His Harvest is Ready

To Be Announced

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Pr. C.A. Murray

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Series Code: HHR

Program Code: HHR000013


00:24 The title of our message tonight is
00:27 To Be Announced.
00:29 And as we have said before,
00:32 that is not what's going to happen, that is the title.
00:36 The title is To Be Announced.
00:38 There were those who thought that we didn't have a title
00:41 till I explained to them that the title was indeed
00:43 To Be Announced.
00:46 Earlier today we had a baptism.
00:51 Um, we are happy that there are a number of people here
00:55 in Chicago who have made their stand or taken their stand
01:01 to serve the Lord.
01:02 Some of them were not quite ready for baptism today.
01:06 They are in classes; they are studying...
01:09 but they have taken their stand during these meetings.
01:12 As I have said before, only the last couple of nights
01:15 we've had seven here. But we had two young people
01:18 who wanted to be baptized today.
01:21 They wanted to give their life to the Lord
01:23 and let the world know that today was their birthday
01:28 as it were... their new birthday.
01:30 They wanted to be baptized during the meetings.
01:33 They wanted to do it today, and so we accommodated them
01:35 just a couple of hours ago. Pastor Famous Murray brought
01:39 two of his young people over who wanted to be baptized.
01:42 And we taped that, and we'd like you to take a look at
01:44 that just now.
02:00 It is my pleasure to be standing in the baptismal pool
02:04 with Pastor Famous Murray. Pastor, good to have you here.
02:07 Good to be here. The Shiloh Church has been
02:10 downlinking our meetings right across town
02:13 and has had good attendance each night.
02:16 And we have some young people who have chosen,
02:20 Pastor, to give their heart to the Lord
02:21 and seal that with baptism today. Yes.
02:24 As a matter of fact they are two young persons from our school.
02:28 This is their first year attending the Chicago-area
02:32 school. And as a result of their attending school and church
02:36 they are here for baptism. Praise the Lord!
02:38 We are happy that this meeting helped encourage them.
02:41 By the look of them, they were about the age that I was
02:43 Pastor when I joined the church.
02:45 I got baptized at nine and have not regretted it.
02:49 You know we are happy because during the last couple of days
02:53 we have had seven individuals
02:56 give their hearts to the Lord and are now preparing
02:59 for baptism. We are really, really excited because
03:02 God gave us a perfect number. We have four on last evening
03:05 and another three this morning in this morning's meeting.
03:07 So we know we have seven souls from this very church
03:10 that will be giving their hearts to the Lord
03:12 and in the baptismal pool very soon.
03:13 Isn't that beautiful?
03:15 As a matter of fact, we have several more
03:17 who are prepared for baptism. As a matter of fact,
03:21 the mother who is sitting out there with us tonight
03:24 of these young people... she is preparing for baptism
03:27 and others who we could not get ready for tonight.
03:30 We're excited because young people kind of lead the way
03:33 sometimes, you know. And these two young people
03:36 really wanted to this... to make their statement for the world
03:40 that they are giving their lives to Jesus.
03:42 So it's a very exciting thing, Pastor Murray.
03:43 I'm good to be in the water with you...
03:45 good to be in the water with you. Great!
03:47 Let's have a word of prayer.
03:48 If you would just lead out in prayer. Let us pray.
03:50 Father in Heaven, we will ourselves anew to You
03:54 at this moment. We place this pool, this baptismal service,
03:59 in Your hands, asking that Your Holy Spirit will anoint
04:02 the waters, this service, and especially these two
04:06 young people who shall be buried in the watery grave
04:10 of baptism tonight. And, Lord, there are others
04:13 in other churches, other areas, other countries,
04:16 other cites, other states, who are planning to do likewise.
04:19 We pray Your blessings upon them.
04:22 Seal that decision until Jesus comes.
04:25 This is our prayer in Christ's name, Amen.
04:27 Amen. You know, while you were mentioning...
04:30 or while you were praying, rather, you mentioned
04:31 other countries. It reminded me, we got a very nice letter
04:34 from the Philippines. There are a fairly large group of
04:37 young people also there in the Philippines
04:39 who have given their hearts to the Lord
04:41 and any day now will be joining the family of God
04:45 in baptism. And so we are excited about that.
04:47 All around the world, young people are standing up for Jesus
04:51 and making this commitment to Him.
04:53 Pastor C.A., this is what it's all about.
04:55 You haven't been preaching out here for the past 15 nights
04:59 just to sweat!
05:00 But you're trying to bring men, women, boys, and girls
05:04 into a living relationship with Jesus Christ
05:07 because we know that He's soon to come.
05:09 Amen. And we all want to be ready to meet Him in peace
05:11 and we want to help others to get ready to meet Him.
05:15 You've got a couple preachers in the baptismal pool,
05:17 so you have to forgive us
05:18 because any preacher will tell you that baptizing is the most
05:23 fun part, I can say, of ministry:
05:26 seeing young and old, rich and poor,
05:28 give their hearts to the Lord and seal that with baptism.
05:31 Yeah. That's beautiful, beautiful. All right, praise
05:33 God, praise God! Who do we have?
