BLESS NOW THE READING OF THY WORD, LORD, AS WE READ THIS BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL STORY THAT NEVER GROWS OLD. "And there was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years. And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course, according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord." (Lk.1:5-9 .)
IN THE DAYS OF OLD, IN THE DAYS OF JUDEA, IN THE DAYS OF ISRAEL, NO ONE MAN WAS A DICTATOR WHO DID EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME and all the people just sat and did nothing, but they took turns. Did you know that? The priests and the Levites took turns in the duties of the Temple.
"AND THE WHOLE MULTITUDE OF THE PEOPLE WERE PRAYING WITHOUT AT THE TIME OF INCENSE. And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense." God is not against incense, Beloved. Like everything else, it's all in how it's used and unto whom it's used, praise God? -- It says that "the fragrance of the Lord is the perfume of His people," praise God?-The altar of incense which perfumed the temple, and the incense was a type of the prayers of God's people rising to the Lord. Isn't that beautiful? PTL!
EVERYTHING THEY DID IN THE TEMPLE WAS AN ILLUSTRATED SERMON OF CHRIST and HIS CHURCH -- THE WHOLE THING! The Temple itself, every little thing, and it's a whole course of study in itself. Beautiful! And like giving a miracle play or a Bible play to children, God was continually giving them an illustration of what He intended for His Church and Himself to be like. This is why when Jesus finally came, then the Temple and all of that shadow was done away with. Because as far as God was concerned, "that which was perfect had come," in Jesus, and all of that which was merely a picture, as Paul calls it, "a picture of things to come," that was all done away with then because we have the real thing -- Jesus -- and the real Church -- you, His Body, and that ministry.
BUT THEY WERE STILL GOING THROUGH THE ILLUSTRATIONS IN ZACHARIAS' DAY, not long before it was to be done away with. When was it done away with, Beloved? When Jesus died it was really done away with because the veil of the Temple was rent in twain! When Jesus was on the cross and at the moment of His death that four-inch veil was rent in twain and the Holy of Holies was exposed! The very place of the presence of God was exposed and was now accessible to everyone. No longer just the High Priest and the priests, but now anyone could come in. Well, of course that was pretty much covered up and patched up in Jewish history. I'm sure they didn't want to let that out to the general public, but it happened! God really put an end to it when that happened, 'cause Jesus' sacrifice was the final sacrifice as far as God was concerned. God put a stop to it then.
WHEN DID GOD SEE TO IT THAT ALL SUCH WORSHIP WAS STOPPED? (70 AD.) Right! Emperor Vespasian sent General Titus down there and the city and the Temple were destroyed and all sacrificial worship ceased. This is only about 40 years after Christ's death, and they have not sacrificed since. As Hosea the prophet said, "Thou shalt abide many days without a priest, without an ephod, without a Temple, without a sacrifice, and without a king." Many many years, a remarkable prophecy. (Ho.3:4 .)
THE HISTORIANS SAY THAT JUST BEFORE THE TERRIBLE DESTRUCTION OF THE TEMPLE at Jerusalem by Titus, that for some weeks they heard a voice crying in the Temple area constantly: "Woe, Woe, Woe! Woe, Woe, Woe!" (Dad weeps:) "The Spirit says that this voice shall also cry again in the last days of this nation!" Hallelujah! My God, the Spirit of God is grieving over our nation, even as He grieved over Israel!
THEY SAY THAT THE SHEKINAH GLORY HOVERED FOR SOME DAYS ABOVE THE TEMPLE, left the Holy place and hovered above the Temple, and then finally departed entirely. As the prophet had said, "Ichabod -- the glory hath departed!" God's presence was no longer in a temple built with hands -- it never had been really, except symbolised by the Shekinah Glory -- but the glory departed. But now, thank God, where is that temple? In our hearts, in the only temple left to God today, and that's you and me! Praise the Lord? Isn't that beautiful? TYL! So the actual going through the motions didn't cease until 70 ad, but as far as God was concerned, He was through with the Temple when Jesus died, that was the end.
MUCH OF THAT IS LOST, YOU SEE, THEY COVERED IT UP and TRIED TO CONCEAL MUCH OF WHAT HAPPENED. Most of what the historians have on it are more like rumours and legends about what happened as a result. Of course, only the priests were allowed to go into that part of the Temple, so only the priesthood would have known that the Temple veil was rent in twain. And of course a very great company of the priests believed and were saved, so no doubt the priests who entered in must have known about it and that's how you have the record here, because they knew what happened to the veil of the Temple. But you couldn't expect the High Priest and the Temple authorities to ever admit it, so there's not much about it in other recorded history. Man's history, secular history is not going to admit this sort of thing.
"And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense." As I recall, the altar of incense was right against the veil in the center where they faced the Holy of Holies. In fact, you may have a chart in the back of your Bible showing the location of these things. "And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John."
WHO WAS THIS JOHN? (Staff member: John the Baptist.) And who named him? God named him, praise the Lord, no doubt a messenger from God, the name John. "And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord." How great did Jesus say he was? He was the greatest man as far as God was concerned, ever born! Boy, that's a big statement -- "none greater born of women"! Greater than Moses, greater than Elijah, Abraham. Why was he so great?
"WHEN ZACHARIAS SAW HIM HE WAS TROUBLED and FEARED" -- DO YOU THINK YOU'D BE AFRAID IF YOU SAW AN ANGEL? Both times I ever saw angels, the first time it really scared me half to death, the next time I rejoiced, but I was frightened too. It's a thrilling experience! "For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord." We're going to learn what made him so great. "And shall drink neither wine nor strong drink and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother's womb." Is that possible? Don't you have to get saved first and then tarry awhile and be sure you go to a Pentecostal church and hear all about it and sure you speak in tongues and so on and so on? You know how they try to pour God in a box, they've gotta put Him in a mold, it's got to be this way, it's got to be that way. Peter soon found out that it didn't have to be just that way, right? God could do it any way He wanted to! Praise God!
BELIEVE IT OR NOT, A PROPHECY LIKE THIS WAS UTTERED OVER ME WHEN I WAS JUST I YOUNG MAN, before I was married and I was on the threshold of a great decision. I went into a church where the Spirit of God was manifest, in fact, it was a group which was under great persecution because they were not a part of the System, and they had a number of prophets there, real men of God. They called those who wished to be ministered to to the front, and I was weeping very heavily because I was under a great burden of what God wanted me to do.
SO I WENT FORWARD FOR PRAYER and THEY LAID HANDS ON ME and the leading prophet prophesied over me, and my mother and my father, of all things, were there in the back of the room. It was the first time we'd ever been there and we never got there again. And when they said this, my mother broke down and wept -- they said, "Thou hast been filled with the Holy Ghost from thy mother's womb" and went on to tell about what I was to do. I wish I could remember it all. It was a wonderful thing the Lord encouraged my heart with that day.
