In this sermon, the preacher discusses the brutal treatment of slaves in the past, highlighting the inhumane conditions they endured. He emphasizes the importance of the Holy Spirit in bringing life and vitality to the preaching of the word of God. The preacher also reflects on the seriousness of living in the present time and the purpose of human existence. He emphasizes that as believers, our purpose is not just to know and speak truth, but to spread life and bring joy to others. The sermon concludes with a discussion on the significance of the virgin birth of Jesus and the uniqueness of his identity as the Son of God.

We've got Jacob back. If you don't know who he is, he's there. The prodigal has returned. He's been in Mexico and had a real time of blessing. I asked him, now don't preach. Speech, but not preach. He's going to tell us of something that happened through a group down the back lane, some of you know them, the Calgary Commission. And about a young man that went there, well, now it shows. Larry and I got saved about 14 years ago in a school of Bible where a thousand kids, six years. And I know they had been raised up in a city of a million, a large city. Great. And the heart of the... Yes, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Well maybe we'll select you to be our missionary to go join them. He's learned some Spanish this last two or three weeks. He can say si and he can say senorita. But he was blessed and that's great to hear that. We had a great meeting last Sunday night, I don't know, maybe a thousand people. It was a great joy to make such a number of enemies in one meeting. Well, that's my job. The fellow introduced me and he said, what shall I say? I said nothing, just say Brother Len Rayfield. When I said, I said, well, just say trouble has come. He didn't, but it came. And the Lord built the place up and I guess the room was thrice as wide as this in this lovely church. The place was jammed out with people weeping, seeking God. We started at half past six and finished at about ten. And they were still there praying and seeking God at ten o'clock. And that's what we need to see. Well that was great. As we finished the meeting a young man came up to me and he said, do you know Penny? No, I don't know Penny. That's all I ever carry, it's all my wife will let me have. I used to have a penny in my pocket, don't have it tonight. I said, who's Penny? Penny Lee. No. No? You don't know who she is? No. Well, he said she was speaking at a college in North Dakota three weeks ago. And she's in pro-life. And most of the pro-life folk blast, you know, what they're there to do, which is good. But this girl not only has, she has an eloquence, a natural eloquence. She not only has a great concern about abortion, but she has an anointing of the Spirit. And she linked it with sin and the cross. And a man jumped up in the meeting, he said, oh God have mercy on me. I've paid for three abortions for my girlfriends. Somebody stood up and screamed out, I've committed this, I've done that, I've done the other. And just a wave of confession like that, just went over the place. And he said the meeting lasted 30 hours. Now I've told you what will happen when Revival comes. You better set the timer. You know, people use timers on their ovens for all kinds of things. Set it for 30 hours, one Friday night, we'll pray all through the night. Wouldn't you like that? I would. We'll do that sometime, we'll arrange a night. We'll let the older people slip out for an hour and sleep and come back. No we won't, because if we did, Jacob would go. He said people were so convinced and convicted, they were leaning up against the wall. For eight hours at a stretch to try and get to the microphone and make declarations of how they wanted to be purged and so forth and so on. He said I've never been in anything like that. I said I haven't been in meetings quite so long. I've been in meetings where brokenness has come. I've met people who went through the Shang Tung Revival. And when Revival comes, we've never seen Revival, don't know a thing about it. We have a crowded meeting a few weeks, it's Revival, I don't believe that. Revival closes taverns, Revival closes dance halls, Revival hits the devil. It isn't just people getting moved emotionally and stirred. Good Lord, we millions of people have had that in America in the last two or three years. But where are they? Have they become prayer warriors? Anyhow he said it just swept on and he said I was awed. Here's this young woman with such a blazing anger against impurity, against sin and such a love for Christ and such an anointing and so uplifting the cross in all its power that people just melted. And he said for over, I think actually he said 34 hours that meeting went on. Well I rejoice in that. Do you? Then a man called me this morning and he called me about some books which is always good of course. Don't tell Jacob he'll be over at my house. Oh I told you about some books, I said yes. He said I told you about my pastor, I said yes. He said he'd just been behind the Iron Curtain, didn't go for a trip. What in the world did he go for? Well some of you have heard about the Moravian Church, have you? You know the Moravians had that prayer meeting that lasted from as I like to use the figure from here When the clock just got to 11 the Holy Ghost came on the 23rd of August 1727. That prayer meeting lasted 100 years without breaking. Little boys and girls chatted in prayer. 100 years. Tremendous upbringing, tremendous breaking. You could go at 2 o'clock in the afternoon there were people praying. 2 o'clock in the morning, 12 o'clock midday, 12 o'clock, any hour of the day. For 100 years. No wonder they were the pioneer missionaries actually. The best since Pentecost. I've told you there were 2 young guys sitting across here. Last Sunday morning I preached in a ballroom that was jammed and folks standing outside. There were 2 blonde young men. And I pointed to them and I said you know young fellows like you stood on the slave blocks. Down there in St. Thomas and Antigua. They stood on the slave blocks. When they brought up these precious black men and they auctioned them. You know they looked at their teeth and punched their bellies and checked them. And then these blondes got up and stood there. Who's your master? God. What are you doing here? I want to be a slave. What do you mean a slave? There's no way onto the plantation but to sell yourself. And they were auctioned like cattle. And when they went into the fields to plow. Instead of using 5 oxen or 5 whatever else they would use, horses. They used 5 men. And there was an unwritten law amongst them. It was spread back to Germany. Spengler was one of the leading preachers there. And the law is that when you've been sold on the block. And they take you out. They take 4 of the men with you. You get in the middle. Because if you get to this end you can't shout right over there. Get in the middle then you can witness on both sides. They put iron collars around their necks. Until the iron cut into their necks. And they got thrashing necks. They put a belt around them with big studs in it. And a chain. And they became the human horses. In the scorching heat. I've been down in those islands and it's hot. That was the only way they could get into those. We don't have that now. God help us. I get so blazing angry. I was in a Bible school. I said listen. The Mormons. Their law is this. That your son or your daughter must go to the mission field for 2 years. And be financed by the family. If you have 6 children. You have to pay for the 6 of them. The church doesn't pay. When they go they have to make a confession. They have to sign that they won't write home. They won't write to their girlfriend. They won't watch TV. They won't phone home. They can't go to movies. They have the strictest discipline of anybody outside of. What do you call it? West Point I think. I said in that famous Bible school. I said in God's name. Could you get students here. If you said you can't write home for 6 months. You can't write to your girlfriend. You can't phone home. You can't write letters. You can't go out off the campus. Day and night you have to get buried into this thing. They are buried into that damnable thing called Mormonism. And yet they have sacrificed for it. They put us to shame. No wonder Jesus said some of these zealots. When they really get on fire with their devilish thing. They will encompass sea and land. And they will be 7 times more deadly and damned at the end. But where in God's name are