======================================================================== YORRIE RICHARDS 01 by Yorrie Richards ======================================================================== Summary: This sermon recounts a powerful testimony of a man named Jolly who experienced a transformation after encountering God. Despite his past life of crime and struggles with speech, Jolly's life was radically changed when he surrendered to Christ. Through his journey of faith, including moments of doubt and miraculous speaking abilities, Jolly's dedication to God and passion for sharing the Gospel led to many lives being impacted. The sermon also delves into the importance of revival, emphasizing the need for preparation and understanding the profound impact of God's presence when He comes down among His people. Duration: 30:45 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCRIPTION ------------------------------------------------------------------------ This sermon recounts a powerful testimony of a man named Jolly who experienced a transformation after encountering God. Despite his past life of crime and struggles with speech, Jolly's life was radically changed when he surrendered to Christ. Through his journey of faith, including moments of doubt and miraculous speaking abilities, Jolly's dedication to God and passion for sharing the Gospel led to many lives being impacted. The sermon also delves into the importance of revival, emphasizing the need for preparation and understanding the profound impact of God's presence when He comes down among His people. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENT ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 40 years ago, he was a young worker in the steelworks in Barga, in Wales. A living school teacher, teaching physics in a local secondary school, and we were very close friends. One day, Jolly asked of me an impossible suggestion. He's from my state, the town where George Jeffords and Stephen Jeffords came from, where they both buried. They were George Jeffords' furthest auditorium in the 1920s or 30s. Jolly's from the same little town in Wales called my state. I knew him before he came to the Lord. He was in the life of crime, and booze, and baby. And God touched me in my reckless way. So I saw that the local newspaper had two columns all the way down, giving his testimony on the very front page. Alongside him was the trial that he was supposed to be in, where the judge said, Jolly, which is the path your children lend in the gallows? Can anybody speak a good word for this man? And the local pastor stood up and said, Your Worship, I would like to tell you what he has done, Jolly, which was recently given his life to Christ. And because that judge knew the history of revivalism in George Jeffords and others in my state, he released Jolly to the care of the banks there. He asked me an impossible suggestion. He said, Gareth, I want to go back to my state to tell the people what Christ has done for me, and the good things he has done, and I said, Jolly, we can't. Because Jolly Richard has such a bad stamina, it was impossible to hold a conversation with him. In fact, my friendship was such that Jolly would start a sentence and I would finish it for him, and then he would either nod or shake his head, that's not what he wanted to say. Can I, and I said, do you want a cup of tea? Yes! And that was the kind of conversation, all we could do. He never completed a sentence in all my years of mourning. He wanted to go back to my state, and I said, Jolly, we can't. But he was so convinced of God, that he went himself and booked the town hall in my state, and they gave him the town hall free, because they knew his story. And the first night we were there, and it was so embarrassing. After the initial singers and everything, Jolly stands up and speaks for about 10 minutes, says about 15 words, and he breaks down and cries, and he runs off the stage. That night he meets Uncle Di. Di? Uncle Di? Dear old Saint. He said, how did you go last night, Jolly? Awful. I'm not going back. I'm going to invite somebody else to take the next two nights. And old Uncle Di fell on his face and started weeping before God, and cried out, Lord, your riches haven't got a name, but Jolly was at stake. This young man must be testing you, Jolly, Jolly was at stake. He turned to Jolly and said, Jolly, you have to go back. I'll let you enlist what God wants to do. The second night we go back and we introduce him, and this night there are over 200 people in the auditorium. The schoolteacher, it was her birthday, brought an entire class of girls from the school. 14 year olds. Jolly stands up to the microphone, and I go behind the curtain, and I go, oh God. And Jolly starts to stand up. He cries out, oh God, not again, not again. And God came down. I'm behind the curtain, and I watch this man speak with clarity. Not a stammer for the first time in 27 years, Jolly, but just spoke without a stammer. He spoke again, you see, the gospel of our sin, the control of glory in God, but God commanded his love toward us, coming to me. Over 60 people gave their lives to Christ that night. He spoke for 20 minutes, and then broke down crying. We all leave him behind the curtain, because we've seen a great miracle. A great miracle. I was so close to Jolly, and we spent many times together. But the secret of his success, I believe, with God, is that he had a big garden shed. He came with me to his home, and the evening goings, he said, I'm sorry, I've got an appointment. And I'm leaving. He got to his garden shed, where there's a carpet, a table, a light, a heater, and a light. A dedicated man, but a simple man, with a deep, deep passion and knowledge of God. And I'm so thrilled he's going to be here today, because if God speaks to a weak person, he speaks to a weak person. I want to welcome my friend. Blessed be God. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel. Who lifts the poor from the downed heaven, and places him amongst kings. I'm so thrilled here today. I'm so thrilled last night. I'm so thrilled what God has accomplished in my simple, round-shuttled life. Blessed be God is the praise of my heart this morning. My wife, when she was with me, I lost my wife last October, after 47 days. My wife was such a godly woman. One of the Psalms says, he places the solitary in families. And when I came to Christ, I was a solitary figure. Couldn't talk for one. And I met my wife, Irene. I met her nine months after I found Christ. I found my wife. On the following December, we were married. In 13 months, I had found Christ. I had found my wife. All within 13 months. And not long after that, God began to set me free of my stuttering tongue. And it was a dreadful period of time. It was very difficult. Not once had I wanted to throw in the towel. I tell you that. I wanted to give in. But blessed be God. And my wife used to say to me, in the early part of our marriage, for she knew the Word far better than I did, she had read the Scriptures more times than she could count, and she used to teach me. She used to teach me to read. She used to teach me to write. She used to teach me to spell. But more than that, she taught me the Word. And one of the things that she said to me, amongst many others, one of the things that I have never forgotten is, she used to say to me, if you want to know what God is like, if you want to know what makes God tick, read the Old Testament. Especially the Old Testament, for therein God lays out the principles, because God is a God of principle. God operates on a basis of principles. And in the Old Testament, God laid out the principles that he would abide by with his dealings with mankind. One of the principles was, there could be no approach to God for mankind, no approach whatsoever to God, apart from the basis of a functioning priesthood. The offerings of the old covenant, they must be brought to a priest. No one could offer a sacrifice by himself. He must bring the offering to a functioning high priest. And the high priest would offer the lamb, the ram, the goat, whatever it was, on behalf of the people. Now we have a functioning priesthood today. And our high priest, when he went to the cross, he wasn't a high priest when he hung upon the cross. He was the Passover lamb. When he came out of the tomb, he would soon begin to function as God's high priest, for you and for me. He was not only the high priest, when he went to come on his cross, he was the offering. Hebrews speaks about, this high priest must have something to offer. Now he didn't bring a ram, he didn't bring a goat or a lamb, he was the lamb. And he submitted himself to the butchering hands of sinful men. Now I want you to turn please to one side. Now here is a very, when anyone is dealing with the subject of the revival, I suppose you won't go far into any conference without this scripture either being read or spoken of by any speaker. Isaiah chapter 64, I suppose some of you know it already. I know this was a favorite scripture with the Reverend Duncan Campbell when he ministered on the Isle of Lewis. And I have ministered there three times myself. I've spoken to certain men and certain women that came to know the Lord Jesus Christ in that mighty awakening. Let me read this scripture. O that you would mend, tear open, O that you would mend the heavens, that you would condemn, that the mountains might shake at your presence, as fire burns brushwood, as fire causes water to boil, to make your name known to your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at your presence, when you did awesome things for which we did not look. You came down, the mountains shook at your presence, for since the beginning of the world men have not heard nor perceived by the ear nor has the eye seen any god besides you. O that you would mend the heavens and condemn. Isaiah the prophet paid that sentence and Israel when they came out of this empty yoke activity in Babylon that was there for them to bring to God O that you would rend the heavens and I was thinking for a certain setting where this scripture could well be dropped into and the setting that I thought about was the time when they began to come out of Babylon. Some of you will know that when they went into Babylon for 70 years they went in in three stages. Daniel for one incidentally was taken in to Babylon in the first stage and then there was a span of about 8 to 9 years and then Nebuchadnezzar took in the second stage and in the second stage Ezekiel who was a priest he wasn't a prophet then he went into Babylon in the second stage and this I was thinking what kind of a setting would receive this scripture and I was thinking when they began to come out of Babylon Nehemiah brought the first Exodus out of Babylon and they began to build the altar to re-establish the altar for Nebuchadnezzar had totally destroyed the temple he had stripped it of all its gold of all its bronze of all its silver he had stripped everything valuable out of the temple and left it a round shackled pile of rocks and smouldering timbers and when they came out do you know the first Nebuchadnezzar knew the Hebrew mind and he knew that the altar was the very heart of the Hebrew people so the first thing that he would destroy was not the temple it was the altar and he destroyed the altar before bringing down Solomon's temple so when Nehemiah began to bring out the Hebrews after their