AND I WENT BACK TO MOTHER and SHE SAID, "HONEY, I BELIEVE THAT!" See, I was the only child born after she was saved, after that miraculous experience of her literally being raised from her deathbed and converted from atheism. She said, "I dedicated you to God from the moment I knew that I had conceived. I prayed for you, like Hannah and like Elisabeth, and I dedicated you to the Lord." She said, "I believe it," because she felt that that had actually happened. And this I know: I can never remember the time that I didn't know the Lord -- never!
SO ALL I KNOW IS WHAT THE LORD SAID THAT DAY, and I TRUST THAT IT MUST HAVE BEEN TRUE. The first thing I thought about was, "Oh Lord, now is that Scriptural? Is this true? Could it be possible?" Immediately I thought, "Maybe this is some kind of false doctrine, to say that somebody's filled with the Holy Ghost from their mother's womb! My Lord, how could that be? Don't you have to be a believer first?" And immediately that Scripture came to me about John the Baptist being filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb, so praise the Lord!
YOU KNOW, GOD HAS HIS RULES, BUT HE APPARENTLY CAN MAKE EXCEPTIONS TO THEM and do some very unusual things whenever He wants to. So here we have John the Baptist before he was born, filled with the Holy Ghost! Could we say that he didn't have Jesus? With man it is impossible, but with God nothing shall be impossible! (Mt.19:26 ; Mk.10:27 .) So back to the story, PTL! "And he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother's womb." Now we're going to have some proof of this in a few minutes, and we'll have some evidence of the fact that he was filled with the Holy Ghost, while still in his mother's womb!
"AND MANY OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL SHALL HE TURN TO THE LORD THEIR GOD." What was his ministry? -- Turning God's children to the Lord! "And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias" -- that's the Greek form of the Hebrew name Elijah -- "to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
(QUESTION: IS THERE ANY REASON WHY THE LORD SAID HE SHALL DRINK NEITHER WINE NOR STRONG DRINK?) In several cases in the Bible it was a sign of utter dedication. The children of Rechab were commanded and it was a sign of their obedience to the Lord. Jesus Himself drank wine, which in His case apparently was not required. But evidently it was simply a sign, it was a part of the sign, because it was a rare thing in those days for anybody not to drink wine. It was about the only safe thing there was to drink. the water was not always safe, like water in Mexico and Southern countries. As I told you when my mother was in Europe, the guides advised them not to drink the local water in certain places, that the only safe thing there to drink was wine because the water sometimes made them sick. But this was an exceptional thing, every time that abstaining from wine was commanded or predicted.
NOW THE IMPORTANT PART ABOUT THIS WAS THAT HE SHALL BE GREAT IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD; he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost from His mother's womb; and now what was his ministry to be? -- 17th verse. (Staff member: Prepare the way of the Lord.) "He shall go before Him." Who came first? John the Baptist or Jesus? (Staff member: John the Baptist.) Both of their births were announced ahead of time, both of their births were predicted ahead of time, both of their births were really miraculous. John was six months older than Jesus. They were literally cousins and God had chosen that John was to do what for his cousin Jesus? To prepare the way, to go before Him.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN, "IN THE SPIRIT and THE POWER OF ELIJAH"? Elijah was a mighty man of God, a very courageous man of God who, by the way, bucked the System. "In the spirit and the power of Elijah." What spirit and power was that? -- The Spirit and power of God! In other words, John the Baptist was supposed to be filled with the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb; he was to have the spirit and power of Elijah.
JESUS LATER SAYS SOMETHING ABOUT THIS, THAT "IF YOU WILL RECEIVE IT, THIS IS ELIJAH WHICH WAS FOR TO COME." (Mt. 11:14 .) Because the prophets of old had testified that before that great and notable day of Lord should come, that Elijah should come first to prepare the way of the Lord. (Mal.4:5 .) Now this was prophesied after Elijah was long gone and dead. So because of their interpretation of this, they thought Elijah was going to be raised from the dead and appear to them again just before the Messiah was to come and to proclaim the coming of the Messiah.
THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE WHO STILL BELIEVE THAT ELIJAH IS YET TO COME TO PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD, and that one of the two witnesses of Revelation will be Elijah. Personally, I think Jesus made it very clear and very plain, and even right in this passage it said again that John the Baptist was that Elijah which was for to come. John the Baptist was the one who came in the spirit and power of Elijah to prepare the way of the Lord. Anybody have that reference? (Aaron: Matthew 11:14: "And if you will receive it, this is Elias which was for to come.") Let's turn to that for a minute, because that has something else very interesting to say in that passage about John's ministry.
BEGINNING WITH 11:7: "WHAT WENT YE OUT INTO THE WILDERNESS TO SEE?" -- He's talking to the multitudes concerning John -- "a reed shaken with the wind?" Some little preacher preaching his pious pulpit platitudes from behind some pulpit? Huh? A little rustling of the wind in the wind in the reeds? Is that what they went out to see? Let me tell you something, they went out to see a tornado! They went out to see a hurricane for God! Apparently John was like a wild man! They went out to see him burn!
APPARENTLY ALMOST FROM THE VERY BEGINNING JOHN LIVED IN THE WILDERNESS, IN THE DESERT. He didn't go to anybody's Bible college, he didn't go to anybody's seminary, he didn't go to anybody's denomination or the Sanhedrin or get an ordination from man. Until his ministry began, he lived out in the wilderness, apparently alone with God. Oh, there might have been a few followers with him, who knows? We don't know. Like David in the cave of Adullam. And he didn't start his ministry to announce the coming of the Lord until Jesus was about to begin His ministry and be baptised of John, then John began his ministry preparing the way of the Lord.
NOW JESUS LATER SAID, "WHAT DID YOU GO TO SEE? A MAN CLOTHED IN SOFT RAIMENT? Behold they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses!" -- The usual preacher all dressed up in his nice pretty clothes? The usual priest or member of the Sanhedrin, is that what they went to see? The usual Scribes and Pharisees? They were a dime a dozen, like preachers today! They don't create any sensation when they walk down the street! But if they walked down the street in a camel's hair, rough-looking toga of some kind, with probably pretty wild hair and beard, people would take another look! I'm sure they didn't have any barbers out there in the wilderness or the desert and he probably had a nice husky beard! From all the artists' conceptions of him, he was a pretty wild-looking character, probably bare-footed or sandal-shod and he probably attracted some attention! When he walked down the street, people took another look!
