The author tells us what prayer is not: Prayer never makes God my servant to give me everything I think I must have in order to make me happy. God is not a 'heavenly bellhop' who carries my suitcase of selfish desires any place I command. Prayer never allows me to either dictate my will to God nor to make God in any way change his mind. God has a fixed plan and his plan is the best plan. God is determined to carry out his plan, and neither our sin nor or 'believing' prayers are going to derail or in any way change God's ultimate decrees (Job 13:13) The author also tells us what true prayer is: True prayer is a frank admission that God is sovereign. When we really pray we admit that the thing is in God's hands alone. We are saying that tomorrow, with all it brings, is not under our control but under his control. It is in his hands and not in ours. Prayer is a joyful surrender to God's sovereign purposes. We are acknowledging that God has the right and power to do whatever seems good to him. We are sying that regardless of what God does tomorrow, we know it is part of the "all things" in Romans 8:28. Prayer is earnestly pleading with God for grace to glorify him regardless of what he does. We are really saying, "Father, give me grace to trust you and act like your child whether you say yes or no."

The Sovereignty of God and Prayer

John G. Reisinger

New Covenant Media

John G. Reisinger, well-known and well-loved evangelist, author, and teacher of the Word of God for over fifty years continues his series on the "Doctrines of Grace" with this booklet. "Being born again" and "being saved" are not the same thing. They are two parts of one whole but must not be confused. Both are essential to true conversion. It is impossible to experience one without experiencing the other. The question is not one of time and sequence, that is, which is first and which is second, but rather one of cause and effect. Does our faith cause the new birth or does the new birth cause faith? The quesiton, "Why does one person believe and become saved, while another rejects Christ and is lost?" will be answered differently according to our understading of the nature of regeneration. In one case, we will attribute the cause of man's faith to his free will, and in the other case we will give the Holy Sprit the glory for enabling us, by regenerating us, to believe and be saved.

The New Birth

Do you understand the various messages of hope and grace in the Bible or do you have trouble putting it all together? Can you relate the truths of Scripture to your everyday life or does most of it seem unrelated to the real life situations of your personal world today? This booklet is written for the express purpose of giving you clear and specific help in these two areas. It is designed to help you understand what the Bible really says and means and to apply that message to the real life situations you must face in your personal world. There are six principles basic to the concept of the sovereignty of God in providence that run all the way through the Word of God and undergird its message of salvation. It is essential to understand and believe them in order to have a biblical understanding of God Himself and His sovereign grace. Grasping and applying these truths to your everyday life is the foundation of biblical hope that leads to true joy in the Lord. Without them, it is difficult to have a reasonable, hopeful sense of security and heartfelt assurance while lving in our present-day, crazy world.

The Sovereignty of God in Providence

John G. Reisinger, well-known and well-loved evangelist, author and teacher of the Word of God for over fifty years continues to enlighten and encourage you, the reader, to explore and understand the truth of God's Holy Word. In this book, the fourth in his series on the "Doctrines of Grace," John sets forth the doctrine of the atonement, and examines the two prevailing Evanglical views concerning it. The necessity and the nature of the atonement are presented in clear terms, along with a concise exploration of the biblical terms, ransom, substitute, reconciliation, and propitiation. The concepts of imputation and representation are considered and applied to the topic, and the objections to the teaching of Particular Redemption are fairly answered. Included in the book are two appendices: the first asks the question, "What did Christ accomplish in his death on the cross? Did his death make salvation possible for all men, or did his death make salvation certain for the elect?" John presents a chart that compares the answers of Free-Will with the answers of Free-Grace. The second appendix contains an excellent exposition of Romans 5:12-19, which carefully folows the Apostle Paul's use of the words many and all. A right understanding and application by faith of the glorious truth of the atonement will cause us to see both the nature and depth of the sin out of which we have been redeemed, and the amazing love and power of God that accomplishes our salvation. As we look at the sufferings of Christ on the cross and understand what he really accomplished on that horrible instrument of shame, we will be led to adoring worship and praise.

Limited Atonement

How does a believer in Christ keep Sabbath? Is the biblical teaching one of keeping one day out of seven in a different manner than the other six days--or is the biblical teaching one of resting in the perfect and complete work of Christ? John G. Reisinger, Bible scholar, evangelist, pastor and author probes these questions in a way that brings fresh appreciation to the work that Christ has accomplished on behalf of sinners. John states, "The gospel is the story of how Christ 'finished the work my Father gave me to do.' Learning the gospel is learning about him and the work he came to do." That Christ is the believer's Sabbath is clearly shown from the Scriptures. Christ has provided for fallen man that which man could never earn by his own works. Christ has done all that the Father desired and ushered in the age in which believers rest in him. It is the author's desire that the teaching in this little booklet will encourage the child of God to find joy, peace, and rest as he trusts in the finished work of his Lord and Savior, even the Christ.

