The Midnight Cry

The Loud Cry –Did You Hear It

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

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Series Code: TMC

Program Code: TMC000024A


00:14 Have you enjoyed the Trio Celeste?
00:17 Very, very much.
00:21 They're going to sing a hymn entitled,
00:24 "Fairest Lord Jesus."
00:34 Fairest Lord Jesus
00:39 Ruler of all nature
00:44 O thou of God
00:47 And man the Son
00:53 Thee will I cherish
00:58 Thee will I honor
01:03 Thou want my glory Joy
01:07 And crown
01:13 Fair is the sunshine
01:17 Fairer still the moonlight
01:22 And all the twinkling
01:26 Starry host
01:32 Jesus shines brighter
01:37 Jesus shines purer
01:42 Than all the angels heaven
01:46 Can boast
01:52 Beautiful Savior!
01:58 Lord of all the nations
02:03 Son of God
02:06 And Son of Man
02:13 Glory and honor Praise
02:19 Adoration
02:24 Now and forevermore
02:29 Be thine
02:52 Father, we come to You this evening,
02:56 asking that each of us
03:00 may see Jesus.
03:03 May our hearts be open.
03:06 Lord, as we consider
03:09 what the Word has to say about the Holy Spirit,
03:13 we pray that we may be receptive.
03:16 The Holy Spirit may impart to us,
03:21 the fruits and the gifts that He wants to give us,
03:25 that we might live for You in all that we do.
03:30 For this we ask in Christ's name,
03:32 amen.
03:40 Matthew, the 24th Chapter.
03:43 In that chapter,
03:45 Jesus gave one sign after another of His coming.
03:49 In fact, He gave 17 signs of His coming,
03:54 in 24th Chapter.
03:56 Of those 17 signs,
03:59 16 of them had been fulfilled,
04:02 only one left to be fulfilled.
04:06 So when you move into the 25th Chapter of Matthew,
04:11 Jesus is talking about things that are taking place
04:14 in the last days.
04:15 And He tells us a parable.
04:18 Tells a parable of 10 virgins,
04:22 and He has this to say about them
04:24 very important instructions to you and I,
04:27 who are living down here at the close of time,
04:30 when these things that He's talked about
04:32 are all beginning to take place.
04:35 This is instructions that He's given to you,
04:37 and to me.
04:38 And he says this about the 10 virgins,
04:40 Matthew 25:6,
04:42 "And at midnight, a cry was heard:
04:44 'Behold, the bridegroom is coming,
04:46 go out to meet him!'"
04:48 Now when the scripture says midnight,
04:50 that's really talking about
04:51 the darkest hour of earth's history.
04:54 It's talking about the time in which you and I are living.
04:57 And it says that the cry went out,
05:00 behold, the bridegroom is coming.
05:04 So it's you and I need to be ready
05:06 to meet the bridegroom.
05:09 "Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.
05:15 And the foolish said to the wise,
05:17 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'"
05:22 Cry went out, they all rallied to the cry.
05:26 But the foolish said, "Well, we're running out of oil,
05:31 give us some of your oil."
05:34 "But the wise answered, saying, 'No lest,
05:36 there should not be enough for us and you...'"
05:39 They said, "We don't have any to spare.
05:41 If we give you oil, there won't be enough for us."
05:46 "But go rather to those who sell,
05:48 and buy for yourselves.
05:51 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came,
05:55 and those who were ready
05:59 went in with him to the wedding;
06:01 and the door was shut."
06:03 So it says that while these five were out,
06:06 buying the oil that they needed,
06:09 the bridegroom came, the five that had oil went in,
06:14 and the door was shut.
06:17 "Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, 'Lord, Lord,
06:20 open to us!'
06:25 But he answered and said, 'Assuredly, I say to you,
06:28 I do not know you.'
06:30 " Now listen very carefully.
06:33 "Watch therefore,
06:35 for you know neither the day nor the hour
06:38 in which the Son of Man is coming."
06:42 Now when it says that these virgins all arose,
06:46 and they were ready to go out to meet the bridegroom,
06:49 but five of them didn't have enough oil.
06:54 Do you understand what the oil represents?
06:59 The oil represents the Holy Spirit.
07:02 Amen.
07:03 And it says they didn't have enough of the Holy Spirit.
07:07 And so it says, when the bridegroom came,
07:09 those five wise went in,
07:12 the five foolish were off trying to find oil.
07:16 Now what I'm trying to tell you tonight, dear friends,
07:18 is you and I are living
07:20 down here at the close of time.
07:23 It is essential that we have
07:26 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our lives
07:29 to prepare us for the coming of Jesus Christ.
07:33 Going to church,
07:37 filling the pew,
07:39 saying I'm a Christian is not enough.
07:44 Listen to these words.
07:47 Ezekiel 33:31,
07:50 "So they come to you as people do,
07:53 they sit before you as My people,
07:56 they hear your words...
08:02 But they do not do them,
08:06 for with their mouth they show much love,
08:10 but their hearts pursue their own gain."
08:13 God said, no.
08:16 He said, but I'm not interested in his mouth service.
08:20 I'm not interested in them just talking.
08:22 I'm interested in their lives
08:25 being filled with the Holy Spirit.
08:28 And if you and I are going to enter
08:30 into the kingdom of God,
08:31 that is necessary that ur lives to be filled
08:34 with the Holy Spirit.
08:36 The Bible says right down at the end of time,
08:39 there will be a loud cry
08:42 that will go out across the earth,
08:45 calling people to prepare for the coming of the Lord.
08:49 Listen to that loud cry that's going to be given,
08:51 we talked about a little bit last night.
08:54 Revelation 18:1,
08:56 "After these things
08:57 I saw another angel coming down from heaven,
09:00 having great authority..."
09:03 So this angel has great authority.
