In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of performing as a Christian and how to be the Christian one desires to be. He shares a story about a woman who is praised for her outstanding Christian qualities but humbly acknowledges that it is the Lord Jesus who has worked through her. The preacher then questions whether attending church faithfully can save someone, highlighting the need for a personal relationship with Jesus as the Savior. He also mentions the struggle with habits and the importance of turning to Christ for help. The sermon emphasizes the power of the Bible and the transformative effect it can have on a person's life.

I really don't know what that bishop means in a Baptist church, because I'm not sure that I have the authority of a bishop around here. But anyway, it's good to be here. He said I always took the authority, so I didn't know that, but I guess if you don't know it, it's okay. But it's so good to see you. It's hard for me to come and just come to this meeting in any fashion without just getting all stirred up, for a number of reasons, and one of the reasons is because there are so many friends around that you know and have known for a long time, and they are still faithful to the Lord Jesus, and that's a great blessing. And then it's a great blessing just to realize that you're still in there yourself. Isn't that right, Jerry? And that's another great blessing for me, and it is a thrill to be able to come to this conference. As far as I remember, Curtis McCarley and I were in the first Thanksgiving conference they ever had in this church. I'm not talking about this building. I'm talking about we met back there in one of those dormitories they don't even use anymore. But anyway, it was a great time, and I never have forgotten that time, and it's been a great blessing to watch God at work in this place. You know, there's enough history here tonight. If some writer just took the history of God and just told about what God has done through the lives of different people in this place, honestly, folks, they'd read it a hundred years from now and know that God was in the world. It would really shock you just to see how that would work. It's such a blessing to be here, and I'm looking forward to this week for a number of reasons. And one of the reasons I'm really looking forward to this week is that my whole family, the Lord willing, if they get here safely tonight and don't get lost, they shouldn't get lost, but they should be here. My whole family will get to be here this week, and that's a unique blessing because we very seldom ever get together. And we've never been since we moved from here in 1969. We've never been all together here since that time, and we're going to be, the Lord willing, here this time. And I'm really looking forward to that and praying that the Lord will meet with them and bless them while they're here. Tonight, I wish I could announce to you exactly which way I'm going this week, but since I don't know myself, I'd be sort of foolish to announce it. And I am really not confused, but I am honestly just shocked a little bit at the direction the Lord is leading tonight. And you come to a camp meeting and you want to shout, and you want to preach things that will make folks shout. Well, this message tonight is a shouting message, but you have to go by the way of the cross first. And if I get it right, that's the way it's supposed to be. You have to go by the way of the cross first. So I want you to turn, please, to the book of Romans, and I want you to turn to the 7th chapter of the book of Romans. The 7th chapter of the book of Romans. I want you to realize that Paul, here in the book of Romans, has come to a conclusion about himself that genuinely lays out the honesty of a man. And I think identifies a great deal of our need today. He says in the 18th verse, For I know that in me that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing. For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not, but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now, Paul is letting us in on the struggle in his life. The amazing thing about this passage of scripture, a lot of people say, well, that's the struggle of a lost man. And this passage is directly speaking, or speaking directly to lost people. And of course, I've never been able to accept that fact, but if I could accept that fact, I would have to say that the principle here laid out in this passage is as applicable to a saved person as a lost person. But it's also as applicable to a lost person as it is a saved person. And so the principle is the same and the application, different levels, but is identically the same. And so that's what we want to look at. And we find this man, Paul, saying he wants to do good, but he finds himself unable to do it. And he doesn't want to do evil, but he finds himself doing it. And he says, how to perform? He said, I know not. Now, that is some admission for a man who has been saved by the grace of God. In the first five chapters of the book of Romans, we see how a man is saved by the grace of God. And then in Romans 6, we have something else. Here is a man that is saying, I do not know how to perform, but he's been filled with the Holy Spirit. The most classic passage in the entire Word of God about how to be filled with the Holy Spirit is Romans 6. And here this man in Romans 7 saying, I do not know how to perform. Now, you know, a lot of people