Text Verse: 2 Peter 1: 1-9

Oftentimes when we go out Soul-Winning we become focused on leading the lost to the Lord; and we should be! But along the way we come in contact with Christians that have 'fallen out of the way.' Spiritually speaking, these Christians are blindly going through this life. They are willfully out of the way steeped in sin and living an anemic Christian life.  Unfortunately, we live in a day when anemic Christianity is all around us. Apathetic Christian living is the norm. If you have been Soul-Winning for any length of time you have probably had this dialogue take place on the doorstep of one of these poor Christians:

Soul-Winner: Do you know 100% if you were to die today that you would spend an eternity in Heaven?

Apathetic Christian: Yes.

Soul-Winner: Can I ask you, how do you know that for sure?

Apathetic Christian: Because I am saved, I trusted in Jesus Christ as my Savior.

Soul-Winner: Well where do you go to church?

Apathetic Christian: I don't go anywhere, I know I should, but I don't feel much like a Christian.

Our responsibility as a fellow brother or sister in Christ is to try to help this Christian. We should endeavor not to leave them in their blind state, but rather show them from the Bible how they can return to a path of fruitfulness in the Lord. Let me encourage you to mark out this passage of Scripture that covers this very topic: 2 Peter 1: 1-9. In this passage Peter gives us some eye-opening things that will help us to understand why it is this Christian has fallen out of the way. 

First of all this passage explains to us the Gift of God. 

v1-3 "Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:"

Peter makes it clear to us that God has not left us in the dark after Salvation, but rather has provided us with "all things that pertain unto life and godliness," We could say it this way, that as Christians we are without excuse. God has given us the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 3:16) God has given us His precious Word. (2 Peter 1:19) God has given us the ability to come before Him in prayer. (Hebrews 4:16) God has given us a local New Testament church. (Galatians 6:2) God has also given us each other, brothers and sisters in Christ to exhort us unto good works. (Hebrews 10:24) This truth is plain that God has given us a gift, it that he has provided "all thing that pertain unto life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who hath called us..." The Him of course is Jesus Christ. 

Not only do we have the Gift of God, but secondly we have the Goal through God. Just what is the ultimate goal of the Christian life? 

Romans 8:29 tells us this, "​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."  

We see in our text passage this same goal (to be conformed to the image of his Son).  Notice what verse 4 states in our passage,  "Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."  So the goal through God's working in us is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ; partakers of the divine nature. 

So we have the Gift of God, which brings us toward the Goal through God, but thirdly we have the Growth with God.

As this passage continues, Peter gives us a running list of building blocks or growth points for the Christian life:

v5-7 "And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity." 

There are seven growth points listed here after our initial faith in Jesus Christ. Each of these have great significance. But what I want you to see here is not necessarily the specifics on the seven areas of growth but rather that the normal Christian life is one of growth. Notice that verse 5 starts with this phrase, 'add.' Addition signifies an increase. When you add, unless your adding the wrong things, you should end up with growth. These areas of growth are a necessity as we will see in a few moments to the Christian life. In my garden, I typically grow one or two cucumber vines. These vines once they start going grow at an immense rate. Oftentimes there are so many cucumbers on the vine that my wife and I cannot eat them fast enough. But as the season continues something starts to happen. The vine stops growing, cucumbers start to form dwarf size or misshaped. Then starting from the bottom of the vine moving forward the vine begins to die. You see the vine stopped growing. Pretty soon the vine has to be taken out of the garden because it is deteriorating and producing foul fruit. 

So far we have:
The Gift of God - God has provided us everything we need in our Christian life.
The Goal of God - To be partakers of the divine nature, by being conformed to image of our Lord.
The Growth with God - Those seven growth points in our Christian life that we are to be adding.

Notice lastly, what it all comes down to, ​the Guarantee of God. The next few verses give us not only a warning, but a guarantee. In other words, you can mark it down, what is listed next will come to pass. There are two conditions that are given here. The first we find in verse 8:

"For if these things be in you, and abound, [What things? the seven listed above]
they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." 