09:06 "And the earth was illuminated with his glory."
09:10 And I told you that when angels are pictured in Bible prophecy,
09:13 they represent a message,
09:15 that's to go to the whole world,
09:17 and it says that this earth is illuminated
09:20 by the glory of this angel.
09:22 What is His message?
09:23 What message is this angel proclaiming?
09:26 "And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying,
09:29 'Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen..."
09:34 So he said, "Babylon has fallen."
09:37 We talked about that last night.
09:40 Dear friend, it is essential, it is absolutely vital
09:44 that you and I build our faith on this book.
09:48 Amen. I cannot, I'm sorry.
09:53 I'm sorry, dear friend.
09:55 But you and I cannot build our faith on church.
10:01 You've got to build your faith on the Word of God.
10:05 Then once you build your faith on the Word of God,
10:08 that will never change.
10:10 You're on a solid foundation.
10:14 So you got to be like the
10:18 fella that came to church that was deaf.
10:22 He couldn't hear anything.
10:25 When guy went out the church, the pastor stopped him,
10:28 wrote on a piece of paper,
10:31 "We appreciate you being here.
10:32 But since you can't hear, 'Why do you come?'
10:37 " And the fella took the piece of paper
10:38 and wrote back on the sheet.
10:40 "'Cause I want the devil to know whose side I'm on."
10:44 And that's what needs to happen with you and I.
10:46 We need to be very clear,
10:47 where I stand on the Word of God.
10:50 This is what I believe, this is where I stand, okay?
10:54 So you can't build it on church,
10:56 you got to build it on the Word of God.
10:57 And it says, "And he cried mightily with a loud voice,
11:00 saying, 'Babylon the great is fallen,
11:02 is fallen.'
11:04 " This is the loud cry that's being proclaimed.
11:06 "And has become a dwelling place of demons,
11:10 a prison for every foul spirit,
11:12 and a cage for every unclean and hated bird!"
11:16 In other words, it says that they have departed from God,
11:20 they're going the other way.
11:23 "For all the nations have drunk of the wine
11:25 of the wrath of her
11:27 fornication..."
11:28 So, dear friend, tonight,
11:31 if you value your relationship with Jesus Christ,
11:38 if you value the gift of eternal life,
11:43 if that's important to you,
11:46 then, dear friend, I'm pleading with you tonight,
11:49 build your faith on the Word of God,
11:54 don't build it any other place.
11:59 "The kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
12:04 and the merchants of the earth have become rich
12:06 through the abundance of her luxury.
12:10 "And I heard another voice from heaven saying,
12:12 'Come out of her, my people...'
12:15 " That's the cry that's going out across the world today.
12:18 God is calling people.
12:21 He's calling them.
12:22 Dear friend, let me tell you something,
12:23 He has people in all the churches,
12:26 good, sincere, honest people in all the churches.
12:30 It says in John 10.
12:33 "Other sheep I have that are not of this fold."
12:39 Don't stop there because it says,
12:42 "Them I must bring,
12:44 and there will be one fold
12:47 and one shepherd."
12:49 It doesn't say there will be 15 folds,
12:52 it doesn't say there will be 300 folds,
12:55 it says there will be one fold,
12:58 and that's what He's saying here when He's saying,
13:00 "Come out of her, come out of her, My people."
13:03 Saying, "You know, I stand amazed
13:08 because I've run on the people
13:10 that there's nothing wrong with their minds.
13:13 You know, God has given you
13:15 a good mind,
13:17 and you can read God's Word."
13:19 Therefore, dear friend, as you read it,
13:21 and you understand what it says, follow it.
13:25 That's all God's asking you to do.
13:28 As you read it, and you understand it,
13:31 follow it.
13:33 You're perfectly capable. Let me tell you something.
13:36 God would not put in this book...
13:39 God would not put in this book,
13:41 something that was impossible to understand
13:44 and expect you to be saved.
13:48 If God wants you to be saved, you better believe
13:50 He's going to put something there
13:51 that you can understand.
13:54 And as you understand it, follow it.
13:56 "Come out of her, My people,
13:59 lest you share in her sins,
14:01 and lest you receive of her plagues."
14:03 That's the call
14:04 that's going out to the whole world today.
14:07 It will not take place
14:10 by the might of men.
14:15 You see, in my experience,
14:18 I'm finding that God
14:22 will only really use a person
14:26 if they're humble.
14:29 God says, "I dwell with him
14:31 who is of a contrite heart.
14:36 Only as you and I humble ourselves,
14:39 then the Holy Spirit can use us.
14:41 "So then to go forth,
14:43 it's not by might,
14:44 it's not by power,
14:46 but it's by My spirit,"
14:50 says the Lord.
14:51 That's the way that that loud cry will go forth
14:55 to all the world.
14:57 God promises to you tonight,
15:00 to every one of you here tonight,
15:02 God promises the Holy Spirit.
15:05 That's something He wants to give you.
15:08 It's not something He's trying to withhold from you,
15:11 He wants to give it to you.
15:13 "And when He had said this,
15:15 He breathed on them, and said to them,
15:17 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'
15:21 " You see, Jesus wants you to receive the Holy Spirit.
15:24 He's not trying to hold it back,
15:26 He wants you to receive it.
15:28 Something He's willing to give you.
15:31 "If you then, being evil,
15:33 know how to give good gifts to your children,
15:37 how much more will your heavenly Father
15:39 give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"
15:42 So He says, He's more willing
15:45 to give you the Holy Spirit
15:47 than you are to give good gifts to your children.
15:51 Do you have any trouble with that?
15:54 No, more than willing to give it to you.
15:57 So He says that you and I must come to Him,
16:00 and we must ask for the Holy Spirit.