we? It's time we got serious about being serious about revival. Well this man that called me said. Well my pastor is back from behind the Iron Curtain. He went there to help and uplift the people. And he said when he got there. There is a young couple. Now young is in quotes. There is a young couple there he went to visit. The girl is I think 81. No she is 80. And her boyfriend is 91. And they have been behind the Iron Curtain for years planting churches. And they said you know we are having a wave of ease. And it's not good. And he said the young people said please pray that the government will tighten things up. Because when we had affliction. And the old man has been beaten up. And some of the young people have been beaten. And they said look the young people are as firm as a rock on the atonement. They are as firm as a rock on the sonship of Jesus Christ. They are as firm as a rock on the work of the Holy Ghost. And the young people said would you pray that God will intensify the persecution. Because when we were persecuted we were pure. We were pressed up to the wall. Either you have to make a total confession, a total commitment and live all out for Christ. Or else you are in serious trouble. You have to become a communist or something. And he said the young people were begging. Pray the government will tighten things up. We want a pure church. But we want one here. God knows we want it in our condition. Don't disturb our lethargy. Don't disturb our status quo. Don't disturb our formality. Let's have nice Sunday services with nice quiet meetings where nobody gets disturbed. I'll tell you what we need some hellfire preaching. We need something that troubles us. We need to leave the sanctuary with anointed eyes that know how to weep. He said you see these young people there. He said the way they pray. Of course they can't run out and play tennis you see. They can't go to the basketball court. They can't go to the baseball court, the diamond whatever you call it. It's either Christ or nothing. And he said they are so sold out. They are so deliberate. They are so holding on to the word of God. It made me wonder what we are doing in America. Well that's true of England and other countries. But it won't be long like this. It can't be. Either God in mercy comes and runs the heavens and visits us or he comes in judgment. As I told the crowd Sunday night maybe our option is this. Either concentrate in prayer or pray in concentration camps. I'm not angry about them having a rock concert down the road. They'll have one in a week or two. Thousands go. And lots of them could be here tonight but they don't. They've no appetite. They want showmanship. They want entertainment. It's Christian entertainment anyhow. Let them get my head chopped off. What do I care? I've had it chopped off before and stuck on again. So I'm doing pretty good. But it's a desperate hour. When I heard of this man coming back from behind the Iron Curtain. He said I've nothing. How could I uplift them? All I could say we'll be praying for you. But he said their zeal, their passion and their vision and their longing. It doesn't matter Lord. If there's anything else to strip, strip us. If there's anything to tear away, tear it away. We don't want to stand in your way. We're not too concerned about that. We want nice little comfortable meetings. Somebody say some sweet things. Don't shout too much. Make it nice and easy. Spoon feed us. Be nice and quiet. Open your mouth. Here's a lollipop. Here's a Christian lollipop for you. I want to see some meetings like the Salvation Army used to have. When the Spirit of the Living God moved. You don't have to. I would not. I do not ever have an altar call with singing. I refuse to stir people emotionally. I challenged people last Sunday night. There are all kinds of preachers, doctors. What have you got? I said right now. Don't come to this altar to get blessed. Forget it. Don't come to this altar for help. Come to die. The altar is for one of two things. Sacrifice or death. If you don't want to do it, well, go home. If you want to do it, get up. And you know, just as I pressed the button, they jumped up all over the place and stampeded to the altar. The son-in-law of the founder said, I never saw it like that in my life. Well, I said, I didn't do it. I wasn't sticking a pin in everybody. They were so. And then when they got there, they were groaning and weeping and acknowledging how little prayer they had. I preached on Isaiah 6. I said, remember, here's a prophet of God. And what does he say? He doesn't say, Lord, my prayer life's a little bit slack. Could you help me? Lord, I'm sorry I'm behind on my tithing. I said, tell me what he did say. He said two things. I'm undone and I'm unclean. And that brought him deliverance. And we beat around the bush. We blame this and that and the other. There's not a power in America. You can combine communism, Mormonism, Romanism, ritualism, humanism, all the other devilish things together. They're not holding revival up. It's the church. She's unclean. She's greedy for money. Somebody asked me the other day about the prophet. I said, you tell a prophet he never asked for money. He didn't. It's an insult to his holy father. God will supply. I've lived by faith. I remember leaving Ireland. And the lady said to me, do you really? I said, best I know how. She said, could I ask you a question? I said, go ahead. She said, do you trust a faithful God or do you trust God's faithful? Pretty good one, isn't it Bill? Prayer of faith. Hurry up, I hope the postman's here soon. It's all going to be shattered. I have a long letter on my desk now that brought my heart this week. A couple got up in years now. A few years ago there was an appeal for money and we gave a five figure sum we had for our retirement. Things have gone different since. Husband's lost his job. We're in tight spots financially. The man that got our money owns five houses in other people's names. But he owns them. He said, I wrote to him and said, listen, we're just broke now. We sent you those thousands of dollars years ago. Can't you do something for us? He said, now don't you? And she said one or two things pretty rough. And he wrote back, don't touch the Lord's anointing. I wrote back and said, you're not anointed. I said, good for you. I'd have signed it myself. God's going to break every idol on which we're leaning. Everything that's of the flesh is going to go. Every organization and system is going to go. God's going to show us his glory. Nobody's going to stick their neck. I'm sick to death of men stealing God's glory. You see names outside of these places. I don't want anything with my name on it. We steal the glory. I believe Oral Roberts came as near as anybody to moving this nation and maybe the world. If it stayed with Pentecostal holiness and kept away from the junk and the money. But God's a jealous God. And he's going to find some young men. We old grey fellows, you now brother Farrah and myself. We missed, and grey ladies too. We missed the turn in the road. God's going to send us some young men. And you don't know the name of one of them. A precious black brother there I see. Some little black boy up in Alabama. Been driving a school bus today. God got an anointing for him. He's taking this girl. These other women want to scream. They all want ministries. Here's a young lady fighting with all the power she has on pro-life. And yet the Holy Ghost comes on her, meeting after meeting. There's brokenness. There's no thundering. There's no screaming Ichabod. There's no crying against sins in a silly angry way. She uplifts Christ and says here's your answer. Here's your solution. Here is purity. Here is forgiveness. Here is pardon. Here's a miracle in your life. More than in your body, in your soul, in your emotions, in your whole being. And that's what young people are wanting. What I'm supposed to preach. Should I do that or shall I? Let's read a little anyhow. From Genesis 37. I'm not going to take it all. I'll take some another time. But I want to share some things here. But let me just say this. As we go to prayer, let's pray for behind the iron curtain. Let's pray for Penny Lee, that God will continue to use her. She won't get spoiled with success or money or something. Start building big offices and need a big staff and all that other stuff. She'll be kept humble and broken with a vision and a passion. And just sweep on like another Mara Shawl in our day. And then let's pray of course for the work that Jacob was able to witness down there in, where is it? Leon is it? In Leon. Over the border. And for the Indians, if we don't, we'll have Spencer after us. Okay. Genesis 37. And Jacob, or Israel his other name was, dwelt in the land wherein his father was a stranger, in the land of Canaan. These are the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being 17 years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren. And the lad was one of the sons, with the sons of Bilhah and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives. And Joseph brought unto his father their evil report. You know some people are trying to spot this guy. As far as I know he's the purest character apart from Daniel in the whole of the word of God. I don't believe he came gossiping. I believe he came bringing an accurate report of the condition of the nation and the nation round about. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children. Because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a coat of many colors. Let's go back a minute there, he was 17. How many young men do you know of 17 or women that God could trust with what this man went through? Of course he lived in the shadow of his famous father, wrestling Jacob. I think he must have heard his father praying and interceding time after time until his roots, his personal roots were going deeper and deeper. And God trusted him. You see we think God trusts us with prosperity and nice things. But you don't build character that way. You build character in adversity. And I believe that adversity and trial is the university God trains his saints in. And here's this 17 year old boy then. Israel or Jacob loved Joseph more than all his children because he was the son of his old age. And he made him a coat of many colors. Verse 4, when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him. Come on. I don't believe you can love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength without people hating you. Why did they hate him? Was he a better marksman with his bow and arrow? Was he swifter on his feet? I don't think so. They hated him, why? Because he was close to the heart of his father. His father loved him. And they saw the relationship of the father with the son. I remember we were up in the hills, well the other side of Sigyn there, some years ago. I went to speak and a fellow came up in a big car. He had his private plane and everything. And he asked me about my sons. I said I have three sons. He said I have. He said two of them they come for everything. Dad I need a new baseball. I need this. I need to go to a camp. I need money for that. I've got one son he said he never asked for anything. He's always somewhere around the house when I come in. He comes and nestles up the side of me and says Dad it's lovely to have you home again. I so enjoy your company. And he said you know that boy does more for me than the other boys with all their skills in sports. They always show me their trophies. They always tell me where they're going. They're always asking for money to go compete somewhere. This boy asked for nothing except to be near to me. And here we have a picture again of course of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was a son of his old age. Well whether it's right or wrong I'm going to say Jesus was the son of the father's old age. In this way that we read from Proverbs chapter 8. Proverbs chapter 8 reading from verse 12. I wisdom dwell with prudence and find out knowledge of which inventions. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil, pride and arrogancy and the evil way. And a forward mouth do I hate. Counsel is mine in understanding. Sound wisdom. I am understanding I have strength by me king's reign and prince's rule. Down to verse 20. I lead the way of righteousness in the midst of the paths of judgment. That I may cause those who love me to inherit substance. And I will fill their treasures. The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his ways before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting from the beginning or before the earth ever was. There were no deaths. Before there were no deaths. And when there were no deaths I was brought forth. When there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled. Before the hills was I. You know that kind of dreary old hymn. At least they sing it in England for funerals. Oh God our help in ages past. There's a phrase in that always stirs me. Before the hills in order stood. All earth received her frame. From everlasting thou art God. To endless years the same. A thousand ages in thy sight are like an evening gone. Short as the watch that sets the night. Before the rising sun. Well here as another part of the scripture says. Before the trees of the hills clapped their hands. He was there with the Father before there was a world. He was there in the executive if you like to put it that way. Executive eternity. Verse 26. While as yet he had not made the earth nor the fields. Or the highest part of the dust of the world. When he prepared the heavens I was there. When he set a compass upon the face of the deep. When he established the clouds above. When he strengthened the fountains of the deep. When he gave the sea its decree. And the water should not pass his commandments. When he appointed the foundations of the earth. Then was I by him as one brought up with him. I was daily his delight rejoicing always before him. Rejoicing in the habitable parts of the earth. And my delights were unto the sons of men. Verse 34. Blessed is the man that heareth me. Watching daily at my gates. This I believe is a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. The only begotten of the Father. He wasn't derived. He's from the very heart of God. Created again by the Holy Ghost. I don't know why people stumble over the virgin birth. Do you Bill? I mean this is simple but it's profound. Because I found it out for myself. The question that puzzles me is this. Why should people wonder about the last Adam being born. And he was the last Adam. He was born without a mother. When the first Adam was born without a father. Think about that. Where's the problem for God? He has none. We have the problem. But it's this mighty being. The first born. Or the born of old age. The Lord let the world run so long. Then he sends his son. Verse 3 of 37 says. Israel loved Joseph more than his children. Because he was a son of his old age. And he made him a coat of many colors. Why? Because he was a treasure to his father. Because he was distinctive. I think it was to mark him out as the. What was he? Who was he born of? Rachel. You know I get a lot of hope in this. People tease me about it. But I do. I get a lot of hope in this for the simple reason. That one day. Rachel got to the place. Where she didn't care about her. What do you call these fancy dresses you wear? Oh designer dress. That's right. Martha doesn't have one anyhow. But anyhow. It's nice to know you know. You know we show off a bit. She isn't concerned. About her appearance. She doesn't come out neat. As a competitor with the other woman in the house. The other woman has children. She doesn't. She's barren. And she comes to the place one day. I see her coming out. I suppose it was a tent. She comes there. And throws herself down before Jacob. And she almost screams out. Give me Jacob. Give me children or I die. We don't pray like that. God help us. We pray as though. Well Lord. This is our little petition. And if it's not. If it won't exhaust you. Would you kindly do this? If it won't baffle you. Will you kindly do that? I don't believe God answers prayer. He answers desperate prayer. He answers prayer with blood in it. He answers prayer with tears in it. That's why I like to hear Spencer and some of these guys pray. She got to the place where she couldn't live. And when you and I get there. And you can only say to God. God I don't care if I'm going to live another day. I don't care if I die in six months. As long as I see the glory of God. I keep saying to God. Lord I'm going to be like Simeon. He prayed and prayed and prayed with a little old woman. A hundred years old. And went up to other people there. And he said. I won't die until I see the salvation of God. And they put the Christ of God in his arms. And then he was prepared to go. Well I don't want to go until God rents the heavens. A dear brother prayed here the other night. So beautifully I thought. And he said. Lord I've been cheated. I've been cheated. I've never seen revival. I've never seen rent heavens. You can have your revival so called. Cost a million dollars. They don't. They