Notice the verse says 'if.' This gives us an indication that these are not automatic. That word 'abound' give us the idea of continual moving forward(think of leap frog). Or we could say it this way, growing, an abounding Christian life. If these be in you and abound you will neither be 1) barren nor 2)unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is perhaps one of the saddest failures for someone to get saved, having great opportunity to serve the Lord before them, and yet they are barren and unfruitful. By the way, this is not God's fault, because He has given us 'all things that pertain unto life and godliness.' The unfruitful barren Christian is that way because they stopped somewhere along the way in the growth process, the addition that is supposed to be taking place in their life. But glory, hallelujah! The Christian that abounds in these will never be unfruitful and barren. 

But watch what happens to the one that has stopped moving forward in the Christian life:
"​But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins."

There are two sad results from the Christian that has stopped growing. First, they are blind. They cannot see spiritually speaking. Not only are they susceptible to falling in the ditch, running headlong into sin, and falling for the trap of the Devil, but they cannot see the wonderful promises of eternity ahead. They can only see the temporal beggarly elements of this world. Oh to be blind is to be shortsighted indeed! But secondly, we find for the one who has quit on church, quit on reading their Bible, quit on praying, they ​"hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins." Quite simply, they have forgotten what it is like to be saved. "They do not feel saved anymore." Perhaps you have run into a few people in this way. I know I have, they no longer have spiritual discernment and have no assurance of their salvation. What a terrible state to be in.

The cure for this plight is simple, the one who is blind and feeling distant to God needs to do a complete 180 and get back to church, back to reading their Bible, back to prayer, and  experience the wonderful growth that comes as we have a vibrant fellowship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It all starts with an repentant heart toward God and then a move toward abiding in Him with the aforementioned things. 

Let me encourage you, the next time you come across a Christian that makes the statement, "I don't feel saved." Do not leave that Christian in the dregs of apathy and Laodicean Christian living, but rather exhort them back to growth in the knowledge of our Lord  and Savior Jesus Christ. 

- Pastor James Grandinetti, Community Outreach Pastor, Sharon Baptist Church

Revival Message from Monday PM April 9th at 7:00 pm
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Context- The Amalekites had attacked the children of Israel shortly after they left out of Egypt. And in doing so they attacked them from the rear; cowardly going after the weakest of the large group being led by Moses. It was during this battle that Joshua fought, as Moses was on the hillside having his arms propped up by Aaron and Hur. (Exodus 17: 8-16) It was after this God decreed that He was going to utterly destroy the Amalekites. As time moved on the children of Israel inhabited the promised land, led in by Joshua. Then after some time, under the spiritual leadership of Samuel, the people demanded a king. God had told Samuel that they had not rejected him (Samuel) but that they have rejected Me (God).  God allowed Saul to be their king; God was going to give Saul an opportunity to do something amazing for Him. The greatest goal of the Christian life is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. 

Romans 8:29 "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."

Text: 1 Samuel 15: 1-26, 35, 16:1
Oftentimes we miss oppourtinities because we fail to do what God has already revealed for us to do. We look for some "secret" will of God when God has already revealed to us what we are to do. Saul in this passage missed his opportunity.

Notice that when God gives us instructions:

I. It is Understandable  

1. We often analyze things and say, "What is God trying to tell me?..." when in fact it is very plan and understandable. 
2. 1 Samuel 15:3 "Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass."
3. "Everyone understands what God wants and expects from Christians except for Christians."
4. Lost people understand what is expected of a Christian.
5. "If we were what a lost person thinks we should be, we would be doing a lot better than we are."
6. Example: If some unsaved person who hates our church found Pastor at the Walmart on Sunday during the Sunday school hour, they would ask him, "Why ain't you in church?"