16:04 Disciples,
16:06 they talked about it in Acts 11:16, it says,
16:09 "Then I remembered the word of the Lord,
16:11 how He said, 'John indeed baptized
16:14 with water,
16:16 but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'
16:20 " So tonight, all I'm trying to get across to you
16:23 is God wants you to have the Holy Spirit.
16:28 Let me tell you something,
16:30 to receive the Holy Spirit,
16:32 it's not something that you've got to
16:35 crawl on your knees,
16:38 it's not something that you have to beat your back.
16:42 The Bible makes it very clear
16:43 that all you and I must do
16:45 is come to Him and ask,
16:48 and come with our hearts open,
16:51 surrendered, humble,
16:53 and God will pour out His Spirit upon us.
16:55 He'll give us the Holy Spirit.
16:57 Now the Bible talks about the Holy Spirit
17:01 being given in a special way in the last days.
17:04 And it talks about what is called the former
17:07 and the latter rain.
17:09 It talks about the Holy Spirit being poured out as rain.
17:12 Listen to what it says here in Joel.
17:14 Joel 2:23,
17:16 "Be glad then, you children of Zion,
17:19 and rejoice in the Lord your God,
17:21 for He has given you
17:22 the former rain faithfully,
17:26 all right,
17:28 and He will cause the rain to come down to you,
17:32 the former rain,
17:33 and the latter rain in the first month."
17:37 The former rain, folks,
17:39 was when the Holy Spirit was poured out
17:41 on the day of Pentecost.
17:43 Holy Spirit was poured out in great measure
17:46 in the day of Pentecost.
17:48 It says the Holy Spirit will be poured out again
17:52 in great measure in the last days.
17:55 That will be the latter rain, okay?
17:58 Listen,
17:59 'cause this is still Joel Chapter 2,
18:01 what we just read,
18:02 it tells you what He's talking about.
18:04 "And it shall come to pass
18:05 afterwards that I will pour out
18:07 My Spirit on all flesh."
18:11 Gonna pour out His Holy Spirit on all flesh.
18:14 "Your sons and your daughters shall," what?
18:18 "Prophesy,
18:19 your old men shall dream dreams,
18:22 your young men shall see visions.
18:25 Also on My menservants and on My maidservants,
18:28 I will pour out My Spirit in those days."
18:31 That's the latter rain
18:33 when God pours out His Holy Spirit
18:35 in great measure.
18:37 And, dear friends, let me tell you something tonight,
18:39 God is simply waiting on you and on me
18:43 to humble our hearts
18:45 and to come and seek the Lord,
18:47 and He is more than willing
18:49 to pour out the Holy Spirit upon us.
18:52 Wanting just to give us the Holy Spirit.
18:56 Great measure,
18:58 marvelous things will happen.
19:00 Ask the Lord for the rain in the time of the...
19:06 Oh, Lord, we're living in the time of the latter rain.
19:09 Yeah, we're living right down at the end,
19:11 so God says what you're supposed to do.
19:15 Ask, ask for it.
19:18 "Let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.
19:21 His going forth is established as the morning.
19:25 He will come to us like the rain,
19:27 like the latter and the former rain to the earth."
19:31 It says that He'll come,
19:32 and He'll pour out His Spirit upon us in great measure.
19:35 So how?
19:37 How do I?
19:38 How do you receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit?
19:43 What do I need to do to receive it?
19:46 There's some very simple things
19:48 to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
19:51 One.
19:52 You see,
19:53 the scripture says that this book
19:58 is the lamp, okay?
20:00 The lamp is God's Word, that's here.
20:05 This is what brings enlightenment.
20:08 But, dear friend,
20:09 the lamp will not burn without oil.
20:14 Are you with me? Amen.
20:16 I know lots of people that study the Word of God,
20:19 it doesn't do them any good.
20:22 They read it and it doesn't do any good
20:24 because they're lacking the Holy Spirit.
20:27 The Holy Spirit's what has to illuminate my mind.
20:30 It has to...
20:31 It's what has to help me understand God's Word.
20:36 Haven't you ever had that experience?
20:38 Huh?
20:39 Haven't you ever been reading the Bible
20:41 when you came across a text and you read it,
20:44 and you didn't understand it?
20:46 And some while later you read it again,
20:49 you still didn't understand it.
20:51 And then several times you read it,
20:54 just didn't understand.
20:55 One day, you picked it up and you read it,
20:57 and all of a sudden you understood it?
20:59 You ever had that happen?
21:00 That isn't 'cause you got smart all of a sudden,
21:04 that's because of the Holy Spirit.
21:06 See, the Holy Spirit enlightens us,
21:08 helps us understand God's Word.
21:11 That's what it's for.
21:13 That's what it does to us.
21:16 "In Him you also trusted,
21:20 after you heard the word of truth,
21:21 the gospel of your salvation.
21:24 In whom also, having believed, you were sealed
21:28 with the Holy Spirit of promise."
21:31 So you see, as I read the Word of God,
21:34 then the Holy Spirit must come into my life
21:37 and work in my life.
21:39 In fact, it says that I will not understand
21:42 the Word of God without it.
21:43 Ephesians 4:5,
21:45 "For what man knows the things of a man
21:48 except the spirit of the man
21:49 which is in him?
21:51 Even so no one knows the things of God
21:54 except the Spirit of God."
21:58 You see, you can't understand without the Holy Spirit.
22:03 So if you want the Holy Spirit,
22:07 and you want to really understand God's Word,
22:10 you have to spend time in the Word of God.
22:14 Essential.
22:17 You've got to take time,
22:20 every day, every day
22:23 to read the Word of God.
22:26 Open up your heart
22:29 and just read the Word of God
22:32 and take it into your life, friend.
22:34 You don't have to read it fast,
22:37 just open up your heart and read it,
22:40 and listen,
22:42 and listen to the Holy Spirit
22:44 as He speaks to your heart.
22:46 What a difference it'll make.