05:38 All right... Jasmine.
06:16 Now, Jasmine, before you... before we
06:18 do this great thing, is there anything you want to say?
06:20 You want to talk in the microphone? Just say anything?
06:22 Nah... We kind of put you on the spot?
06:27 That's all right because she's made her decision.
06:30 She said all the right things so we're happy for her.
06:45 And so, Jasmine, because you love Jesus
06:49 you decided in your young years
06:52 to give your life, your heart, your soul to Him
06:57 it gives us GREAT pleasure
07:00 to baptize you in the name of the Father,
07:02 and in the name of the Son,
07:04 and in the name of the Holy Ghost.
07:07 Be faithful unto death, and Jesus will give you
07:11 a crown of life.
07:13 Amen!
07:58 This water is worrying him just a little bit.
08:00 And the Pastor is assuring him that I've got good hold of you,
08:03 I'll take care of you.
08:37 Xavius, because of your love for Jesus
08:41 and your commitment to do His will as a young boy
08:46 I can assure you that you will be blessed;
08:50 your family will be blessed;
08:52 the community will be blessed; your church will be blessed
08:56 to have you as a fine young man serving the Lord.
09:00 Growing up in your community, in your home,
09:03 in your church, and in your school.
09:06 Because of your love for Jesus
09:08 we baptize you in the name of the Father,
09:12 and of His Son,
09:14 and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!
09:36 Praise God... he's a little worked up.
09:38 Very exciting day.
09:40 It is a most exciting day
09:41 when you give your heart to the Lord.
09:43 I can remember my first baptism so many, many years ago.
09:47 It's something you don't forget; something you treasure
09:50 because it is the start of a walk that will lead to glory
09:54 as long as we keep our hand in the hand of Jesus.
09:57 And I'm happy that two young people led out.
09:59 The Bible says that "a child shall lead them. "
10:03 Many times it is young people who lead the way.
10:05 We are happy for the seven individuals
10:07 who have taken their stand here. And as Pastor said,
10:11 there are several more at his church
10:13 and we know several more around the world.
10:16 And so these two precious young people join literally
10:19 thousands of others who have sealed their determination
10:23 and their faith and have said to the world
10:26 and to our God above "I will walk with You
10:29 starting this day throughout all eternity. "
10:32 Want you to keep them in prayer
10:34 and those who have taken their stand
10:36 who have stood up for Jesus here over the last couple of days.
10:39 We want to remember them in prayer also.
10:41 And certainly the members at Shiloh will be remembering
10:44 those individuals who also have given their hearts to the Lord
10:48 at the Shiloh Church.
10:49 Pray for those around the world
10:51 who are in the valley of decision.
10:52 You know, when you want to give your heart to Jesus
10:54 there's always an enemy who wants to distract you
10:58 or discourage you or in some way turn you around.
11:02 But let us pray that what has begun here will continue.
11:05 That Christ will keep that which we now commit to His hands
11:09 until the day that Jesus comes to take us home.
11:11 We have a promise that we are on the winning team,
11:15 the victorious side. We know who's going to win.
11:18 We know heaven is coming.
11:21 The only question left in the whole universe is:
11:24 how shall you stand in that great day?
11:27 It is my prayer that each of us here
11:29 along with all of you who are watching across the world
11:32 will be watching to see Christ coming in the clouds
11:36 on that great day. Because the promise IS
11:38 that day is not far in the future.
11:41 "Be ye also ready. "
11:44 God bless you.
11:46 Amen.
11:52 Amen. Wasn't that precious?
11:54 Amen. That young man really wanted to get baptized.
11:58 I don't recall ever seeing
12:00 a response like that. He was
12:02 crying and smiling at the
12:03 same time. And when his foot
12:05 hit that water, he said:
12:07 "I don't know. I want to go
12:09 but this water's a little chilly. "
12:11 But his heart was right, and he was happy that
12:14 he made a stand for the Lord.
12:17 So keep them in your prayers.
12:20 The subject: To Be Announced.
12:22 Our text to begin: John chapter 14 verses 1-3.
12:28 I am quite sure you know this by heart.
12:31 But I want you to turn to the Word of God with me.
12:33 Let's read the Word of God together
12:35 after we talk to the Lord in prayer.
12:37 Father God, we take now the time allotted to us
12:40 to talk about Jesus
12:43 and what He has prepared for us,
12:46 where we are going,
12:48 and where it will all end if we are faithful.
12:51 So again this night we ask for you to be our teacher,
12:56 our guide, and to show us marvelous things
13:00 of the world to come.
13:01 And we thank you in advance for Your presence
13:05 and Your power. In Jesus' name, Amen.
13:09 To Be Announced. I'm sure we will not have gone far
13:12 before you become aware of what we are talking about.
13:16 The book is John. What book did I say?
13:19 I'm in John the 14th chapter and we will read
13:23 verses 1 through 3.
13:25 The Word of God says in John 14:
14:00 "Let not your heart be troubled.
14:05 Don't fear; don't be afraid.
14:09 Don't get weak in the knee
14:12 because something is coming
14:15 and it's going to be worth the wait, " Jesus said.
