In this sermon, the speaker shares his experiences of witnessing poverty and need in India, which deeply impacted him. He emphasizes the importance of giving generously to the Lord, citing his own decision to increase his giving to 90% of his income. The speaker also criticizes the greed of believers who accumulate wealth while others suffer. He highlights the need for believers to prioritize worshiping God over material possessions, and calls for faithfulness and commitment in the church. The sermon concludes with a plea to focus on spreading the gospel and reaching the lost.

This recording is provided by Christian Missionary Fellowship International, Boston. You're welcome to make free distribution to friends. However, all for-profit distribution is a violation of the existing copyright and other applicable laws. For more information about our churches, visit www.cmfiboston.org. Blessed Father, the Lord Jesus Christ prayed and said, and this is life eternal, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. Father, I plead in the name of Jesus Christ, that the seed that will be sown in human weakness, I plead, Lord, I will raise forth in the glorious power of the Holy Spirit. Father, we pray that Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone will be exalted. We pray that Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone will be honored. And we pledge, O God, that the Holy Spirit will silence every other voice, so that the voice of God will be heard in the depth of the heart. Father, we pray that the Word will have a free course in the hearts of God's people tonight. And we pledge, O God, that the Word will be obeyed. In Jesus' name, Amen. There are many people who are speculating about when Jesus is coming. They speculate, they speculate, they speculate. Each time I come to the U.S., I find people speculating about when Jesus will come. I remember in 1984, there was a book, 88 Reasons Why Jesus Christ Must Come in 1984. One side of the book was 88 Reasons Why Jesus Christ Must Come in 1984. The other side was Living on Borrowed Time. I think we should stop speculating. There are two serious issues at stake. We don't have time to waste joking. Last month, I was in India. It was my 8th trip to India to teach on prayer. In the state of North India, particularly the state of Uttar Pradesh, UP, less than 0.1% of the people are born again. UP alone has 150 million people. The state of UP in North India has over 150 million people. Less than 0.1% of those who are born again. So when you know those facts, and find the people who are not burdened about getting those books here, because with their speculation about whether Jesus is coming tomorrow, speculation about whether one people should gather enough food for 2 or 3 months, you think that people have just lost a sense of direction. If there is something people should be talking about, it should be how to get the gospel to the lost. It should be the condition of the lost. It should be a discussion of what does it mean to be lost? How lost are the lost? And what should those who think that they are saved do to ensure that the lost are found? I would say that people are at different stages. We have the lost, the lost in sin. They might have heard or they might not have heard about Jesus. But they are lost. They are without Christ. Then there is a second group. I call almost saved. Almost saved. Almost saved. But they are lost. Who are these almost saved? Who are lost? It is those who have a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof. They have a form of godliness, but they deny the power thereof. The Apostle Paul writes to us in 1 Corinthians 9-11. Could someone read it for us please? Can you someone read it out loud? Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminates, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revelers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God? And such were some of you. But ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of God. These are lost, we know. But these are almost saved. Our people, they come to the church, they walk forward at the message, they say they have invited Christ, they have been soaked in water, dipped, but their lives are not radically altered. They continue to live in sin. Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. There are many who are deceived. They think that they are going to heaven, but they will not go to heaven. Why? Because they are deceived. What are their marks? They continue in sexual immorality. They continue in sexual immorality. Sexual immorality in motive. Sexual immorality in desire. Sexual immorality in thought. Sexual immorality in look. Sexual immorality in touch. Sexual immorality in feeling. Sexual immorality in taste. Sexual immorality in word. Sexual immorality in deed. Sexual immorality in possession. They have not stopped the life of sexual immorality. idolaters, idolaters, they worship. What do they worship? They worship fortune, money. They keep their money while the souls of men perish. And then they say that's it, that God is money. They have no time to witness. They have no time to seek God. They have proof of all jobs. They get more and more money. They spend on more and more things. There's no time to pray. There's no time to seek God. There's no time to witness. They worship fortune. Idolaters, they worship fortune, but they may also worship females or males. They worship money, or they worship the opposite