22:49 "If you abide in Me,
22:52 and My," what?
22:54 "Words abide in you,
22:56 you will ask what you desire,
22:59 and it shall be done for you."
23:02 Marvelous promise.
23:04 Marvelous promise.
23:06 I talk to you tonight about these promises.
23:08 I told you that all the promises
23:10 in God's Word were
23:12 conditional.
23:14 There's the condition, and there's the promise, both,
23:18 okay?
23:19 So if you have the Word of God abide in you,
23:22 you shall ask what you desire, it will be done to you.
23:26 2 Timothy 2:15,
23:28 "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God,
23:32 a workman that does not need to be ashamed..."
23:37 You see, that's your responsibility.
23:39 That's mine.
23:41 So the first thing I'm gonna tell you,
23:42 if you want the Holy Spirit in your life,
23:45 you spend time in the Word of God.
23:47 Absolutely necessary
23:50 if we're going to grow in grace.
23:52 "Rightly dividing,
23:53 rightly dividing the word of truth."
23:55 But you can't rightly divide it
23:58 unless the Holy Spirit's there to lead you.
24:01 That's what it takes
24:02 to rightly divide the Word of God.
24:04 Second, it's prayer.
24:09 Absolutely required
24:12 to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit is prayer.
24:16 Now, folks, please,
24:19 there are no prescribed things about prayer.
24:25 God's more interested in you talking to Him
24:29 than the position you're in when you talk to Him.
24:33 Now true,
24:34 I believe that when you come before God,
24:36 you need to kneel.
24:37 That's the reason I do each night.
24:40 But, dear friend, let me tell you something,
24:42 God's more interested in you, talking to Him
24:45 as you're driving down the road
24:48 than not talking to Him,
24:50 you know?
24:53 That's one thing I found that you can do
24:54 when you're driving is pray.
24:56 And way some of these people drive out here,
24:58 you need to pray, you know?
25:00 But talk to the Lord,
25:02 spend time in prayer,
25:04 you know?
25:06 If you want the Holy Spirit, that is necessary
25:09 that you have a prayer life.
25:12 This is what the scripture tells us,
25:15 speaking of the disciples after Jesus left.
25:19 Acts 1:4,
25:21 "And being assembled together with them,
25:23 He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem,
25:27 but to wait for the Promise of the Father..."
25:31 What was the promise of the Father?
25:34 Promise was He would send them the Holy Spirit.
25:36 That was the promise of the Father, okay?
25:38 "'Which,' He said,
25:40 'you have heard from Me.'
25:41 " So He said,
25:42 "Don't leave Jerusalem, tarry there,
25:44 and this is what the scripture says
25:46 that they did.
25:49 "These all continued with one accord in prayer
25:54 and supplication, with the women
25:57 and Mary,
25:58 the mother of Jesus, and His brothers."
26:00 They were there,
26:02 they did not leave that upper room,
26:03 they stayed together, they were of one accord,
26:06 and they've sought the Lord in prayer
26:08 until on the day of Pentecost,
26:11 the Holy Spirit was poured out in great measure upon them.
26:16 What would happen?
26:19 What would happen
26:22 if each one of us here tonight
26:27 humbled ourselves?
26:31 Laid aside all of our presuppositions,
26:37 laid aside all of our feelings,
26:42 laid aside all the things that separate us
26:47 and just opened up our hearts
26:51 and prayed and invited the Holy Spirit in?
26:55 Oh, what a difference.
26:57 Oh, what a difference would take place.
27:00 The Holy Spirit would be poured out in great measure.
27:05 And, dear friends, we would see things
27:07 like we have never seen before.
27:10 Amen.
27:12 That happened because it tells us
27:14 that the latter rain would be poured out.
27:17 What happens when this takes place?
27:19 "And the prayer of faith will save the sick,
27:24 and the Lord will raise him up.
27:25 And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."
27:28 So if you're going to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit,
27:32 you got to have faith.
27:35 It's given by faith,
27:38 not given any other way.
27:41 You know, I run on these people
27:42 that always want to be so intellectual.
27:45 You know, they got to give a human reason for everything.
27:50 If they can't give some kind of a scientific reason
27:54 for everything, well, they can't accept it.
27:57 All I can say is, dear friend,
27:59 you're missing,
28:01 you're missing some of the greatest joys of life
28:04 because it's given by faith,
28:07 Holy Spirit's given by faith.
28:11 "That the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles
28:14 in Christ Jesus,
28:17 that we might receive the promise of the Spirit,"
28:21 how? "Through faith."
28:24 Amen.
28:25 So, dear friend,
28:28 have faith in God.
28:31 Believe in Him.
28:34 Build your faith
28:37 on the Word of God
28:38 and simply take God for what He says.
28:41 I know some of you are struggling
28:44 because you've learned some things in God's Word
28:47 and those present some obstacles to you.
28:50 And you're saying, "What am I going to do
28:53 if I do this?"
28:54 Dear friend, trust Him,
28:56 He will not fail.
28:58 I'm sure, He won't fail you
29:01 if you'll trust Him.
29:02 Take Him in His word.
29:04 You'll find that He will be there,
29:07 He'll meet every need.
29:09 And I can tell you right now,
29:11 He's gonna put a joy in your heart like you've never known
29:14 if you just simply trust Him.
29:16 If your faith is not very strong,
29:19 let me tell you how to get it stronger
29:21 because it says in Romans 10:17,
29:24 "Faith cometh by hearing,
29:27 and hearing by the Word of God."
29:30 Get in the scripture.
29:31 That's what builds your faith.
29:33 Read it.
29:35 And as your faith grows,
29:37 so you will receive more of the Holy Spirit.
29:40 Okay, what does the Holy Spirit give us?
29:43 It gives gifts to us. Did you know that?
29:46 Yes, it gives gifts to you.
