About the Author

Thomas Ray Floyd was born in 1953 in Simpson County, Mississippi, the son of Roy Thomas Floyd and Lina Sue Shows Floyd. Thomas Ray's mother was a member of a Primitive Baptist church, and he cut his teeth on the doctrines of distinguishing grace.

When he was a small boy, his father was converted to Christ and became a member of a Missionary Baptist Church. Thomas Ray joined the church of his father when he was 13 years old, and thought of himself as a Christian. The doctrines of grace that he had heard as a child continued to be precious to him and when he became an adult, he joined a Primitive Baptist Church. When he was 27, Thomas Ray made his first effort to preach the gospel in public and was ordained to the full functions of the ministry in 1985. In 1986 he was convinced under the preaching of Rolfe Barnard (by tapes from Mt. Olive Tape Library), the written sermons of Spurgeon, and the ministry of Elder Zack Guess that he had been a false professor and cried out in agony of soul to the Lord Jesus Christ to have mercy and truly save him. And He did! Floyd then began to preach the gospel as he had been taught of the Lord.

Floyd has pastored churches in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Tennessee and until recently was pastor of a church plant known as "Particular Baptist Fellowship." He and his wife Brenda presently attend Zion Baptist Church at Polkville, Mississippi, pastored by Elder Glen Hopkins. The pulpit ministry of Zion Baptist Church can be heard at Sermonaudio.com.

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Two Crutches for the Spiritually Lame

(Article for publication week of 6-27- AD 2013)

“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37).

Oh! What a glorious text! These wonderful words of Christ are some of the sweetest in all of scripture. Let no one despair of being saved as long as these words are on record. This promise of the dear Saviour tells us how a poor lost, spiritually lame sinner can get to Christ to be saved. Here are two crutches for the spiritually lame to come to Christ.

The first crutch is the glorious truth of efficacious grace. “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me”, promises the Lord Jesus Christ. Indeed no one can come to Christ by his own power and strength (John 6:44). Unless the Lord draws a sinner to Himself, that sinner will never come to Christ to be saved. In our text this week, Christ declares the glorious truth of free and sovereign grace. God has an elect people that he gave to His coequal and eternal Son from all eternity. Don’t you see it? “All the Father giveth me.” Christ preaches the glorious truth of unconditional election here, for He has an elect people that the Father chose in Him from before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4).

But then our Lord says that all the elect of God shall surely come to Him. That is, they will be drawn by the irresistible power of the Holy Spirit to quit the hateful ways of sin and come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Every last one that the Father chose in His Son to be saved will come to Christ without fail. Note well the emphatic words of our Lord- shall come to me. Though an elect sinner may be so hardened in his sins that his secret resolve is to refuse to have anything to do with the gospel, when it pleases the Lord to draw that one to Himself, that sinner will come to Christ most freely and willingly. (See Psalm 110:3.) God is able to save the vilest rebel on earth when He is please so to do.

But here is another crutch for the spiritually lame- “him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” Poor sinner, do you feel yourself to be so wretched and vile that you fear the Lord would cast you away forever? Well, hear the blessed promise of Christ. “I will in no wise cast out.” There is nowhere in the scriptural record of any who came to Christ as a poor helpless sinner that he refused to save. No one has ever come to Christ begging for mercy that He turned away. Christ is able and willing and ready to save the most wretched sinner on earth when he repents of his sins and believes in Him.

Poor sinners, believe the precious promise of Christ. Come to Him Who has vowed He will turn none away who comes to Him. Come to Christ in faith and you will discover that you are one that was given to Christ by the Eternal Father before the foundation of the world. You have nothing to lose but your sins. Come to him just as you are, a poor lost sinner, and He can and will save your poor soul.



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