sex, or they worship pain. Oh, they want to be known, they want to be known, they want to be known. They want to be seen, they want to be seen. They want to draw attention to themselves. That's the first F is fortune, the second F is female, the third F is pain. Money is a God that seeks worshippers. Money is a God that seeks worshippers. The fourth F, food. They worship food. Now God is their belly. Food is a God that seeks worshippers. The problem with the church is that if somebody commits fornication, they will excommunicate him. Because he has worshipped the opposite sex, isn't it? But if he worships food, they will cheer him. If he worships money, they will say God has blessed him. If he worships fame, they will say he's promoted. This is the three state standards of the church. The three state standards of the church. The three state standards of the people of God. That's turning God's way. The God fortune, the God fame, the God food are all idols that must be overthrown by those who call the name, that name. Are you faithful? Faithful. The church has become so unfaithful that you need to light a lamp in the day to look for a faithful person. Commitments made but not fulfilled. Vows made but broken. A faithless generation. Are you faithful? To what are you faithful? To what are you faithful? The commitment that you made to forsake sin when you came to Christ. Have you been faithful to that? The commitment that was made to pursue the Lord, to seek Him, to find Him, to know Him, to love Him and to serve Him. Instead of faithfulness, there's faithlessness. If someone believes your word, will he be safe? If someone believes your promise, will he be safe? Faithless. And there's a seventh freedom. They will be under no one's authority. Everybody is his own God. Everybody makes his own rules and breaks them when he wants. They are accountable to nobody. They submit to nobody. They are led by nobody. Rebellion. Called freedom. And the U.S. will call it democracy. But God is not a democracy. He is not a republican either. They will be under the control of nobody. They will submit to nobody. They will be led by nobody. Everybody is his own God. Whether you are worshipping the God of fortune, or females, or males, or fame, or food, or you are faithless, or you are independent, self-dependent, you are an idolater. There's an idol. An idol on your heart. The heathens have their idols outside. But those who say they belong to Christ have an idol in their heart. If the idol is on their heart, where would Christ be? Adulterers. Male prostitutes. Homosexual offenders. Thieves. Thieves. You know, people have become so skillful that they steal from God. When they get the money, they put 8% and say 8% is the type. 8% type. 8% type. No, 8% thief. The truth starts with the same. It's type and thief. They both start with thief. But they are eternally apart. The person with type and the thief are well apart. Thieves. They study new methods of stealing. Of stealing from the government. Of stealing on tax. Of stealing here and there. Of stealing here and there. I remember when I was in Uganda, a brother went to Kenya and bought many things. And normally he knows that for buying things, he should pay custom duty. He said, I began to pray. I began to pray in tongues. I began to pray in tongues. That the customs officer would not see the things. He bought things, hid them and was covering them with tongues. Tongue thief. Holy thief. Thieves. I was in one part of this country when somebody told me he had hired two stores where he packed the extra things that he did not need. Pregnant with too many things. Hiring stores, paying money to keep the stores in order to stock things that are not needed. And the people, hallelujah, were going to heaven. In one of my trips to India, I was told about women who have only one dress. They go to the river, they take the dress, wash it when the sun is shining, dry it and hide behind the bushes for the dress to get dry. So that they may wear it and go home. Because it is all that they have. Somehow, those who, instead of investing money to get the gospel searching for, accumulate more and more things here. To ask, what have we believed? What have we believed? During one of the trips to India, I was so shaken. I was so shaken. By the wayside, I would see a man and his wife and their baby and all their home was an umbrella. I was so troubled. I was so troubled. That then Prisca and I were giving 84% of our income to the Lord. When I came back from India, because of what I saw, we moved the giving to 90%. I was shocked by the poverty. Shocked by the need. Also shocked by the greed. Of believers. Who have. The greedy. The greedy. They will not give what they could give. They hoard. They hoard. They hoard. They hoard. They say, I will give. I will give. I will give. I will give. Until they are caught up with time. They could not give anymore. Drunkards. Believers say, no, I don't trust alcohol. But what of gluttons? Believers say that drunkards will go to hell. And gluttons? Gluttons will go to heaven. This is a false theology. A person who is filled with alcohol, they say he will go to hell. A person who is filled with food, they say he will go to heaven. A person ruled by alcohol, they say he will go to hell. A person ruled by food, they say he will go to heaven. Does it make sense? If the drunkards are going to go to hell, then the gluttons will also go to hell. If the gospel is meant to