will say, hey, all you need to do is just get saved by the grace of God, and that settles it all, and that's all there is to it. You just get saved and everything is solved. But Paul says in Romans 7, I do not know how to perform. Now, some people say, well, I'll tell you what you need is just to get filled with the Holy Spirit, and that solves every issue, just to get filled with the Holy Spirit. But Romans 7, Paul is saying, and that's after Romans 6, by the way. You know, it's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and that's after Romans 6. And he says, I do not know how to perform. A lot of other people say, well, you know, and this is really, really interesting. A lot of people will say, well, what you really need is just to get an education. Well, I'll tell you what, this man is one of the most educated men of that day, and he is saying, I do not know how to perform. I had a man come into my office a few weeks ago, maybe a couple of months ago now, and he said, they told me when I surrendered to the ministry in high school that what I needed was to go to college, and that would, I'd find my answers. He said, I got a college degree, and I still did not have my answers. He said, then they said, go to the seminary. And he said, I went to the seminary, and I still did not have my answers. He said, then they said, get your doctorates. And he said, I got my first doctorates, and I still did not have the answer. He said, I got another one, and I still did not have the answer. And he said, I'm working on another one right now. And he said, I still do not have the answer. Now, Paul was saying how to perform. In other words, he was saying how to be and how to do the work of God I do not know. Isn't that amazing? A man that's been saved, a man that's been filled with the Holy Spirit, and certainly had the best education of that day, and he still did not know how to perform. Now, that's interesting. And he's saying that right here in this verse. Now, I want to read the first four verses, and out of these four verses, I think we'll have the answer in part to what Paul's talking about. No you're not, brethren, for I speak to them that know the law. How that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth. But for the woman which hath a husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth. But if the husband be dead, she is loose from the law of her husband. So then if while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress. But if her husband be dead, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ, that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God. Now, this passage really, really genuinely lays it out. Of course, you may not see what I'm talking about, but I want to share with you what I'm going to say, and then I'm going to say what I'm going to say. And then I'm going to explain what I said when I get through saying what I'm going to say. Okay? Now, I'm very serious about this. I usually reverse the order, but tonight I'm not going to try to reverse the order. I'm going to try to present it in the fashion that I feel that would lay it out. And this is the message. Here we have several personalities involved in this passage. We have the woman who really represents the believer, or could, in principle, represent the unbeliever. And then we have Mr. Law in this passage. And then we have the Lord Jesus in this passage. We have these three personalities. And in this passage, we have the Christian, the person represented here by this woman, coming to Jesus Christ. And when this person comes to Jesus Christ and is saved, to Jesus and is saved, this person becomes one with the Lord Jesus. And this person belongs to Jesus. And not only does this person belong to Jesus, but this person relies completely on Jesus, obviously in some form of ignorance. But, since the illustration refers to her as a lady, we'll talk about her as a lady. This person literally just simply relies on Jesus Christ for a while. And then she forsakes Jesus and starts living with another man, and his name is Mr. Law. And she starts living with Mr. Law, but she belongs to Jesus Christ. And therefore, since she belongs to Jesus, and she's living with Mr. Law, she is living in adultery. And since she's living in adultery, she is a miserable, miserable, miserable woman. Now, the amazing thing about a person living in adultery, they have a great difficulty in performing. Because they are so full of sin and guilt. And they have a difficulty performing. And another thing about a person that's living in adultery, a person that's living in adultery will have strange children. And so, beloved, we have the church involved, and when the church is living in adultery, belonging to Jesus, but living with Mr. Law, you bring forth children, but they are strange children. They're strange children. You don't have strange children, my dear friends, when you're not living in adultery. Young'uns look like the mamas and the papas. Amen? But, my dear friends, when you're living in adultery, you have some strange ones to show up. That's right. So this woman here is living in adultery. And she cannot carry out what God wants her to carry out. And she really finds herself having a difficult time with Mr. Law that she's living with. And so she's in an awful difficult time. And so, in this, she finds out how to solve the problem. Now, if Mr. Law would just die, she would solve the problem. She would no