don't cost a dime. True revival cost blood, sweat, tears, grief, fasting, anguish. When nothing satisfied. The verse I wanted you to sing in beneath the cross of Jesus isn't there. Wasn't there tonight. Beneath the cross of Jesus. But on the further side. No no not that one dearly. Beneath the cross. I ask no other sunshine than the sunshine of thy face. Isn't that something. Do you really mean that. Lord I don't care about new clothes. I don't care about. I want the sunshine. Why should an American go to hell. Come on tell me. I won't go to other countries. Let others go. God bless them. I pray for them. I do pray for them. I can't go to another country and tell them how to get revival. When we're dead all around here. I want to see God almighty move on Tyler. I don't need a million dollars. All I need is the favor of God. The anointing of God. The revelation from God. The money I won't care that much about it. I want to see something that is so stamped with deity. That no man dare touch it. He didn't stamp his name on it. Wesley never intended to raise Methodism. Methodism came out of Wesley. God raised a man. God found a man half Jew and half Gentile in William Booth. And revival came. And they swept through England. And there are men around the country now. Unknowns that are coming up with anointing. Coming up with power. Coming up with revelation. And God is going to embarrass us. And I'll be glad to be embarrassed. I'll tell you that. He made him a coat of many colors. I believe that was to distinguish him from his half brothers who were born of slave wives. He's the royal son. He has dignity. He has authority. Read the story. I'm going to take it here. About Cicero. Cicero had a coat of many colors. There are various people in the Old Testament. Had a special coat. It was a distinctive mark of somebody who's appointed to a particular task. They're separated to it. Jesus had many colors. There's a color in the star. Who else had a star come across the sky when he was born? Who else was escorted to the earth with a heavenly host? And they weren't singing either. They were chanting. About the Lord Jesus Christ. Who else had the heavens opened? At the baptism like the Lord Jesus had. Who else had the revelation given? On the Mount of Transfiguration. The glory of God. And it always just astounds me there that those three. And again remember the Lord does have special people. He does have Peter and James and John. That he selects out of the twelve. And then he selects John out of the three. But you have distinctive things about Jesus like the colorings. You have the mighty, mighty experience on the Mount of Transfiguration. I've often wondered why they didn't fall before him. But they didn't because it wasn't the full glory. But God puts a special mark on his people when there's revival. People go around the street with a glow. They go around the street with a joy. Everything they touch has life. You see people say today, oh our job is to dispel truth. We're ministers. We're to dispel nothing of the kind. We're not here to speak truth. We're here to spread life. You can have truth as dead as a doornail. A doctor told me one day twice two is five. Twice four is eight. Twice eight is sixteen. Twice sixteen is thirty-two. Twice thirty-two is sixty-four. Twice sixty-four is what? One hundred and twenty-eight. Then he said has it done you any good? It's truth. What's there going to be thundering out of this book? It's dead unless the Holy Ghost makes it live. People go to sleep. They're bored. Our job is to bring life. Jesus didn't say I've come that they might have truth. He said I've come that they might have life. And have it more abundantly. Have it overflowing in every part of their being. You know I realize today in a new way. It's really a very very serious thing to live in the hour in which we're living. Not because the walls are coming in and the roofs coming in. It's a serious thing to have a personality. To have a brain. To have a heart. To have emotions. To have life. What are they here for? For me to stir up and amuse myself and enjoy my... No they're His. The psalmist said upon an instrument of ten strings will I praise thee. What ten strings? I don't know. Say you use your two feet. Your two hands. That's two, four. You mustn't get lost here. Two eyes. That's six. And your tongue. And your heart. You've got ten things there. You know when God gets men like this. To realize again that He is God. You can't have blessing without cursing. You can't have the life of God without the hatred of the devil. I don't care who you are. 1st Paul says that when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren they hated him. For what? Had he been fighting them? Had he been stealing? Had he been getting somebody's birthright? As I say had he been target practicing and lick them all? Was he the best athlete? No he was near to the heart of the father. And the father whispered secrets to him. Maybe he too had a prayer life something like his father's. His brethren hated him and could not speak peace unto him. But come on. Tell me in the name of the Lord. Why do you get up so upset that people hate you? After all Jesus was the purest man that has ever walked the earth. But they hated him. And who hated him? His own family hated him. He had to get out of his own home. Hadn't he at one time? His family was up against him. And it says here that when his brethren saw their father loved him. You'll get your worst injuries from people who profess the name of Jesus. He was his brethren. You say a Christian has done this. A Christian has been bitter. A Christian has been scornful. A Christian has ridiculed me. A Christian slandered me. So what? Isn't that terrible for a Christian to do that? Sure it is. I've got one word for you. What's that? They weren't Christians. They were professing Christianity. They're not Christians. I believe the most awesome thing in the world. I have it partly as a preacher. But the most awesome thing too is to be a Christian in this day in which we're living. We're the only salt that God has. To arrest the corruption that's in the world today. You just say they hated me without a cause. Doesn't it say in John 17? What? What are you amazed at? You come telling me. You know the world hates us. I mean we're godly people. We're kind people. We're gracious people. We've been healing the sick. Cleansing the lepers. Doing all the things. And yet the people hate us. Why? Because stagnant religions. Dead priests and other people. As soon as these men came in. It's like putting a ruler up at the side of something crooked. It looks more crooked still. And so they hated him. Let me read it to you from the 7th chapter of Acts. It's a great chapter. Read it sometimes to yourself. But it says in verse 9. The patriarchs, these were his brothers, moved with envy. Oh what a hellish thing that is. I know people who are envied for their cheerful, beautiful personalities. Some people are envied because of their lifestyle. But what's it saying? Proverbs 14. Envy is as rottenness of the bones. And you know what that is? Once you get rottenness in the bones, you're in bad trouble. For envy. Didn't Paul say to the church of Corinth. There is among you envying and strife and divisions. Envy is internal. Strife is external. Division is hell. How was I going to say that? Let me say oh to myself again. Remind myself. Envy is internal. Strife is external. Division is internal. Modern preachers say well the church had corrupted so badly. Look how badly it was. All the uncleanness in the church of Corinth. That's not what the word of God says. It says there are among you. And as Paul has said so many times here. Every little fellowship, every church has a number of good people and some very very bad people. But envy is as rottenness of the bones. If people have envy, I don't doubt anything they could do. You know the Olympic games that we have now. They celebrate it 400 years before Christ was born. And each man for his particular skill got a special reward. One year there was an exceptional young man. He just wrestled everybody. And I mean wrestling. I don't mean like these big balls of blubber that you see on TV. I mean muscle men. You know they were as trim as Apollo and as handsome as Adonis. And there they rehearsed. And before the emperor and thousands of people they did their wrestling. And one young man surpassed everybody. And to the amazement of everybody he carried off the prize. So he had to go up on the steps you know. And the emperor put a wreath on his head and hailed