The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. This is LeSaire Bradley, Jr. inviting you to stay tuned for another message of God's sovereign grace.
If I'm still living on Tuesday of this week, May 6, I will turn 90 years old. And so I want to take time to express my thanksgiving to the Lord for blessing me with long life and for His abundant mercies that I have enjoyed over the years. To begin, I want us to hear the hymn, Count Your Many Blessings. Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done. Count Your Many Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done.
Are you ever burdened with the law of care? Does the crossing carry you on all to bear? Count Your Many Blessings, every doubt go far. And you will be shaking as the days go by. Count Your Many Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done. Count Your Many Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done. When you look at others with their hands and gold, think that Christ has promised you this wealth untold. Count Your Many Blessings, money cannot buy.
You're rewarded heaven or your home on high. Count Your Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Blessings, see what God hath done. Count Your Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done. So amid the conflict, whether greater or small, do not be discouraged, God is overall. Count Your Many Blessings, angels will attend.
Help and comfort give you to your journey's end. Count Your Blessings, make them one by one. Count Your Blessings, see what God hath done. Count Your Many Blessings, make them one by one.
Count Your Many Blessings, see what God hath done. The Lord dealt with me when I was six years old, convicting me of my sin and my need of a Savior. By His grace, He brought me to faith in Jesus Christ, and indeed, He is a wonderful Savior to me. He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, that shadows of dry thirsty land. He hideth my life in the depths of His love, and covers me there with His hand.
And covers me there with His hand. A wonderful Savior is Jesus, my Lord, He taketh my burden away. He holdeth me up and I shall not be moved. He giveth me strength as my day. He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, that shadows of dry thirsty land. He hideth my life in the depths of His love, and covers me there with His hand. With the wordless blessings, each moment He crowds, and filled with His moments divine. I sing in my rapture, O glory to God, for such a Redeemer as mine. He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock, that shadows of dry thirsty land.
He hideth my life in the depths of His love, and covers me there with His hand. I felt the call to preach at an early age and started preaching when I was 13. I was given numerous opportunities to preach and when I was 14 preached my first week's meeting. I was ordained when I was 16 and became pastor of Bratton Baptist Church in Rowan County, Kentucky. I had great interest in radio for I listened every week to the Old Fashioned Revival Hour and had gone with my pastor Clarence Walker several times when he did his live broadcast. So when I became a pastor I wanted to start a broadcast because I thought it was an effective way to get out the message. I secured time on a station in Maysville, Kentucky and we continued with this program until I was called as pastor of New Testament Baptist Church in Cincinnati. I was then 17 when I started the Baptist Bible Hour on a local station and we soon began to add others including two of the powerful Mexican border stations. When I became pastor in Cincinnati at age 17 to a church with over 500 members and was still a senior in high school in Lexington, Kentucky, Life magazine decided to do a story about me.
This publicity caused me to receive many more invitations to speak. But in the midst of all this activity the Lord was working in my heart to bring me to a better understanding of His Word. As I read from Romans chapter 8 I was stirred by what I read and wondered why I never heard anybody preach on it. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God to them who are called according to His purpose for whom He did foreknow He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Moreover whom He did predestinate them He also called and whom He called them He also justified and whom He justified them He also glorified. All this sounded wonderful to me but I was warned that if I preached the doctrines of grace also known as Calvinistic doctrine I would ruin my ministry. So I was in a time of great struggle. Then I heard about a meeting in Ashland, Kentucky where these doctrines were being preached. I went there and heard a lot of good preaching but one by Ralph Barnard struck me with such force I said I can't wait any longer I must preach it. So I went back to my church and preached sovereign grace the next Sunday. But our predictions of opposition didn't take long to materialize it started that day and then many of the invitations that I had been receiving were for the most part curtailed. But I had a strong desire to circulate the truth of sovereign grace so I got the church to buy a tent and I began holding tent meetings in different parts of the country. Times were different back in those days. We would put up a sign on a vacant lot where the meeting was to be held announcing the dates and I would announce it on our radio program and the tent would be full from the first night on.
We met every night for two weeks some of them lasting four weeks. I would secure time on radio and sometimes on TV with a daily program in the area where the meeting was to be held. The Lord blessed these meetings in a very special way. I remember when holding a meeting in Big Stone Gap, Virginia I secured time for a daily broadcast on WNVA in Norton.
Many times following the broadcast when I walked out of the studio there would be a group of people there on the sidewalk waiting to talk to me and ask questions. It was wonderful to see such interest in this message of grace pointing to the fact that salvation is not by works or free will but through Jesus Christ and Him alone. Like me, I once was lost but now am found.
Was blind but now I see. When we've been there ten thousand years Bright shining as the sun We've no less days to sing God's praise Than when we first begun I recall one weekend when I felt the need to go to Cincinnati and preach at the church that I pastored but I didn't want to leave this meeting which was being blessed in such a special way. One young man heard me talking about it and said, well, I will be glad to drive you up there. So I preached under the tent at Big Stone Gap Saturday night, was driven through the night and preached at my church in Cincinnati Sunday morning. I was driven back Sunday afternoon and preached under the tent that night. As I think back over special blessings of years gone by, I recall preaching one night in Detroit, Michigan. The Lord blessed with a very uplifting service with people rejoicing with me in the truth of God's marvelous grace. The next day I was scheduled to preach at what was then called Sharonville High School in the Cincinnati area.