longer be living in adultery. If Jesus would just die, she'd solve the problem. But you know Jesus is not going to die. And so that's obviously not the answer. And so, if you know your Bible, you know that Mr. Law's not going to die. Not one jot of tittle will ever pass away. So Mr. Law's not going to die, so that's not going to solve her problem. So the only way for her to solve her problem is to die herself. That's right. And when she dies herself, she literally begins to solve the problem. Now, what I want to do is illustrate what I've talked about. Now, here's a woman. She walks in the church house, and she hears the word of God. And she becomes convicted. And she becomes so convicted that she is a sinner. And she hears the preacher say, Jesus is the Savior. And somehow, someway, it just doesn't really come through that Jesus is the answer. So she goes out, and she starts trying her best to get saved. She starts coming to church. And she comes to church every time the doors open. Now tell me something. Can this woman get saved by being faithful to church? Oh, she can't. You really don't think so. All right, she goes on a little bit more, and she says, well, I've got some habits. I've got some habits. If I can just quit these habits, if I can just quit these habits, I will have the problem solved. Well, some of the habits she can quit. But some of them she can't shake. And she quits those that she can and those she can't. She tries and keeps on trying. And she gets her life pretty cleaned up. Can she get saved? That can't save her? Well, that's interesting. She's living better than some of the members. And she's more faithful than the deacons. And she's still not saved. Well, I know what she'll do. Next, I'll tell you what she starts. She says, this will do it. This will flat do it. I'll start giving some money. Now that will do it. Now if I just give some money, that will flat do it. So she starts giving her money. Now she's faithful to church. Now she's not only faithful to church, she's living the best she knows how to live morally. And she's flat giving her money. And she still doesn't have any peace. That will not save her. Well, she tries reading her Bible. And she starts reading her Bible, and her Bible just does not make sense. She reads it, and it just flat doesn't make sense. Well, now she's going to church. She's living morally good. Giving her money and reading the Bible. Well, that would make a good Baptist. I mean it really does, and I think it has made a lot of good Baptists. But I think there's some of them still on the road to hell, just like she is. And there she is. She's reading her Bible. Well, she just keeps on trying. And she just keeps on going to church. And one day, one day, she's sitting there under deep, deep conviction, I'm a sinner. And the light breaks through that Jesus Christ is the living Son of God who became sin for her. And died on the cross and loved her so much He gave Himself. And literally went through the pains of hell just for her. And I mean just the flash of light from glory just began to open her heart. And brother, here she comes. And I mean she comes down that aisle not saying, oh, I've sinned. I've sinned against God. My dear friends, that's not what she's saying at all. Because my friends, God has shown her that she is a wretched, miserable, hell-bound, hell-bent, hell-deserving soul. And Jesus doesn't have mercy. She's going to hell. Not because she's sinned, but because she is a sinner. And folk don't go to hell because they're sinned. They sin. They go to hell because they're sinners. And they sin because they're sinners. And here she is, brother. God has shown her that she's a wicked, wicked, wicked sinner. And here she is. She falls out there, brother. And she sees that Jesus Christ is the only, only answer. And she comes as nothing. And as far as she's concerned, she's the most wicked woman in the world. As far as the community's concerned, she's probably the best woman in the world. But she, brother, she's a wretched, miserable sinner. She walks out by the preacher that night. And she says, preacher, I don't understand it. But God showed me tonight I was a sinner. And showed me that Jesus Christ was the only answer. And she went home. And she turned on her television. And her favorite program was on. And she got to watching that thing. And she just became disinterested. That thing didn't hold her attention. I mean, it didn't meet her appetite. And need. And all of that. She just flipped it off. Then she went over and got her novel. She'd been reading. And started reading that thing. And it didn't meet her need. And she said, well, I've been reading the Bible, but I haven't been able to understand it. And my husband will be home in a couple hours. I'll just look at this Bible and see what it has to say. And she opens the book. And my dear friend, she begins to read this blessed old book. And I'll tell you, it's not long until there's a knock on the door. And she looks down on the pages of that Bible. When she came to herself. And she'd been reading this blessed old book. And I'll tell you, it was wet with the tears from her eyes. And two hours had passed. And Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, had gotten up off of the these and the thou. And everything else. And began to talk to her heart. And this book had become a living book. And she'd just been saved by the grace of God. And that made the difference. She