Hurricane Sandy & the Sovereignty of God (Free MP3s, Video, etc.)
"For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble." - Psalm 107:22-26 (KJV)
"Shall there be evil in a city, and the Lord hath not done it?" - Amos 3:6b (KJV)
"The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble." - Psalm 99:1a (KJV)
What Reformed theology teach about natural disasters (hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, etc.) and God's sovereignty.
The Sovereignty of God in Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Floods, Tornados, Hurricanes, etc. by Greg Price (Free SWRB MP3)
Sandy & Katrina - A Call to Repentance by Kevin Swanson (Free Generations Radio MP3)
In shocking and violent destructive force, God sends a message to us through Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy. But what are we to repent of? This is not a political sermon. But if this nation does not repent, God may very well destroy it. Pastor Kevin Swanson provides an agenda for repentance which starts with us -- the church of Jesus Christ. This is a sermon for our times. Be careful. The content of this message may be disturbing, if you are not ready for God's Word to correct the worldview we have been trained by the humanists to accept.
Our Sovereign And Unchanging God In A Changing World Full Of Trials, Trouble, Sin, Pain, Affliction, Misery, Disorder & Disease by Greg Price (Free SWRB MP3)
Understanding God's Righteous Judgments On Individuals, Families, Churches & Nations by Dr. Steven Dilday (Free SWRB MP3)
Hurricane Sandy Destroys New York - What's the Message? by Kevin Swanson (Free Generations Radio MP3)
New Orleans. New York. Is San Francisco next? Total hurricane damage costs in America (adjusted for inflation and standard of living changes) has been 4X worse than it was in the 90s (over the last 10 years), and 12X worse than the 70s and 80s! What's the message here? Is there a God and does He do things? This is hard for the modern mind to comprehend. Kevin Swanson and Dave Buehner discuss a proper response to these natural disasters on this edition of Generations.
Global Warming Ended in 1996 (Web Article)
Human-caused global warming is dead as a doornail.
The Doctrine of Absolute Predestination by Jerome Zanchius (Free MP3 Audio Book From Still Waters Revival Books)
The Sovereignty of God by Al Martin (17 Free MP3s)
The Puritan View of Providence (Free MP3s, Videos & Books)
Sandy, Katrina and Rita: Children of 'Mother Nature' or of Father God? #1 by Al Martin (Free MP3)
Sandy, Katrina and Rita - Whose children are they, and why were they born? Out of the destruction comes instruction, when viewed with biblical lenses.
-A- Preface: All discussion and instruction must be marked by sympathy and compassion. We must not be unfeeling nor unconcerned for those directly impacted by the destruction and devastation resulting from these storms.
-B- Reminder of basic truths related to these unusual providences.
-1- Our world is under the sovereign control of God at all times, in all places, and with respect to all things.
-2- Our world is under the righteous curse of God because of man's sin.
-C- We live in a world in which God has multiple purposes folded into his unusual visitations upon the physical world.
-1- Five purposes of God for his own people (not an exhaustive list)
-a- to advance their conformity and love to Jesus Christ
-b- to make his own people more heavenly minded
-c- to make his own people the occasion for shutting the devil's mouth
-d- to increase their ability to minister comfort to others
-e- to use the deprivation of believers to draw out the compassionate benevolence of other believers
Sandy, Katrina and Rita: Children of 'Mother Nature' or of Father God? #2 by Al Martin (Free MP3)
Sandy, Katrina and Rita - What Good News?
"...for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." - Isaiah 26:9b
-A- Preface: All discussion and instruction must be marked by sympathy and compassion and not be unfeeling and unconcerned for those directly impacted by the destruction and devastation resulting from these storms.
-B- Reminder of basic truths related to these unusual providences.
-1- Our world is under the sovereign control of God at all times in all places with respect to all things.
-2- Our World is under the righteous curse of God because of man's sin.
-C- We live in a world in which God has multiple purposes folded into his unusual visitations into the physical world.