The Believer's Sabbath

John G. Reisinger, well-known and well-loved evangelist, author, and teacher of the Word of God for over fifty years completes his series on the "Doctrines of Grace" with this, the fifth point, Perseverance of the Saints. John begins by establishing the historic positions held by Evangelicals, and contrasts those positions with the contemporary doctrine of Carnal christians/Eternal Security. He then asks and answers three key questions: 1. Exactly what, or who, is a true Christian? 2. How does a person become a true Christian? 3. How does any individual know for sure that he is a true Christian? The Bible is crystal clear that only those who persevere to the end will reach heaven. It is equally clear that not every who merely professes to be going to heaven is really going there. Lastly, the Bible is clear that all who persevere in faith and ultimately make it to heaven do so only because the sovereign grace and power of God enabled them to do so. The book concludes with two Appendices, one of which contains those portions of the London Baptist Confession of Faith of 1644 that deal with the nature of true salvation; the other examins in dept the definite and implications of the Carnal christian doctrine.

Perseverance of the Saints

Our Lord used the phrase, But I say unto you, six times in the Sermon on the Mount. The meaning of this phrase as he used it in Matthew 5 is the subject of disagreement among many sincere Christians. Evangelical theologians generally adopt one of two possible interpretations: One, Christ is contrasting his teaching with Moses’ teaching; or two, Christ is giving the true meaning of Moses and contrasting that with the distortions of Moses by the Pharisees. Which of these positions is correct? The answer we accept directly affects our entire system of theology. This is no ivory tower debate among academics far removed from the life of the church and individual Christians. Its crucial point addresses the identity and content of the final authority over the Christian’s conscience in matters of morality. The thesis of this book is one of the foundation stones of a theological position called New Covenant Theology. We believe that our Lord is more than a scribe or rabbi who merely interprets Moses; he is a true prophet. He is “that Prophet,” promised as the new lawgiver who would replace Moses (Deut. 18:15-19). In the Sermon on the Mount, the new lawgiver contrasts his teaching, based on the gracious covenant he established, with the teaching of Moses, based on a covenant of law. As believers living under the New Covenant, we must look to Jesus Christ as the final revelation of God’s character and will, and allow him alone to set the standards that mark the life of the people of God. We must take seriously the Father’s message, “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him” (Mark 9:7).

But I Say Unto You

This book has a two-fold purpose. First, it responds to a series of challenges to New Covenant Theology that Dr. Richard Barcellos offered in his book titled In Defense of the Decalogue. The challenges were made to anyone holding to New Covenant Theology in general and to John Reisinger personally. Dr. Barcellos' book is written in an irenic spirit and will prove to be very helpful in the present discussion in Reformed circles on the relationship of the Old and New Covenants. I sincerely hope this response is just as irenic and helpful. The second purpose is to set forth what New Covenant Theology believes in the eight areas where Barcellos states his objections. He defends the view that the Ten Commandments are the highest expression of the Law of God ever given. We believe the New Covenant revelation given by Christ and His apostles is a higher and more demanding law than anything given through Moses. Simply stated, this book asserts that Jesus is a new and higher lawgiver who replaces Moses in exactly the same way he replaces Aaron as high priest. Barcellos insists that Christ is the greatest exegete of the Law given to Moses but in no sense gives any higher or more demanding law than Moses. We believe Christ is not only a Lawgiver but he is the full and final Lawgiver who supersedes and replaces all others.

In Defense of Jesus, the New Lawgiver

Some years past, Sound of Grace carried an article by John G. Reisinger entitled Grace. This article now expanded into this book profoundly affected the way I viewed grace and indeed God s work in the salvation and sanctification of sinners such as me. No longer restricted in my understanding by the traditional definition, I came to see that grace has more than one aspect; indeed, it has many facets. First, I came to appreciate much more fully and deeply just how free (no merit on the part of rebellious sinners) grace as given by the sovereign God truly is. I also realized just how much this grace cost God in the giving of his beloved Son. This was, and is, a truly rich, glorious, marvelous, amazing grace! Perhaps the aspect of grace that had its most profound impact on my thinking was Pastor John s explanation of grace as a spiritual power that flows from God into a sinner and effects genuine change in the heart of that sinner. For the first time, I came to rely on God s grace (enabling power) in my daily walk, as I desired to grow in Christ and to be like him in thought, word, and deed. I could see the futility of striving to maintain a relationship with Christ through the outward influences of lists of dos and don ts, even those that are good and right. I came to appreciate, love, and adore Jesus Christ, who is my righteousness and sanctification and redemption (cf. 1 Cor. 1:30). Further, I came to see the absolute necessity of the entire council of God as revealed in the entirety of Scripture, especially the words of Christ and the writings of his disciples, as my rule of faith and conduct. Jacob Moseley

Grace

Literature & Fiction

Literary

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