went to the door. And he said, what has happened to you? I mean, friends. I mean, he could tell the difference. That there was something different about that woman. And she just simply said, I met Jesus tonight. He forgave me as a sinner. And I've been saved. And if not long, folk. She didn't even have a study course on how to win a soul. But if not long until that old boy is born of the Spirit of the Living God. Because of the power of God on this woman. And she hadn't even been told she was supposed to win a soul. And it's amazing. She went in to the breakfast table the next morning. There the kids were. The cat and the dog. And there they all were in the kitchen. And she said, kids, mama got saved last night. Little old 13 smart aleck, year old smart aleck kid said, what does that mean? But I'll tell you one thing, friends. Two weeks hadn't passed until not only that kid knew what it meant for mama to be saved. But the cat and the dog knew what it meant for mama to be saved. Because, my dear friends, there was such a spirit control in her life. That she had lost. She had got victory over that temper. And she quit screaming and hollering and fussing. And acting like the devil in front of those kids. And all that happened, she simply got saved by the grace of God. The woman next door was one of the most awful creatures you ever saw in your life. I mean, she was devilish. And she was always doing some wicked things to this woman we're talking about. And do you know when that woman got saved, that woman next door changed? She was sure she changed. But you know who got changed, don't you? And she began to love that woman and like that woman. And witness to that woman. And it was amazing how she loved that woman next door. Fascinating. And all that's happened is she's simply been saved by the grace of God. And then, my dear friends, it's amazing. She's waiting for the man to open the door of the church. I mean, just waiting for him. She was so hungry for God. I mean, she was waiting for him to open the church up. And no one had to tell her she needed to go to church. And not only that, but she was sitting there one night. And the deacons had been back in a board meeting. And they had their little calculators out. And they were trying to figure out how to do a little project for God. And they were so ashamed of themselves because they couldn't come up with an answer. And they were really good men, you know. And they came out and they appointed one of the old deacons, my friend, to get up and say, Now, folk, we're sorry, but we just can't figure out how to do it. Well, this woman didn't know she should have kept her mouth shut. She jumped up and said, I don't understand. You can't figure out how to do it. She said, I've been reading the Bible this week. And I've read where there were several million people that God led out of Egypt with a cloud by day and a fire by night. And literally opened up the Red Sea and took those millions of people across. And, my friends, when those other people started coming down through that same hole, God sent angels down and screwed the nets off of the church wells. And there swamped that whole bunch. And crowd went out on the other side singing victory, got to the bitter water and turned it sweet. And then, my friends, walked that bunch for 40 years through the wilderness and never had to change her clothes. And God provided quail for them. She got the magnifying God and glorifying God. And those people who knew God began to get stirred a little bit and shook a little bit. And all it was is this woman had simply been saved and she was full of faith. That's right. She was full of lead faith. She was full of love. And she was full of spirit control. All that's happened to this woman, she has simply been saved. That's right. And she was full of compassion. Oh, John, the postman she'd known since school days, and he came by and she just had to tell him. He got to squalling and bawling, he got saved. It's marvelous. Man, it's something. All that happened to this woman, she's just been saved. And, listen, one day she was sitting in church. She was sitting in church. And the preacher got to mention giving. And he happened to mention tithing. She punched the woman next to her and she said, what does that mean? She said, well, it means you give 10% to God. She said, is that all? She said, listen, since I got saved by the grace of God, she said, since I got born of the spirit of the living God, she said, listen, I'll tell you my chickens are laying more, the cows giving more milk. Of course, some of you don't date back that far. But she said, what I'm saying is God is so blessing us. And God has been blessing, and the more I give, the more God blesses me. And the more I get blessed, the more I give. What do you mean 10%? I've been giving everything I can get my hands on. God's just been pouring it in. Amen. The only thing happened to this woman, she doesn't even know the Bible teaches being filled with the Holy Spirit. All this woman knows is that she's a sinner, and Jesus is the only one that can handle her problems. Amen. She doesn't know any theology, she just knows it. That's it. Well, let's watch this woman for a few minutes. Let's watch her a little longer. Okay? I'm taking my time tonight because I don't want to ruin my voice because of this drainage. It's Louisiana weather's tough on me. The woman, after about six months in church, now you watch her. After