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He First Loved Us

“We love Him, because He first loved us.” | 1 John 4: 19

Because He first loved us, there are some things that we, God’s people, love about Him:

We love His sovereignty. We love the fact that He has the power, ability, and right to do as He pleases. We especially love that truth because He said, in Christ, it pleased Him to make us His people.

“For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.” (1 Samuel 12: 22)

We love His election. We love who He elected to save. He said He chose to save sinners, and that is what we are.

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” (1 Timothy 1: 15)

We love His predestination. It is the means that He said He would use to conform us to the image of Christ, and that is our greatest desire and need.

“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: 29)

We love His grace, because it is what gave Christ to us.

We love His mercy, because it is what gave Christ to the cross of our punishment. It is what shed His blood for the payment of our sin.

We love His redemption, because it is finished. We are washed clean, made pure, and accepted in Him.

We love His righteousness, because it has covered everything that we are in our flesh with His perfection.

We love His glory, because it magnifies Him.

We love His word, because it reveals Him.

We love His message, because it points us and calls us to Him.

We love His people, because there is no greater pleasure on earth than being with those who love Him and desire to worship and praise Him together.

The glorious gospel of Christ is in the fact that He loved us, even when there was nothing about us to love.

For that, we love Him.

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “What Is Calling Upon His Name?”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church Bulletin Article date: 18 April, 2021 | Previous post date: 4 June, 2021

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I Am What I Am, By The Grace Of God

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” | Ephesians 2: 8

Until we see our sin, we will never understand, love or be thankful for God’s sovereignty, His election or His finished work of salvation.

Men and women naturally reject God’s sovereignty because they do not want to be ruled by someone else. Mankind wants to rule himself.

Men and women naturally reject God’s election because they think that if God didn’t choose for them to be saved, it would be unfair and wrongful treatment to them.

Men and women naturally reject God’s finished work in salvation through the blood of Christ ALONE because they pridefully and self-righteously believe that they have something good in themselves that they can add to Christ’s work.

But after sinners truly see their sin, they LOVE God’s sovereignty, because they know that their own rule over themselves has only brought absolute ruin to them.

They LOVE God’s election, because they know that God’s unconditional election is the only hope that sinners like them could ever have of being saved. And they LOVE God’s finished work in salvation, because they know that there is NOTHING they could add to it but the deadness of their sin.

They know that if Christ doesn’t finish the work, it’s not going to be finished!

Men and women by nature hate everything about God… until God causes them to hate everything about themselves.

Once men and women truly hate what they sees in themselves, they will LOVE everything that they see in their merciful, loving, gracious Lord. At that moment, they all will confidently and humbly say: “I am what I am, by the grace of God.”

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “Hope For A Cast Down Soul”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church Bulletin Article date: 23 August, 2020 | Previous post date: 26 May, 2021

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Just Preach Christ To Me

“And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.” | Acts 16: 14

The apostle Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1: 23, “We preach Christ crucified”.

The same man told Timothy in 2 Timothy 4: 2, “Preach the Word”!

We cannot preach Christ apart from The Word.

We cannot know who a man is, what he believes or what he desires, apart from his word.

We cannot know what a man thinks, how he feels or what he has purposed in his heart to do, apart from his word.

Therefore, we cannot know who Christ is, what He has done, who He has done it for or why He has done it, apart from His Word!

To preach Christ, is to preach His Word.

And to truly preach His Word, is to preach Christ in every word of it!

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “Who Is Jesus Christ”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church Bulletin Article date: 2 February, 2020 | Previous post date: 9 May, 2021

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God’s Election

“But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:” | 2 Thessalonians 2: 13

Knowing something of the wickedness of my own heart…

Knowing that I would have never come to the Christ of the scripture on my own…

Knowing that I would have chosen destruction, and loved darkness more than the salvation and light of life with Christ…

That makes God’s election to be the sweetest, kindest, most loving thing I have ever heard in my life.

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “There Is Only One Hope For Us”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church Bulletin Article date: 26 January, 2020 | Previous post date: 28 April, 2021

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Rejoice In The Lord

“Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.” | Philippians 4: 4

David said: “Rejoice in the LORD, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.” (Psalm 97: 12)

“And Hannah prayed, and said, My heart rejoiceth in the LORD, mine horn is exalted in the LORD: my mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; because I rejoice in thy salvation.” (1 Samuel 2: 1)

Isaiah wrote: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.” (Isaiah 61: 10)

We may not be able to rejoice in the world.

We may not be able to rejoice in anything that we see in ourselves.

But we can always “rejoice IN THE LORD!”

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “Wonderful Reasons To Rejoice”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

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The Moment Grace Becomes Amazing

“Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth. But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved. He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.“ | John 5: 33-35

John Newton spoke on behalf of every sinner who has been washed in the Blood of Christ when he wrote:

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!”

When God reveals to us what absolute “wretches” we are…

That is the moment GRACE becomes AMAZING!

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “A Greater Witness Than John”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

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The Only Thing That Matters

“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.” | Philippians 3: 10-11

This is the only thing that matters!

After all of these other little things in life are finished — some of them are going to have some kind of affect on us for three-score-and-ten – they do affect us, they are important to us – but winning Christ is the only thing that matters.

Being found in him, knowing a saving union with him, is life eternal and it is all that matters. 

It doesn’t matter how great or terrible my day was — if he would just speak to me for just a moment – this is the only thing that matters.

Christ is not a “big part” of a believers life, he is not “number one” – Christ is all!

Knowing him, having him, being found in him is the only thing that matters.

May the Lord cause us to truly see this and live it!

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “The Only Thing That Matters”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

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Christ Is The Savior Of Sinners

“ This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” | 1 Timothy 1: 15

Do you know why God sent His Son into the world to save sinners?

It is because sinners are the only people who need saving.

If you are a sinner come to Christ for Christ is the Savior of sinners.

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “A Message for Sinners”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

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He Pulled Us Out!

“I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.” | Psalm 40: 1-3

I received a note the other day from a person who is going through a very difficult time.

This could be the greatest trial of this person’s life.

But in the note, this person was acknowledging all of the goodness and mercy that the Lord has shown to His people. And in spite of all the sad news, the note ended with this word of great thankfulness to our savior: “He pulled us out!”

That’s exactly what Christ did for his people!

He reached way down for us, and lifted us out of the deep miry clay!

We were sold into the slavery pit of sin, but God in sovereign love sent His own Son to rescue us!

And when He on the cross of Calvary cried: “It Is Finished!” God the father cried: “Deliver them!… I have found a Ransom”

In spite of the deep sorrow and tribulation that we must endure in this world because of sin; for the rest of time and eternity, the redeemed of the Lord will never get over the glory of the Gospel; “He pulled us out!”

~ Pastor Gabe Stalnaker

Click here to listen to the message “The Heart Of The Gospel”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.

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Christ Is The End Of The Law

“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.” | Romans 10: 1-4

Man must have a righteousness of one kind or another; and if he has not a God-given righteousness, he seeks to have one of his own making.

As the spider spins her web out of her own bowels, so do sinful men try to manufacture a righteousness out of that which is within them; but this they can never do.

The only righteousness which will stand the test of the Day of Judgement is that which God bestows upon believers in His Son Jesus Christ.

Oh, that all men were willing to submit themselves to the righteousness of God!

~ C.H. Spurgeon

Click here to listen to the message “Whoever Shall Call On His Name”

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Visit our primary website at www.ksgctn.org for more information about Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church, watch our livestream (when available) and access our previously recorded messages.