14:19 I want you to do me a favor. I want you to close your eyes
14:23 and think about heaven...
14:26 just for 10 seconds.
14:28 Think about heaven. Now open them again.
14:32 It occurs to me that that is a difficult request,
14:37 isn't it? It really is.
14:40 To try to think about a place that you've never been to...
14:44 particularly in the light of I Corinthians chapter 2
14:48 and verse 9. What book did I say?
14:50 I Corinthians chapter 2 and verse 9.
14:53 Let's read from the Word of God:
15:10 In other words, when somebody asks you to think about heaven
15:14 it's a very difficult request
15:17 because the Bible itself says
15:19 we can't even imagine what heaven is going to be like.
15:24 We can't even conjecture in our minds.
15:28 In our wildest imaginations we cannot really
15:32 grasp what heaven is going to be like.
15:36 So then, we are much more comfortable
15:40 thinking about heaven in terms of
15:44 what will NOT be there because we have no measuring stick.
15:49 We have no way to evaluate or assess or envision heaven
15:54 because there's nothing down here like heaven.
15:57 You take your best day... that's not heaven.
16:02 You take the best time you've had...
16:06 that's not heaven.
16:07 You take the most expensive house you've ever been in...
16:11 that's not heaven.
16:13 God is saying: "Your best thoughts,
16:17 your wildest dreams
16:19 fall short of what heaven will be like. "
16:23 That is why when we discuss heaven
16:26 we tend to be far more comfortable in discussing heaven
16:30 in terms of what won't be there.
16:33 What will NOT be there.
16:36 We feel a little better doing it that way
16:38 because we just are not sure what WILL be there.
16:43 In heaven I won't have a barber
16:48 but I will have hair.
16:50 Amen!
16:53 In heaven I won't have contact lenses
16:56 but I will have sight.
16:58 In heaven I won't have frowns but I will have smiles.
17:03 In heaven I won't have war but I will have peace.
17:07 In heaven I won't have anger but I will have laughter.
17:11 In heaven I won't be a subject
17:15 but I will have a King.
17:16 In heaven I won't get sunburned
17:19 but I will have sun.
17:21 In heaven I won't have an electrical bill
17:24 but I will have light.
17:26 In heaven I won't take vitamins
17:29 but I'll never get tired.
17:31 In heaven I won't eat meat
17:38 but I will have food. Amen!
17:40 In heaven I won't have a job
17:43 but I will work.
17:45 In heaven I won't have a mortgage
17:48 but I will have a home. Amen!
17:50 In heaven I won't be a slave
17:52 but I will have a Master.
17:54 In heaven I won't burn gas but I will have fuel.
17:58 In heaven I won't have a farm but I will have a garden.
18:02 In heaven I won't have any enemies
18:05 but I will have friends.
18:07 In heaven there will be no hate
18:10 but I will have love.
18:12 In heaven there'll be no devil but we will have Jesus.
18:17 No more death!
18:20 No more pain!
18:22 No more dying!
18:24 No more sorrow!
18:26 No more arthritis.
18:29 No more heart disease.
18:31 No more eyeglasses.
18:33 No more war.
18:35 No more guns.
18:37 No more suicide bombers.
18:40 No more drive-by shootings.
18:42 No more burglar alarms.
18:47 No more IRS.
18:50 Amen!
18:53 No more INS.
18:56 No more STD.
18:59 No more PCB.
19:01 No more DDT.
19:03 No more TNT.
19:06 No more RPG.
19:08 No more GNP.
19:10 No more GBB, no more PVC.
19:16 No more terrorism.
19:18 No more taxes.
19:19 No more car notes, no more locked doors.
19:23 No more adultery.
19:25 No more divorce.
19:27 No more trains, planes, unmanned missions to Mars.
19:31 No more nightly news or TV views.
19:35 No Dancing With the Stars.
19:37 No more busses, trucks, or cars.
19:41 No more New York, Los Angeles, or Las Vegas,
19:44 or gambling on sports.
19:46 No more Coors, Bud Light, Dos Equis, alcohol,
19:50 responsible drinking, or anything of that sort.
19:54 No more racists. No more arsonists.
19:57 No more extortionists. No more contortionists.
20:00 No rap, no rock, no reggae, no rhythm and blues,
20:04 and no country!
20:06 Um-hmm.
20:08 No more shooters. No more Hooters.
20:10 No more looters. No more scooters.
20:12 No more tooters.
20:17 No more headache. No more backache.
20:20 No more toothache. No more heartache.
20:23 No more loneliness. No more vileness.
20:26 No more pettiness. No more childishness.
20:29 No more meanness. No more slothfulness.
20:32 No more rudeness. No more vindictiveness.
20:34 No more callousness. No more ruthlessness.
20:37 No more evilness. No more heartlessness.
20:40 No more deceptiveness.
20:41 No vanity, no insanity,
20:43 no pornography, no profanity.
20:46 No insincerity. No insecurity.
20:48 No lack of integrity. No insensitivity.
20:51 No incongruity.
20:53 Amen!