set people free from alcohol, then it should also, from the power of alcohol, it should also set people free from the power of food. If not, it's an impotent gospel. Or, we have decided not to be honest. If a man is free from alcohol and gossip food, is he any less an idolater? No. Slanderers. Slanderers. The Bible says that slanderers will not go to heaven. They were almost saved, but they didn't get saved. Slanderers. Swindlers. Slanderers and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God. This is the Paul who had the revelations of God. And he says that these people who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. And he says, do not be deceived. Are you deceived? Do not be deceived. Then he continues. And that is what some of you wear. Not this, that is how some of you are. That is what some of you wear. That is in the past. When they were lost. When they were lost, they could manifest those characteristics. That's what you wear. But, you were washed from all that. You were sanctified. You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is the power of God. There is a false gospel that says that the blood of Jesus Christ is to cover our sins so that we may continue in them. That the blood of Jesus Christ comes to whitewash our sins. So that we may continue in them. So that somebody while practicing sin says, oh I am going to heaven. Listen to me brethren. Let God be true and every man a liar. In Revelation chapter 21, we like to quote it to unbelievers. That's it. But the cowardly. Those who don't have courage to speak the truth. Or to act the truth. The unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually murderers. Those who practice magic acts. The idolaters. And all liars. All liars. Small liars. Big liars. Liars that are baptized in water. Liars that speak in tongues. Liars that preach the gospel. All liars. That pray to be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death. All liars except none. All liars except none. Those who lie to their wives. Those who lie to their husbands. Those who lie to their employers. Those who lie to their pastors. Those who lie to their congregations. Those who lie about visas. I was in one country recently where in a church they were praying how people can fraud visas. In order to stay in that country. The church became a garden of people who are practicing falsehood. And praying that God will come and bless their lives. And the scriptures cannot be broken. The scriptures that cannot be broken say that all liars will be in the lake of fire. And I want to tell you and I tell you in the name of the Lord. If you are practicing falsehood. Deceit. Lying. At any end of your life. You better stop it or you will perish. And nothing that you have done for Christ will save you. If you continue to lie. To deceive. To cheat. And to twist things. If you are lying to advance the gospel. If you are lying to advance the gospel. And it is not only lying to the written word. It is disobeying the inner witness of the Holy Spirit. The walk with God stops when the Holy Spirit is disobeyed. The walk with God stops when the Holy Spirit is disobeyed. I went to the gulf recently to preach. I spoke in the school to the teachers of the school put up by some sister. We stayed in her house. She gave me an envelope with a thousand dollars in it. And I went to pray. The Lord said, get that envelope back to her. The church I had prayed, preached in the evening. They brought me an envelope. The Lord told me, return the envelope to the pastor. I was just beginning my ministry in the gulf. That was in Abu Dhabi. I was to go to Dubai. And I was to go to Kuwait. And the Lord said to me, You will not take one penny from the gulf back with you. My name is greatly insulted here by preachers who come to preach for money. This is your first trip here. You will take nothing back. When the Lord spoke to me, I returned the envelope to the woman. I returned the envelope to the pastor. And in the meetings in Dubai, I told them I will not take any of it. And in Kuwait, I preached ten times. Different services. In one of the halls, it was full. One thousand, two hundred people, five times. At the end of the thing, I told the brother, I will not take a penny from you. The Lord told me to take nothing. You want to pay my ticket. The Lord told me, I shall not take the money of the ticket. The call to obey. It's a call to obey. Not only the written word. But to obey. The inner voice of the Spirit of God. And I want to ask you. What has the Holy Spirit told you? To obey. That you are not obeying. What has He told you to do? Which you have not done. Where are you wrestling with Him? Explaining and explaining and explaining, instead of obeying. Arguing and arguing and presenting this evidence and presenting that evidence and presenting the other evidence. Whereas you should obey. Has He told you to go and repent to somebody? For something you did wrong? And you are asking, how will I humble myself? The Lord did not obey in order to deliver us from obedience. He obeyed in order to provide a mother. For us to obey. The obedience of the Lord was in order that we may have a mother. It's obedience. So if we think that we have a salvation that liberates us from obeying the Lord, then it is a false salvation. For it behoves Him like whom and through whom are all things in bringing many sons to glory to make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through obedience. And if