him. As he went home an old man met him. And he said and so you're the world's champion wrestler. He said yes sir. Well he said every round you won so easily. But he said I'm an old man. Well he said sir I don't want to wrestle you. He said no I don't want to wrestle. I want you to notice as you go through the square. Have you ever seen a figure of a man crouching like this? Well he was a world champion when I was a young man. He was the most superior wrestler. You wouldn't have had a chance with him. He would have picked you up and broke you over his knee. The young man was furious. He said no young man you did your best. But you're not in the class of that man. He's the most superior wrestler that ever came out of Greece. That's why we have a permanent monument to him in the middle of the city. The young man went home he couldn't sleep. He kept saying I wish he was alive now. I know what I'd do. I'd show that guy what I'd do. Oh that fellow he said what I'd do. And in the night time he went and he climbed upon the monument. And he got his arm locked around the man. And got the other arm around his neck or something. And he wrestled with it. And he snapped the monument off at it's ankles. And it fell on him and crushed his skull and killed him on the spot. That's envy for you. Envy destroys itself. It's self destructive. It eats the heart out. It's hell in the breast. And people have to have an outlet somewhere. And I was thinking you know. I saw a doctor the other day. Handsome guy. He gets in his car. I thought well supposing he went to the hospital. And as he goes in the office somebody says excuse me sir. But I noticed that when you came yesterday morning. You've got egg all over your face. And you've got egg all over your face this morning. And he hurriedly crashed the bus. He wouldn't go like that. The last thing he does is to see that everything's right. He looks neat and tidy and preventable. He wouldn't go if he had egg all over his face. Well how in God's name do people go to church. When their faces are scarred with gossip and slander and bitterness and sin. It's a farce. If the Holy Ghost was there they'd then do that. You're not going to tell me that somebody who's slanderous. And evil and preachers do it I'll tell you. You're not going to tell me they're born again of the Spirit of God. If any man is in Christ he's a new creation. With such a shabby concept of being born again. If a man is born again he has a new heart, a new mind, a new outlook, a new vocabulary, a new interest. He's new. He's not patched up. He's new. He's a creation. Like the new creation God made at the beginning of the ages. Word of God Samuel says lift the beggar from the dunghill. Make him a prince under God. If you'd seen James the first day I saw him stagger into teen challenge. He sure looked a wreck. And Mary there too. Good night. They looked as though they'd crawled through sewers to get there. Long rotten records of sin and crime and wickedness, vileness, drugs, everything. I remember Mary going in the room and praying there and coming out saying God had done something. And James or did we call you Bunny then or what? Bunny. Went in the next day. Well that room was wonderful. It was full of Hispanics and some of the friends of Jacob here. You know they got praying. I didn't know in the world whether they were praying in tongues or Chinese or Japanese. And you know I didn't care a hill of beans. The glory of God filled the place. Men went in wicked and twisted and deformed and damned and came out alive. What are you going to do? Try and analyze that? Oh dear, dear. What pitiable ideas. A lady wrote to me today. She said somebody, a young lady in our church is always releasing the Holy Spirit. What do you think of that? I said it's like telephoning the President saying have your supper tonight. I'm sure he waits every night, the President, to find if he can have his supper. Somebody in Pittsburgh wants to say go ahead Ronnie, it's alright. What do you talk about releasing the Holy Ghost? He's sovereign, he's majestic. Learn how to release yourself. Not him. You can't release God. We can prepare the way before him, sure enough, but he's sovereign. He's full of majesty, he's full of glory. So his brothers hated him. And you get down to verse 8, it says they hated him yet more for his dreams. Then it says in verse 10, he went and told his father to his brethren and his father rebuked him. Isn't that something? Uh-huh. Well didn't Jesus say if you really start walking with God you'll find your enemies, your greatest enemies are in your own household? And it hurts. It cuts deeper for many, many reasons. But now all his brothers were against him and now his father's against him. And it says in verse 11 there, his brothers envied him. Let me go to the psalm here. Psalm 105. You see we call this so often, verse 15, it says, saying, touch not mine anointed and knew my prophets no harm. But look at the context of it. The context, verse 16, moreover he called for a famine upon the land and he break the whole staff of bread. He sent a man before them, even Joseph. Come on. Well look it, here we are, we're up here. Let's see, here we are. And then there's another place here. The only way to get to there is to be raptured, go over or build a bridge to get a helicopter or something. No, the way up there is to come down to here and go there and down here and down there and down there and down there and down there. In other way, the only way to go up is go down. And we don't want that. The man that exalteth himself shall be abased. He that humbleth himself shall be exalted. Here he is up in his father's house, there's a cost. There's no study, I think, more profitable to show you how God makes men than to study the case of Joseph. He wasn't spared a single thing. He's the darling of his father's heart and he leaves it. Do you remember Barak 12's hymn when he said, Out of the ivory palaces into a world of woe? Or do you remember that other hymn written by an American, I think, Fullerton? About Jesus, what condescension? Or down from his glory, ever-living story? From heaven to us he came and Jesus was his name. Born in a manger to his owner's stranger, a man of sorrows, tears and agony. Oh, how I love him. What condescension, bringing us redemption? Don't you think all the angels peered over when they saw a swarm of angels going down? What were they going for? They're going to see a babe that's there, being created in the womb of a woman. Don't you think they were astonished as they watched the progress of Jesus? Wasn't he down all the way? Being found in house, there's a man even he humbled himself. He didn't expect servants, he didn't want them. Isn't it amazing, when he died, what did he give his disciples? He said, My peace I leave with you. My peace I give unto you. What else did he give them? He said, My joy I give you and no man taketh it from you. Don't tell me somebody's told you joy, they didn't, you forfeited it. The devil can't take your joy. Circumstances can't take him, if he is your joy. The joy of the Lord is our strength. And being found, he's come out from the glory down to earth. And being found in Christ as a man, he goes down and he's obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. And you're saying with this man, let's go back to Joseph here, here he is. And his father sends him to Joseph. Do you know the secret of his life? It's very simple. It's the same as I think it's in the 8th chapter of John verse 29, where it says, Jesus says, I do always all those things which please the Father. And if I'm living day by day pleasing the Father, it doesn't matter if hell breaks loose. As Guillaume said, Madam Guillaume or I don't know whether it's Madam Guillaume or Faber said, Could I be cast where thou art not? That were indeed a dreadful spot. But with thee my God to guide the way is equal joy to go or stay. A lady told me a while ago, Mr. Raymond, I hear about people having visions and revelations. I don't have any. What could I do? I said, go to Patmos. She said, go where? I said, go to Patmos. Where's the Patmos? I said, tell you where it is. Well, this is Greece and what not. Well, let's say here. This is Ephesus. And this little island there is the isle of Patmos. And if you've gone there one Sunday. Oh, they say our pastor's over there. He's serving time. He was serving time and God took him into eternity to see it. And if you've gone out behind him and say, well, did you walk with Jesus? Yes, I used to sleep with him. I used to eat with him. I did everything. With