ONLY HE DIDN'T WALK DOWN THE STREET, HE STAYED OUT THERE ON THE BANKS OF THE JORDAN IN THE WILDERNESS and THE PEOPLE CAME OUT TO SEE HIM! How about that? There must have been something very unusual about him. He wasn't working any miracles, as far as we know. We know that he predicted a few things and he made one condemnation that lost his head! He told off the king, bawled him out for marrying his brother's wife, and that eventually cost him out for marrying his brother's wife, and that eventually cost him his head. He rebuked the government, in other words, he told off the president. How about that? And according to history, the president or the king of that day, Herod, had a great deal of respect for him, he didn't want to throw him in prison and he finally didn't want to cut off his head. It just shows you how the members of the System are bound by the System.
SO, "WHAT WENT YE OUT FOR TO SEE? A PROPHET?" What did they go to see? The average preacher? The average priest? No! They went to see a prophet! Now, what was John noted for? His miracles? His signs? His wonders? His wonders? Maybe a little bit for his odd looks, his odd dress, his odd appearance, but he was noted most of all for his message, that he was a prophet! He was noted most of all for what he was proclaiming, what he was saying. They came out for to see a prophet! -- Not some little run-of-the-mill preacher, not some little run-of-the-mill robot of the System!
"AND FROM THE DAYS OF JOHN THE BAPTIST UNTIL NOW THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN SUFFERETH VIOLENCE, and THE VIOLENT TAKE IT BY FORCE!" "The Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence!" -- It sounds as though He's talking about those who have suffered for the Kingdom of Heaven, as John did. "And the violent take it by force." A lot of people get violent and want to persecute us. Some have different ways of interpreting this passage. Some interpret it to mean that as John was persecuted and killed by force, speaking of persecution. Kingdom of God by violence, by force, speaking of persecution.
BUT THERE'S ONE SCHOOL OF THOUGHT ON THE INTERPRETATION OF THIS VERSE WHICH IS VERY INTERESTING, meaning that John the Baptist was a rather violent man with a rather violent ministry, and that those who really take the Kingdom sometimes have to do it by force, by storm, somewhat violently, maybe yelling in department stores and churches! There have been a number of prophecies in our midst saying that our ministry was like that of John the Baptist, preparing the way for the coming of the Lord.
"FOR ALL THE PROPHETS and THE LAW PROPHESIED UNTIL JOHN, and if ye will receive it, this is Elias which was for to come." -- John! "He that hath ears to hear let him hear!" -- You know, this particular phrase is not used very often in the Gospels, although it's used very much in the Book of Revelation, but Jesus uses it here. Now why does He use it so often in the Book of Revelation? The Book of Revelation is a pretty complicated book with a lot of hidden meanings. And Jesus is as good as saying in this very passage here where He's talking that there's a meaning here that you may not get unless you listen carefully! And the meaning here, I think, is clear, that John the Baptist was that Elijah which was for to come, because Jesus said so! "This is Elijah which was for to come." Not just will be or this was, but "this is", He's saying. John the Baptist and his ministry was the Elijah which He was speaking of which was for to come before the coming of the Lord.
BUT THE LORD HAS SPOKEN TO US MANY TIMES THAT WE TODAY, THIS GROUP, LIKE JOHN BAPTIST, ARE ALSO PREPARING THE WAY OF THE LORD, turning the hearts of the people to the Lord, preparing the way of the Lord, warning them that Jesus is coming soon, warning them that the judgements are coming soon, warning them that the end is nigh and that now is the time to repent and turn unto the Lord! Hasn't that been your ministry? Hasn't that been your message? Hasn't that been your cry? Haven't those been your prophecies? So like John the Baptist, you're preparing the way of the Lord! PG!
ALL RIGHT, BACK TO OUR CHRISTMAS STORY! -- The prophecy which the angel was making about John the Baptist was what brought all of this on in the first chapter of Luke, and we were going through of this on in the first chapter of Luke, and we were going through the 17th verse, "And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children." I wonder how successful John was at that? We haven't been very successful along that line. How are you doing with your father, Barbara? How you doing with your father, Becky? It's a little problem, turning the hearts of the fathers to the children! So a part of our ministry is to try to turn the hearts of the fathers, the parents, to the children. But apparently it must be a difficult ministry because it was one of the ministries of John the Baptist, to try to turn the hearts of the parents to their children, think of that, a part of his ministry! This guy had a lot of tough jobs, let me tell you! -- Looking like a wild man, screaming out in the wilderness like a wild man, behaving like a prophet and trying to turn the hearts of the parents to their children!
(JETH: MAYBE THEN HIS MINISTRY WAS TO THE CHILDREN, THE YOUTH.) That could be! Jeth has a thought there, that largely his ministry, therefore, must have been the youth, trying to get the fathers, the parents, on the youth's side.
"AND THE DISOBEDIENT TO THE WISDOM OF THE JUST." Wow! Who's the major body of disobedient people you know today? -- The (system) church! Well, you can't expect much of the ungodly unsaved World, can you? You wouldn't expect them to obey. But what about the people who are supposed to be obeying, the church? And this is what was said of him, and in another passage, "to turn Israel to the Lord." Israel was whom? -- A type of the church. It was the church of his day. Israel was the church of that day.
SO A LARGE PART OF OUR MINISTRY HAS BEEN TO TRY TO DO WHAT? (Staff member: To get the church to obey.) They say we attack'm, well, in a way we do. They say we go there to disrupt and to disturb. We don't intentionally go there to disrupt and disturb. If they will behave, and if they will be obedient, and if they will follow the Lord, it won't disrupt or disturb them. The only thing that disturbs them is the fact that when they hear your message, they know they're not obeying it! That's what disturbs them! The only thing that disrupts is the fact that you're preaching something that is contrary to what they're doing and that disrupts what they're doing, and they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing! You're disrupting their usual pattern; you're disrupting their conformity and their traditionalism and their ceremonialism and you're trying to get them to do the will of God!
SO THAT'S NOT AN EASY JOB "TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE DISOBEDIENT TO THE WISDOM OF THE JUST." What do you think the wisdom of the just is? (Staff member: The truth.) Amen, it's right here. (Taps Bible.) Praise God? "And to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Would you say the church of Jesus Christ in general is prepared for the coming of Lord today? I don't think in any time in history it's been so unprepared! I don't think any time in history has the church been less prepared and really less looking for His coming. Oh, they talk a lot about it, they say a lot about it: "Oh, if Jesus would just come today!" But they are living and they are building as though they expected to live here forever!
WHAT CHRISTIANS DO YOU KNOW OF THAT ARE LIVING AS THOUGH THEY REALLY EXPECTED THE LORD TO COME BACK AT ANY TIME? They're all proclaiming it, but most of them won't believe our message, that the Antichrist and the Tribulation are going to come first. "Oh no no no, that's wrong! He's going to come any minute! Jesus is coming right now, any day!" But how are they living? They're not living like they expect Him to come back any minute. They don't even live like they expect Him to come when we think He's going to come. They live as though the never expected Him to come back for a hundred or a thousand years! God help us! They're not preparing! They're not ready! They're not prepared for the Lord, much less the Antichrist!
