. When you die, you don't go into a long sleep to wait the resurrection. You go immediately to be with the Lord.

He's there and you will be with him forever. My times are in thy hand. Remembering these words can give you peace in a troubled world. Provide comfort in your trials. Bring contentment when you're prone to complain. Give you courage over the fear of man. Provide a cure for worry. Give you reason to do what needs to be done when there's a difficult task ahead of you.

And it gives you hope for the future. But if you've not come to Christ, you cannot claim the comfort of these words. Yet today if you see yourself as a sinner and you know that you need a Savior, listen to the words of Jesus.

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Hear him as he says, him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out. Hear him when he says, if any man thirsts let him come unto me and drink.

And coming to Jesus and drinking of him is to believe on him. May you believe on him today. And may we rejoice in the comforting truth and keep it constantly before us in the year to come. My times are in thy hand. Hear the blessed Savior calling thee out first. All ye heavy laden, come to me and rest.

Come no longer tarry, I am one with better. Bring me every burden, bring me every care. Come unto me, come unto me, I will give you rest.

I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, take my arm on you. Hear me heavy, hear me heavy, hear me heavy, bless.

I am meek and lowly, I am meek and lowly. Come and trust my light, come and trust my light. Come, O come, my yoke is eating, come, O come, my burden's light.

The Lord, my precious Stephanie, is my hand, his little sheep. Yes, Jesus says, come unto me. Come to believe on him as your Lord and Savior. And when you come, you can understand he brought you. That's his amazing grace.

Yes, it's grace, grace, and more grace. I do hope you will write us this week and be with us at the same time next week. Until then, may the Lord richly bless you all.

God full and makes me glad, I praise him day by day. The Baptist Bible Hour has come to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. Address all mail to the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217.

That's the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Oh, through the shades of death I walk, a valley dark and clear. His blood and staff they comfort me, for he is always near. My head with hauling does anoint my comfort.