Jesus, the Son of God? You were so close, so intimate? Yes, yes, yes, yes. And here you are. In prison. No, I'm not. Well, what are you? He said, I'm in the Spirit. What do you do with a man who's in the Spirit? You can wall him in. You can't roof him in. And all you see about this man, he's going down. He comes down. Go down to Dawson. They put him in the pit. Take the chapter and mark it in the next chapter. He's going down all the time. He comes from here to Dawson. His brothers have gone. He goes down here. He comes to Shechem. Then he goes down to Dawson. They put him down in a pit. He comes out. He's sold. And they sent him into Egypt. And they put him in a pit. And then he's sold again. It's all pits and selling. It's all bondage. He's no freedom. He's not his own. But it's the will of God. And he rejoices in it. God has planned every step of my life. Well, I don't believe that or in God's name. Get somebody to run it for you. What does the Psalmist say? My times are in thy hands. And the poet says, my God, I wish them there. I believe I'm living my life as best I know. Not according to what I do, but a timetable God has. And I want to keep in that timetable. It's the only place of safety for me. It's the only place of blessing. Well, I was in Psalm 105 for a minute there. Saying, touch not mine anointing, do my prophets no harm. Therefore he called for a famine upon the land. And he sent a man before them, even Joseph, who was sold for a servant. Whose feet they hurt with fetters. And laid him in iron. Can you imagine it? This young man who'd come from a wealthy home. No doubt had servants. The darling of his father's heart. Never had to do anything rough. And now they bind him in irons. And they bind his feet in irons. It says that they hurt him. Look up the references yourself to that. Verse 17. The man said, they are departed friends. He's talking about his brothers. I heard them say, let's go down to Dothan. And Joseph went after his brethren and found them. When they saw him, even before he came near them. They conspired to slay him. They said one to another, behold this dreamer cometh. Now therefore, let us slay him and cast him in some pit. So he's going to go down again. And we will say, an evil beast hath devoured him. And see what will become of his dreams. Verse 23 says, it came to pass, Joseph was coming to his brethren. They stripped him of his coat. Isn't this nice? He's left his country. He's left his family. And now when all he has left, a little protection. He has a coat. And they strip him of that. We don't like the stripping, do we? Clothe me, Lord. Help me, Lord. The Lord says, listen, I've some stripping to do yet. And it's easy to watch other people get stripped, isn't it? As Shakespeare said, it's easy to bare the other man's toothache. It's easy to watch other people being stripped. Many people are being stripped all over the nation right now, financially. There are young people embarrassed. A year ago, two years ago, two of them were working, now one's lost their job. They bought two cars, they can't afford to rent them. They got in debt to a house, they can't afford to keep it. There's great sorrow through the nation, and even through Texas these days. And it won't get better, I'm sure of that. So that's First Trinity. It came to pass when Joseph was coming to his brethren, they stripped him. Who stripped him? His brethren. His brethren, not the Midianites, not the Amalekites, not the Perizzites. His own brothers stripped him. Why? They were so envious of him. They could see the glory of God on him. Because of his union with his father. He's unsteadfast and unmovable and always abounding. He won't shift. And it makes them blazing mad, they've no response to that. So they start stripping him, humiliating him. Verse 27, Come and let us sell him to the Ishmaelites. And let not our hand be upon him, for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content. Isn't that something? They were content to sell him, they were content to strip him. They were content to humiliate him. And some people get joy out of your misery. They say, oh, look what God's doing in their life. They put it down to sin. And all the time it's character God's making. Don't listen to those dumb folk. You can't make character anywhere except, didn't Jesus say, you'll go through great tribulation individually. There's no way to shape character. Somebody said, the only time you can say, what was it, Martha, I remember this. Christ is all I need, I want, when it's all you have. It's all right to say, well, Christ is all I want. I have a nice car and a nice house and a refrigerator full. He's all I want. But what about when you have nothing? When he's taken you to the zero and through the bottom. And you can still look up and say, my faith looks up to thee, thou Lamb of Calvary. I'm as precious to God. If I had a million dollars, I wouldn't mind having it. I'd use it for missions and a few other things. I go to church in Tyler. So if you're a spare million, you know what to do with it. But you're precious in the sight of God, whether you're sick or well, whether you're well known or unknown. Whether you feel on top of the world or under, it makes no difference. I'm glad God isn't as volatile as we are. He doesn't change. So then it occurs, OK, let's go back a minute. Recap a minute. He's lost his home with his father. He's lost favour with his brethren. He's lost his freedom. And now he's lost his coat. He's been sold to the Ishmaelites. Verse 28. They passed by Midianite merchants. And they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit. Notice this time there's no expression of grief. There's no question why. I love that saying somebody pointed out a few years ago. On the Damascus road when God threw the most brilliant man in the world on the floor. He didn't ask why. He said what. What is it for? Not why. Not why am I licking the dust. I'm a superman intellectually. I'm the best known man amongst the Jewish nation. He didn't say that. He said what. What. What will you have me to do? There's a dear man, some of you have read his book I suppose called Fair Sunshine. Jock Purvis. If you haven't read it you should do. I've known Jock I guess nearly 50 years. He's a brilliant scholar. He lived on the roof of the world, Tibet. Talk about starvation and privation. And going in those monasteries and lamasries and all the rest of it. Put rags around his legs. All clothes on. Let his beard grow. And he lived like those people to reach them. I was with him in a conference once he came home. I was asking what he was reading. He said I'm reading about an old man by the name of Rutherford. You know from his writings Mrs. Cousin got that verse. The sands of time are sinking. It was he who said the bride eyes not her garments. I've often looked but I've never seen that. Bride eyes not her garments but her dear bridegroom's face. I will not gaze on glory but on the king of grace. Not on the crown he gifteth but on his pierced hand. And he said Len one of the most moving things I know. And he's one of the greatest scholars on church history in Scotland. Even today he's an old man now. He's lived in poverty by choice. Time and again I would say to him why don't you come to. No I won't go to America. Everybody gets lost in money there. Evangelists are never the same once they've been to America. They're all after the money. I won't go. And he's never been. But he said Len I read something the other day. You know there's a tower you can see. It's out of the sea. It's got a peak on it like that. And here it is. And here it's got a grilled window. And here are big rocks. At the bottom and the sea comes in. And the spray goes up through the window. And here's a man who was a scholar. A brilliant scholar. You can have a copy of that after if you like. Cost you $50 but there you are. And there he is sitting. What did he say? But in my sleep be prison my Lord and I help Christ. This man got somebody to ruin. And when he got there he got inside. And there's Rutherford. And he says Mr. Rutherford look at the slime. Oh what was that? Oh a few rats around here. Slime, dirt. Do you get well fed? No. He said this is a stinking hole for you to be in. Is this all God serves you with? He said I just can't look at those walls with slime and dirt on them. He said friend when you're not here they shine like diamonds. They shine like rubies. Wouldn't you like to get out of this? No. Have you any complaints? He said yes I have. He said what's your complaint? He said since I came in this prison God has offered