"AND ZACHARIAS SAID UNTO THE ANGEL, WHEREBY SHALL I KNOW THIS? For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years." "Come on Lord, who're ya kidding? We can't have children now!" Ha! "And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee these glad tidings." He's saying, "Listen man! Whaddya think this is? I'm an angel! Take a look! -- You don't even believe me?" Ha! "And behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season."
DO YOU MEAN TO TELL ME AN ANGEL COULD APPEAR TO YOU and TALK TO YOU and YOU WOULDN'T EVEN BELIEVE IT? Jesus Christ appeared unto many people and talked to them personally and they didn't believe it! And the church says today "Oh yes, but if He would come today, oh, how wonderful that would be and I would believe it!" Baloney! They don't believe this! "Neither would they believe though one should come back from the dead!" (Lk.16:31 .)
"AND THE PEOPLE WAITED FOR ZACHARIAS, and MARVELLED THAT HE TARRIED SO LONG IN THE TEMPLE. And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the Temple: for he beckoned them, and remained speechless. And it came to pass that as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house." Did he quit working because he couldn't talk? Did he stop working for the Lord? He kept on working, doing the best he could.
NOW YOU SEE THEY TOOK THEIR TURNS: THEY CAME, MINISTERED IN THE TEMPLE, and WENT HOME. They didn't just have one guy that did all the ministering all the time, some preacher that was a big shot all the time, but they took turns. The Jewish Temple was a very democratic set-up. They had a lot of priests and a lot of laymen who ministered there, and nearly everybody had their chance. I think we're more like that than any church I know of. The old Quaker church used to be that way, they deliberately sat around in a circle, the Brethren Church is that way. They deliberately didn't have a stage up front or a pulpit, to show that God could work through anybody in the circle. In form, at least, they're supposedly sharing the ministration of the Spirit.
BUT I THINK OF ANY CHURCH I KNOW OF, YOU GUYS HAVE MORE TO SAY THAN ANY CHURCH I EVER PREACHED TO, THAT'S FOR SURE! In fact, I have a hard time sometimes getting through what I'm trying to say! Ha! But I like that! Like school, I loved to teach school because the students could participate, ask questions, make comments and get answers, and that's the way you learn. People that just sit around and go to sleep while the preacher is droning on and on, learn little or nothing. And as my wife was remarking after service last Sunday morning, how in the World do they expect those people to learn anything when they only go to church one hour a week? What do they expect to accomplish? She said she discussed it with a reporter.
SHE SAID, IN ANYTHING YOU DO, WHAT CAN YOU ACCOMPLISH IN ONE HOUR? What job of any kind that you know of can you really accomplish in one hour? You can hardly even see a movie on TV in one hour! You don't go to school for just one hour a week! You don't go to work just one hour a week! You don't take exercise just one hour a week! You don't study just one hour a week! You don't eat just one hour a week! My God! What does the church expect to accomplish in only one hour a week? Well, I'll tell you what you've accomplished, they've accomplished little or nothing! That's the mess they're in today!
THIS WAS A TOUGH MINISTRY DEAR JOHN THE BAPTIST HAD, and he wasn't a member of the Baptist church incidently! He didn't even found the Baptist church. In fact, he'd probably be ashamed of the Baptist church. God bless the Baptists who love the Lord, don't misunderstand me. Thank God for all Christians, thank God for all true churches of Jesus Christ, whatever their denomination, don't misunderstand me. I really get teed off at'm sometimes.
BUT HOW ARE THEY GOING TO KNOW UNLESS YOU TELL'M? Their preachers aren't telling'm. And how's the preacher going to know unless you tell him? Because their seminary didn't tell'm. And how's the seminary going to know unless you tell'm? Because the denomination didn't tell'm. How's the denomination going to know unless you tell'm? Their forefathers didn't tell'm!
THEY'VE BEEN IN THE SAME RUT FOR GENERATIONS, same rut ever since they cleaned out that pagan temple in Rome in 222 AD and put up new idols and new pictures and a new priesthood and called it Christian -- sad day for the church! Before that they were doing a pretty good job, up till then, but that was the beginning of the end. That was the first church building in history. First building ever used exclusively for the purposes of Christian worship recorded in history is that building in Rome 222 AD, and it was an old renovated pagan temple.
"AS SOON AS THE DAYS OF HIS MINISTRATION WERE ACCOMPLISHED, HE DEPARTED TO HIS OWN HOUSE." They took turns ministering in the Temple. He went home. "And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived and hid herself five months, saying, Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein He looked on me, to take away my reproach among men." Was she thankful? (Staff member: Amen!) What did she mean by "take away my reproach"? You mean it was a reproach to have family planning? It was a reproach to restrict the population explosion? You mean to tell me that birth control was a reproach? That it was a reproach not to have children? Yes!
IT WAS A SHAME and A REPROACH TO A WOMAN NOT TO HAVE CHILDREN IN THAT DAY! I think maybe a little bit along that line even today unless God has separated you utterly to His service. Even Paul who seemed to sound like he's so much against marriage sometimes, says "nevertheless let the younger women marry and bear children!" (1Tim.5:14 .) He doesn't say the old woman or the old maids, but the younger women! -- And you can have kids pretty young, as a lot of girls have found out! But that was God's plan, that was God's way, and if a woman didn't have children in that day it was considered a terrible reproach that God must have cursed her, she must be a terrible sinner of some kind -- struck barren! And some women are struck barren, did you know that? Some women couldn't have children if they tried.
IN THAT RECENT REPORT ON HUMAN SEXUALITY WRITTEN BY THOSE TWO DOCTORS, MASTERS and JOHNSTON, they discovered that certain women who cannot have children have some kind of acid or fluid or something in their female organs which kills the sperm the minute it hits that organ! It doesn't last a fraction of a second, it kills it. And it's not a disease, not diseased women, either. It's not women that have some kind of disease, but perfectly healthy normal women in every other respect. There's something there that God has allowed that kills the sperm immediately. They've been struck barren by the Lord, couldn't have a child no matter how hard they tried. So it was a reproach to be barren in those days.
"AND IN THE SIXTH MONTH THE ANGEL GABRIEL WAS SENT FROM GOD UNTO A CITY OF GALILEE NAMED NAZARETH, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph of the House of David; and the virgin's name was Mary." What does this mean, "espoused"? Let's don't use that word "engaged," it doesn't mean a thing today. Betrothed, promised! They hadn't actually lived together yet. "And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women."