II. It is Unmistakable 

1. 1 Samuel 15:3 "Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass."
2. The word 'smite' means to 'strike hard,' 'kill,' or 'destroy
3. The word 'destroy' means to kill 'all that they have.'
4. 'Spare them not' coupled with 'slay' can only mean kill.
5. So God makes very clear to Saul what he is do. When you find the Amalekites, I want you to kill them, and after that I want you to kill them, and when your done with that, I want you to kill them, and in case you didn't understand kill them!
6. We could say that it was clear not to leave any alive.
7. Likewise you and I are given unmistakable commands

• We are to read our Bibles (Joshua 1:8, 2 Timothy 2:15)
• We are to pray (Mathew 7:7-11, Jeremiah 29:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:17)
• We are to go to church (Psalm 122:1, Psalm 84:10, Hebrews 10:25)

1. We would like to believe there is a scale with God, it's okay if we are 75% obedient and 25% disobedient. But there are no grey areas with God. There is righteousness/unrighteousness, right/wrong, obedience/disobedience.

The Commands were Understandable and Unmistakable, but
Saul and the people's actions were:

III. Deliberate

1. ​1 Samuel 15:9 "But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly."
2. The excuse, "I could not help it is not true for the Christian." (There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13)
3. The excuse, "the world may me do it" is not true for the Christian either. (For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 1 John 5:4)
4. The excuse, "the devil made me do it" is not true. ("Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."  1 John 4:4)
5. We sin because we want to as Christians.
6. Samuel shows up and Saul thinks he has fooled two 'people;' Samuel and God.
7. Just like Saul we exclaim sanctimoniously,  "...Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD."
8. We cannot fool God, "Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)
9. We cannot fool our Pastor. "There is not one person in the entire world outside of perhaps your spouse that prays for you like your Pastor."

Saul and the peoples actions were:
IV. Darting (throwing, as a dart in other words on target, with intent)

1. They 'flew' upon the spoil. ("Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst evil in the sight of the LORD? 1 Samuel 15:19)
2. This gives the idea that they picked what they would keep.
3. Selfishness - When our actions become more about us than the cause of Jesus Christ.
4. "How is this going to affect the cause of Christ?"
5. "You cannot be a good Christian if you are the most important person in your life."

V. Discovered

1. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?​ 1 Samuel 15:14
2. "Sheep make noise at the most inopportune times."
3. ​Example: Caught in the cookie Jar  'Caught red-handed!"
4. We, just like Adam and Eve, blame everyone else but ourselves (Genesis 3); and truly what we are doing is blaming God for what he has blessed us with.
5. "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." Galatians 6:7 - Is not written to the unsaved, but to the saved.
6. "But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD: and be sure your sin will find you out.​" Numbers 32:23 - Is not written to the Gentile nations, but to God's people.
7. Saul blamed the people, then he blamed God. (1 Samuel 15:15) In our day, we say "We most disobey God to worship God better." We justify making our services more appealing to the World. "You do not worship God better by bringing in more worldliness; you worship God more by being holy!"

Next we have Saul's attempt at the:

VI. Ploy

1. Saul askes for forgiveness, but inserts one word. "...because..." 
2. 1 Samuel 15:24 "And Saul said unto Samuel, I have sinned: for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words [Confession]: because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice.[the people made me do it]"
3. Forgiveness comes when we take full responsibility for our actions.
4. Mathematically speaking Saul probably killed 9,900 out of 10,000. [the numbers are made up.]
5. There is nothing wrong with being 90% right as long as we are broken about the 10% that is wrong.
6. While we may celebrate the 96% obedience; God desires 100% obedience in our lives.
7. We would do better keeping track of our 10% that we need to grow in, rather than patting ourselves on the back for the 90% we have right.
8. What did Saul lose because of this:

• He lost his kingdom - (Luke 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:​)
• He lost his testimony - "Small areas of disobedience do not stay small." Soon Saul would be seeking someone to perform witchcraft for him, even though he detested such a thing. "For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king." 1 Samuel 15:23
• He lost his friend - When you leave your church family, you leave a lot of Samuels and trade that friendship for the world. Samuel prayed for Saul. Samuel mourned for Saul.

Maybe we should come before God and be broken about our failures and ask to help us not to miss what He has great for us to do for Him.

- Evangelist Dr. Richard Harper, ​Determined Ministries, www.determinedministries.org

Don't miss out on Revival tonight at 7:00 pm!