about six months in the church, one of the officials walks up to her and says, Hey, we need a worker. And she says, well, he says to her, I said, listen, we watched you, and we've listened to you talk, and we believe that you can handle this class. We've watched over 30 people be baptized in this church because of you in the last six months. She says, listen, brother, listen, I am nothing in this world, and if anything has happened, Jesus has done it. I haven't. And she said, I'll just be honest with you. I'm just not qualified, and I don't understand, and I'm just not going to take it. Well, she got by this old boy this time. But six more months passed. Now, you better hold on, folks, because I'm going to take your religion away from you. Amen. I'm going to take it in just a minute. Listen to me carefully. Six more months passed, and now the big official comes to her. And says, ma'am, we need a worker. And we know that you have led over 60 people to Jesus this last year and have been baptized in this church. And we know. Now, some of you may doubt that, but let me tell you something. Listen to me carefully. I have checked this all over this country for 30 years and in some foreign countries, and this is what I found. Any preacher that makes a study of the people will tell you that when a person gets saved by the grace of God, for six months or a year after that person gets saved, centered around that person, people will be constantly led to Jesus Christ while the old heads sit by and let the world go to hell. And these young Christians are the ones that bring people to Jesus. Very few people in the church house goes into any spiritual maturity that wins souls after one year. They're paid to. And if they don't produce, they'll lose their job. Amen. Yes, sir. Now, listen. Watch this woman carefully. Watch her carefully. Because we're still talking about how to perform, how to do it, how to be the Christian you're struggling to be. And you wouldn't even be here if you didn't have an interest. Amen. Now, we're talking about how to do it tonight. This woman, this man comes up to this woman and says, Ma'am, we've watched you. Over 60 people have been baptized in this church, and we've got to have a teacher. She says, Listen, brother. God has shown me that I'm nothing. And if anything has happened through my life, it's been the Lord Jesus. And I'm just not qualified. Well, now, watch him work on her. He says, Ma'am, he said, We know you are one of the most outstanding Christians in this church. And he starts piling on the compliments, building the pride of life, and making her think she's something. I want you to know, in this day of psychology, that might stimulate a man, but it will not stimulate him except in the flesh. And I want you to know something. In this day of motivation, a wrong concept about yourself will lead you to hell, if you're not saved. And it will lead you to disaster in Christianity. Yes, sir. And so here this woman is. My dear friends. She got through the first one, but now he's playing on the pride of life. He says, Listen, if anybody in this church can take this class, you can. She said, I'm sorry, sir. I just can't handle it. Well, she gets by him again. Now watch him. He says, Well, I didn't tell you. Now he swings to the other side. He doesn't have to think this up. This is just humanism. He doesn't have to think it up. You don't have to think up junk like this. But this is what happened. He says, Well, Ma'am, I didn't tell you, but it's just a bunch of little kids. It's just a bunch of little kids, and we've got to have somebody in there. And, you know, you can handle it. I'll tell you what the younger they are, the more godly and more full of wisdom you need to be. After you pass 40 folk, not many folk are going to help you anyway. Because you are sought in your ways. And you wouldn't change for God or anybody else. That's right. You don't believe that, do you? Amen. I guarantee you, my dear friend, not many people have been changed after they're 40 sitting in this building. That's right. Now, she says, I can't do it. I just can't do it. Even that. You know, I mean, playing down these kids and her ability to handle them. She says, I can't do it. Now he comes up with another one. He says, Well, I'll tell you what. Now this is awful. He said, Those kids are not going to have a teacher if you don't take it. Now he's playing on a sympathy. I mean, how devilish can you get? Amen. They're not going to have a teacher if you don't take it. Phew. But she passes it again. She said, I just can't handle it. Now watch her now, folk. I'm going to drop the bomb. He says, Ma'am. Now this is his last step. Now watch it because it's going to be hard to handle it. He said, Ma'am, all God expects out of you and all this church expects out of you is to go in that class and try your best. Now, you see, that is so humanistic. And my dear friends, she said, Well, she's not a mature Christian. She's just a babe in Christ. And she says, Well, if that's all God expects out of me and that's all this church expects out of me, hey, I can do that. Hey, I can do that. I can do that. Amen. Oh, I can do that. See, up to this time, she's known she's nothing. And she's known if anything gets done, it's Jesus. She doesn't understand it because she's a babe in Christ. And so what has she been doing? She belongs to Jesus. And she didn't even know it, but she's completely relying on him. But hey, she's