I'M GOING TO TELL YOU SOMETHING VERY SHOCKING HERE! I don't know whether you're strong enough to bear it or not. I don't know just what this means or how it happened or how God did it, but I will tell you this much: From constant usage in the Scripture throughout the whole Bible, this terminology here "came in unto her" usually meant the sex act! Now Jesus was the child of God, He was the Son of Jehovah, right? But if God means by this that He used the Angel Gabriel as a part of God Himself, representing God to accomplish the act, that I don't know, but it's something to think about for people that theorise about how God did it. I don't know, I'm just telling you the meanings here as they are in other passages.
"But the angel came in unto her and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: Blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be." Certainly she was surprised! "And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God."
HISTORIANS THEORISE THAT HER AGE WAS ABOUT 16 AT THIS TIME. I don't know where they get that, but that's what they say, about 16. "Oh no," society would say today, "she should have waited till at least she was 18 or 21! I wonder if her parents gave acceptance! You've got to finish college first. You can go out and live all you want to with any number of men, but just don't get married yet!" Our modern society and its mores and its standards of morality so-called, or standards of immorality, and its laws, literally encourage the immorality of youth today! We have had parents tell us with their own mouths, they offer to set the young people up in an apartment and let'm live together rather than let them get married. "We don't mind you living with a girl, but just don't marry her!"
MODERN SOCIETY CONDONES IMMORALITY! IT ENCOURAGES IMMORALITY! Its laws almost compel immorality amongst young people, forbidding them to marry without parents' consent, and the parents forbid them to marry, so my God, what are they going to do? We've got cases in our own midst where they've had problems along that line. Society, parents and the laws forbid them to obey the will of God! Now you can understand with wicked parents having wicked children, why they should be concerned about these things and figure, well, they don't have enough sense to get married until they're 18 or 21. Let me tell you, if they haven't got God, they'll never have enough sense to get married! And it doesn't matter how much they marry or how many times, they'll still not have enough sense to stay married or have a decent marriage or a happy marriage! I don't care how old you are, age has nothing to do with it. If God is in it they could get married at 12 and it still be of God!
WELL, THE CHURCH HAS MADE ALL THESE THINGS SO ETHEREAL and SO SPIRITUAL and SO FAR AWAY! I'm trying to bring it down to Earth and show you how human in was, how literal it was, how real it was, it happened to a woman, who was a woman just like you! And it happened literally! She literally conceived and bare a child without any human agency! How it happened, I don't know. We have God's Word, and that's all we know. How the Holy Ghost did it, we don't know.
"AND BEHOLD, THOU SHALT CONCEIVE IN THY WOMB and BRING FORTH A SON, and SHALT CALL HIS NAME JESUS. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David: And He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His Kingdom there shall be no end. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?" -- which shows obviously she hadn't yet married her husband. "And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."
"AND BEHOLD, THY COUSIN ELISABETH, SHE HATH ALSO CONCEIVED A SON IN HER OLD AGE: and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren." Now where was Mary? What was her hometown? Where was she living? (Staff member: Nazareth.) Where was that? Well, it was way up North near the Sea of Galilee, quite a ways North of Jerusalem -- a long journey. I think it was about a three days journey, they figured about 25 miles a day in those days, it was quite a distance North. Where did Elisabeth and Zacharias live? Well, apparently they must have lived fairly close to Jerusalem, because he was a Levite and a priest and a regular minister there. So later when Mary came to visit her cousin Elisabeth, she had to make quite a trip! So God is appearing, His angel is appearing to these two different women in two different places, and also to the husband Zacharias.
SO IT WASN'T EASY, BUT NEVERTHELESS, LISTEN TO WHAT SHE HAD TO SAY -- a little 16-year-old girl who loved and believed God so much! They say, "Ah, these teenagers, what do they know? What can they do?" I'll tell you what they know, they know enough to know the World's in a mess! And I'll tell you what they can do, they can take it over! And they can even be the Mother of the Son of God! She was! "Oh, how could my daughter, only 16, know anything about God or religion at that age? She's crazy! She's gone fanatical on religion down at that Light Club!"
MARY WAS SO YIELDED TO GOD, SO DEDICATED, SO CONSECRATED, and LOVED THE LORD SO MUCH, that though she was already betrothed to another man, she was willing to say what? What was her answer? (Staff member: "And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to Thy Word. And the angel departed from her.") "Here am I, Lord! Take me! Whatever You want to do, Lord!" Are you willing? Even if it almost breaks up your engagement? Even if your loved one maybe can't understand? Are you willing to say, "Lord, here am I! Behold, I'm Your handmaiden, I'm Your servant!"
YOU KNOW, WE GLOSS THESE THINGS OVER WITH SUCH BEAUTIFUL LITTLE SUNDAY SCHOOL PICTURES and we don't really know the agony and the torment of soul and the battle that some of these people may have had! Mary was just as human as you are! Joseph was just as human as you are! All these characters were. But the churches gloss them and glaze them over into a separate sphere of the untouchables: "These holy ones! Nobody ever like them any more! Nobody could ever be like them any more! This is something special, it only happened once and there's not going to be any prophets or any priests or anything like that any more! No more. It all happened way back 2,000 years ago and forget about it. We've got our own way now; we've got our own system now. The church can't be expected to live that way today." How many times have you heard this?
BUT MARY SAID, "BEHOLD THE HANDMAID OF THE LORD; Be it" -- how? -- "Be it unto me according to Thy Word." Not according to the System, not according to her betrothal, not according to her love for her loved one, not according to her family, not according to the society of even her day, but "be it unto me according to Thy Word." Are you willing to say that: "Be it unto me, O Lord, according to Thy Word?" Not according to what they say, not according to what they do, not according to what they preach, but according to Thy Word. Wow! This gal must have had a lot of faith in the Word of God! Amen? TYJ! TYL!
"And Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste into a city of Judah and entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth."
"AND IT CAME TO PASS THAT WHEN ELISABETH HEARD THE SALUTATION OF MARY, THE BABE LEAPED IN HER WOMB!" -- What babe? (Staff member: John the Baptist!) Why? (Staff member: Because he knew that Christ was there.) He was filled with the Holy Ghost, even in His mother's womb, and the Holy Spirit within him, even though he was not yet born, caused him to leap at the sound of Mary, His Lord's mother's voice -- as you'll see by what she said!
"AND ELISABETH WAS FILLED WITH THE HOLY GHOST." "Oh, you mean people got filled with the Holy Ghost even before the day of Pentecost?" Certain special people. And she spake out with a loud voice and said one of the most beautiful of all prophecies! What was she doing? -- Prophesying! This is commonly known in the liturgy of the church a "The Magnificat," this and Mary's prophecies together. "Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb." How many times have you heard that? In the Rosary they say this seven times to every time they mention the Lord, they praise Mary. I think that's a little out of proportion. "Hail Mary full of grace, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus." Very good saying, praise God, but it's not to be used out of proportion, above praising the Lord, amen?