20:56 The truth is: most of that which is in this world
21:01 won't be in heaven.
21:03 Amen!
21:05 That's why when you say "think of heaven, "
21:07 we can't really do it
21:10 because we just don't know what will be there
21:14 but we've kinda got a good idea what won't be there.
21:18 Can you say Amen? Amen!
21:21 Most of the things that are very common to us
21:24 won't be in heaven.
21:26 No more talk shows.
21:32 No more TV.
21:35 Praise the Lord!
21:38 Except for 3ABN, of course.
21:44 You will know heaven by the love and trust
21:50 and peace under the government of God.
21:56 By the way, no more election campaigns.
22:03 We've got one King... we won't need another.
22:09 Let's go to the book of Hebrews. What book did I say?
22:11 Hebrews chapter 11 verse 16.
22:14 I'll turn to it with you.
22:16 Hebrews 11:16.
22:19 The Word of God says... Hebrews 11:16:
22:37 Can you say Amen?
22:39 Our God is making a home for us.
22:41 It is a real city... not an illusion.
22:45 There are some theologians who try to teach us
22:47 that heaven is a state of mind.
22:50 I read something the other day... they're saying:
22:51 "All the heaven you're going to get you've got now...
22:55 so you'd better think positive. "
22:56 God says: "Oh, no. " God is building a real city
23:00 for real people. Can you say Amen?
23:02 And it's coming real, real soon.
23:04 Well... where is heaven?
23:07 Where is it now? Let's go to the book of Revelation.
23:10 What book did I say?
23:11 Revelation chapter 21. Going to do a little Bible
23:14 hopping tonight. Revelation chapter 21
23:16 and look at verse 2. Revelation 21:2:
23:32 And so our dwelling place will be the New Jerusalem.
23:36 Where is it now? In heaven.
23:38 Where's it gonna be? Down here on earth.
23:41 We will inherit the earth.
23:43 Let's go back to the Old Testament for just a moment.
23:45 I'm in the book of I Kings. What book did I say?
23:47 You're all the way from Revelation back to I Kings.
23:51 Solomon is doing something here.
23:54 He is blessing the temple at its inauguration.
23:57 I Kings chapter 8, picking up the story at verse 28.
24:47 This is a marvelous prayer. This is a sermon in itself.
24:50 Solomon at the beginning of the temple said: "Lord,
24:53 I want You to make me a promise.
24:54 I want you to make it from heaven
24:56 that whenever someone comes to this place to pray
24:59 I want you to guarantee me that You will hear. "
25:03 Solomon asked that of the Lord; the Lord said: "OK.
25:06 Anybody prays from this place I'll hear it. "
25:08 Then he even said: "Lord, I want You to promise
25:11 that even if they can't get here and they think about this place
25:17 You'll answer their prayer. "
25:19 The Lord said: "OK. "
25:22 "Lord, if something is wrong,
25:26 if they just turn in the direction of this place...
25:29 just face towards the place...
25:31 I want you to guarantee me that You will hear. "
25:34 The Lord said: "OK.
25:36 I love you that much; I'll make that guarantee.
25:38 I'll hear from heaven and grant it on earth. "
25:42 So God is in heaven.
25:46 The city is in heaven but one day it's going to be here.
25:51 Now let's talk about the dimensions.
25:52 Let's see if it's a real town.
25:53 I'm in Revelation 21 verse 16.
25:56 Revelation 21 verse 16: let's prove our point.
26:20 Did a little math earlier on.
26:28 A cubit is roughly 18 inches.
26:31 There were different kinds of cubits.
26:33 The Hebrews had cubits, Greeks had cubits.
26:35 Roughly the length from the tip of your finger
26:38 down to your elbow is a cubit.
26:39 About 18 inches for the average-sized man.
26:42 For some, a little bit longer.
26:44 But the text tells us it's 12,000 furlongs.
26:49 1,500 miles... approximately 375 miles on each side.
26:55 Big town, isn't it?
26:57 You there?
27:01 You're just shocked... I know what that is.
27:03 375 miles on a side.
27:06 That's roughly the distance from New York City to Buffalo.
27:10 The state of New York and about half of Pennsylvania.
27:12 That's a big town. I think it would be able to hold everybody
27:15 don't you think?
27:17 375 miles on a side and big and tall and square.
27:22 It's a wonderful city that God has prepared.
27:26 When we read Revelation 21 verse 2
27:29 we see something else.
27:30 Um, John again gives us the understanding that
27:34 it's a real city.
27:35 Now let's look at the walls of the city.
27:38 I'm in Revelation 21 verse 18.
27:51 When I read that, I have a hard time imagining
27:55 what that is.
27:58 Pure gold... like glass.
28:02 Now I've seen gold and I've seen glass,
28:07 but I haven't seen golden glass or glassy gold.
28:12 And the Bible says it's pure gold like glass.
28:18 So it must be transparent gold,
28:21 and I've never seen transparent gold.
28:24 But I want to... how about you?
28:27 216 feet high walls... 144 cubits.
28:33 An incredibly large city.
28:36 An incredibly wonderful city.