told something else. She can do herself. And you know what happens to her? She said, Well, if that's all God expects out of me and that's all this church expects out of me, hey, I can do that. I can do that. I can try my best. And watch it, folk, because she's fixing to walk off and leave Jesus and start living in Adelphia. Because she starts trying to do her best. She walks out by the pastor and says, Pastor, pray for me. I'm taking a class. I'm going to try the best I can to do it. That's all sounds religious, doesn't it? She goes out of there and she starts trying her best. It takes probably six months. But after about six months, one day she notices that that old TV and that novel has a grip on her again. And my dear friends, Jesus is not speaking to her out of that blessed old book like he was. And she's having, now watch it, she's having to make herself read it. She's making herself, for many reasons but one reason, when she gets to class on Sunday, she wants to be sure and able to check, I've read my Bible. And there she goes. She's easing out so easily that then, my friend, the next thing she knows, a little 13-year-old boy says, Mama must have lost something because she's not under spirit control anymore. She's losing her temper and being impatient and unkind. Amen. And the woman next door, all at once just begins to change and get mean again. And she has a set to whether she'd like to slap her face. But now she's a big member of that church down there, and Christians don't do that. And so she's got enough spirit of self-control that she doesn't slap her face, but in her heart she wants to do it. They got a new postman. She knows she's supposed to win souls, so she goes out there and tries to win that new postman of Jesus, and he's so polite and kind. And she tells her story just like she did before, when John got saved. But you know what? He says, thank you, ma'am, and walked away. There wasn't the power and the glory of God on her life. Amen. Now she finds herself having some arcs in the ditch. And she's not waiting for the church to open anymore. She slips in a little late. You know, just shows that she's dragging. And they got a big program coming up, and they're expecting her to stand and magnify God full of faith. And she gets up and says, folks, I just can't see it. I just can't figure out how we can do it. And her faith is gone. That's right. And she says, God, I know you'll understand. I need to bar this this week, and next week I'll pay you back. Amen. She finds herself manipulating the money. Yes, sir. And my friend, about that time, an evangelist comes along. Listen to him. He holds that word up. And he says, listen, if you're not faithful to church, you're not tithing, you're not winning souls, if you're not loving your neighbors yourself, if you're not being patient and kind, you're not full of faith, you're a flat full of the devil. I mean, he's done. And he lays out the law. And boy, here she is. And she loves Jesus with all of her heart. But she's a miserable woman. And she hears this message, my friends, and she sees herself. And every time he says something, she says, oh God, that's me. That's me. That's me. That's me, God. And when that invitation is given, brother, she heads to the altar. And she falls at that altar, and she gets up and confesses her sins. She gets right with everybody she knows. She does everything she knows to do to get right with God. And she walks out by the pastor that night feeling clean, forgiven, wonderful, excited. And she says, preacher, pray for me, because I'm going to try to be the best Christian this church knows anything about. And you know how long her revival lasts? You know how long it lasts? About two weeks. You know why it lasts that long? Because that's the emotional element. That's about as long as the flesh can hold up. Amen. And she starts slipping back. She starts slipping back. And she finds herself having to make herself do these things again. And she struggles. And the good that she wants to do, she finds herself unable to do it. And the evil that she doesn't want to do, she finds herself doing. There's that struggle again. Now, she's like a typical Baptist. You know what she'll do? She'll say, all God expects out of me is to try my best. That's all God expects out of me. That's a typical Baptist. I call that a rationalist. Amen. I don't smoke. I don't chew. I don't wear shorts. I don't go mixed swimming. And I don't do a few things like this. And therefore, I am okay. But you have resentment and hate and criticism and all that junk in your heart. And my dear friend, you're just as mean as hell as the man that does all that junk. It's the same old flesh. I ain't mine too. So boss, she just tries. She tries to be patient. She even tries to have faith. You ever had trouble with that? Trying to have faith. She tries. The more she tries, the more she fails. And the more she fails, the more she tries. By the way, folks, do you know anyone like this? Do you? Do you know someone like this? And here she goes. The more she tries, the more she fails. And the more she fails, the more she tries. And she's in that awful, awful struggle. And my friend, one day, while she's in such an awful struggle of just trying her best, doing the best she can, she's sitting, listening, and the preacher just says something. And she sees herself so wretched. Here's what she says. Oh, wretched man that I am. Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ, our Lord. And she sees Jesus as the only answer. So you know what? She dies herself. And she comes to Jesus. Now watch her. She comes to Jesus, and she falls at His feet. And she says, Lord Jesus, I am bankrupt. I am tongue-tied. Oh, God, I'm such a wicked sinner. I think Jesus could easily smile and say, I've been waiting a long time for this. And boy, she says, God, Lord Jesus, I cannot live the Christian life. It's impossible. Amen. Jesus, have mercy. I can't do it. And boy, she's desperate before Jesus. Now watch. Jesus can say this. And He says it to this woman. He says, listen, ma'am, Mr. Law says thou shall not kill. But I say, if you have hate in your heart, you're guilty of murder. Oh, Jesus, there's no way I can live it. He says, yes, I know. That's not right. Mr. Law says thou shall not commit adultery. But listen, Jesus says, if you have lust in your heart, you're guilty of adultery. Lord Jesus, there is no way I can live it. No. There's no way. In yourself, there's no way. Oh. Mr. Law says give 10%. Jesus says, listen, it's what you keep. It's how you give it. I'm telling you, you're not only supposed to give it, but you're supposed to rejoice. And take pleasure in giving. Oh. She says, Lord Jesus, there's no way. Mr. Law says go to church. But Jesus says, go and enjoy it. Oh, I mean, folk, you can just go on and on. She says, Lord Jesus, there is no way. He says, I know. There's no way. She says, Lord, if you don't do it, I can't. I'm a total failure. And Jesus, you're going to have to do it. Say, folk, she just got out of adultery. Amen. She's come back to the one she belongs to. And she walks out by the pastor. She says, Pastor, listen, I don't know. I don't understand it. But tonight Jesus showed me that I can't. There's no way. But yet he expects me to. I can't, but he can. And if I fail tonight, before I get home, I'm going to fail. Trusting him. Relying on him. Depending on him. Every step I take, he will have to take the blame. And boy, here she goes. Amen. She's learning. Right. You see, if that handkerchief was a glove, I could say to that glove, glove, pick up those glasses. And that glove could not pick up those glasses. Glove, pick up that Bible. That glove could not pick up that Bible. But if I reached over there and slipped my hand in that glove, and then said to that glove, pick up those glasses, you know what that glove could do? It could pick up those glasses. I could say, glove, pick up that Bible, and that glove could pick up that Bible. Right. You know why? Because inside that glove is a hand that has the ability to perform. And you may not believe this, because you are spirit, soul, and body. And you're something. And if you don't watch the world, they'll make you think you're something. Amen. I mean preachers will make you think you are something. And the only reason you are something is because of the living Christ in you, my dear friends, and nothing more. Your work before God is determined and expressed according to our ability to come to the end of ourselves and let him work for us. No more. Yes, sir. That's right. Jesus is it. Right? You have him in you. And he can do it for us. Right. He can do it for us. Let me just say this. There's no way in the world you and I can live the Christian life apart from Jesus. And as long as we let this world tell us, hey, you can do it. You've got it within you. If it is within you, it's Jesus. There's nothing else. There's no other way to do it. Amen. And by the way, folks, you don't learn what I'm talking about tonight. God has to show it to you. And you have to receive it. There's no way in the world you can study this out. It has to come by revelation. Amen. Now, I never will forget this story as long as I live. Now, years ago, I put this message on record. I even still have a few of those records. And I asked them to cut this record off, the tape, when I got to this story. And they didn't do it. And they put this story I'm going to tell you on record before I even knew it. And I had to call this kid and find out about it and ask him if it was all right. And he approved it, but it was unusual. But years ago, a little old boy was walking down a path out of the mountains in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with his mother. And she had her hand around his hand. And they were walking down that path. And all at once, he heard the blast of a gun. And he felt his mother's hand jerk. And he looked around, and his mother had fallen to the ground. And she was shot with a shotgun, a buckshot. And there were several holes in her body. He could see the blood. And he looked up the path, and there stood a man. And he could describe that man with a hat, with a pipe, with a gun. And he looked up there, and he saw that man. And that man was just standing there. So the kid ran for his life. He was just five years old. And he ran for his life. And he got out there in those bushes. And he heard his mother begging for help. And he just couldn't stand it. He ran back out there where she was. And that man was still standing there. And he said, hate was born in his heart. And he said, they caught that man and put him in an institution. And he grew up hating that man. And when he got him a car, he found him a place in the woods where he was going to take that man when that man got out of that penitentiary and kill him. And he'd go out there almost weekly and just think about it. Well, he had