-1- Five purposes of God for his own people (see message #1)
-2- Five purposes of God for the unconverted
-a- to awaken sinners to the terrifying reality of his irresistible power and future judgment
-b- to soften sinners by his discriminating mercy manifested amidst death and devastation
-c- that his sudden and tragic cutting off of some would constitute a clarion to repentance to others
-d- to bring the gospel to many-a gospel validated by the tangible manifestations of selfless, sacrificial, self-giving love of Christians
-e- to show to men the utter folly and futility of an idolatrous trust in man
Why God Sends Trials Upon His People (Sermons in Times of Persecution) by James Guthrie (Free SWRB MP3)
Katrina - What's the Message? by Kevin Swanson and Doug Phillips (Free Generations Radio MP3)
What could be the worst disaster in American history hits New Orleans. Who did it and why? Kevin and Dave conclude that it wasn't George W. Bush. We get Vision Forum's Doug Phillips on the line to discuss relief efforts to help victims and who is to blame for this devastation.
The Vain Self-Flatteries of the Sinner, That God Will Not Judge Him and Pour Out His Wrath On Him, Because of His Sin by Jonathan Edwards (Free SWRB MP3)
The Judgment of God and the Great White Throne by Paul Washer (Free Video)
The Wrath of God by Paul Washer (Free Video)
White Throne JUDGMENT - Are You Ready? by Paul Washer (Free Video)
Stories You Won't Hear About Global Warming (Web Article)
Among the many lies told by the Left, one of the biggest is the myth of man-made global warming. Global warming alarmism has never been about anything more than power over people and the opportunity for certain wealthy proponents to increase their fortunes through schemes such as carbon credits. Still, with the mainstream media in full collusion mode, it's no surprise that the public continues to buy into the global warming scam. ... What you aren't likely to hear is that the Antarctic ice cap is thicker than at any time in decades and continues to grow. In fact, as of Sept. 12, the South Pole has the most ice ever recorded since satellites began measuring the ice cap 33 years ago, yet news outlets like NPR are still running articles about how an ice sheet the "size of Rhode Island" broke off an Antarctic peninsula 10 years ago as proof of global warming. The mainstream media are all over the story about the shrinking north polar ice cap, predicting all sorts of mayhem if it disappears. The north pole, however, is essentially a giant ice cube floating in the water. When it melts, there is no discernible difference in sea levels due to water displacement. Among the disasters predicted by the warming alarmists is an increase in "extreme" weather, by which they mean tornadoes, hurricanes, floods and anything else that makes a good picture on the news. But the statistics show the opposite of what the alarmists hope for. According to data from the National Hurricane Center, over the past 100 years, there have been 70 major hurricanes, for an average of seven per decade. Breaking that down, during the past 50 years, there have been an average 5.6 hurricanes per decade. During the previous 50 years, before industrialization really took over and caused all that global warming, the U.S. experienced an average of 8.4 major hurricanes per decade. So the number of major hurricanes has actually decreased.
New Scientific Findings Undermine Everything You Have Been Told About Global Warming (Web Article)
"Back in January 2008, it was first reported that the global temperature was no longer rising and hadn't for the previous ten years. The adherents of man-made warming received this piece of news with anger and chose to vilify the messenger. ... Last week came the news that a great number of scientists have confused cause with effect: Increasing temperatures give rise to CO2 emissions - not the other way around. ... The important thing is that the impact of the CO2 ghost has been vastly overplayed and that the current climate models have been totally undermined.
Patience in Affliction by John Calvin (Calvin's Sermons On Job), Greg Price, Thomas Watson, James Guthrie, Thomas Manton, et al. (Free MP3s, Videos, etc.)
"I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." -Isaiah 48:10
"It would not be possible for me too earnestly to press upon you the importance of reading the expositions of that prince among men, JOHN CALVIN!"