28:38 An incredible gift for God's people who love Him.
28:42 I'm in Revelation 21... you're still there...
28:44 verses 12 and 13. Let's look a little bit more:
29:10 Twelve gates... so there's not going to be any traffic jam
29:13 going in and out like there are going in and out of Chicago.
29:17 Can you say Amen? Amen!
29:20 Three gates on each side.
29:22 Names of the twelve tribes on the gates.
29:24 And someone said to me... I haven't really
29:26 searched this out... someone said that each of us
29:29 has a lineage or a linkage to a particular tribe.
29:32 And we're going to go in through that particular gate
29:35 under the banner of that particular tribe.
29:39 Now I don't know if that's true or not,
29:40 but I sure would like to do it. How about you?
29:43 And the thing about heaven is
29:45 if you don't get to go in the East gate,
29:47 you won't mind going in the West gate.
29:49 And if you get to go in the North gate,
29:52 you won't mind getting in the South gate.
29:54 You're just going to be so glad that you got in!
29:57 Amen? Amen.
29:59 You're not going to mind going in the other gate.
30:01 It's like now you go to potluck
30:03 and you're looking on somebody else's plate
30:05 to see if they got more than you.
30:06 Not going to happen in heaven...
30:08 'cause you'll be so glad you got in
30:10 you won't care. You're just praising God that you're in!
30:12 Amen? And Amen.
30:14 The city has twelve complete foundations.
30:16 Revelation 21:21. Let's go to Revelation 21:21.
30:27 Now that's... that's... I don't even know how to imagine that:
30:30 a whole gate of pearl.
30:37 Doesn't that just tickle your fancy?
30:40 Transparent gold... and you're walking on it.
30:43 You know when we go home
30:45 we take off our shoes 'cause we've got light-colored carpet
30:47 and we don't want to get dirt on it.
30:49 But transparent gold that's used for paving stones.
30:53 Incredible! God's going to pave the city with transparent gold!
30:58 I can't wait to get there. What about you?
31:00 Praise God for a wonderful city.
31:03 For a wonderful, wonderful city.
31:06 I'm in Matthew 5:5.
31:07 Matthew 5:5.
31:19 You see, when we read Revelation chapter 20 we find
31:22 that we're not just going to stay up there in the ethereal
31:27 forever... but this city is coming back down here
31:31 to planet earth. We're going to inherit the earth.
31:35 And that's a whole sermon in itself how it's going to happen.
31:37 But praise God it's going to happen.
31:39 Eventually we're going to be right back down here
31:42 where it all started.
31:44 But it's not going to be the same earth that you see
31:46 when you look out your windows in the morning.
31:48 Amen? Going to be a brand new earth
31:51 because we're going to be brand new people!
31:53 Can you say Amen? Amen!
31:55 You know, we have some scholarship that says
31:58 Adam and Eve, before sin...
32:01 they estimate - the scholars and theologians - that
32:04 Adam was about 16 ft. tall,
32:07 about 2,000 pounds.
32:09 That's a big guy!
32:11 And Eve? A little bit shorter... maybe about 10-12 ft.
32:15 Little bit lighter... maybe 800-900 pounds.
32:18 And perfect in symmetry.
32:21 Amen? I can't wait to get 16 ft. 2,000 pounds.
32:27 That's about 10 ft. more than I am now
32:30 and about 10 times the weight.
32:32 But I can't wait.
32:33 I'm 2,000 pounds, 16 ft.
32:36 Little Irma just barely 5 ft.
32:38 and I'm not going to say the weight because
32:40 I'm not going to do that.
32:43 But she's going to be 10 ft., 11 ft. -
32:46 1,000 pounds, BooBoo... and that'll be all right.
32:49 Amen. Praise the Lord!
32:53 Can't wait. It tickles the fancy just to think about it,
32:56 doesn't it? The idea that there's no more pain,
33:00 no more ache, no more sorrow, no more sadness.
33:03 No more tiredness; no more fatigue!
33:05 We're going to be strong. Eternally young and healthy
33:08 and vibrant and joyous in the city called heaven.
33:13 Proverbs chapter 11 verse 31.
33:14 I'm in the book of Proverbs chapter 11
33:16 and verse 31. Let's read a little bit more:
33:27 So judgment is going to take place down here
33:30 and the righteous will get their reward ultimately where?
33:34 Right here on the earth.
33:36 This earth was made for man's habitation.
33:39 And though we've destroyed it, we've polluted it,
33:42 we've torn it apart, ultimately God is going to
33:45 refurbish it and give it right back to righteous man.
33:48 Can you say Amen? Amen! All right,
33:50 let's go to Malachi. The book is Malachi chapter 4
33:52 and verse 1. I'm in Malachi chapter 4 and verse 1:
34:14 Now this text serves two purposes.
34:16 One: it puts a pin in the mistaken idea that
34:20 mankind will burn forever
34:21 because the Bible says they're going to be burned up
34:25 leaving them neither root nor branch.
34:27 But also it says that God is going to go... take this earth
34:31 through a cleansing process
34:34 to make it fit habitation for brand new people
34:37 and a brand new city. Can you say Amen?