One of our members was principal at that school. The next morning when I was being taken to the airport we encountered a major traffic backup and in the driver's effort to get around it he got lost. We were late arriving at the airport so when I walked up to the ticket counter the agent said, your plane is gone. He walked away and then came back in a little while and said, sir, I told you your plane is gone.
I said, yes, I know, but I just want to stand here and see what might happen. After a bit he came back again and said, sir, you must have gone to church last night. Your plane is coming back.
It will only need to be on the ground about 15 or 20 minutes to fix a minor problem so you follow me and I will get you on that plane. So the Lord had an airplane, turned around and got me to Cincinnati in time to speak at the high school. The Lord had an airplane, turned around and got me to Cincinnati in time to speak at the high school.
The Lord had an airplane, turned around and got me to Cincinnati in time to speak at the high school. Now here on earth I stay and meet them on the golden shore on that eternal day. The Lord has been so good to me, I will on Him defend. And every day, where'er I be, I will His truth defend. And in the land of endless bliss, where all the praise is nigh, Some humble place at thy dear feet may this poor sinner find. The Lord has been so good to me, I will on Him defend.
And every day, where'er I be, I will His truth defend. Eventually we came in contact with the people who love the message of grace, and so in October of 1958 Cincinnati Promitive Baptist Church was constituted, and I served as senior pastor for 62 years. I now serve as one of the associate pastors. I was then given the privilege of filling appointments in Promitive Baptist churches from coast to coast. The buildings were filled, the singing was uplifting, the fellowship was sweet. I was thankful to find a place where I could preach the message of grace, which I had come to love so dearly, and have it joyfully received. While I was very thankful for the opportunity I had to fill appointments, I still had this burden to go some places where I didn't have an invitation, but felt that the Lord was impressing me to go. So I was thinking about Reedsville, North Carolina. I had some time before held a meeting there in the city auditorium, and so I was acquainted with several people in the area, and I decided to go there.
I arrived at a home in the early evening, and the house was full. One man said, my friend and I were working on a roof this afternoon, and he said, we need to quit early so we can get cleaned up and go hear Elder Bradley. And he said, I replied, well, I heard him on the radio Sunday, and he didn't say anything about coming here.
But he said, well, I know, but he is coming. So here we are. We had a very blessed service, and we all rejoiced in how the Lord had brought us together. As I think about the ways the Lord has led us and blessed us over these many years, again, I want to praise God's name and give Him thanks. Along with the blessings, there have been many trials, but His grace has been sufficient to bring us through.
One of my favorite songs is Shady Green Pastures. 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. Sometimes love bound where the sun shines so bright, God leads His dear children along. Sometimes love valley in darkest of night, God leads His dear children along. 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. Though sorrows befall us and saves the post, God leads His dear children along. Through grace again, God really be our host, God leads His dear children along. Away from the fire and away from the plague, God leads His dear children along. Away up in glory, eternity's day, God leads His dear children along. 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. In the night season and all the day long. For almost 50 years we had a live broadcast from our church on WCKY at 1030 on Sunday night. The night time signal reached into 27 states, Canada and the Bahamas. In thinking back over some of our special experiences of the past, I recall that we got a good bit of mail from the Bahamas. One lady in particular who lived in Green Turtle Key wrote me regularly expressing how much she was blessed by the program. So I decided to go visit there. When I got off the boat I asked if anyone could tell me where she lived and they showed me her house. I knocked on the door and told her who I was.
She threw her arms up and of course was quite surprised. She then took me around the island to meet other people that she knew listened to the broadcast. She suggested that we go to the United Brethren Church that night where they were having service and that they might call on me to preach.
We went there and they did call on me and I felt that we had a very good service. I was then invited to speak the next night at the Assembly of God. By this time word had spread that this radio preacher is here so the building was packed.
I knew this church did not hold to the doctrine I was preaching so I begged the Lord to intervene and blessed me to proclaim the truth that people would be able to rejoice in it. That prayer was answered and there were shouts of praise all over the house. It was indeed a very special service. When I was leaving the next day people lined up on both sides of the ramp going down to the boat and as I passed by each one handed me some money. When I got home and counted it I saw they paid all my expenses.
I had not expected that but was thankful for that expression of their appreciation. On this special program as I review some experiences and express my thanksgiving to the Lord I must mention my family. I'm very thankful for my wife Emily.
Three times in the past few years she's been at the point of death and the Lord has raised her up. For years she was the office manager of the Baptist Bible Hour and did an outstanding job. I've been greatly blessed to have such a wonderful wife and I'm thankful for my three children. Leanna married to Lyle Tomlinson.
Peggy married to Elder Mike Stewart. My son LeSara Bradley III whom we called Trevor as he was growing up married to Marsha Farron. Emily and I are blessed to have 21 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren and two on the way. And I want to say that I'm thankful for you who listened to the program and supported. Some of you have written to say that you've listened all of your life. I was thinking the other day turning 90 may be the end of the road. Then at supper the other night they seated a lady at my table who was 104.
And I thought well 90 doesn't sound so old after all. Well seriously I expressed my desire in the message a few weeks ago longing for home. But like the Apostle Paul I'm in a straight betwixt two. Having a desire to depart and be with Christ which is far better but also a desire to stay here and help take care of Emily and still preach if the Lord will give me the strength and grace necessary. I conclude with this verse Psalm 92 verse 1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing praises unto thy name O Most High. Praise Him above ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen. I want to say again that I praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy in seeing me through the years as I celebrate this 90th birthday. If the message has been a blessing to you I hope you will write us down. Until next week at this same time may the Lord richly bless you all. Amen.
