In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of surrendering everything to God. He encourages the audience to examine what they have in their hands, whether it be talents, possessions, or relationships, and to be willing to lay them down before the Lord. The speaker shares personal experiences of how surrendering everything to God led to transformation and revival in his own life. He also highlights the need for believers to rely on the power of God and not just hold on to verses of scripture, but to truly seek and rely on the living Word, Jesus Christ.

In the book of Psalm, and together we shall read Psalm 85. Psalm 85. Lord, thou hast been favourable unto thy land. Thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob. Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people. Thou hast covered all their sins. Thou hast taken away all thy wrath. Thou hast turned thyself from the fierceness of thine anger. Turn us, O God, of our salvation and cause thine anger toward us to cease. Wilt thou be angry with us forever? Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee? Show us thy mercy, O Lord, and grant us thy salvation. I will hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people and to his saints. But let them not turn again to folly. Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him, that glory may dwell in our land. Mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. A cancer shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good, and our land shall yield her increase. Righteousness shall go before him and shall set us in the way of his step. The Lord will bless that reading from his word. Now return with me to verse 6. Let's read verses 5 and 6. Wilt thou be angry with us forever? Wilt thou draw out thine anger to all generations? Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee? I mentioned the other evening that I would be speaking this afternoon on principles that govern spiritual quickening. And I would also tell you something of how God in his mercy met with me and brought revival to this heart and life of mine. Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee? These words of the psalmist express the harsh cries of many of God's dear children today. There is without question a growing conviction in many quarters that unless revival comes, that is, a God-sent revival, other forces that are out to defy every known Christian principle will take the field. Indeed, the observant eye can already see shadows aslant a world that is ripening and ripening fast for repentance or judgment. With that conviction there seems to be a growing hunger for God to manifest his power. And so intense is the hunger and so deep the longing that the crying of the prophet of old is frequently heard upon the lips of God's children. O that thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might flow before thy presence. You will observe that in that prayer of the prophet two fundamental things are suggested, that unless God comes down, mountains will not flow and sinners will not candle. But if God comes down, if God manifests his power, if God shows his hand, if God takes the field, mountains will flow, mountains of indifference, mountains of materialism, mountains of humanism, will flow before his presence and nations, not just individuals, but nations shall be made to tremble. We haven't seen nations trembling, but we have seen communities, we have seen districts, we have seen charities in the grips of God in the matter of hours. When God came down, it is true that we have seen man's best endeavor in the field of evangelism, leaving the community untouched. We have seen crowded churches, we have seen many professions, we have seen hundreds, yes and thousands, responding to what you speak of here as the altar call. But I want to say this, dear people, and I say it without fear of contradiction, that you can have all that without God. Now that may startle you, but I say again, you can have all that on human level. Howard Sping was right when he wrote, the kingdom of God is not going to be advanced by our churches becoming filled with men, but by men in our churches becoming filled with God. There's a difference. Oh no, crowded churches, deep interest in church activities, is possible on mere human level, leaving the community untouched. The difference between successful evangelism, and I use the word successful, and revival, is this. In evangelism you have the two, the three, the ten, the twenty, and possibly the hundred, making confession of Jesus Christ, and at the end of the year you are thankful in part of them are standing. But the community remains untouched. The public houses are crowded, the dancing saloons packed, the theatres and the picture houses patronized by the hundred. No change in the community, but in revival, when God the Holy Ghost comes, when the winds of heaven blow, suddenly the community becomes God conscious. A God realization takes hold of young, middle aged, and old, so that as in the case of the Hebridean revival, seventy-five percent of those saved one night, were saved before they came near a meeting. The fear of God, the beginning of wisdom. That is where the difference comes in between evangelism and revival. That is why I say our only hope is not in crusade, thank God for all that has been accomplished, thank God for all that is being done through mission. I think a mission in Scotland, we have also workers in Canada, and we thank God for all that is being accomplished through the efforts of ministers and evangelists and Christian workers bringing one here and two there to a saving knowledge of Jesus. But our supreme hope, and the only answer to the problem that confronts the Christian church today, is our visitation from God. Let me illustrate what I mean by an incident that happened not in Belize or in Juez, but on the small island of Berner. I was addressing the Berner Convention. The man was convinced, could you direct me to the nearest minister? We have no minister on the island just now, both churches are vacant. Would you then direct me to the nearest elder? Yes, the nearest elder lives in that house on the hill. So I said to the lad, would you mind going up to the elder and tell him that Mr. Campbell has come to the island. And he asked, what Campbell? Tell him the Campbell who was on the island of Lewis. So