34:40 God is going to do something spectacular
34:43 to clean this earth up and make it fit habitation
34:47 for His saints for all eternity.
34:51 Revelation chapter 20 verse 9.
34:53 We're doing a lot of hopping. Revelation 20 verse 9.
34:56 You were in the last book of the Old Testament;
34:58 now you're in the last book of the Bible.
34:59 I'm in Revelation chapter 20 and verse 9.
35:01 Let's read the Word of God:
35:12 And so the city is coming down
35:14 and God is going to destroy the wicked once and for all.
35:19 Because God is not going to allow pollution
35:22 to come back a second time.
35:24 And I'm so glad that when I make it through this time
35:28 I'll never have to worry about it again,
35:32 ladies and gentlemen. Once we get over,
35:34 once Christ comes to take us home,
35:36 iniquity, pollution, sin will not rise a second time.
35:41 This is it for sin!
35:44 Amen!
35:46 And all we have to do is hold on to the unchanging hand of Jesus.
35:50 In a little while it will all be over
35:55 and we'll be with Jesus forever. Can you say Amen?
35:58 Amen! Let's go to II Peter chapter 3 verse 10.
36:02 II Peter chapter 3 verse 10.
36:22 God is going to clean this old earth away.
36:25 Now this text establishes a number of things.
36:27 The Bible says Jesus' coming is like a thief in the night.
36:33 There are some who think that means Jesus is going to
36:37 sneak in here.
36:39 No! No! The Bible says there's going to be
36:42 a great noise.
36:46 Not going to sneak in.
36:48 You see, most thieves don't announce their coming, do they?
36:52 No! You don't have a fellow walking down the street with a
36:56 bullhorn saying "I'm going to break into your house tonight. "
37:01 So what the text is saying
37:03 is that Christ's coming is going to be sudden...
37:06 not silent. Amen?
37:09 It's going to be sudden.
37:10 Men are going to be going about their lives
37:12 doing what they always do and... Jesus is here!
37:16 So it's not going to slip in... He's giving us a lot of warning
37:20 and He will come with a trumpet sound.
37:22 But we've got to be ready
37:24 because we just don't know the day.
37:27 But it is coming and it is coming soon.
37:29 And soon thereafter God is going to clean up this earth
37:33 and make it fit habitation for His saints.
37:39 Isaiah chapter 40 verse 31.
37:42 Isaiah 40 verse 31.
37:45 This text I put in simply because I love this text.
37:51 I just love this text.
38:08 So God is saying once you hold onto Him,
38:11 once you stand by Him,
38:13 once you clasp hands with Him,
38:15 you'll be able to run this race to heaven with patience.
38:18 You don't have to fatigue.
38:19 You don't have to fall by the wayside.
38:21 You won't have to drop out of the race
38:23 but God will give you the strength to run the race
38:26 unto completion. Can you say Amen?
38:29 And you don't have to run much longer, ladies and gentlemen,
38:31 because Jesus is coming soon.
38:37 We know where it is. We know what it is.
38:40 We know who's building it.
38:43 The only question left is:
38:46 how do I get real estate there?
38:49 Amen?
38:51 How do I get a passport? How do I get my visa?
38:55 How do I get in?
38:57 I Corinthians chapter 15
39:01 and verse 50.
39:03 I Corinthians 15:50.
39:18 Now flesh and blood He means those who are living
39:21 in the flesh can't get in.
39:23 If you want to get a passport to heaven,
39:27 all you've got to do is ask Jesus for faith,
39:31 exercise that faith, and your passport is in the mail.
39:36 Can you say Amen? Amen.
39:38 In fact, the Holy Spirit was delivered to your home
39:40 and your heart personally.
39:41 Praise God!
39:44 II Corinthians chapter 10 verses 3-5.
39:47 II Corinthians 10:3-5.
39:50 God a lot of texts, a lot of things to get through.
40:16 So how do we get in? We fight our way in.
40:18 But we don't use guns or knives or carnal weapons.
40:22 Our weapon is the Holy Spirit.
40:25 Our weapon is the Word of God.
40:28 Our weapon is a relationship with Jesus Christ.
40:31 Remember I said the other night there's nothing about you
40:33 that the devil fears. He doesn't fear your name.
40:36 He doesn't fear your bank account.
40:38 He doesn't fear your strength.
40:39 He doesn't fear your ability.
40:41 He doesn't fear your ability to talk.
40:43 There's nothing about you that the devil fears.
40:45 The devil fears but one thing...
40:47 he fears your Boss... your Employer.
40:51 So when the devil comes, you don't try to shadow box
40:55 the devil. You say:
40:57 "Wait a minute, I'm going to get Jesus. "
41:00 Amen? Yeah. when I was in the 6th grade
41:02 Francine Craig gave me a good whooping.
41:06 She was bigger than I was.
41:07 I was a little fellow till I got about 8th grade
41:09 and Francine Craig... she pounded me something fierce.
41:12 And I went home with my shirt torn and my lip bloody.
41:16 And my sister was 18 months older than me.