- Charles Spurgeon (Lecture One: A Chat About Commentaries, Commenting and Commentaries)
Patience in Affliction (Hope, Contentment, Joy & God's Love in the Midst of Trials, Suffering and Pain) Calvin's Sermons on Job by John Calvin (Free MP3)
Sermons on Job #1, Introduction by John Calvin, Protestant Reformer, Pastor, Author (Free MP3)
Sermons on Job #2, Riches, Poverty, Family, etc., by the Reformer John Calvin (SWRB, Free MP3)
Suffering Outside the Camp, Separation & Suffering for Christ by John Calvin (Free SWRB MP3)
Suffering: The Biblical Gift of God by Greg Price (Free SWRB MP3)
The Sovereignty of God in Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Floods, Tornados, Hurricanes, etc. by Greg Price (Free MP3)
Our Sovereign And Unchanging God In A Changing World Full Of Trials, Trouble, Sin, Pain, Affliction, Misery, Disorder & Disease by Greg Price (Free MP3)
The Crook In The Lot; Or, The Sovereignty And Wisdom Of God In The Afflictions Of Men Displayed by Thomas Boston (Free Book Online)
Why God Sends Trials Upon His People by James Guthrie (Audio Book: Sermons in Times of Persecution, Free MP3)
The Art of Divine Contentment by Thomas Watson (8 Free Puritan MP3s)
All Things Work For Good by Thomas Manton (2 Free Puritan MP3s)
Institutes of the Christian Religion #27: How to Use the Present Life, Comforts of It, Justification by Faith, Self-Denial, etc. by John Calvin (Free SWRB MP3)
The Secret Providence of God, Calvin's Calvinism, by John Calvin (7 Free SWRB MP3s)
Dealing with Affliction, Suffering, and Sickness
The Sovereignty of God in the Trials, Tears, Pain, Suffering, Sickness, Afflictions and Calamities of Life
Scroll down for free Reformation resources (books, MP3s, etc.) on the sovereignty of God (and God's purposes) in the trials, tears, pain, suffering, sickness, affliction and calamities of life.
"As the wicked are hurt by the best things, so the godly are bettered by the worst."
- William Jenkyn (on the Puritan Hard Drive), emphases added
"To know that nothing hurts the godly, is a matter of comfort; but to be assured that all things which fall out shall co-operate for their good,
that their crosses shall be turned into blessings, that showers of affliction water the withering root of their grace and make it flourish more; this may fill their hearts with joy till they run over."
- Thomas Watson (on the Puritan Hard Drive), emphases added
"For our light affliction, which is but for a moment,
worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."
- 2 Corinthians 4:17, emphases added
"And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the 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."
- Romans 8:28-29, emphases added
There are
457 Reformed resources under the category "Dealing With Affliction, Suffering and Sickness", 1,840 Reformation resources under the category "Calvinism and the Sovereignty of God" and 325 Reformed resources under the category "Predestination and Providence" on the Puritan Hard Drive.
FREE SOVEREIGN GRACE RESOURCES TO ASSIST YOU IN DEALING WITH SUFFERING, SICKNESS, TRIALS, TROUBLE, PAIN, HARDSHIPS, PERSECUTION, etc.
Our Sovereign And Unchanging God In A Changing World Full Of Trials, Trouble, Sin, Pain, Affliction, Misery, Disorder & Disease by Greg Price (Free MP3)
The Sovereignty of God in Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Floods, Tornados, Hurricanes, etc. by Greg Price (Free MP3)
"Sanctified afflictions are spiritual promotions." - Matthew Henry
The Crook In The Lot; Or, The Sovereignty And Wisdom Of God In The Afflictions Of Men Displayed by Thomas Boston (Free Book Online)
Patience in Affliction (Hope, Contentment, Joy and God's Love in the Midst of Trials, Suffering and Pain) Calvin's Sermons on Job by John Calvin (Free MP3)
"Afflictions are as needful as ordinances." - Thomas Watson
All Things Work For Good (1 of 2) by Thomas Manton (Free MP3)
All Things Work For Good (2 of 2) by Thomas Manton (Free MP3)
"I never knew the meaning of God's Word until I came into affliction." - Martin Luther.
Ezra #1 God's Sovereignty Over Men and Nations For His Glory, His Church and Reformation by Greg Price (Free MP3)
"Did you never run for shelter in a storm, and find fruit which you expected not? Did you never go to God for safeguard, driven by outward storms, and there find unexpected fruit?" - John Owen
The Art of Divine Contentment by Thomas Watson (8 Free MP3s)
The Calvinistic Covenanter at Perfect Peace Amid Trials and Persecution by Richard Cameron (Free MP3)
"The secret formula of the saints: When I am in the cellar of affliction, I look for the Lord's choicest wines." - Samuel Rutherford.