the young lad went up, and after a few minutes came back and said, Hector McKinnon was expecting you to arrive today. And you are to stay with his brother, and he has asked me to tell you that he has intimated a meeting in the church for nine o'clock tonight, and he expects you to address it. Now, explain that as you will. Here was a man who, on the morning of the day that I sat in the church in Bangor, Ireland, decided to spend the day in prayer. He was concerned about the parish, particularly concerned about the state of the young people, growing up in a state of indifference to God and to the church. His wife told me that on three occasions he went to the door of the barn where he was praying, and she heard him pray, God, I do not know where he is, but you know, and you send him. About ten o'clock that evening, he was possessed of the conviction that God had described, and that I would be on the island on this particular day, hence the intimation that I would preach in the church at nine o'clock that evening. He went to the church. Quite a considerable congregation gathered, about eighty. The service was a very ordinary service. Indeed, at the end I wondered, after all, if I was led to the island. But there were men there nearer to God than I was. My dear people, we've got to be honest. This old man that I already referred to came to me and said, I hope you are not disappointed that revival hasn't come to the church tonight, but God is hovering over us, and he will break through any minute. Here is a man near to God. The secret of the Lord is with them that hear him. We are now walking down from the church. The church is on a hillock. The main road is down about three hundred yards beneath, below the church. The congregation are moving down, and we are walking behind them, when suddenly, oh, this is what I'm getting at, noting the difference between evangelism and revival. Suddenly, the elder stands, takes off his hat. Stand, Mr. Campbell. God has come. God has come. See what is happening. And I looked toward the congregation, and I saw them falling on their knees among the heather. I heard the cry of the penitent. And that meeting that began at eleven o'clock that night, continued on the hillside until four o'clock in the morning. The island was suddenly gripped by God. By God! Was it because Campbell went to the island? Banish the thought! Banish the thought! I thank God for the privilege, and how thankful I am that I was near enough to God in that pulpit to hear his voice. Hallelujah. I've often thought of that. Oh, I've often thought of it. If I was out of touch with God, if I was not in a place where I could hear the voice of the Savior, the voice of God, would Bernara have missed that mighty visitation that took the island from center to circumference? I question if there was one single house on the island that wasn't visited that night. An awareness of God, a consciousness of God, seemed to hover over the very atmosphere, the very atmosphere seemed to be charged with the power of Almighty God. That's revival! But note the principle. Brought into operation in my people, called by my name, humble themselves and pray and seek my faith and turn from their wicked ways. Then will I in heaven hear, come, and feel their land. There was least one man on that island who fulfilled the conditions of that one passage of Scripture. And because he fulfilled the conditions God being a covenant-taking God must be true to his covenant engagement. And God, to dedicate his own honor, had to listen to the prayers of the pious postman who knelt in a barn for a day. The principle that governs spiritual quickness. Oh, that God may find a people ready to fulfill and to comply with the governing principle relative to spiritual quickness. Now let me touch first of all on the origin of revival. You have it in this verse. Wilt thou not revive us again? My dear people, we do well to remember that in the whole field of Christian experience the first step is and remains with God. We want to remember that. Thought, feeling, endeavor must find their basis, must find their inspiration in the sovereign mercy of God. Now I believe that. I believe it with all my heart. I remember making that statement at a conference outside of London some time ago. And at the close of the conference the chairman overheard a certain titled lady say that was a wonderful address that we listened to. But I don't agree with all that he said particularly to the sovereignty of God. But we must not forget that the dear man was born and brought up among the hills of Scotland. And well, that is his background and he can't help it. Hallelujah. Yes, my dear people, let me say again. In the field of revival God is following. But I listen to say that I do not believe in any conception of sovereignty that nullifies man's responsibility. God is the God of revival. But we are the human agents through which revival is possible. And God found that man in the postman of Banner. I believe this to be the reason for so few making contact with Christ that is vital to be one of the most disturbing features of present day evangelism. Let me say present day evangelism is our overemphasis on what man can do. Come to the front. Raise your hand. Respond to the altar call. Come to Jesus and be happy. God have mercy on us. I say God have mercy on us. Man in the final analysis can do nothing but throw himself on the sovereign mercy of God. Oh, let's get that clear. Not more time on theology. It's New Testament theology. It's Old Testament theology. I'm tired, positively tired of this gospel of simply believing it. Amen. Oh, there's a difference between human faith and saving faith. I heard a prominent evangelist in Britain say something that really startled me. He said, you exercise faith in a plane. You go into that plane and you exercise faith that that plane will take you to your destination. You go into a steamer, you exercise faith in the steamer and in the captain and crew to take you to your destination. Exercise that faith in the promises of God. Did you ever hear or listen to such nonsense? That's human faith. That's human faith. But saving faith is not human faith. Brave prophets, I am crucified with Christ nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ he liveth in me and the life that I now live in the flesh. I live by the faith of Paul. Oh