me no challenges. He's still looking for something more. Though God robbed him of freedom. It's God's design is you should stay there in that stink hole. And he says God hasn't offered me any challenges. Have I hurt him? Does he think I can't take something more? Isn't there some new pressure? Isn't there some new revelation? Isn't there some new grief? Come on God share what you have with me. This doesn't make any difference. God offers me no challenges. I wonder how many he offers us. Or do we know him well enough that he should offer us some. Well notice Joseph here and I'm through. It's sold for 20 pieces of silver. Then they brought him into Egypt. And then they made that fake you know as Lloyd died. They took Joseph's coat and killed the kid of the goat. And dipped the coat in the blood and they sent the goat. They sent the coat of many colours and they brought it to their father. And said this we have found. Now. Know now whether it be thy son's coat or not. He declared it and said it is my son's coat. An evil beast has devoured him and Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces. Jacob rent his clothes put on sackcloth. And mourned for his son. Many days. And all his sons and his daughters rose up to comfort him. But he refused to be comforted. And he said for I will go down to the grave. Mourning. And the Midianites sold him into Egypt. Here is the second time that this young man is sold. Sold him to Potiphar. Let me skip over a minute here and read this. There is a tremendous change of tactics here notice. The enemy has tried, well he has bruised him. He has separated him from his people. He has separated him from every creature comfort. And he can't break him so he changes his tactics. What happens he goes from the prison to the palace. But it says in verse 2 of chapter 39 which is true of him right through his life. The Lord was with Joseph and he was prosperous man. And when his master saw that the Lord was with him. And that the Lord. His master a heathen saw God was with him. Now that is living a holy life. When people outside see God is shining out of you all the time. Joseph found grace in his sight and served him. And he made him overseer all his house. And all that he had was put into his hand. Verse 6 and he left all he had in Joseph's hand. And he knew not what he had save the bread which he did eat. And Joseph was a goodly person well favored. He came to pass after these things. His master's wife cast her eyes upon Joseph. And said lie with me or lay with me as we would say. But he refused and said unto his master's wife behold. My master doesn't know what is with me in the house. And he hath committed all he hath into my hand. There is none greater in this house than I. Neither that he kept back anything from me. And she asked him to come and lie with her. And he said how can I do this thing this great wickedness and sin against God. And it came to pass that she spake to Joseph day by day. She didn't let up on him at all. She is determined to follow this guy. What did she do? She called unto the men of her house in verse 14. This is refused, refused, refused, refused to lie with her. Verse 14 she called unto the men of her house and spake of them saying. See he hath brought in a Hebrew unto us to mock us. He came in unto lie with me and I cried out with a loud voice. In other words I screamed a great voice. It came to pass when he heard that I lifted up my voice. He left his garment with me and fled. And then she took the garment it says in verse 16. And laid his garment up close to her. Then her husband comes. What happened? It came to pass. It came to pass as I lifted up my voice and cried that he left his garment with me. And that's not true you know. He was fleeing and she snatched the garment from him. I suggest you a woman without being too vivid here. A woman that's so mad to get this man to commit adultery. I doubt if she was even dressed. She was maybe naked and trying to tempt him in every way as well as talking to him. But he fled. And what happened? Well verse 20 says Joseph's master took him and put him into the prison. A place where the king's prisoners were bound. And there he was in prison. In verse 3 of the next chapter it says he put them inward in the house of the captain of the guard into the prison. Where Joseph was bound. And they put his feet in iron. And they put his body in iron. And here is his bound. Every blessed thing that he loved had been taken from him. But the Lord was with him and showed him mercy. Says 21 of the previous chapter. And he found favor with the. See the Lord was with him in prison. The Lord was with him in every time he turned. Every stroke of the enemy that the Lord comes in the Lord is with him. The Lord is with him. And he showed him mercy and gave him great favor in the sight of the prison. Keeper of the prison. Verse 23. Look not at anything that was under his hand because the Lord was with him. That which he did. And he made him to prosper. So what happened? He produces a garment. She says to her husband when he comes in. See this, whose is that? Oh, that's that precious garment of that young Hebrew. Yeah, you told me as a man of God. I had to scream. He was trying to force me in my bedroom. He came in and he would have done something awful. But I screamed and the guards came and rescued me. Well, what was it? Well, circumstantial evidence. I mean, it's as clear as daylight, isn't it? And you know what? God didn't send an angel to deliver him. You know, sometimes you wish God would intervene. I mean, why is this happening to me? I'm as close to God as ever I've been. I'm getting slandered and ridiculed. And people get by with it. As I say, they wouldn't go to church with egg on the face. But they'll go with murder in their heart. They'll go with bitterness. They will go after tearing some other saint to pieces. But you see, there's a day coming at the end of the line. That's the day. That's the final checkout counter. When all this is going to be judged in the light of the Holy God. And it's between here and there where the trouble is, isn't it? Where he got sent to jail. I'll finish the story some other time. Isn't it great when you pray for people? And the other two guys in jail both got out and he's left there. And they promised to take care of him. Oh, we'll look after him until we get free. Yes, they did. About two or three years after they scratched their head one morning and said, That poor guy, we left him in jail. But the Lord was with him. I like a phrase dear old Dr. Criswell said a few months ago. Sunday morning I listen to him. I love him because he weeps. I won't listen to a preacher who doesn't weep. If he isn't moved, he's not going to move me. You never find a wet eyed preacher give a dry sermon. And I love to hear dear old Dr. Criswell there. The tears come down his face. And he said one Sunday morning, he said, There was, on the Isle of Patmos, There was Johnny, fell at his feet as dead. He said, friends, it's better to be dead at his feet than alive anywhere else. Isn't that good? I wish I'd said that. I'd have had it framed and sold it. Isn't it better to be in prison and be free, than be free and have an inward prison, an inward bondage, an inward fear. How in God's name do people profess the name of Jesus when they're bitter and cantankerous. I've had preachers come in my office and say such bitter things that they'll never do it again. I'll shut them up. I've shut them up more than once. I'll shut them up again. I don't care what big titles they have. I don't care how famous they are. There's such an envy amongst preachers. Did all Alexander White, the great Scottish preacher say, Potter envies Potter. You don't find a preacher criticising a singer usually. Singers criticise singers. And preachers envy preachers. Well if you let it stay, it becomes a rottenness of the bone. And that's a hateful thing. I'm sure the Church of Jesus Christ is bound up right now because it's got envy and pride and jealousy. Every weapon, any weapon that's formed against you will not prosper. And the proof of it is to watch the experiences of this precious boy. 17 years of age. And he could stand on his feet and leave home. And remember hearing his father maybe make intercessions. Well I say God bless the boy that has an interceding father. And God pity the boy that doesn't. It's a hell of a world we're moving into. We'd better face up to it. As I've said maybe last week. Well I have. I've been reading about Noah's flood and that's really deeply stirred me. But you see the flood they