God's Mysterious Providence and Love (1 of 2) by Michael Bruce, Covenanter (Free MP3)
God's Mysterious Providence and Love (2 of 2) by Michael Bruce, Covenanter (Free MP3)
"Poverty and affliction take away the fuel that feeds pride." - Richard Sibbes
Why God Wills That The Church Be Persecuted And Why Saints Become Martyrs (Persecution, Martyrdom, Suffering, Trials, Rewards) by W.J. Mencarow (Free MP3)
"Pour not on the comforts you want, but upon the mercies you have. Look rather at God's ending in afflicting, than to the measure and degree of your affliction." - Christopher Love.
Christ Sifting His Church (Sermons in Times of Persecution) by James Renwick (Free MP3)
"Though I cannot know what your afflictions are, yet I know what your mercies are, and I know they are so great that I am sure there can be no afflictions in this world as great as the mercies you have. If it were only this mercy, that you have this day of grace and salvation continued to you: it is a greater mercy than any affliction. Set any affliction beside this mercy and see which would weigh heaviest; this is certainly greater than any affliction. That you have the day of grace and salvation, that you are not now in hell, this is a greater mercy. That you have the sound of the Gospel still in your ears, that you have the use of your reason: this is a greater mercy than your afflictions." - Jeremiah Burroughs
Free Grace Broadcaster - Comfort in Affliction (Free PDF)
"In seasons of severe trial, the Christian has nothing on earth that he can trust to, and is therefore compelled to cast himself on his God alone. When his vessel is on its beam-ends, and no human deliverance can avail, he must simply and entirely trust himself to the providence and care of God. Happy storm that wrecks a man on such a rock as this! O blessed hurricane that drives the soul to God and God alone!
There is no getting at our God sometimes because of the multitude of our friends; but when a man is so poor, so friendless, so helpless that he has nowhere else to turn, he flies into his Father's arms, and is blessedly clasped therein! When he is burdened with troubles so pressing and so peculiar, that he cannot tell them to any but his God, he may be thankful for them; for he will learn more of his Lord then than at any other time.
Oh, tempest-tossed believer, it is a happy trouble that drives thee to thy Father! Now that thou hast only thy God to trust to, see that thou puttest thy full confidence in him. Dishonour not thy Lord and Master by unworthy doubts and fears; but be strong in faith, giving glory to God. Show the world that thy God is worth ten thousand worlds to thee. Show rich men how rich thou art in thy poverty when the Lord God is thy helper. Show the strong man how strong thou art in thy weakness when underneath thee are the everlasting arms. Now is the time for feats of faith and valiant exploits. Be strong and very courageous, and the Lord thy God shall certainly, as surely as he built the heavens and the earth, glorify himself in thy weakness, and magnify his might in the midst of thy distress. The grandeur of the arch of heaven would be spoiled if the sky were supported by a single visible column, and your faith would lose its glory if it rested on anything discernible by the carnal eye. May the Holy Spirit give you to rest in Jesus."
- Charles Spurgeon (on the Puritan Hard Drive), emphases added
PASTOR GREG PRICE REVIEWS AND RECOMMENDS THE PURITAN HARD DRIVE
"I was one of those who had profited much from using the plethora of out-of-print Reformation materials offered by Still Waters Revival Books in the 62 CDs (Puritan CDs and Reformation CDs) for a number of years in my ministry -- works that I could only have found in select libraries (usually hundreds of miles away from my residence).
With the CDs, it took a little while to go to the index of each set, locate the documents I needed, and then find the correct CD. Of course, the time was always well spent in finding that particular document that I needed.
However, now that I have the Puritan Hard Drive, I am able to use my time much more efficiently in finding that particular document I need by quickly searching for it and finding it in a matter of seconds. It's like going from "dial up" to "high-speed" Internet!
And for all of those documents that have a font that are in block letters, I am able to simply cut and paste from the Puritan Hard Drive to my own document with ease.
Amazing surprises do come in small packages!