29:50 And here you're running around
29:52 without the Holy Spirit,
29:53 and you don't have any of the wonderful gifts
29:55 that the Holy Spirit gives you.
29:57 Listen, this is the promises of God about the gifts
30:01 that He'd like to give you.
30:02 "Then Peter said to them, 'Repent,
30:04 and let every one of you be baptized
30:06 in the name of Jesus Christ
30:10 for the remission of sins,
30:11 and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'
30:15 " So it says,
30:16 "Those of you that have been coming,
30:18 you've given your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ."
30:21 He said, "Repent and be," what?
30:23 "Baptized."
30:25 We're being having a baptism here.
30:27 Next Saturday morning,
30:29 we're having a baptism, right here.
30:31 You need to if you've accepted Christ,
30:33 you need to be baptized,
30:35 that's part of the step
30:37 of receiving the Holy Spirit into your life.
30:40 Repent and be baptized,
30:42 and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
30:46 They were back to open up your heart
30:49 and following what the scripture says.
30:51 It's what God wants to do for you.
30:56 What's going to happen if you receive the Holy Spirit?
31:01 If you ever looked the scripture,
31:03 seen what has happened?
31:05 Listen.
31:07 "And these signs will follow those who believe in My name,
31:12 and they will,"
31:14 what?
31:15 "Cast out demons."
31:18 It's what it says.
31:21 "They speak with new tongues,
31:26 they take up serpents.
31:29 And if they drink anything deadly,
31:32 it will by no means hurt them."
31:35 Now don't miss understand that scripture.
31:40 That scripture is not telling you
31:41 for you to go home and drink something poison.
31:45 That's not what it's saying.
31:47 You have to understand the circumstances there.
31:50 Back in the days of the disciples,
31:52 the favorite way of getting rid of people was to poison them.
31:57 And that was prevalent.
32:00 It's just simply poison them and get rid of them.
32:03 And God said, "If you will serve Me,
32:05 if you will walk with Me, if you will be My disciple,
32:09 if you receive the Holy Spirit,
32:11 if they try to poison you, it won't work."
32:14 That's what He's saying.
32:16 Let's not be presumptuous
32:19 and think that that gives you a right to go out here
32:21 and have snakes
32:22 or to drink poison, does not.
32:26 But I can tell you right now,
32:29 and if you've committed your life to Jesus Christ,
32:33 you've given your heart to Him,
32:35 and you're witnessing for the Lord Jesus Christ,
32:39 and if somebody decides to try to get rid of you,
32:45 that is totally in the Lord's hands.
32:48 And I can guarantee you, He can stop it.
32:51 I've seen it happen.
32:54 He can stop it.
32:56 So that's what He's trying to tell you.
32:58 But it says this is what will happen.
33:01 "They will lay hands on the sick,
33:03 and they will recover."
33:07 Now when I'm trying to get across tonight
33:09 is why are you living such inefficient Christian lives?
33:14 Why are you going through life like this
33:17 when the promise of the Holy Spirit
33:18 is there for you?
33:22 You know? Why?
33:26 What does the Holy Spirit do for us?
33:31 What does He want to do for us?
33:33 But let me tell you what He'd like to do for you.
33:37 You see, it's the fruit of the Spirit
33:41 that changes character.
33:44 Now listen to me,
33:46 it's the fruits of the Spirit
33:48 that changes character."
33:50 Women?
33:52 Women?
33:54 Say I run onto these women all the time that
33:57 fall in love with this fella,
33:58 and they say, "Well, I'll change him."
34:01 No, you won't.
34:03 No, you won't.
34:05 It's the Holy Spirit that will change him.
34:10 And, dear friend, you need to commit your life
34:13 to letting the Holy Spirit come into your life
34:15 and change you.
34:18 That's painful at times.
34:21 But it's marvelous what He can do.
34:26 "But the fruit of the Spirit is," what?
34:31 Love if you're not very loving.
34:34 Oh, the Holy Spirit can make you loving.
34:37 "He'll give you love, give you joy,
34:40 peace, longsuffering,
34:42 kindness, goodness,
34:45 faithfulness, gentleness,
34:47 self-control, against such there's no law."
34:50 If those things are lacking in your experience tonight,
34:53 dear friend, any of those things,
34:55 they come by the Holy Spirit,
34:59 okay?
35:00 That's the way they happen.
35:01 That's how it takes place.
35:05 So if I don't produce fruit,
35:08 then what do I have to do to produce fruit?
35:14 What do you do?
35:16 Well, let me ask you a simple question.
35:18 Why does the apple tree bear apples?
35:22 Huh?
35:23 'Cause it's an apple tree.
35:25 All right, listen, this is what it's saying.
35:26 John 15:4, "Abide in Me,
35:31 and I in you.
35:33 As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself,
35:38 " you can't fruit of yourself, impossible,
35:41 "unless it abides in the vine,
35:45 neither can you, unless you abide in Me."
35:49 Amen.
35:50 You want the fruits of the Spirit,
35:52 then abide in Jesus Christ.
35:55 Spend time with Him.
35:57 Do you know Him?
35:59 Do you know Him?
36:00 Do you spend any time with Him?
36:03 Do you talk to Him?
36:07 Do you read His word?
36:08 Do you fellowship with Him?
36:11 That's the way it happens.
36:13 That's the way it takes place, friend.
36:15 Abide in Him.
36:18 I am the vine,
36:20 you are the branches.
36:22 "He who abides in Me,
36:24 and I in him, bears," how much?
36:27 "Much fruit,"
36:30 much love,
36:31 much joy, much peace,
36:34 much longsuffering.
36:36 All those will be given to you if you abide in Him.
36:40 For without me,
36:42 you can do nothing.
36:46 Very, very clear.
36:49 You see?
36:50 That's the way it happens,
36:52 that's the way it takes place.