"AND WHENCE IS THIS TO ME, THAT THE MOTHER OF MY LORD SHOULD COME TO ME? For lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy! And blessed is she that believed." Now who's she talking about? The Spirit is speaking through whom? (Staff member: Elisabeth.) And who's the Spirit speaking about, "blessed is she that believed"? (Staff member: Mary!) Mary, because she believed the Word of the Lord. Did it take faith for Mary to accept what Gabriel said? -- It took faith! "Blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour."
(SINGS:) "MY SOUL DOTH MAGNIFY THE LORD!" This is a part of that beautiful Magnificat in the "Hallelujah Chorus" of Handel's "Messiah", one of the most beautiful Scriptural pieces ever written, inspired of God by that Jew who was converted to Christ! PTL! Beautiful, beautiful thing, I wish you could hear it some time. "My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For He hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden."
DID SHE THINK SHE WAS SOMEBODY? She felt she was very small and insignificant, a humble little 16-year-old girl. "For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed." Have they? "Hail Mary full of grace, blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus." The whole Catholic church call her blessed, hundreds, thousands, no doubt millions of times every day, and have for centuries, generations! "All generations shall call me blessed!"
"FOR HE THAT IS MIGHTY HATH DONE TO ME GREAT THINGS; and Holy is His name. And His mercy is on them that fear Him from generation to generation. He hath showed strength with His arm; He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree." Did God pick for the mother of His Son the wife of the wife of the High Priest? (Staff member: No!) The wife of the Roman Governor? The wife of the King? Huh? (Staff member: No!) Wake up! Did God pick the husbands or the wives of the leading citizens of this community to bring the message? Well, perhaps a few. But the Lord regarded the low estate of His handmaiden, He picked a child -- the children!
"HE HATH FILLED THE HUNGRY WITH GOOD THINGS; and THE RICH HE HATH SENT EMPTY AWAY." -- There's one for you to mark! Those over- stuffed toads up there in the average church -- over-stuffed materially, over-stuffed even with churchianity -- they think they have everything. Are they the ones that have received the news? Are they the ones where God is working? Are they the ones that have been baptised with the Holy Ghost? Are they the vessels that God has chosen? No! He passed right over them and came down to a few little humble hungry teenagers -- hungry! He came to the hungry.
WHO ARE THE HUNGRY? -- THOSE WILLING TO RECEIVE HIM, RIGHT? The hungry! "He hath filled the hungry with good things." Has He satisfied your hearts, Beloved? But those rich He hath sent empty away! Think not that they shall receive anything from the Lord. Empty away! What can you give the man who has everything? (Staff member: Jesus.) They've got everything, they don't want Jesus or anything else. They think they've got everything. What can you give the man who has everything? He doesn't even want Jesus! He sent the rich empty away. They think they're full, but they're empty.
"HE HATH HOLPEN HIS SERVANT ISRAEL, IN REMEMBRANCE OF HIS MERCY." Now that has great significance. Through sending Jesus, how did He help Israel? Who are Israel? Who were Israel at that time? The Jews, His church of that day. "In remembrance of His mercy. He remembered what He promised, and in mercy He gave them the Messiah, amen? "As He spake to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed forever." See? In other words, He's fulfilling His Word to Israel.
"AND MARY ABODE WITH HER ABOUT THREE MONTHS, and RETURNED TO HER OWN HOUSE." How do you think Mary looked by this time? (Staff member: She was about three months pregnant.) Do you think it was easy to go home? When do you think it was that Joseph discovered that she was with child? Probably after this visit with her cousin Elisabeth. Do you think it was easy for her to go home? To face Joseph? Gone from home for three months, comes home pregnant? It you were Joseph, what would you think? "My wife was gone to visit her cousin for three months and comes home pregnant!" Do you want to know that he thought? Because this is probably about the time that she came home. Let's turn to Matthew 1:18:
"NOW THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST WAS ON THIS WISE: When as His mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily." Apparently Mary hadn't had the courage to tell him what the Lord had said, or if she had, he didn't believe it. Would you believe it if your wife came home from a visit with her cousin and told you, "Well, an angel came along and did this to me." Or, "the Spirit of God came and did this to me." Would you believe it? I doubt if you'd believe it! He probably thought, "Well, my poor wife got in trouble so she's just kind of gone off her rocker and this is the story she cooked up!" So what did God have to do? (Mt.1:20-21 .)
"BUT WHILE HE THOUGHT ON THESE THINGS, THE ANGEL OF THE LORD APPEARED UNTO HIM IN A DREAM, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins." You know, Mary apparently was so in touch with the Lord and in the Spirit, did it say that the angel appeared to her in a dream? (Staff member:No.) You know, some of us God has to put to sleep before He can get us in the Spirit. Sometimes God can talk to some people easier in a dream or asleep in the Spirit than face-to-face while they're awake. Praise God, I must be one of those, I've gotten a lot of revelations in my sleep. But I've had a lot of them awake too.
"NOW ALL THIS WAS DONE, THAT IT MIGHT BE FULFILLED WHICH WAS SPOKEN OF THE LORD BY THE PROPHET, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a Son and they shall call His Name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." So then what did Joseph do? "Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: and knew her not until she had brought forth her firstborn Son: and he called His Name Jesus."
NOW WE'VE GOT SOMEBODY ELSE EXERCISING FAITH! Do you think that was easy? He was willing to live separately from her for nine months, at least six months after he probably discovered it, until the baby was born! Amen? Here's another man obedient and had faith! He was a little confused at first and it wasn't easy, but he obeyed. Praise God?
"NOW ELISABETH'S FULL TIME CAME THAT SHE SHOULD BE DELIVERED; and she brought forth a son. And her neighbours and her cousins heard how the Lord had showed great mercy upon her; and they rejoiced with her. And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called his name Zacharias after the name of his father. And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John. And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name. And they made sings to his father, how he would have him called. And he asked for a writing table, and wrote, saying, His name is John." Why? The angel of the Lord told him to call him John!
SEE THAT? AGAIN, OBEDIENCE TO THE LORD, AMEN? Obedience is so important! You see, disobedience struck him dumb, but when he finally exercised faith and obeyed the Lord, what happened? Read it: ("His mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, and praised God.") Hallelujah! Now get this next verse: "And fear came upon all them that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noise abroad throughout all the hill country of Judea." (Staff member: Like the newspapers!) That's exactly what I thought about when I read it.
WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH THESE PEOPLE? WHY ARE THEY SO AFRAID OF US? Let's face it, it's the power of God! They're afraid of God, and you represent God! They're afraid of God! You may be sorry you wanted me to come back down here, 'cause it seems like every time I come down here, I not only keep you a long time, but we stir up more trouble! Praise God! "Fear came on all that dwelt round about them."