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Here are the notes from Sunday AM’s service:


“In the midst of the terrifying circumstances, David is fleeing from Absalom his son and pens the 23rd Psalm. In this Psalm, David’s thoughts turn from Himself and focus on the Great Shepherd. It is in this Psalm that we learn what a Great Shepherd we have! Unfortunately, to those that are lost, none of these things apply.


We have:

I.    A Particular Shepherd    

1. Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd” -This is not just any shepherd.
2. 1 Timothy 1:1 “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour,  and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope;”

II.    A Perfect Shepherd

1. Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd.” - Jehovah God
2. God does not make any mistakes.
3. 2 Timothy 4:8 “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
4. 2 Corinthians 5:21 "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."
5. 1 Peter 1: 18-19 "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:"

III.    A Present Shepherd

1. Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd”
2. Jesus is always there.
3. “Oftentimes we talk about the days that were good, but this is not what David was saying, everyday with Jesus is a good day.”
4. Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

IV.    A Personal Shepherd

1. Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my shepherd"
2. He touched Me: "He touched me, Oh He touched me, And oh the joy that floods my soul! Something happened and now I know, He touched me and made me whole.
3. “It makes sense that we would claim God as ours, but it doesn’t make sense that God would claim us because we are sinful!”
4. John 10: 27-29 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. “

V.    A Providing Shepherd
Psalm 23:1 “I shall not want.”
He leads us to:

1.  ‘Lie Down’
2. Sheep will not lie down unless they are worn out or completely comfortable. 
3. Matthew 11:28 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
4. “When you are in the yoke with Jesus, you ain’t the one doin’ all the pulling.” – Old Country Preacher

He leads us to:

1. Refreshment - Brings us by still waters and green pastures. (Psalm 23:2)
2. Restoration - He restoreth my soul; In the middle of the book of Lamentations which could be called the “Book of whining,” we find this passage:
3. God has: “He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins. I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day. He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood. He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes. And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity. And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD: Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me.” (Lamentations 3:13-20) But then there is a turn: "This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him." (Lamentations 3:21-25)
4. Righteousness - We ‘get’ to walk in the good path!

VI.    A Protecting Shepherd

1. Psalm 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”
2. David had come to face to face with his mortality. But with the Shepherd’s presence it He could face anything.
3. A shadow cannot do anything. Matthew Henry notes, “It is but the shadow of death; there is no substantial evil in it; the shadow of a serpent will not sting nor the shadow of a sword kill.”
4. “Without a great light there cannot be a shadow.”
5. All throughout Scripture God makes famous the Shepherd. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and even those who received the first announcement of Jesus, all were Shepherds.
6. The saint of old and us today have always been given the promise of God’s presence. 
7. The Lord uses the staff to gently help, guide and teach us.
8. The Lord uses the rod to correct, chastise and protect us. 
9. “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” Hebrews 12:6

​​

VII.    A Permanent Shepherd

1. Psalm 23: 5-6 "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever."
2. Without the valleys there would be no mountaintops.
3. David is exclaiming in these verses, “You keep blessing me…its too much!”
4. Even in the valleys we are blessed of God so much.
5. “I’m drinking from the saucer because you are too good to me.” (My cup runneth over)
6. Goodness and Mercy follow me till I pass from this earth (there is an expiration date there, but the Psalm doesn’t end there.) ‘…all the days of my life.’
7. “I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” - Praise the LORD!
8. Jesus our Great Shepherd has never lost anyone, regardless of how dire the circumstances. Even in sickness he has ‘always healed’ and comes through. Whether on this earth or by taking us home. Our Great Shepherd has prepared the victory for us!

- Dr. Richard Harper Evangelist, Determined Ministries

http://determinedministries.org

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Acts 8: 26-36
In Acts chapter 8, we find a familiar story that gives us some great biblical instruction on Soul-Winning.  In this passage, Philip the Evangelist is called to a secluded desert area to encounter a proselyte of Judaism who was making his way back to Africa. The Ethiopian Eunuch, of whom we are not given his name, is a man of great authority and happens (by God’s providence) to be reading out of Isaiah chapter 53. What unfolds is God’s hand of providence. But notice the events leading up to this passage; first there was the obedience to go. 