36:53 So the fruit of the Spirit
36:57 is what changes character.
37:00 Where my character is unloving,
37:03 Holy Spirit makes it loving.
37:06 Where I don't have any joy,
37:09 it gives me joy.
37:11 Where there's no peace,
37:14 oh, it puts peace in my heart.
37:17 That's what the fruits of the Spirit does for you.
37:20 For it is God who works...
37:23 Just a minute now. It's who?
37:25 God who, what?
37:27 Works. Yeah.
37:29 It's God who works in you.
37:30 He's the one that gets in there
37:32 and changes the character.
37:34 He's the one that makes it different.
37:36 "It's God who works in you
37:37 both to will and do His good pleasure."
37:42 God's the one that does that.
37:44 Those are the fruits of the Spirit, nine of them.
37:46 That's what we just looked at, nine of them.
37:48 Did you know He also wants to give you some gifts?
37:51 You know, how many gifts there are?
37:54 Nine of them.
37:56 Do you know what the gifts are for?
37:58 Huh?
38:00 Do you know what the gifts are for?
38:02 Now the fruits is what changes your character,
38:05 but the gifts are given to you
38:07 to make you an effective witness.
38:10 That's what the gifts are given for.
38:15 The purposes of the gifts of the Spirit.
38:19 "But you shall receive,"
38:22 what?
38:24 "Power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you,
38:27 and you shall be witnesses..."
38:32 See when the Holy Spirit comes upon you,
38:34 and it gives you those gifts,
38:36 that is what makes you a witness.
38:40 And I run on the people
38:41 that tried to witness
38:43 without the Holy Spirit.
38:46 How are you going to witness to somebody
38:48 if you're unloving?
38:52 If there's no joy in your heart,
38:55 how are you going to witness to them?
38:58 You can't.
39:00 You see, it takes the Holy Spirit
39:02 to put that into your life and to change you
39:05 and pour out the Spirit upon you
39:07 so that old carnal nature is changed,
39:09 and you're made loving, and kind, and gentle,
39:12 and all those elements are there
39:14 so that your witness
39:16 will be what it should be.
39:19 "In Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
39:23 "It is the oil of the Holy Spirit
39:25 that produces," what?
39:28 "Light in the Christian."
39:32 You see?
39:34 Children seeing this little light of Mine,
39:37 I'm going to let it shine.
39:40 Bible says, "Let your light so shine."
39:43 Sorry, folks, it does not say make your light shine.
39:49 It says, "Let your light shine,
39:51 only shines if the Holy Spirit,
39:55 the oil is there to work in your life."
39:58 That's what it takes to make it shine in your life.
40:01 "Arise, shine, for your light has come!
40:06 And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you."
40:09 That is what God is asking you.
40:12 "Let your light so shine before men,
40:16 that they may see your,"
40:18 what?
40:20 "Good works and glorify your Father in heaven."
40:22 Dear friend, good works are what?
40:26 See if you understand the scripture.
40:29 Good works are what?
40:33 Dear friends, good works are fruit.
40:37 Good works are fruit.
40:41 They are the result
40:42 of what the Holy Spirit does in you.
40:45 And because those good works are there,
40:47 the fruit, love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness,
40:51 all those are there,
40:53 men will glorify God in heaven because of you.
40:58 That's the good works.
41:01 "But to each one of us grace was given
41:05 according to the measure of Christ's gifts."
41:09 All right.
41:10 "Therefore He says,
41:13 'When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive,
41:17 and He gave," what?
41:20 "Gifts to men.'
41:22 " So He gave certain gifts
41:24 to you, to me,
41:26 to make us effective witnesses for Him.
41:28 Now let's take a look and see
41:29 what those gifts are that He gave.
41:32 "But the manifestation of the Spirit
41:34 is given to each one for the profit of all..."
41:37 This is the work of the Holy Spirit, friends.
41:39 Get it clear.
41:42 "For to one is given the word of wisdom,"
41:45 that's a gift,
41:46 "to another the word of knowledge,
41:50 to another the same Spirit,
41:54 to another faith by the same Spirit,
41:56 to another the gifts of healings
41:58 by the same Spirit,
42:00 to another the working of miracles,
42:01 and to another prophecy,
42:03 and to another discerning of spirits,
42:06 and to another different kinds of tongues,
42:08 and to another the interpretation of tongues."
42:11 All those nine gifts are given
42:14 that you and I might be an effective witness
42:16 for the Lord Jesus Christ.
42:20 So if your witness is not very good tonight,
42:25 then what do you need?
42:29 You need the Holy Spirit. Amen.
42:31 That's what you need.
42:33 You need the Holy Spirit in your life.
42:35 "But one and the same Spirit works all these things,
42:40 distributing to each one individually as He wills."
42:46 So it says the Holy Spirit will give you
42:48 what gift He wants you to have.
42:52 Look what happened,
42:53 when the Holy Spirit was poured out
42:55 upon those disciples,
42:57 it says,
42:58 "And with great power the apostles gave witness
43:02 to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.
43:04 And great grace was upon them," okay?
43:09 'Cause they went forth and they witnessed.
43:12 I'm going to share with you tonight...
43:17 My favorite statement
43:19 of all the hundreds and hundreds of books
43:22 that I've read.
43:25 This one statement is my favorite
43:29 concerning the Holy Spirit.
43:31 It's taken from a book called "Desire of Ages" by EG White.
43:37 And listen carefully
43:38 because what it says is wonderful.
43:41 "Christ has promised
43:43 the gift of the Holy Spirit to His church,
43:47 and the promise belongs to us
43:50 as much as to the first disciples."
43:54 Now listen, "But like every other promise,
43:59 it is given on..."
44:01 Conditions. What? I'll tell you.
44:04 All the promises are given on condition,
44:07 even the Holy Spirit.