If you want to understand Reformed theology (i.e., the whole counsel of God) the Puritan Hard Drive is unsurpassed, outside the Bible itself. The First and Second Reformations gave us the most faithful Scriptural teaching and preaching since the time of the Apostles, and there is no other resource, outside Scripture itself, where you can find so much of God's truth as in the Puritan Hard Drive.
May the Lord continue to use this most profitable tool to promote a Third Reformation that encompasses the whole world (Isaiah 2:2-4)!"
- Greg L. Price (Author, Theologian and Covenanted Presbyterian Minister, USA). Many free online books, MP3s and videos by Greg Price are at https://www.swrb.com/newslett/freebook/gprice.htm and at https://www.sermonaudio.com/go/61470.
Comfort thyself, tried believer, with this thought: God saith, "I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." Does not the word come like a soft shower, assuaging the fury of the flame? Yea, is it not an asbestos armour, against which the heat hath no power? Let affliction come -- God has chosen me. Poverty, thou mayst stride in at my door, but God is in the house already, and he has chosen me.
Sickness, thou mayst intrude, but I have a balsam ready -- God has chosen me. Whatever befalls me in this vale of tears, I know that he has chosen me. If, believer, thou requirest still greater comfort, remember that you have the Son of Man with you in the furnace.
In that silent chamber of yours, there sitteth by your side One whom thou hast not seen, but whom thou lovest; and ofttimes when thou knowest it not, he makes all thy bed in thy affliction, and smooths thy pillow for thee. Thou art in poverty; but in that lovely house of thine the Lord of life and glory is a frequent visitor. He loves to come into these desolate places, that he may visit thee.
Thy friend sticks closely to thee. Thou canst not see him, but thou mayst feel the pressure of his hands. Dost thou not hear his voice? Even in the valley of the shadow of death he says, 'Fear not, I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God.'
Remember that noble speech of Caesar: 'Fear not, thou carriest Caesar and all his fortune.' Fear not, Christian; Jesus is with thee. In all thy fiery trials, his presence is both thy comfort and safety.
He will never leave one whom he has chosen for his own. 'Fear not, for I am with thee,' is his sure word of promise to his chosen ones in the 'furnace of affliction.' Wilt thou not, then, take fast ! hold of Christ, and say -- 'Through floods and flames, if Jesus lead, I'll follow where he goes.'
- Charles Spurgeon (on the Puritan Hard Drive), emphases added
By calling it "great joy," he shows us, not only that we ought, above all things, to rejoice in the salvation brought us by Christ, but that this blessing is so great and boundless, as fully to compensate for all the pains, distresses, and anxieties of the present life. Let us learn to be so delighted with Christ alone, that the perception of his grace may overcome, and at length remove from us, all the distresses of the flesh.
- John Calvin on Luke 2:10, emphases added
"I will sing of mercy and judgment." - Psalm 101:1
Faith triumphs in trial. When reason is thrust into the inner prison, with her feet made fast in the stocks, faith makes the dungeon walls ring with her merry notes as she I cries, "I will sing of mercy and of judgment. Unto thee, O Lord, will I sing." Faith pulls the black mask from the face of trouble, and discovers the angel beneath. Faith looks up at the cloud, and sees that 'Tis big with mercy and shall break In blessings on her head."
There is a subject for song even in the judgments of God towards us. For, first, the trial is
not so heavy as it might have been; next, the trouble is not so severe as we deserved to have borne; and our affliction is not so crushing as the burden which others have to carry. Faith sees that in her worst sorrow there is nothing penal; there is not a drop of God's wrath in it; it is all sent in love. Faith discerns love gleaming like a jewel on the breast of an angry God. Faith says of her grief, "This is a badge of honour, for the child must feel the rod"; and then she sings of the sweet result of her sorrows, because they work her spiritual good. Nay, more, says Faith, "These light afflictions, which are but for a moment, work out for me a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." So Faith rides forth on the black horse, conquering and to conquer, trampling down carnal reason and fleshly sense, and chanting notes of victory amid the thickest of the fray.
All I meet I find assists me In my path to heavenly joy: Where, though trials now attend me, Trials never more annoy.