THIS COMMUNITY IS ACTUALLY AFRAID OF US! Why do they get all uptight when we walk into a church? They're scared! They're afraid! What are they afraid of? I don't think they know what they're afraid of, but it's God, let's face it! Part of it's the fear of the unknown, no doubt, they don't know what you came for, they don't know what you came to do, afraid of what you might do; people are just afraid of the hippies, period! -- and a lot of people are afraid of teenagers! You got'm scared, kids! Hallelujah! You got'm scared!
"AND ALL THEY THAT HEARD THEM LAID THEM UP IN THEIR HEARTS, SAYING, WHAT MANNER OF CHILD SHALL THIS BE! And the hand of the Lord was with him." Who? (Staff member: John.) Praise God! "And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied." Wow! Now how many prophets have we got? Elisabeth prophesied, Mary prophesied, and now Zacharias is going to going to prophesy! Praise God, aren't they beautiful? It sounds like Old Testament poetry, doesn't it? Just beautiful! Beautiful, beautiful! "Saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed His people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David; as He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the World began." How long had this event been predicted?-Since God talked with Eve in the Garden of Eden! "Her seed shall crush thy head." (Gen.3:15 .)
"THAT WE SHOULD BE SAVED FROM OUR ENEMIES, and FROM THE HAND OF ALL THEM THAT HATE US." Do you need that? Do you need that today? God bless you! Get excited! Did you hear what the Lord just promised you? He's going to save you from your enemies and the hand of all that hate you! You'd better remember that, the next time you go yelling through some department store! Now, that doesn't mean they won't arrest you and take you to jail, that's maybe where God wants you. Amen? The guys in jail may need it.
"TO PERFORM THE MERCY PROMISED TO OUR FATHERS, and to remember His holy covenant; the oath which He sware to our father Abraham, that He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life." You mean we're not supposed to be afraid of our enemies? No indeed! The Devil tries to make you afraid, sometimes he does, but that's Devil tries to make you afraid, sometimes he does, but that's one thing they marvelled at them, their boldness, that they weren't afraid! Who gives you that kind of courage?-When you want to prophesy in that church? God has to, praise God!
"AND THOU, CHILD, SHALT BE CALLED THE PROPHET OF THE HIGHEST." Beloved, I believe God is speaking to you here -- can you receive it? "And thou child shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways: to give knowledge of salvation unto His people by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the Dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." Praise God? Hallelujah? TYJ! Amen amen amen! "And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel." PG!
WELL, THAT WAS MOSTLY ABOUT JOHN THE BAPTIST, because this was a kind of a private session this afternoon just for you. I guess tonight we can have the Christmas Story if you want anymore. PTL? Hallelujah? TYL! Can you take that to heart? Does that sound like your ministry? "To give light to those that sit in darkness"? Isn't that beautiful? Does that sound like what you're doing? Does it? "To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death". How about these kids you're talking to, that are on dope and drugs and whatnot? Let me tell you, they're in the shadow of death!
"TO GUIDE OUR FEET INTO THE WAY OF PEACE." You say, "Wow, Lord, most of the place our feet are guided to seem to bring trouble!" It will bring you peace with God. It may mean war with man, but it's peace with God. How did you feel when you came home last night? Did you feel when you came home last night? Did you feel at peace with God? You may have had a little war with man, but you felt that wonderful satisfaction, that peace with God, "I've accomplished what God sent me to do!" PG?
LET'S STAND, SHALL WE, and GIVE THANKS. (Everyone praises!) Amen, Lord, have You anything to add to that? Thy will be done, TYJ! "Even so be it unto Thy handmaiden according to Thy Word." Maybe the Lord's trying to speak through a handmaiden. (A handmaiden prophecies: "For I have heard and regarded the low estate of these My handmaidens and these My servants, and I have heard their cry and will answer them and will fulfil the desires of their hearts because they been faithful unto Me. Therefore, saith the Lord, incline you ear unto Me, incline your ear unto the Words of My mouth, for I will say unto thee a parable, that I would desire thee to be as the wheat in the field when the wind bloweth over it, it is planted and firmly grounded. Therefore My children, stand fast, have faith in Me, and I will hear and regard Thy cry.") Isn't that beautiful? TYL!
THE WIND REPRESENTING A TIME TO TROUBLE, but your roots are going to be strong and the Lord's going to uphold you in that time soon to come. When the winds of adversity and the storm strikes, God is going to cause you to stand! Isn't that wonderful? Because He hath beheld your low estate and your obedience and you've been faithful, when all others are falling, you're going to stand! Hallelujah! TYL! PYL! (Another handmaiden prophesies:)
("MAKE IT KNOWN, MY PEOPLE, THAT THY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED, that the Lord has heard thee. That thy prayers are as sweet-smelling burning incense unto My nostrils, that the Lord has lifted up His countenance unto His babes and His lambs, and that He loves thee, My people, and that He abides and manifests Himself in thee. Make known, proclaim the good news of the Gospel, Emmanuel, the Lord Jesus Christ! So therefore go and preach the Word, preach the Gospel, be instant in season and out of season, proclaim the good news through all the land, in the highways and the streets and the hedges. Go therefore, My children, go forth and tell them of My love, My wondrous love, My great love and My mercy that endureth for ever! Cease not to teach and preach the Love of Jesus!") Amen, Lord. "I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, upon My servants and upon My handmaidens will I pour out of My Spirit!" TYL! (A prophet prophecies:)
("THE WORD OF THE LORD HATH THIS DAY COME UNTO ME saying that there would be many, yea, many among you that shall see the dawning of a new day! And in this new day shall come persecution. For yea, the Lord would say unto thee, through persecution I did make My children white, that I may see them. For yea, I do not want to look upon them for they themselves are evil, but yea as they are persecuted they find in themselves nothing and turn to the Lord and God Himself. Therefore the Lord would say unto thee, I will send this persecution, let it be known unto thee that it shall be a blessing unto thee. For yea, I say unto thee, in the time to hardship I shall be made strong within thee. The Lord hath chosen thee and asked thee and told thee which way thou shalt go, and the Lord hath said unto thee, go ye therefore to the temple, proclaim unto them the truth, and they shall know when the destruction is come that a prophet has been among them!")
PRAISE GOD! TYJ! THAT'S THE MINISTRY, THE MINISTRY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of the Lord, make His paths straight! TYJ! Well, I think your dinner is waiting, we're going to open the gifts, I believe now. You've heard from His Word, from the Lord, wonderful beautiful things. The Lord sure must love you, He's so good to you! Amen Lord, we thank You for confirming Thy Word with signs following.
I'LL TELL YOU SOMETHING VERY REMARKABLE THAT HAPPENED JUST NOW when we got up to pray and ask the Lord to speak. Remember the Scripture that came about His handmaiden? I knew the Lord was wanting to speak through you girls. You see, the emphasis of the passages we've been studying had a lot to do with women, right? So the Lord wanted to use you women and show you what He could do through you to speak to us today. I knew that Cheryl had a message, I could feel it through her hand, praise God, she was just quivering with it! I thought surely she was going to be first, but the Lord wanted to show that He could speak from any direction, and it was beautiful, all of it! TYL! PTL!