44:08 Let's see what the conditions are.
44:10 "There are many who believe and profess
44:13 to claim the Lord's promise.
44:16 They talk about Christ and about the Holy Spirit,
44:21 yet receive no benefit."
44:23 Why don't they?
44:25 "They do not surrender the soul to be guided and controlled
44:30 by the divine agencies."
44:33 You want to receive the Holy Spirit?
44:36 You've got to surrender,
44:39 surrender your life to be guided,
44:43 to be controlled by the Holy Spirit.
44:49 You cannot say no, this is what I'm going to do.
44:53 Let me tell you something, folks,
44:55 as I mentioned other night, I'm cleric by nature.
44:57 Do you understand clerics?
45:00 Let me tell you what a cleric is.
45:02 A cleric is the type of person,
45:04 if you give them a job, they'll do it.
45:07 I mean, that's a cleric.
45:09 I mean, you give him a job, and he'll get it done.
45:12 Of course, he might run over 50 people getting it done,
45:15 but he'll do it.
45:16 That's a cleric.
45:18 Now very, very self-sufficient,
45:21 very able to take care of himself.
45:24 I don't need your help, I can do all this myself.
45:29 There are certain people in the Bible that were cleric.
45:36 You want to know who clerics are?
45:38 You want to look at them across general?
45:40 There are preachers, politicians,
45:44 there are clerics.
45:46 Most of your prisoners in the prisons are clerics.
45:50 Of all the different personality types,
45:54 the cleric is the hardest to save
45:59 because he's self-sufficient.
46:03 Doesn't need his help.
46:07 And that makes it very difficult, very difficult.
46:11 You see?
46:13 I've got to understand my need.
46:16 It's not until I understand
46:19 that it's not me,
46:22 and it's not my ability,
46:24 and it's not what I can do, it's what He can do
46:28 that makes all the difference in the world.
46:30 Amen.
46:31 Until you surrender, surrender your soul,
46:36 then the Holy Spirit can't use you
46:38 because when the Holy Spirit is given, powers given,
46:41 and God's not going to pour out that power
46:44 if the vessel is not clean.
46:47 So you got to surrender the whole soul.
46:50 Listen to what happens.
46:54 "We cannot use the Holy Spirit."
47:00 Forget it.
47:01 If you think you're going to use the Holy Spirit,
47:04 no way.
47:05 "You cannot use the Holy Spirit.
47:07 The Spirit is to use us.
47:11 But many will not submit to this."
47:17 You see,
47:18 when that still small voice is speaking to your heart,
47:22 and it's saying, this is the way walking in it.
47:26 You've got to listen.
47:28 You can't say, "Oh, I don't want to do that."
47:31 You've got to surrender
47:34 so the Holy Spirit can use you.
47:36 All right,
47:38 they want to manage themselves.
47:44 I want to manage myself,
47:46 do it myself.
47:49 "This is why they do not receive the heavenly gift."
47:56 I want to manage myself, I want to run it,
47:58 that's why they don't receive the heavenly gift.
48:01 Watch, folks,
48:02 what happens if you receive the heavenly gift?
48:07 "Only to those who wait humbly upon God,
48:13 who watch for His guidance and grace,
48:16 is the Spirit given.
48:19 The power of God awaits their demand and reception.
48:24 This promised," listen, folks,
48:26 "this promised blessing, claimed by faith,
48:30 brings all other blessings in its train."
48:35 Amen.
48:37 That's what the Holy Spirit does for you.
48:40 Claim it by faith,
48:41 it brings all other blessings in its train.
48:46 "And He said to them,
48:48 'Did you receive the Holy Spirit
48:50 when you believed?'"
48:53 Did you?
48:55 Have you received the Holy Spirit?
48:59 God wants to give you the Holy Spirit.
49:04 "After these things I saw another angel
49:06 coming down from heaven, having great authority,
49:11 and the earth was illuminated with his glory."
49:13 You see, when I first became a Christian,
49:17 I had trouble here.
49:19 My problem was that I gave my heart to the Lord,
49:22 but I wanted to run my own life.
49:26 You know?
49:27 I wanted to do what I wanted to do.
49:29 I wanted to call the shots.
49:32 And so I accepted Christ, gave my life to Him,
49:35 but things didn't go right.
49:39 I mean, I started down the highway of life.
49:42 You know?
49:43 But I was in charge, I was driving.
49:47 And I just wound up in the ditch all the time.
49:50 You ever had that experience?
49:51 You know?
49:53 Here, driving down the road and in the ditch I'd go,
49:56 and I'd get out of the ditch, and I'd say,
49:58 "Lord, I've got do better than this.
50:01 I've got to do better than this."
50:03 And I would start down the road again,
50:05 wouldn't go very far until in the ditch I went.
50:09 And I'd say, "What's wrong with me?
50:12 What's wrong with me?
50:14 I can't...
50:15 I can't stay out of the ditch."
50:18 And I can remember one time,
50:21 I'd gotten out of the ditch and I was really feeling bad,
50:25 and I got on my knees and I said,
50:26 "Lord,
50:29 I've got to stay out of the ditch.
50:31 Help me!
50:33 Help me to not go in the ditch all the time, Lord."
50:36 And I said,
50:37 "I'm just not going to go in the ditch anymore."
50:40 And so I started down life's road.
50:42 I mean, I was driving as carefully as I could.
50:47 I mean, I was making every effort to make sure
50:49 I wasn't going to go in the ditch.
50:52 And I thought I was doing pretty good,
50:55 until over the hill came that truck.
51:00 As we got down the road,
51:02 I noticed He was on my side of the road.
51:06 And I said well, "He'll get over."
51:09 But as we got closer, he didn't get over.
51:12 And I said, "What's wrong with him?
51:15 Why doesn't he get over?"