no, oh no, that wouldn't get him very far. I live by the faith of the Son of God. The faith of God. Now I'm convinced of this, that if this truth was stressed there would be less of you. If this truth was stressed, our crusades and campaigns would not be producing harvests of infidels. If men and women would but recognize the glorious truth, they shall seek me and shall find me when they shall search for me with all their heart. That means that they may not find them tonight, they may not find them tomorrow night, they may not find them next week, they may not find them for a month or for six months, but if they're seeking God with all their heart, they're going to find him. Or God is not true to his covenant engagement. Oh let's get this clear, it comes into revival. That's why I could count upon my fine fingers all that I spoke to abut their soul during the whole of the three years I was in the midst of it. You see, in the northwest of Scotland, if you were to press yourself and your advice and your help upon an anxious soul, you would be inclined to believe that it was man's work. Just man's work. And he would much rather be left so that God himself would handle him. That's why we have known people for weeks and longer in distress of soul before light broke in upon them. But you go back to those villages today, I'm glad I see Mr. Macfarlane of the faith mission here. He was up in Lewes not so very long ago. He was in a village that saw the mighty movings of God. I never spoke to one single person in that village in an endeavor to help them to find a savior. We just left them to God and God did it. That's why you haven't a single backslider in the whole of that community. Oh, my dear people, when God does the work, he does it well. You can go back. You can go back again. And you'll find them pressing on with the God that revealed not only himself to them but revealed himself in them. God, said David, God is the God of our salvation. The fact of ultimate reality surely is this, that salvation is of God. I was asked recently to help a young woman. She was a nurse in Glasgow, now home in the Hebrides, and she was in terrible distress of soul and the distress continued for a long period. Her father thought that perhaps a word from me might help her, so I called, and I found the young woman in a terrible state, fearfully distressed about her soul, the sense of guilt, the sense of unworthiness, and behind it all the question, am I in the covenant? Am I in the covenant? So I knelt beside her and did my best to help her, and I quoted that great verse of scripture that I so often quote, John 10 and 27, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, never can any man pluck them out of my Father's hand. I quoted it again, and I tried to point out the two supreme characteristics of the sheep for whom Christ died. They hear his voice, and they follow. Have you heard his voice? Oh, have you heard his voice, young people? Have you heard his voice? It's different from the voice of man. The voice of the shepherd speaking the word of conviction, speaking the word of pardon, speaking the word of assurance, speaking the word of power. Have you heard the voice of the shepherd? I spoke along these lines, and then she looked at me through her tears and said, Mr. Campbell, I thank you for your kindly words of counsel, but surely, surely as a minister you believe that a verse of scripture won't save you. Have you got it? Oh, have you got it? There are thousands today living under a self-created delusion, and a delusion given birth to in our evangelistic crusades who have nothing to rest upon but a verse of scripture. Are you saved by a verse of scripture? Listen to the poet. The promise can't save, though the promise is sure, take the blood we get under, the cleanser is passed through, it cleanses me now. Hallelujah to God. I rest on the promise, but I'm under the blood. That's it. That's it. Beyond, beyond the sacred cage I see thee, Lord. I seek thee, Lord. My spirit yearns for thee, thou living Word. Tell me, hath the living Word spoken? Hath the living Word spoken? Or are you just holding on to a verse of scripture? Salty said, surely you are not suggesting that a verse of scripture will save me. My heart cries for Jesus. That's it. My heart cries for Jesus. And Jesus, four or five days after that, revealed Himself in us. Revealed Himself in us. And He was gloriously saved. And today, she rests upon the promise. She seeks upon the Word that brings her to Jesus. We already can then go in the way God works. I think we've seen that. But His agents are His people. God, as I already said, is the God of revival. He is sovereign. But as I already said, I quote again, we do not believe in any conception of sovereignty that nullifies my responsibility. As they say, as many do today, well, we can do nothing. We just have to wait for the wind to blow. Well, that may be a very accommodating doctrine to a man that is in Zion. But it will not stand in the light of divine revelation. If my people called by my name will pray. I wonder how many of us are praying. We are the human agents through which revival is possible. Let me ask this question. Are you in the place where God can trust you with revival? He is sovereign. He is supernatural. But He comes down and in His sovereign purpose and wise economy He has placed this pressure in us. Are you one that He can use? Are you one that He can trust? Are you in intimate fellowship with God? I'm sure some of you will have heard of that lovely Scottish saint by the name of Murray M'Cheyne died at 27 but left his mark, an indelible mark on Scotland. Murray M'Cheyne was wonderfully used in revival prior to the disruption of 43. It was the revivals of M'Cheyne and Bonar and others that led to that great disruption when the pre-church left the establishment. Murray M'Cheyne said this If we are to walk worthy of our high and holy calling we must live in daily consideration of the greatness and glory of Jesus. That's it now. Living in daily consideration the greatness and the glory of Jesus. The man who is there is just the man that God can trust. With revival He is sovereign but I'm the instrument that He wills to use. Oh tell me friend tell me are you there? Now I want to close my talk by telling you something of how God in His mercy met with me. I think I must go back to the