THE LORD'S SO FAITHFUL! If you'll just mind those little quickenings of the Spirit, those little things that God speaks to your heart, and trust and have faith that it's of God and act on it, you'll see that it's true! That's all I do, that's all anyone does that's used of the Lord in any way. PTL! That's what they had to do. It takes faith to speak in tongues, it takes faith to prophesy, it takes faith to interpret. It takes faith! You have to go step by step, word by word, praise the Lord!
AMEN, LORD, WE THANK THEE FOR THESE LOVELY GIFTS, LORD, THAT THOU HAS PROVIDED through the loving care and thoughtfulness of loved ones who gently wrapped them and tied them and made them look so pretty. Bless them Lord for this little touch. We're not much on Christmas in that respect, Lord, we put Thee first and Thy work; and yet, Lord, there are those who have had a little thoughtfulness for our material needs and desires, and we thank Thee for providing these things. Bless them for their kindness and their generosity, Lord, and their thoughtfulness, Lord, and their time that it took. Bless them for it, Lord, those that minister to our bodies, in Jesus' name. Amen! TYL!
(A BROTHER: I GOT SOMETHING FROM THE LORD, "cause us not to turn and run". I know all the guys that went on the attack with me yesterday, I know I did, I started giving the message and then as soon as I stopped, I didn't stick around to wait to see if there was any more, and I really felt convicted for it. Some of the guys got the whole thing out and a lot of the guys got scared out of it. So let's just pray that we could have the boldness just to stand there until they kick us out! Just keep giving it until they kick us out.)
I'M BEGINNING TO THINK SOME OF YOU GUYS WANT TO GO TO JAIL! His will be done. Well, I'm glad, maybe it was for my sake that you didn't have to go to jail on Christmas, I'm glad you're still here and we had Christmas together. Now Christmas is over, I don't know! Remember when Jeroboam stretched forth his hand to arrest the young prophet? It withered right up and he couldn't have bring it back again. (1Kg.13:4 .) I think maybe times like that are coming!
AT LEAST THEY KNOW US NOW, SO THEY KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT. The Lord has caused that to let'm sort of tolerate you. They figure, well, you'll just go to jail and that will be a whole lot of trouble and expense, they might as well just shoo you off and get rid of you! And they know that you're not some Communist or something now and that they don't have to fear any violence or riot from it, so in other words you're not really a threat to the peace. It's a good thing they know what you are. Just like John the Baptist, the king even got familiar with him and to respect him and to know that he was a man of God and preaching the truth. Of course, he finally killed him, but in the meantime he let him get away with it for a long time. PTL? Amen! And sometimes" they durst not touch Jesus for fear of the people." (Mk.12:12 ; Lk.20:19 .)
(PROPHECY FROM AARON: "WILT THOU BE A PROPHET OF THE LORD? THOU MUST PAY THE PROPHET'S COST, thou must pay the price of being a prophet, saith the Lord. For behold, I have said, because thou servest not the Lord thy god with joyfulness of heart and gladness, therefore shall many curses come upon thee. I have said this to others, let it not happen to thee! I have said now therefore mend your ways and your doings and the Lord will repent Him of the evil that He hath pronounced against you, and obey the voice of the Lord your God, even as I have said this through the mouth of My prophet Jeremiah, Jeremiah 26:13, even so do it, saith the Lord.
("FOR BEHOLD I HAVE SAID MAKE NOT PROVISION FOR THE FLESH TO FULFIL THE LUSTS THERE OF, but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ. I have said that I will supply all your needs according to My riches in glory by Christ Jesus, and I have said seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you. I have said that if any man will leave houses or loved ones or wife or children or the ones who he loves, then shall he receive an hundredfold now in this life of houses and mothers and brethren and sisters and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the World to come life eternal!
("I HAVE STATED ALL THESE THINGS and I HAVE PROMISED THAT I WILL COME QUICKLY and will give to every man according as his works shall be. For my reward is with Me. Behold, I come quickly to give to every man according as his works shall be. And think not to say within yourself, the cost is too great, I cannot do it: thou canst do all things through Me, saith the Lord. Say not I cannot give this one up, I cannot give that up, I cannot do this. Thus saith the Lord, thou shalt look back on all these things, for in all these things one day thou shalt say in thy heart, I have forsaken my own way and walked the way of the Lord. Thank You, O God, that Thou didst cause me to forsake my own way and walk in Thy way.") TYL! Amen.
THAT ALSO IS A WARNING TO YOU NOT TO DISOBEY THE LORD! God's given us a lot of encouragement and blessings tonight, and He leaves you with a warning that you'd better obey, you had better do what He told you do and walk in His way. TYL! And remember when that persecution comes, when the officers do lay hold on you and the authorities do grab you and things like that do happen, don't resent it. Remember, God won't let a thing happen to you but what He has designed and ordered it to happen. So remember, it's God, God is doing it to you for His glory, amen? Praise God!
YOU KNOW, I HAD A WONDERFUL LITTLE SOMETHING FROM THE LORD WHEN WE WERE PRAISING THE LORD SO MUCH A MOMENT AGO. I could hear James over here, former robber and burglar praising the Lord like an old time saint! I was thinking, Lord God, I haven't heard praises like this amongst saints that have been saints many years! And instantly the Scripture came by the Spirit, I believe it's in Isaiah, "I have called them to be a people which were no people!" (Weeps.) Hallelujah! TYL! "I have called them to be a people which were no people!" We're nothing, you're nothing, but He's making a people out of you. Praise God? TYL! (Ho.2:23 ; Ro.9:25 ; 1Pe.2:10 .)
WELL, WE COULD JUST STAY HERE and WORSHIP THE LORD ALL NIGHT, but we do have guests coming and we're supposed to open up and we're got to think of others too. So I suggest maybe we sit down now and pass around these gifts that we have over here. Do you want to sing the Lord's Prayer? Hallelujah! (Everyone sings the Lord's Prayer.)
(P.S. 1981: AMEN! PTL! TYJ! Thank God for those good ol' days! -- The glorious days of days of our beginnings! TYJ! -- And for the still more glorious days of today! -- and the most glorious days yet to come! Hallelujah! TYJ! It's all of You, Lord! "Thy Kingdom come! Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven!" -- Amen? PTL! GBY and help you to continue to fulfil those great visions of Heavenly power and glory on Earth through your witnessing for Jesus from now till Kingdom come! -- Amen? Hallelujah! TYJ! For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever! -- In Jesus' name, amen! -- Amen? -- Amen! -- ILY!)