51:17 And he just, I mean, headed right at me.
51:20 And so at the last moment, I went in the ditch.
51:23 And when I went in the ditch, the truck squished by
51:26 and I saw him
51:28 waved to pitch for to get me
51:30 as he went down the road.
51:33 Well, I mean, I was really shaken.
51:35 That really shook me up.
51:37 I finally after a lot of effort,
51:40 finally pulled myself out of the ditch,
51:43 started down the road again,
51:45 but I wasn't in very good condition,
51:47 and I went in the ditch again.
51:50 And I was trying to get out of the ditch
51:51 when this fellow walked up and he said to me, he said,
51:54 "Would you like some help?"
51:55 And I said, "I sure would."
51:56 And he helped me get out of the ditch.
51:59 And when I got out of the ditch,
52:00 I said, "Would you like ride?"
52:02 He said, "Well, thank you."
52:04 And he got in, and we started down the road
52:08 and went a little while,
52:10 and I was trying to do my best and stay out of the ditch.
52:14 And I misjudged something and I went in the ditch.
52:19 So he helped me get out again.
52:21 He said, "Would you like for somebody to drive for you?"
52:24 And I said, "Yeah."
52:26 I said, "I could use someone to drive for me."
52:28 So he got behind the wheel.
52:30 We started going down the road.
52:32 I've never seen anybody drive like that,
52:35 never.
52:36 I mean, he went right down the road,
52:38 no bobbles, no ditch, nothing.
52:42 Now he was different.
52:44 He was dressed in white,
52:47 had scars on his hands,
52:50 but he could drive.
52:53 And we went, you know, for a while, and I said,
52:57 "I think I'd like to drive."
53:00 I said, "Yeah, I appreciate you driving,
53:03 but I'd like to drive."
53:05 So he scooted over and I got behind the wheel.
53:08 We started down the road a little bit.
53:11 For some reason, I couldn't drive like that,
53:13 I went in the ditch.
53:15 And we got out, and I said, "You better drive."
53:20 So he got behind the wheel and we started down the road,
53:23 and we were doing fine.
53:24 And I looked up ahead,
53:26 and over the top of that hill came that truck.
53:30 And as we approach that truck,
53:31 I said, "I guess you've noticed
53:34 that he's on our side of the road."
53:37 He said, "Yes."
53:39 And I said, "Well, you just might as well
53:40 pull off over here in the ditch
53:42 because he doesn't get on the other side."
53:45 I've been here before.
53:46 He just doesn't get on the other side of the road."
53:49 But he didn't listen to me,
53:51 instead of pulling off the side road,
53:53 he press down on the accelerator
53:55 and headed for the truck.
53:56 And I said,
53:57 "This is going to be the biggest collision
53:59 you've ever seen in your life.
54:00 This is going to be terrible."
54:02 But he just headed right for the truck.
54:05 I mean, there we were head on.
54:08 And I said, "I can't stand this."
54:09 And I shut my eyes, embraced for the collision.
54:13 And I heard a whooshing sound, and I open my eyes.
54:16 And we were going down the road and the truck was in the ditch.
54:21 And I looked at him, and I said,
54:23 "Will you drive for me all the time?"
54:26 Dear friends, that's the difference.
54:29 That's the difference.
54:31 Are you going to run your own life?
54:34 Or you going to turn it over to Him?
54:36 Let Him manage and guide your life.
54:39 He wants to do that for you today
54:41 if you're just willing to let Him.
54:50 Spirit of the living God
55:00 Fall afresh on me
55:09 Spirit of the living God
55:19 Fall afresh on me
55:32 Every day,
55:34 thousands risk their lives
55:35 to protect and serve their fellowman.
55:38 They have a deep commitment to excellence and teamwork.
55:42 And when others run from danger,
55:44 they run to it,
55:45 even if it means personal sacrifice,
55:48 even if it means
55:50 making the supreme sacrifice for another.
55:53 They're always on call, ready to serve,
55:55 no matter what.
55:57 Friends, you and I can learn a lot
55:59 from firefighters.
56:00 In the United States,
56:02 the majority of them are volunteers.
56:03 That's right, volunteers.
56:06 But even for those who are paid,
56:08 it's more than a job,
56:10 it's a calling.
56:12 Jesus said in John 15:12-13,
56:16 "This is My commandment,
56:17 that you love one another as I have loved you.
56:20 Greater love has no one than this,
56:23 than to lay down one's life for his friends."
56:26 Those who follow the words of Jesus are His friends.
56:29 But Romans 5:8 says that
56:31 "God demonstrated His own love toward us,
56:34 in that while we were still sinners,
56:36 Christ died for us."
56:38 What an amazing thought!
56:40 Christ laid down His life for us,
56:43 even though we were not His friends.
56:46 A firefighter is willing to do the same.
56:49 He's constantly preparing for his next mission
56:52 because his own life and the life of others
56:54 depends on his training and qualifications.
56:58 My friends,
56:59 that's what we're doing right now
57:01 with this series.
57:02 We are preparing you for what is to come.
57:05 Our goal is to make you skilled in the word
57:08 so that by the power of God you can bring others to safety,
57:12 the safety that can be found only
57:15 in the arms of a loving Savior.
57:17 Won't you help us to train and prepare others
57:19 to fulfill this mission?
57:21 Please consider what you can do
57:23 for those who still don't know about Jesus.
57:26 As the Holy Spirit impresses,
57:28 please send your tax deductible gifts
57:29 to Kenneth Cox Ministries.
57:32 P.O. Box 1027,
57:34 Loma Linda, California 92354,
57:38 or call us toll free at 888-747-1844.
57:43 Thank you for helping us.
57:44 Spread the light of God's Word through television.
57:47 Your gifts bring the blessed hope of salvation
57:49 to millions around the world.


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Revised 2019-06-20