days of my conversion. I was converted under strange circumstances I cannot take time to tell it all but I was a piper and a step-dancer and I was playing in a concert and dance outside of Oban when God spoke to me. God spoke to me in the dance. I had a praying father and a praying mother. I left the dance and went home shut myself in the barn knelt among the straw prepared for the horses in the morning and cried God I do not know how to come I know not what to do but if you'll save me as I am I'm coming now and God save me. God save me. I came here today but never for one single moment had I ever any occasion to doubt the work that God did in my heart that morning. God did a sovereign and supernatural work and set me gloriously free. I believe that I can honestly say that Godliness Godliness characterised every part of my being body, soul and spirit in a wonderful experience and I'm not talking of sanctification or the deeper life I'm just talking of a soul born again when God does the work. But shortly after that I joined the process and found myself in France during the First World War and I wasn't long there until I discovered that there were powers resident within me that were more than enough for me you see I was cradled in the midst of godliness and I was sheltered in a godly home but now I found myself in the midst of extreme ungodliness extreme ungodliness and I soon discovered as I already said forces resident within me that were more than enough for me and again and again I cried Oh God speak the word of deliverance along this particular avenue however to make a long story short I'm in a cavalry charge and in that cavalry charge I at last found myself lying on the battlefield badly wounded I thank God for a young trooper of the Canadian with a dramatic confrontation with a mighty God now Moses what is that in your hand? and as he finds what is in his hand we look at ours, what is in your hand? a degree, a series of degrees what is in your hand? an ability to speak, an ability to think what is in your hand? a musical ability, what is it? somebody you love, some plan you wouldn't abandon for the world, what is it? an estimation of yourself an image that you have of who you are and how great you are what is it you have in your hand? something good, something bad what is it you have in your hand? and whatever it is God says to you throw it down Lord I don't understand I've never concluded that my gift was anything that would ever bother you don't care, throw it down as long as Moses held in his hand that rod it could do no more than Moses could do with a common rod in the hand of a common man and I want to tell you something else not only could it do no more than Moses could do at his very best but as long as there is something in a man's hand, in a man's life whether it's good or bad that has never been thrown down before God for his approval or disapproval for his sanctification it has a serpent in it I've known men whose preaching ability was the worst enemy they had I've known men and women whose flesh had laughed hung like a serpent and poisoned their lives because those talents were never thrown down and sanctified before the Lord and I can see that serpent as it rises and hisses on the ground looking for somebody looking for somebody to inject its venom into and I can hear it as it hisses on the ground and I can almost hear what it is it's stealth stealth for you see that thing the fullness of the spirit that which stands between you and the fullness of power whatever it is whatever reason you give it's that old serpent and he threw it down and it became a serpent and the Lord said Moses now you can pick it up but I'll tell you what I want you to do pick it up by the sail because it'll never be yours primarily it'll be mine I'll handle the business then pick it up by the sail Moses picked it up and the Bible says it becomes a rod again in his hand but remember now something has happened to it and if you'll read very closely that book again you'll find that in the latter part of the chapter it very subtly says and Moses took the rod of God in his hand it had never been referred to as the rod of God before now it was the rod of God in the hand of the man of God before it was a common rod in the hand of a common man now it had been thrown down before the Lord desnaked, deselped and put back in the hand of the obedient man now it was the rod of God in the hand of the man of God do you see the difference do you have a talent that you're using for the Lord throw it down do you have a plan that you're absolutely certain pleases the Lord do you have a self image that you feel like really recommends you to God throw it down in the church we've recognized that we have to throw down our spiritual island we have to throw down revival before him or we'll get so wrapped up in the self of it that we'll get wound up in revival and leave Jesus out of it wound up in the blessings and leave Jesus out of it we're continually having to throw down things before the Lord so he can deself them and give them back to us and we have his power what is that in your hands the rod is not through so here goes Moses with a rod in his hand a rod no the rod of God now it is a rod cut to God here is a life yielded to God and a rod cut to God in the hand of the man of God and so he goes out God says tell old Pharaoh let my people go and Pharaoh tried to compromise with him and Moses turned loose the plagues under the power of God softened old Moses up and they went over and they sat before them and it was just a few inches underneath the surface of the rock and he hit it just right and the water got back God hit that rock so hard that there gushed out a fountain that met the needs of those people not just for that day but for days to come and the new testament Paul tells us that that rock followed them and I think it produced and that is just not a little trickle of water because when you hold up a yielded life and reassert that yielded in the midst of any problem seas are going to open and seas are going to close and locks are going to open and fountains are going to go down because the power of God was on who yielded to God and his life is an unexplainable then came Amulek the bible says that's going to happen in your life Amulek of course came from the Vesau who represents the work of Satan the force, the