41:20 And she said: "What happened to you? "
41:22 I said: "Francine Craig beat me up. "
41:25 She said: "Come with me. "
41:27 So we went back to school
41:29 and my sister said: "Did you beat up my brother? "
41:32 And she said: "Yeah. "
41:34 Said: "Beat him up now.
41:37 With me standing here... beat him up. "
41:39 She said: Nah, I don't want to. "
41:42 She said: "No, hit him! "
41:43 Said: "No, I don't think... I don't want to do that. "
41:47 That's the way with Jesus.
41:49 Why stand there and get pummeled by the devil?
41:52 Huh? When the devil comes, tell the devil
41:56 "Give me one second, "
41:58 and then you run and get Jesus.
42:00 Huh? And then say to the devil:
42:03 "Hit me now with Jesus standing right here. "
42:08 The Bible says: "Resist the devil and he will...? "
42:12 But the only way you can resist the devil is by having
42:15 a relationship with Jesus Christ.
42:17 Christ says: "Abide in me and I in you. "
42:20 So as long as you've got Jesus you've got protection
42:23 from the enemy. Can you say Amen?
42:25 And the devil can't touch you
42:26 as long as you are hid in Christ Jesus.
42:29 Romans chapter 8 verses 1-8.
42:31 This is a long one. This is also one that I love.
42:33 Romans 8:1-8.
42:36 Let's read the Word of God:
42:48 Praise God!
43:00 Can't do it in your flesh.
43:06 Praise God!
43:09 And so the Bible is saying plainly here
43:12 "There's no condemnation once you're in Christ Jesus. "
43:14 The devil can't point his finger at you
43:16 while you're in Christ Jesus.
43:18 Uh, let me finish:
44:01 So if you want to fight a successful battle,
44:06 the first thing you've got to do is step out of your flesh
44:09 and step into Jesus.
44:11 Is to let your heart open up and be filled with the Spirit
44:16 of God, and the Spirit of God will fight for you
44:21 and through you - Can you say Amen? -
44:24 and you will be victorious.
44:27 Amen and Amen. I Corinthians chapter 6.
44:30 I Corinthians chapter 6:9-11.
44:34 Real fast:
44:55 We used to be like that.
44:56 "But... " praise God for the but...
45:08 Hey, that is the salvation experience!
45:10 God is saying it doesn't matter what we used to be.
45:14 Who cares what you used to be?
45:16 You know, listen. I say this all the time.
45:20 I got stuff... you got stuff...
45:24 all God's children got stuff.
45:28 Amen? I've got some things I'm proud to talk about.
45:32 I've got some things in my life I'm not proud to talk about.
45:36 Now we could come to church and I pull out my stuff
45:39 and you pull out your stuff
45:42 and we could sit around and discuss each other's stuff...
45:45 and then get depressed because I can't help you with your stuff.
45:49 You can't help me with my stuff.
45:51 I'm too busy dealing with my stuff
45:54 to deal with your stuff.
45:55 So we need to all take our stuff to Jesus
45:59 who is the answer to all of our stuff.
46:01 Amen? It doesn't matter what you've got.
46:05 Doesn't matter what you've done.
46:07 Doesn't matter where you came from.
46:09 Doesn't matter what mess you've come out of.
46:12 The Bible says you were washed, you were justified,
46:17 you are sanctified... so that old stuff doesn't matter.
46:21 Like my roommate used to say:
46:24 "Forget that stuff! "
46:25 Your mind is now on Jesus
46:28 and your heart is now in heaven,
46:30 and your soul is locked in with Christ.
46:33 So don't worry about your stuff, just worry about God.
46:37 Amen! And keep your hand in the hand of the Lord.
46:41 Amen and Amen.
46:43 I Corinthians 13:12.
46:45 I Corinthians 13:12.
46:48 Here we go. The Word of God says:
47:03 You see, we don't know it now
47:06 but it's to be announced.
47:07 We're going to know it one day soon. Can you say Amen?
47:10 Doesn't matter what we've done, who we are,
47:13 what we've gone through.
47:14 It's not our past that counts with the Lord...
47:17 it's all about our future. Can you say Amen?
47:20 And we've got a bright and glorious future
47:22 through Jesus Christ. Let's go back to the Old Testament.
47:25 I know we're doing a lot of Bible hopping.
47:26 Isaiah chapter 65 verses 21 and 22.
47:29 Isaiah 65:21 and 22. I like this!
47:57 Isn't that a nice text?
47:59 That says to me: when I build it it's going to be mine.
48:04 Amen!
48:06 You see you can live in a house now
48:09 and forget to pay taxes...
48:11 and the government says: "That's not your house any more.
48:14 That's our house. "
48:16 Told you the other day about a church I know
48:19 that forgot to pay something to the city,
48:21 and the city put a whole church up for auction.
48:23 And a lady walked in and bought a whole church for $25,000
48:26 and changed the locks. So when the congregation came
48:28 the next day, couldn't get in their own church...
48:30 because they forgot to pay. They forgot to sign a little
48:33 thing with the government
48:34 and the government put their church up on auction.
48:36 The Bible says when you build your house in heaven
48:39 it's going to be your house.