so much hate in him that I personally believe his little old body never developed like it should have. And he was just a little fellow, all twisted up. But some girl fell in love with him and married him. And after they got married, this girl got saved by the grace of God. And when she got saved, she started praying for him. And one day he got saved. And a few days or a couple of weeks after he got saved, he was working in a hosiery mill right out of Winston-Salem. And he said he was standing there and said God spoke to him. Not audibly, but in his heart. And he said, God said, go tell the man who killed your mother that you love him. And he said it was so real. He said, I backed up and said, I just simply looked up and said, God, I can't do that. I can't love that man. He said, son, I know you can't. But I can. And if you'll let me do it, I'll do it through you. That little boy didn't understand the theology of what was going on. But he said, here's my life, Lord. If you can love that man through me, here is my life. And a few days he went to see that man, and they wouldn't let him see him. So he came back to his church and asked his church to pray. And they prayed. And they prayed, and they came when they said, you can go see him. And the man knew he was coming to see him. He knew he was coming to see him. And he said when he walked into that room, the man was about half turned, about halfway turned his back to it. I guess because the man was so ashamed. I don't know. But he said he walked up to that man and put those little arms around him and said, sir, I love you. Jesus loves you. And he said, Brother Manley, I really did. But he said, you know, I knew I couldn't. And the Lord did in me. And do you know that fellow got saved? And do you know I thought the story should have ended there until I heard the rest of it. He said, do you know, Brother Manley, a few weeks after that man got saved, maybe a couple of months really, he said, do you know they paroled that fellow? And he said, do you know who they paroled him to? You guessed it. He said they paroled him to me. And said that man went. And for two and a half years until he died, he lived in my home. And he said, I've never had a better time in my life. Those were the greatest days of my life. I loved him. I loved him. He said Jesus did it. You see, that little old boy didn't understand how to love that man. But he knew he couldn't. And he let Jesus do it. Now you and I are just as heftless. Amen. We're just as heftless, even though I forsook this thought a while ago. But we're as heftless as that glove. We can't do it. We're body, soul, and spirit, and we think we can do it. But we can't do it. And Paul learned that he couldn't do it. But Jesus could. And he walks right on through the book of Romans. My dear friends, so filled with the presence and the power of God, that he allowed the law of life in Christ Jesus to work in his life. Right? You say, what do you mean, Preacher? I'm trying to quit. I've got a pair of glasses in my hand. If I drop those glasses like that, they fall. But if I take these glasses and I drop them and I catch them in my hand, there is another law working stronger than the law of gravity. Amen. And when you let Jesus have your life, your life, my life, this old flesh that I'm in, is involved in the law of sin and death. But when we let Jesus Christ have his way in our life, there's a stronger law working. Life in Christ Jesus that enables us to do what Jesus wants us to do. Amen. That's right. And when we quit trusting, even though we've been saved for years, and we quit trusting, and we quit relying on him, we go down. That law still works. Amen. The law of life. Death, sin, death, life in Christ Jesus. Amen. Yes, sir. Paul walked right on through Romans 8. Right? Victory every step of the way. And the Spirit of God made him so much like Jesus that I hear him saying something that I've never been able to get away from in all my life. And this is something. Listen as he says these following words. I say the truth in Christ, I lie not. My conscience also bearing me witness in the Holy Ghost that I have a great heaviness and continuous sorrow in my heart. For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh. Do you hear those words? Do you? Here is a man, a man like you and me. A man so much like Jesus Christ that this man is saying that he would be willing to go to hell if Christ would save his people. Can you believe a man could say that? Huh? Can you believe a man could love souls that much? I don't know of any words in the Bible that sounds more like Jesus than that in all my life. I've never found it. Have you, brother? He said, I'd be willing. Can you believe that God can take a man like you and me and so work in his life that we would be willing to change our heavenly home for a fiery grave if our kinsmen would simply be saved by the grace of God? Boy, that's something. And while this crowd is running around over the world talking about their experiences, my dear friends, where is their cry for God to save their kinsmen? They talk about their spiritual maturity. And all of these manifestations, my dear friend, I'll tell you what, friend. Where is the cry? Where is the cry? That's the cry of the Spirit of God in a man. That's the cry of the Spirit of God in a man that is really working in the power and the glory of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, the Son of the living God.