cause, the job there always was Amulek Amulek may sometimes may mean for your life may mean for your health may mean for your boss may mean for head on in your job may mean for in the money world or in the social world or in the church world but didn't he ever give himself to the Lord Amulek he's going to hold up his hand and say hawk in the name of the law if you're still under the law you have to hawk so if you're under grace you say well I've been freed from the law Mr. Amulek you've just defeated in Jesus name I resist it and hold up the rod and fight Amulek he says just to say let's see you go down to the valley and fight Amulek and I'm going up on the hill and lift up the rod of God that's how you got on Moses and he's up there on top of the hill with the mountain with the rod of God lifted up and old Joshua gets called by Amulek to retreat indirectly he's weakened in his arms and he finds himself retreating and every time he directly Joshua gets back and lifts a little and Moses is up there and you notice that every time Moses lifts the rod down the Amulek starts quivering and every time he caught himself and lifted it up not doing the usual and Joshua said huh this guy's got the principle when self is controlling the life when he is willing and it will be a peaceful battle until there's an arrangement to keep Jesus lifted up and Joshua sent a message up and said Mariah and Herod you uh you've got to hurry to Moses and drop this iron shaft one on either side and you set him on a rock and fixed him up where he can't let that thing down and he loaded it and Moses' hands were heavy and they took a stone and put it under him and he sat there on there and Herod laid out his hands one on one side and the other on the other out in the ministry of fire and his hands were steady his hands were steady before they were going down and this is what he had lifted and Joshua discomfited Amulek in the valley of his redemption that's just a nice rendering saying he put the devil out of it in the valley of death and these are the verses see that when we try to work it ourselves we're deceived we may try to be good church members prior to being a teacher come to school class and obtain the highest offices in the church we're out of place but we'll never be any more than we at our best can be and when we give ourselves to God things begin to pull together in a million years simply because when God moves in takes control of the life anoints that life with his power things have got to give do you realize that when this happens seas open and seas close and water gushes out of locks and in dry land and enemies are defeated in the valleys of life I want to ask you something what kind of life do you want so in order to answer that I ask you another what is that in your hand reputation throw it down what is it a self image throw it down what is it a family throw them down wait just a minute no, throw them down I never really had my family until I threw them down before the Lord I pictured each other in a cross I never had a ministry until I threw it down before the Lord and saw myself in bed with cancer of the throat I never saw victory until I threw it all down and said God I yield it all to you throw it down what is that in your hand a football oh God wouldn't do a thing like that to me he might but then again he might give that football back to you and you run in the power of God throw it down a basketball throw it down boyfriend, girlfriend put it down before the Lord oh God wouldn't take her away from me he can't take her away from me he might but then again he just might give her back to you a new relationship frankly throw it down what do you have a good reputation as a spiritual church throw it down God might want to make not only your church a notable spiritual church but an unexplainable miraculous church throw it down what is that in your hand we can sit throw it down throw it down then God will make that a robber in your hand so with the power of God I wonder how many people here tonight have something in their hands that's perfectly fine and good and noble but there's one thing you haven't done with it you have to give it up to the Lord throw it down relationship with husband and wife home job, future car what is it throw it down before you throw it down the devil always has a piece of property that's a minister throw it down and God will clean it up and give it back to you throw it down what is that in your hand you want to walk away tonight with a rod of God in your hand every time you hold it up a seal will open or close water will gush out of a rock to supply your needs or you'll meet an enemy and defeat him yes God wants you to give it up now so he can give himself to you in unlimited power I'll head about give her a head back this is a moment of honesty in a moment I'll be gone praising the Lord for the privilege of being here but I just want you to be honest now with God and yourself I wonder how many people here would have to say tonight Christi, as you're the priest God has showed me something in my own life that I've never ever thrown down before him and I want you to pray for me that I will be willing tonight to put it down before the Lord in utter faith may I see your hands so I can pray for you all over this place all over this place all over dozens, dozens now you name that thing before the Lord I see you, God bless you I see you Jesus, I don't know what all these things are but I sure do know that something wonderful something wonderful is about to happen when we give it up to you maybe in the end maybe an advantage maybe somebody Lord, I just want to go through it again I want to throw everything down before you I want to throw my wife my Pam and Tim I want to throw my wonderful church down before you I want to put down my minister before you I want to put down my health before you I want to put down everything I have before you God, you take it you give me back only that which is sanctified and full of the power of Jesus I'm just asking you to make out of this whole ugly life of mine an unexplainable miracle that when folks see me they won't be saying anything about Jack Taylor but they'll be they'll be less talking about Jesus Christ what a wonderful savior he is to use a cloud like me bless young people who need to throw things down bless adults who need to throw things down I