could see it. When they saw that flood coming. And remember they'd been warned. Nor is not remembered by God for building an ark. I believe he's remembered it according to Jude because he was a preacher of righteousness. And people won't have that. You can talk about blessing. You can talk about anything but don't preach righteousness. Don't preach moral rectitude. Righteousness our relationship with the world. Holiness our relationship with God. Talk about anything. Hear anything. But don't come down the line. It was a king when. Dear Paul. Standing before Felix. Felix trembled. You know why people don't tremble? Because preachers don't tremble. The word of God says in Isaiah there. To this man will I look. To him that trembleth at my word. I'm looking for a crop of men. Whose names are not known. They're going to come. One minute John the Baptist wasn't known. He wasn't there. And then he's there. And he turns the nation up. Without any financial backing. He had no newsletters. He had no committee. He had no organization. Just God. I think Jacob you and I have got to get there. Just God that's all. That's all that matters. I'll not leave thee. And Moses who had seen the glory of God. Is still saying show me thy glory. And if thy presence go not with us. Carry us not hence. It's no fun to slay your enemies. It's no fun to become popular. If the holy God isn't brooding on us. So what? Anybody can get the other stuff. But God is making a man. He goes into prison. He goes down and down and down. Till there's nowhere else to go. Then he starts coming up till there's nowhere to go. He's been here where he's been in the family. He gets here. Now he's sitting on a throne. He's been through prisons and privations and poverty. And everything you can imagine. And yet God has found the man. And now he puts him in a place where he becomes the deliverer of a nation. I don't think once when he was in a pit. He ever thought that he would be the salvation of Israel. But the only way God could get him there. Was to take him to all the trials and tribulations. You don't become a saint by reading books. You don't be a saint by listening to preaching. We become saints when this book gets into our blood stream. I like the definition. I'm through with it. Henry Schugel lived in the 1600s. He wrote a little booklet. But he never intended it should be public. Pushed it under the seat. In the house. And somebody found it long after he was dead. It's called the life of God in the soul of man. And that's what salvation really is. That's what Christianity is. It's the life of God. It's not a lot of terms. It's a living vibrant Christ in me. And if Christ wept with strong crying and tears. Well how can he live in me if I don't do that. I don't care about your thinking theology. I don't care about your popularity. I don't care how many books you write. How many records you make. Tell me when did the angels last pick a tear off your face. Because you're broken in anguish over a lost world. We're not going to win it by money. We're not going to win it by organization. It's not organizing again. It's agonizing. I don't care if I'm an oddball. I know I am to many. I am to myself if you want to know. But by the same token. I want a heart like Christ. I want as Wesley said. A heart in every thought renewed and full of love divine. Perfect and right and pure and good. A copy Lord of thine. Thy nature gracious Lord in part. Come quickly from above. Write thy new name upon my heart. I've said it. I'll say it. I've been reading Paschal again and again. Last few weeks. The man who had his encounter with God in a retreat. The most brilliant man in the world in his day. He exhausted everyone of the sciences and threw them on one side of nothing. And he said Christ spoke to me personally. And he said I thought of thee as I was hanging on the cross. And he took all the systems of the world and counted them as nothing. And he said this awesome thing. He said Christ was in agony when he died on the cross. And there'll be an agony in agony until he comes to take his kingdom. I believe he's in agony for his church. It's amazing that this book this canon as we said the New Testament wasn't finished. And Jesus was outside knocking at the door trying to get in. He's still trying to do that. Well I want to know something. It's easy to sing all the tokens of his passion knowing glory still he bears. I want some of that on my heart. There isn't any such thing as a normal Christian life actually. It's a supernatural life. It's something the world doesn't know a thing about. Science can't explain it. Money can't buy it. Education can't give it. It's an intimate relationship with him. It's living in his presence. It's walking with him. It's talking with him. It's communicating with him. Not saying Lord do this. Lord here I am. Lay your burden on me if it breaks me. If it keeps me in it does. Sleepless nights. What do I care? There's not much time left for God to intervene in the affairs of men. I'm glad to hear what Jacob said about this young man that's been down there for 6 years. Now it doesn't sound much to have a church of 150 people when you realise there's a solid block is walled in on every side with Catholicism and otherism and the government against him. And yet this young man has laboured there for 6 years with pain and travail and God is rewarding him. I pray for this young lady Penny Lee that God will continue to bless her and she'll go to people expecting to hear some hot stuff about abortion and she comes out with a Holy Ghost message and sends them all home. It would be lovely to go there. I want to pray for the old couple. Fancy a couple. Well who knows. Maybe Brother Farrar will become our missionary in his life. We'll send him behind the Iron Curtain. We don't want to suffer. 91 and 80 years of age and there they are. They won't come home. They've been founding churches all their life and now they're nourishing these young people. This is the hour. This is the hour. This is the hour. This is the travail. This is the Gethsemane we're going to before a great Holy Ghost revival sweep. They're not asking for aid for America. They're not asking for help. They're just saying stand by us in prayer. We feel we're right up to something so superb. Something we've never yet seen though God's been so gracious and preserved them. You know it's just about legitimate to do anything except get excited in the meeting where God is. I turned the dial the other night and I thought it was a zoo or what it was. 30,000 people watching the finals of a basketball game. Isn't that wonderful? Doctors, philosophers, talkers, preachers, scientists. Oh! Oh! Oh! Scattering germs all over the place. Excited because a guy gets a basket. Dear God. That whole crowd of Baptists and even Pentecostals wouldn't have a squeak if their own shirt comes on me. If they said Amen everybody would go. If you see people do that, forget it. They have a right to do what they want with their own head. Do you know what? God's going to come in glory before long. An encouraging thing. A fellow who's done a lot of work in different ways by the name of Derek Prince. And I thought he was overboard on demons. If you sneeze you have a demon all day. They tell me now he's got a crowd of people meeting every morning of the week at 5 o'clock interceding for revival. Another group further up country are doing the same thing. It's not a union. It's not doing it because you're doing it. We're going to copy it. If it works for you, it will work for you. It's not that. God is laying a finger on certain men, certain women. They're not after money, not after organizing. They're jealous for God. They want strongholds to come down. And they don't care if they have to become a living sacrifice. But what in God's name does it matter? Five minutes inside eternity we'd all wish we had more passion, more vision, more love, more courage. Didn't want to just go be smooth down every Sunday morning to some nice little sermon that wouldn't shake a mouth. God's going to get his men. Jacob, polish your armor. Get ready. Some of you young fellows. Well, we'll go to prayer for a season. If you have to go, we'll understand. But I want you to pray for the Indians again. Any news? Anything fresh to say? Bless his heart. And there you are. Get kicked out of your own tribe. Jacob kicked out of his group. Or Joseph, I mean. And yet he stays on and then finally ends up on the throne. That's where we're going to end up if we don't love the Lord, we're going to end up on the throne. So let's go to pray.