century of captivity the first thing they began to re-establish was the altar if God is going to do a walk in these lands in a revival there's got to be an altar an altar of sacrifice you've got to have an altar in your heart and they began to re-establish the altar before the temple went up and I thought what a place to drop such a reading as this was in the second temple because the second temple was void of the heart of the government it was void of the Shekinah glory I wish I could stand here this morning and preach Shekinah it is my pet subject but there was no Shekinah in the second temple but one of the minor prophets began to speak about the return of Shekinah but the return of Shekinah in another form and I thought what a setting they could have prayed remember they asked those in the congregation who remember the former temple and the old people began to cry because they remember the glory that used to fill Solomon's temple and they could have prayed on that dedication when Joshua the high priest was re-established as the high priest they could have prayed Lord, rend the heavens and come down and fill this empty temple with your glory once again what a setting what did God answer not pray then on the pillar of fire or the pillar of cloud come down and fill that temple as it did in Solomon's time but I'm wanting to talk about God coming down God coming down render the heavens and come down someone put it like this God, push the stars aside tear open the sky and drop a footprint in our land the scriptures talk of God both looking down and coming down when King David was hounding well he wasn't actually King David when Saul was hounding him he cried out in his distress in Psalm 18 he cried out and brought his distress because this man Saul was wanting his blood and David cried out and then he said God's response to his prayer was he bound the heavens and came down Psalm 18.9 when God called Moses we heard about this much in this conference the burning bush now I've got something to say about Moses perhaps it's going to bring a little question mark above your head certain things that I'm going to say regarding him at the burning bush God said to him I have surely seen the oppression of my people and I have heard their cry and have come down to deliver them I have come down he's heard their cry in his abhorred and has come down to deliver them in the wilderness of Sinai following a three month trek out of Egypt they arrived in the wilderness of Sinai in the Sinai peninsula and God said to Moses go to the people sanctify them get them ready sanctify the people today and tomorrow and let them be ready for the third day for on the third day I will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people get them ready sanctify them let them wash their clothes let them stay away from their wives give yourselves completely to God during my bible school days I went into bible college perhaps about a year after I found Christ I came under the teaching of one W.L. Rowlands I don't know how many of you will have heard of this man W.L. Rowlands Willie Rowlands those of you that are members of the apostolic church movement would certainly have heard of him yes I was converted in the apostolic movement one of the most profound men I have ever met a deep thinker I don't know what he would have been if he had remained unconverted I don't know what he would have been but he would have had perhaps an Einstein brain for he was of that caliber but this brain this mind this mode of thinking had been surrendered to Christ and I came under his teaching regarding revival now here I'm coming to a little pulse in my message regarding revival hear this to say I'm purposely pausing I don't want this to sink in hear this to say be careful when asking God for revival lest he answer your prayer can I say that again be careful when you ask God for revival lest he answer your prayer now I'm not putting a wet blanket on this conference I am not but what I'm doing is we've got to be aware we've got to be conscious of what we are asking God to do what is revival if it is not God coming down now I see the effect God spoke of one this morning in this introduction for me when God came down and I saw people that I knew were church attenders running for the exit doors to get out do we realize what we are asking for preparation always precedes visitation when we ask for revival we are asking for something that's going to cost you a life don't think that revival is a happy experience when you come to church and you dance oh there's nothing wrong in the dance I used to dance I can't anymore perhaps I'm a little bit too old for that but there we are but I tell you this revival is not a happy happy time God coming down amongst his people and what you think is going to be the result of that is going to as I prayed in my prayer last night I said Lord draw aside the curtains of our hearts and let us see ourselves as you see us do you remember the words of Job I have heard with the ear but now my eyes have seen and I abhor myself I abhor myself why do you think Evan Roberts leaned over the pill where he was and cried out bury me bury me have you ever been searched out by God I tell you one thing that happened with me at my first apostolic Iowa convention they used to hire out the local school when the local school was on holidays so they could use the classrooms to house the men and women ======================================================================== Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/J3EYrqAa-ig.mp4 Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/yorrie-richards/yorrie-richards-01/ ========================================================================