just want you, Lord Jesus, to have your way now and we want to go away with our holy anointing in our lives in Jesus' name there's not going to be any question and invitation this is what it is, an invitation if tonight in your heart you really want to give up that thing tonight God has laid on your heart I'm going to ask you to couple with your desire a visible move and I'm going to ask you to find yourself a place on your knees, somewhere as near the front as you can get and I want you to throw that thing down before the Lord in a recordable manner so that you can point to that time where it's faith was driven and all of you became all of God and I want you to do it right now right now 40, 50, 60, 70 ways to hang it I don't want in any way to embarrass you but I want you to come right on right now if you have a real desire to couple that desire I want you to ask Him tonight I want you to come right on right on right now maybe you need to talk to somebody maybe you need to talk to the preacher he'll be here, you can find me I'll be here, you can find me there'll be somebody else if you come right on if you want to pray out loud if you want to confess to somebody if you want to share something that ought to be shared with everybody here you can do it but this will be a moment in which we just turn this service completely over to the Lord and I feel like I ought to say a word I'll say it and you feel like you ought to say one you'll just let God have His way and I want you to find yourself here I want you to pull that down before the Lord you'll be with Him now you'll be sure you're with Him you can right now right now as we pray I really want to make clear that if there's somebody here who's never been saved that's a good day for you you know what it's all about you know why this church sits on this corner I'm going to invite you to come to know Jesus I'll be happy to meet you here and tell you how somebody else will be here to help you but friends please tonight don't go away without Jesus you're never more than a heartbeat away from a friend and I pray you'll not go away without Jesus tonight young man, young lady you'll never do anything never do anything more credible never do anything more noble than to come to Jesus it'll be the best day of your life and I'm going to ask you to get up from where you are and make a move and just take Jesus and join in with hundreds of thousands who are finally received and be alone till death maybe that's another decision you can't share with the pastor and you need to make this your place of service and you ought to join this church that's a holy decision you ought to share it and you ought to join these so many down here right now and come through this total victory by laying all that you are and have down before Jesus you're doing it right now maybe such a little thing but that's all it takes a short circuit, this marvelous system of God's spirit fullness all it takes just one little link to break the tile one little broken link and you're just going to wait before the Lord this moment and if you feel like the Lord wants you to go you can go and if somebody feels like they just ought to pray loud and that'll be our signal we'll join you somebody wants to pray one of the staff members in the council one of these others you just come on you go aside and take it for the Lord to gather and when you come through the victory you have a desire to do it that's all you need for victory you don't have to wait any longer you come right on right now I think beyond the threat of a doubt many life-changing decisions have been made some that were made visibly and some that were made in the quiet of your heart as you sat where you're sitting and that decision inevitably will perfect itself in your witness in your life you can't be a secret disciple it'll break out where you go so we're going to have a closing prayer in a moment you just leave the service open so if you need to go you may but we'll remain here to chat with you and answer questions or pray with you whatever you want to do so I feel like that we need to be available to you just as available as the Lord is if we're available to him we're available to all those to whom he's available I do want to tell you this that when revival happens in the center of the church it'll be inevitable that a river starts and will flow out to the extremes of the community I was in a meeting like this called the Detroit, Michigan let me sound out, Detroit, Spring Harbor, Michigan where revival broke out seven weeks before that and had raged in that church like a fire for 60, while I was there, 61 straight days and I shared with them what the Lord was doing not only in our church but through it in hippy pads and beer joints and business places and they became conscious that what they had done really was just enjoy revival there in the church for 61 days the pastor got up and I noticed there was something for him because they'd been going consecutively night and day 61 days he said, tomorrow night we're not going to meet first time since the revival started I'm going to ask you to get somebody on your heart and tomorrow, tomorrow night go see him I want to tell you if everybody in this group today just told somebody tomorrow what you know about Jesus with a heart right with him this whole town before, before tomorrow night you'd know that God had touched down in Joppa and you just let it happen I want to tell you that it's very logical in fact it's inevitable that if the same Jesus lives in you and is able to do what he wants to do he'll be doing the same thing in you that he did in himself he'd be looking wherever they lost souls and telling them about himself and you'll be doing the same thing and I'm just going to sort of be looking up this way for a cloud of smoke and a fire and I'm just going to be listening for the sound of a spiritual explosion as this smoldering fire of revival breaks into an open flame and God moves to put Joplin, Missouri on the spiritual map I believe he wants to do it and I believe the people in this building tonight hold the key I don't know about you but I'm not so busy I want to be in on what God is up to and God is up to something God wants to include, before I start laughing today wants to include everyone in you but if you've got something more important a sin so precious that it mustn't be