DR. & MRS. DAVID C. BENNETT

PO BOX 1241, DUBBO, NSW 2830 - PHONE/FAX - 011- 61- 2 – 6884 – 2846

EMAIL – Bennett@BibleForToday.org

Sending Church

Bible For Today Baptist Church – 900 Park Ave., Collingswood, NJ 08108

JULY, 2004

Dearly Beloved in Christ Jesus,

Beloved brethren, fellow labourers and soldiers in the work of Christ, grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

BENNETT FAMILY NEWS: a telephone call received the 29th of June from our son, Matthew, saying they are expecting their third child, our eighth grandchild, Seth David! Seth is predicted to arrive into this world 15th November! Mother and child are doing fine.

Please note the email recently sent notifying you of the change in our email address to bennettdubbo@aapt.net.au. Please make this change in your address book or you may also send email to us through Bennett@BibleForToday.org which is automatically forwarded on to us. The latter email address is probably the best in case our address here in Australia does change again in the future. Telephone and internet providers are all competing against each other and aapt has the best to offer at the present time.

On The Gospel Hour (which is the Sunday radio programme) David is reading through the gospel of Mark and PRACTICAL RELIGION by Horatius Bonar, 1808-1889. Bonar also wrote that timeless book WORDS TO WINNERS OF SOULS. In WORDS TO WINNERS OF SOULS Bonar said "It is not opinions that man needs: it is Truth. It is not theology: it is God. It is not religion: it is Christ. It is not literature and science: but the knowledge of the free love of God in the gift of His only begotten Son." That is exactly what we seek to give forth through this one hour radio programme each Sunday afternoon. What a blessing the booklet PRACTICAL RELIGION has been to us and we pray the Lord will use it in reaching the unsaved who listen to "cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way." Jonah 3:8.

The last Sunday of June, David read chapter two of PRACTICAL RELIGION; LUTHER’S CONVERSION. Bonar wrote of Luther that "Once, he was sent to Rome on some business, and he thought that good works done at Rome were better and had more merit than those done anywhere else. He was told that if he would crawl up a very long stair, called Pilate’s staircase, on his bare knees, he would acquire a great stock of merit. With great earnestness he set himself to do this miserable penance. While he was crawling up the steps, he thought he heard a voice like thunder, saying aloud to him, ‘The just shall live by faith.’ Immediately he started from his knees, and stopped in the middle of the ascent. The words went to his soul like the voice of God reproving him for his folly. Filled with shame, he instantly left the place. He saw that it was not by his works that he was to save himself at all, far less by works such as these-‘Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but by His mercy He saved us.’ (Titus 3:5)."

In concluding the chapter on Luther Bonar writes that "The conversion of Luther was the dawning of the Reformation." If any of those who listen to our programmes do attend church they would never hear the great Bible truth that "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." Ephesians 2: 8, 9. Most if not all of the churches within the sound of our radio programmes either teaches you are baptized a Christian, saved through one’s works, or confuse people even further through the promotion of the tongues and healing movement, Pentecostalism. Our prayer before each programme is that the Lord will use His Word in reaching some lost soul for His glory. 1 Peter 1: 23 "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever." Please pray with us to this end.

The last Friday of June David’s topic on CrossTalk (our Friday afternoon two hour programme) was the ever increasing push by certain parties to accept homosexuality as normal. Before David began the show he told the listening audience that our desire at CrossTalk was the same for the homosexual as Paul’s was for Israel when he said in Romans 10:1 that his "…heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved."

The Greens Party is a leftist federal and state political party and unfortunately is being more accepted among the wider community. The New South Wales (NSW) Greens are actively promoting the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender life as normal and those who oppose it is an enemy. On the NSW web site one of the Greens policies states that those who do oppose this lifestyle need "focused offender rehabilitation programmes." David has emailed the NSW Greens asking them to detail what they mean by this "focused offender rehabilitation programmes." He is waiting for a reply but as their policy seems to indicate the day may be drawing near when we will be imprisoned for preaching Bible truth. Jude describes the lifestyles that are being promoted today by the Greens and others in verse 7 of his short book saying "Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." The promotion and acceptance of these ungodly activities by many in today’s society have laid an even heavier burden upon our hearts for our children and grandchildren drawing us to pray more fervently for them!

Please continue to pray for John, Mark, Adam, Bob and Elizabeth’s soon coming to know Christ as their personal Saviour. Then continue to pray for the spiritual growth of Jim, Margaret, Gary, Jonathan and Lynn. 2 Peter 3: 18 "But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen."

Thank you again for your prayers and financial gifts and may the Lord richly bless.

Serving the Risen and Soon Coming Saviour,