What The Bible Says
Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice
In Philippians 3:4-14 God outlines a course for pressing toward the mark. Confidence in the flesh is built up, propped up, and sustained by our religions. They teach us to trust in works, count beads, do penance, confess to the guy in a black dress, to build karma, do yoga meditations with eight steps to nervana, … et al. The Apostle Paul lists his privilege, orthodoxy, and zeal in the Bible's only ordained religion before he throws it all out “for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord” (vr.8). Jesus said, “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, … ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mt.18.3). Saul was converted from religion. Mary Magdalene, who twice broke an alabaster box and “loved much”, was converted from sin (Lu.8:2, 7:37,47, Jn.11:2, 12:3). In 1958 when Cecil Palm knocked on a 40 Platt Street door, my father was converted from pagan agnosticism, and my mother from pagan Roman Catholicism; two years later, on a Thursday night during a Junior Church flannel-graph lesson at Revival Services, I was converted from the eight year-old sin that was in my nature. If you don't recall being converted from something you should read Matthew 18:3 with better understanding. If you were converted from something, you were converted to something, “That I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead” (Phil.3:8b-11). If converted, don't die, until you die.
An Essay for week #35 - Aug 28, 2022
Msg in audio at www.GSBaptistChurch.com/audio/gs220828.mp3
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A weekly 300 word essay- The Penny Pulpit
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