confessed then God will pass on by he'll not crash down any doors but God is up to something and I pledge to you that I want to be in on what he's up to praise the Lord I was down here praying wasn't aware that someone was by my side that Rick met me and he told me what he wanted and I'm going to ask him to share with you why he did it and what had happened now Rick, you haven't done this before but the Holy Spirit will give you the bonus and the value to see what I'm looking for you know, when I was living there I took Christ and it was just because everybody else was doing it and I came here and now I just want to take him to you Rick alright, anyhow and we rejoice and we'll receive him into our fellowship and we'll baptize him and that's great Betty won't you come up here for us and I'll get out of the way you know, I'd just like to say that the Lord really changed me today I'm really a rich person and I've known him for a long time and the Lord forgave me a long time ago my sins but I had one hand and until he made me willing until I was ready until I was willing to come to him and confess it publicly that it wouldn't be alright and so this morning in the service I came down and I didn't I just came to the altar and I just wanted to pray and I didn't know what the Lord would have for me and I didn't think that he would have me confess his sins and he sent a friend to my side and we prayed and I was able to confess it with his friends and that was all that the Lord wanted me to do and it was his will and he just cleansed me and I just felt like I had a bath I've been high on cloud nine all afternoon I came to the service this morning and I've known for years that I've been afraid I've had fears you could never believe the fears that I've had and of course the old devil was right there saying Margie before this service this is a good thing to be afraid of don't be afraid of that so today I was afraid of that and I'd get up the next day and he'd say oh that's alright you're afraid of this today and that's the way I've lived my life afraid of those things you wouldn't believe it I didn't believe it until God revealed it to me you know I was even afraid of six little boys six little headsteps you wouldn't believe that but the Lord did and He drew all of this the Lord led me to a girl she said Marge I'm an atheist I don't believe in God well this was a good day when I got home from church my phone rang she said are you busy I was busy I was making money for Christmas and making seats for staff hearings I was busy so I said you know I don't have time today what's on your mind she said oh would you go shopping with me I said I'd be glad to we went shopping she said dear David I'm sure in May we really didn't talk about the Lord but I loved her oh I loved her and I'm not really good at expressing myself but I could write little notes and I'd written her a little note and I told her I loved her and I'm sorry she didn't know my deepest she said I'll read anything you bring to me she has some of the normally secured books in her hand she has God's post in her hand she has the book of John in her hand so you all pray I'm looking for this woman a lovely mother of two children to find the Lord and I want you to pray with her you've heard me quote from the book on tiptoe with joy read by David Seamans when he says impression minus expression equals depression when a person is spirit filled in every impulse I have come to believe that the impression is of God we act upon these impulses and if we don't we'll be depressed if we are confident that the impression is of the Holy Spirit and we don't express it we'll be depressed so before we go tonight I want to receive the assurance in my own heart that I'm not going to drive to Tulsa and back tonight depressed and I think that there's something I'll have to say Margaret expressed her fear and I think there's something that all of us have experienced at one time or another because I like to be where it's safe where there is no danger and no risk and I don't like to be in the spotlight where everybody can take shots at me and I am many times and so sometimes I determine the course that I take by calculating how many pop shots I'll be the recipient of because I've been afraid that you, you and you might say well what has got into John why would he lead us in this direction don't we know that we've got a program to follow and an order of service to follow we get out of 8.30 every evening and I've been aware of what some of you were thinking about what was going on this week because it's so unusual and I'm the pastor and humanly speaking I'm responsible for a few things if it goes good or it goes bad if it goes bad I feel responsible and I don't want it to go bad this is causing my pride and I just want to say that that I have been afraid that maybe we would go to the extremes and people would misunderstand me and you would misunderstand me for it appears that I have a a facility that I wasn't aware of and that's to say things and people misunderstand them sometimes I can say something quiet and people will go away saying well John said that was black when I thought I was being clear about it I don't know if it's the tone of my voice or the expression on my face but sometimes I evidently don't communicate and people think that I'm hard and that they have misunderstood and I have offended them I may have offended some of you I think probably I have I just want you to know that if I have it because I hear people say well I said that to say this but I know when they got there that's just an example a curse is a reflection of its pastor providing that pastor is in there for any period of time now I said that, say this I have come to an awareness in my own life and in my own ministry that I have taken you as far as I can go in my Christian pilgrimage and if you go any further I'm going to have to make some advancements personally in my own life now we've gone a long way together I haven't gone ahead of you too many times we've been together some of you have been way ahead of me we've gone together but I have come to an awareness in my own life that if we continue to probe and excel and investigate and study and learn and conquer I've got to make some progress myself I don't think that you're going to go too far ahead of me you may for a while but you'll backslide