"Blest there with a weight of glory, Still the path I'll ne'er forget,
But, exulting, cry, it led me To my blessed Saviour's seat."
- Charles Spurgeon (on the Puritan Hard Drive), emphases added
"You have heard of my trouble, I suppose. It hath pleased our sweet Lord Jesus to let loose the malice of these interdicted lords in his house to deprive me of my ministry at Anwoth, and to confine me, eight score miles from thence, to Aberdeen; and also (which was not done to any before) to inhibit me to speak at all in Jesus' name within this kingdom, under the pain of rebellion. The cause that ripened their hatred was by book, whereof they accused me on those three days I appeared before them. But let our crowned King in Zion reign! By his grace the loss is theirs, the advantage is Christ's and truth's."
- Samuel Rutherford in a letter to Robert Cunningham, 1636 (from the Letters of Samuel Rutherford on the Puritan Hard Drive).
The Sovereignty of God
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Spurgeon's Sovereign
Grace Sermons
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"There is no attribute more comforting to His children, than that of God's sovereignty.
Under the most adverse circumstances, in the most severe trials -- they believe that sovereignty has ordained their afflictions, that sovereignty overrules them, and that sovereignty will sanctify them all. There is nothing for which the children of God ought more earnestly to contend, than the doctrine of their Master over all creation -- the kingship of God over all the works of His own hands -- the throne of God and His right to sit upon that throne.
On the other hand, there is no doctrine more hated by worldlings, no truth of which they have made such a football -- as the great, stupendous, but yet most certain doctrine, of the sovereignty of the infinite Jehovah. Men will allow God to be everywhere, except on His throne. They will allow Him to be in His workshop to fashion worlds and make stars. They will allow Him to be in His almonry to dispense His alms and bestow His bounties. They will allow Him to sustain the earth and bear up the pillars thereof, or light the lamps of heaven, or rule the waves of the ever-moving ocean; but when God ascends His throne -- then His creatures gnash their teeth!
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Charles Spurgeon, Preacher of God's Sovereignty
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We proclaim an enthroned God, and His right to do as He wills with His own, to dispose of His creatures as He thinks well, without consulting them in the matter. Then it is, that we are hissed and execrated; and then it is, that men turn a deaf ear to us -- for God on His throne -- is not the God they love. But it is God upon the throne that we love to preach. It is God upon His throne, whom we trust!"
- Charles Spurgeon, Divine Sovereignty, A Sermon Delivered on Sabbath Morning, May 4, 1856, At New Park Street Chapel, Southwark (emphases added).
"In the history of the church's sanctification
(mortification and vivification - ed.) I don't believe there has been a more valuable extra-biblical resource and tool than the Puritan Hard Drive." - Dr. C. Matthew McMahon, A Puritan's Mind
"To have that much information from a consistent, biblical, orthodox, and gospel-centered point of view is simply astonishing. Anyone who admires the Puritans simply must have the Puritan Hard Drive."
- Dr. Voddie Baucham, Jr., Voddie Baucham Ministries
"The Puritan Hard Drive has been such a superb blessing to me personally and for my ministry, that I lack words to adequately praise the Lord! " - Richard Bennett (former Roman Catholic priest who now preaches Reformation truth), Berean Beacon
It is not a fit time to take the measure of our graces, as to their sensible growth and fruitfulness, when devils are broken loose upon us; temptations are multiplied, corruptions make a great noise, and we are meeting with a horrible tempest shaking us on all hands: for it will be strong grace that will much appear then; it will be strong faith that will say, Though he kill me, yet will I trust in him. At such a time it will be much if the man keep the ground he hath gained, though he make no progress. It will be much for a tree to stand, and not to be blown out of the ground, in the time of a strong and vehement storm of wind, though it keep not its flourishes and yield not fruit. The trees, which in a cold winter day bear neither leaves nor fruit, must not be said to go back, nor not to grow; because when the spring cometh again, they may revive and be as fruitful as ever.
- Brown of Wamphray, Christ: The Way, & The Truth, & The Life, Chapter 7: How Christ Is to Be Made Use Of, In Reference to Growing In Grace, pp. 150-151 (emphases added), on the Puritan Hard Drive.
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