48:41 Amen? Nobody's going to come and take it away from you.
48:43 Nobody's going to sell it for taxes.
48:46 Praise God! When you build it, gonna be yours!
48:49 And you don't have to put locks on your doors.
48:52 Now we live way out in the country
48:54 and people keep telling me: "Why do you lock your door?
48:57 No one's going to bother you. " But I've been in New York City
48:59 thirty years. I lock my, I double lock, I triple...
49:02 I lock my doors all the time.
49:05 When we left to come up here,
49:06 the first thing I said: "Irma, did you lock the door? "
49:10 You know, we lock the back door. We lock the front door.
49:12 We push the windows down.
49:14 We put the locks on them... you know.
49:15 And the truth is, if somebody really wanted to get in our
49:17 house, they could get in.
49:19 Amen? They could.
49:20 Houses are not that tough to get into.
49:21 Anything with glass, you can get
49:22 into. But it's just in my
49:24 mindset: lock your doors.
49:26 And I told you, I've had one,
49:28 two, three, four cars stolen
49:31 in the thirty years in New York City.
49:33 Alarms, clubs, foot locks, kill switches.
49:38 If they want it, they're going to get it.
49:40 Amen? Or get part of it.
49:42 President of our conference, bless his heart,
49:44 bought a brand new Oldsmobile.
49:46 Went upstairs. Parked it one night.
49:47 Came down. All four doors gone off the car.
49:50 Somebody needed doors... they came and took his doors.
49:52 He went upstairs and began to play "Oh, How I Love Jesus"
49:55 on the piano.
49:59 The Bible says you ought to wear this earth
50:02 like a loose garment... because if they want it
50:05 they're going to get it.
50:06 You can lock it up, bolt it down,
50:08 tie it down, stand guard over it...
50:11 and if they want it, they are going to get it.
50:16 You can't take it with you, so don't fret.
50:19 The only thing you really need is Jesus.
50:23 Amen? And Jesus... they can't take away.
50:26 The Bible says nobody can take you
50:28 out of the hands of the Lord.
50:30 When you're in you're in as long as you want to be in
50:33 and no one can pluck you from His hands.
50:35 Everything else... it comes and goes.
50:37 It comes and goes; it comes and goes;
50:40 it comes and goes.
50:41 Revelation 21 verse 1.
50:45 Revelation 21 verse 1.
51:05 A brand new earth is coming ladies and gentlemen,
51:07 and aren't you glad that it's not much longer?
51:10 My final text. This is a text I didn't get a chance to use
51:14 the other night but it is a great text.
51:16 It is Revelation 22 and verse 12.
51:19 Revelation 22 and verse 12.
51:23 I want to read it from the Word of God.
51:25 Jesus says:
51:41 Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived,
51:43 at the end of Ecclesiastes said this:
51:46 "Fear God and keep His commandments.
51:52 This is the whole duty of man. "
51:57 And Christ ends His words by saying:
52:00 "I'm coming quickly and I'm bringing My reward. "
52:05 Ladies and gentlemen, how sad it would be
52:09 to feel what you felt these past several nights -
52:12 to come to church and feel the Spirit of God
52:16 tugging at the strings of your heart -
52:19 to go through life living your life
52:23 and get down to Judgment Day
52:26 and have Jesus say: "Depart from Me...
52:30 I know you not. "
52:32 And you say: "Lord, I spent so much time in church.
52:35 I gave so much money. I did so many things.
52:38 I denied myself things, "
52:40 and have Christ say: "Yeah, but you never really knew Me. "
52:44 And somewhere along the path you determined
52:49 "I'm going to go this far and no further.
52:52 And I kept on walking, and we lost sight of each other. "
52:58 How sad that would be.
53:01 Wouldn't that be sad?
53:03 Doesn't have to be.
53:06 My old professor in college said: "You know,
53:09 this coming of the Lord is a great and awful day. "
53:13 It can be an awfully great day
53:16 or a great and awful day.
53:18 It all depends on you.
53:21 The race has been run. The victory has been won.
53:27 And all you've got to do is take hold of the hand of Jesus
53:31 and He will walk you through the gates and into that city.
53:38 How many want to be there?
53:40 Bow your heads with me if you will.
53:42 Father God, Lord Jesus we want to go home.
53:46 We look at this tired, crowded, sin-sick world.
53:52 There's no one we can trust.
53:54 We're not safe... even in our own homes.
53:57 We know the only thing that's keeping us alive
54:02 is the power of the Living God.
54:05 We dare not turn our backs on You.
54:09 We dare not turn aside from walking in Your footsteps.
54:13 We ask only, dear Jesus,
54:17 that you will keep us in the way that we're going.
54:20 Don't let us turn to the right or to the left.
54:25 Help us, God, to set our sights on heaven
54:31 and determine in our hearts, in our minds,
54:35 though 10,000 fall at our right
54:38 and 1,000 at our left
54:40 we will walk with Jesus.
54:44 Give us Your power, give us Your mercy,
54:47 give us Your grace, give us Your Holy Spirit.


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Revised 2014-12-17