back where I am in your rear so I've got to keep in the vanguard as a pastor I think and I said that simply to say that I want you to hold me up in your prayers just as Aaron and her supported the hands of Moses I want to feel the comfort and the warmth of your prayer support that I might continue to develop and mature in my ministry that I might be in a position to lead you onto greater heights I've been on the mountains but the mountains have been very slick and I've slid off I'll climb up again and I hope that you'll help me and pray for me and be patient that I might continue to probe and study that when we come together for corporate worship I might have a fresh word from the Lord now as I've said in the beginning I articulate so poorly you people misunderstand me but I hope you've understood not only what I've said but you've understood the spirit behind it now I suppose that's all I've got to say is everybody ready to go home Bob most of you people know me for many many years I've been with the church since 1936 worked up until a few weeks ago it was my church I've helped build it I've sweated blood on it and if anybody said anything against it I was very excited because it was my church it isn't it's stone, it's wood and it can collapse and the Lord will do whatever needs to be done no matter what what I think or what I try to do I'd help build it back if that's what's good I've said some things that I know as Brother John has said I have hurt somebody's feelings probably a lot of feelings I'm sorry very sorry if you tell me who you are I'll apologize to you so I don't but from now on this is the Lord's town and I'll do whatever I can not many of you here know me well enough to know who I am or for me to be mad at you but I love all of you even my husband but the reason I came just last Sunday rather than weekly by week I was converted here and I feel I was completely turned about and I'd felt so good all week that I had symptoms and all but it didn't last very good so I wrote one of the letters and called everyone to tell them so I feel good and I wanted to ask you what time you're going where you're going to tell us in the morning because we really need you here Aaron I appreciate that but I wouldn't miss it for the world thank you Mary thank you so much now let me tell you it's so vital because we need to let the regime of the Lord take over we need to voice the fact with the fact that this is God's church you know what I've realized and I told my deacons last week that when God takes over a church we lose out in trying to set where it's going or what it's going to be we just lost out and I confess that to my deacons seven years ago I lost out why we had five year programs and we knew exactly how efficient we were going to have our church and set it in that community and we were going to do this and we were going to do that and God snatched the leadership of that church right out of my hands and I've realized for seven years I've had no more to do with where it's going than anything in the world and I just said that to my deacons last week God wants to make out of the church He'll shatter all your ideas shatter all your dreams about what the church ought to be if I would tell you some of the things that are already on the horizon because of this it would just blow your mind God wants to do the same thing here and I'll tell you what and what blesses other people is to hear men and women in that church stand up and say I'm with God I want to go with Him there's a song we've heard since we've been in revival God is moving by His Spirit this is revival time and the thing that goes over and over again move with God folks, God is moving He doesn't want you to tell Him where to go He doesn't want you to prescribe the avenues you want Him to move He wants you to latch on to Him and move with God He wants to do something, doesn't He, John? There you go and we need to let the redeemed of the Lord face us and not be bashed for that I think I'll just, since I'm leaving I'll go ahead and say this I probably wouldn't say it if I was going to be here a little longer I get the impression I get the impression that you're much like our church here you have a nice building lovely padded ceiling and you've even got more than we you've got carpet all over the place and sometimes because we're a sort of middle, upper, upper class we think that if we ever got excited that would be a sign of the loss of dignity and I'll tell you what some of you need to do you need to just let your hair down and let Jesus say what He wants to say and you need just to say, well hallelujah, so that's it, you know and it'll be, it's just so wonderful and so shocking and so marvelous the freedom so if you've got it say it if you've put something in your heart don't suppress it express it say it it's pride that keeps us from being natural and if you love a formality or love a form or love an image more than you love naturalness in Jesus he's got a work of plowing up old stuff in your life so maybe you just need to say it young people you know who did it first in our church that's what shook the adults up young people being honest now I must explain to you that we adults have lived a little longer and have learned how to be dishonest don't, don't learn like we did we, we had so many things and we got so hypocritical you be honest and that'll demand us honestly so if you've got something to say you say it and it'll bless some adults and maybe it'll encourage them to be honest too okay? thank you now then I want Rick to stand down here and I see his mother back there she's sitting in the nursery she's eating, she's carrying she's in nursing to come down and stand with Rick and you come around and encourage him and rejoice with him now I think that we would not have but Benedictine would just have another love in in which you embrace one another and take care of one another speak to one another visit with one another and just linger around as long as you want to linger now before we do I think that Sherry and Stan ought to come now before they kick Stan's ass while you're all in the pew were you up there a while ago, Sherry? with Rick? well that's unfortunate I wish you no more faithful souls in our church and Sherry, huh? she stays in that nursery when the rest of us want to see what's going on up here up in here a while ago