The Obedience to Go

While this may seem elementary to most this is the stumbling block that trips up most Christians from being Soul-Winners. Please don’t ever take for granite the power and blessings of being obedient to the Lord. Two times in this passage we are told that Philip was obedient to the Lord. In verse 26 the Bible declares, “And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go” and notice the response in verse 27, “And he arose and went.” In verse 29 we find, “Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot” and in verse 30 the response of Philip is recorded: “And Philip ran thither to him…” Interestingly enough though in verses 4 and 5 of this same chapter, even before Philip went to the desert, he was found faithful preaching in Samaria even amid persecution! Further, before this in chapter 6 we are told that out of the thousands that were part of the church at Jerusalem, Philip was selected along with six others because they were men of ‘honest report,’ ‘full of the Holy Ghost,’ and full of ‘wisdom.’ (Acts 6:3) I wonder how many of us would be selected in the face of thousands because we were full of the Holy Ghost, of honest report, and full of wisdom? It is obvious that Philip was obedient to the Lord long before he was called to the desert to witness to the Ethiopian Eunuch. “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.” (1 Corinthians 4:2) So we see that Philip was obedient to go, but notice also the ordering of Philip’s steps. 

The Ordering of Steps

Many times, in our Christian service we are tempted to feel as if we have spun our wheels and wasted our time. But grab a hold of this truth; if the Lord is ordering your steps, you are certainly not wasting your time! Whether you are preaching a revival to a city (Samaria) or whether you preaching the Gospel to one person in the middle of nowhere if God direct, you have not wasted your time! In the book of Acts one of the greatest church planters in the New Testament, Paul the Apostle gives us a great example of this. In Acts chapter 24:22-25 we find him preaching the Gospel to Felix the governor; Felix trembled but did not get saved. Did Paul waste his time? In Acts 26: 19-28, Paul again preached the Gospel to King Agrippa, Bernice, and Festus; none of which to our knowledge accepted Jesus Christ. Did Paul waste his time? I don’t believe so! In Proverbs 3: 5-6 we are given a promise concerning the Lord directing our steps. This promise though has conditions, notice what it says, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” The epilogue, if you will, is stated in verse 7 with some ‘warning labels.’ It states, “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.” The components or conditions are as follows: – (1) Trust in the Lord with our whole heart [there is a fullness of trust required] (2) Not going in your own understanding, (3) Acknowledging God in all things = [the result] He shall direct Thy paths (Steps). The epilogue is this – (1) Be not wise in your own eyes, (2) Fear the Lord, (3) and Depart from Evil [This epilogue is almost a reverse of the steps mentioned in the previous verses). You see, if we are following God’s formula for direction, we will never be found wasting our time. We see Philip’s obedience to go, the ordering of his steps and then finally the crux of the whole matter, the opening of the mouth. 

The Opening of the Mouth

Our purpose here upon this earth after salvation is bound up in the command that God gave us to ‘preach the Gospel to every creature’ and our goal is to preach Jesus. We find at the end of this lengthy narrative Philip simply preached Jesus. “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.” (Acts 8:35) All throughout the book of Acts this same theme can be found, preaching Jesus. In Acts 8:4 we see, “… they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.” In verse 5, “Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” In Acts chapter 7, at the end of his lengthy sermon Stephen was preaching Jesus to those who stoned him. You see we need a fresh revival of Christians simply preaching Jesus. Let me encourage you to be bold in your witness and preach Jesus Christ! I will leave you with this quote from Charles Spurgeon in his 1859 sermon (of which he apparently was quoting someone else but agreed with the statement), “I have never yet found a text that had not got a road to Christ in it, and if I ever do find one that has not a road to Christ in it, I will make one; I will go over hedge and ditch but I would get at my Master, for the sermon cannot do any good unless there is a savour of Christ in it.”

Pastor James Grandinetti - Community Outreach Pastor, Sharon Baptist Church