the pioneer of our salvation was not perfect through obedience, then we are called to follow that same path of obedience. If not, as an imitation salvation, it is not genuine. It is the purpose of God that those who name the name of Jesus Christ have departed from all iniquity I am not saying that they are perfect, but I am saying that they have departed from all known sin and that they do not know that something is sin and committed because they will come and ask for forgiveness. O my beloved brethren, sin is a knife into the heart of God. Sin is a knife into the heart of God. We often think about sin in terms of what it does to us. But sin is a knife into God's heart. Sin is a knife into God's purposes. Sin is a knife into God's plans. Sin is the worst delirium that can happen to a man. Because no one is the same after he has sinned. You may not be the same again. Sin is to be feared. First of all, for what it does to God. How can the response of love be to strike a knife through him? Somebody says, oh, I love you, I love you. And gives you a blow. Oh, you are wonderful, I love you, I love you. I give you a blow. That is what those who say they belong to the mighty. Have you ever thought about what a lie does to the heart of God? You may say it is just a small sin. If somebody takes a small, long needle and puts it into your heart. You say, well, it is just a needle. He puts it into your heart, draws it out and puts it into your heart. You say, it is not a cutlass. It is just a needle. It is that love. And in the pathway of walking with God, there must be a radical dealing with all sin. And sin is not only to be forsaken. The situation is to be carried out. When I was 16, I promised a girl of 12 that I would marry her. I was very sincere. And she promised to marry me. But somewhere along the line, I changed my mind. But four years ago, one morning when I stood up to meditate on God's word, I read the scripture and the scriptures were dead. I prayed and the scriptures were dead. I could not pick a living word from the word. I said, Lord, what is the matter? The Lord told me, when you were 16, you told Agnes you would marry her. You did not marry her and you have never repented to her. That sin which has not been restituted is standing between you and me. I knew I was in trouble because I last saw her 21 years ago. I did not know where she was or what had become of her. I told the Lord. Then it began to weigh on me. I see the stone was tied on my neck. I told some brethren to pray for me that I would find her. The wonderful thing about it is that if you want to get right with God, God will come to your aid. That very next week I traveled to a town called Bermuda and I preached there and I shared with the brethren the problem that I had with God. I told them the girls made a name because I did not know what had happened to her. I went back here only. Four days from that date a brother sent a fax he had found a girl. She was married with six children. It's a miracle that even though she doesn't bear the name that she was a girl this brother could find her out. He made an appointment and I went 400 kilometers met her and begged her to forgive. He promised that even when I was 16. He would forgive me which I did not get and she forgave me. Time does not get rid of sin. Sin is not taken away by time. Sin is not taken away by forgetting. Sin is taken away by confession and by forsaking. Sin is forgiven when it is forsaken and restitution carried out. Sin is forgiven when it is forsaken and restitution carried out. We cannot start people left and right and just say okay God has forgiven me and sit and relax while we have broken their hearts and wounded them here. We cannot sit on stolen things. We've stolen this chair we sit on that and say oh God has saved me and we are enjoying that which was stolen while the owner is languishing and call that salvation. It is a false salvation. Sin must be confessed. It must be fixed for second and the appropriate restitution must be carried out so that there is peace with God and peace with man as much as it is possible. What has this got to do with on this system? If a cook goes to a foreign mission field he will produce cooks like preacher like convert like pastor like flock. But worse when a superficial evangelist infiltrated with the world holds mass campaigns what is he doing? He is destroying the people. Why? Because they will receive a superficial gospel that will inoculate them against the true gospel. So the people end up in a worse condition. The first responsibility of the church is to make herself worthy to preach the gospel. Because in the preaching of the gospel a man does not only give words he gives it. If the preacher is like the seed that fell on stony ground he will produce converts who are like the seed that fell on stony ground. If the evangelist is like the seed that fell on cornish soil choked choked choked he will produce converts who are choked choked choked. If the preacher is like the seed that fell on good soil, you will produce converts like that fell on good soil. And brethren, I've been thinking about it recently. Permanent harm can be caused by the preaching of the gospel. Because when a man who is infatuated with the world goes and preaches a message that produces converts who are infatuated with the world, it may not be possible to change them afterwards. The Bible does not tell us about stony soil that became good soil. The Bible does not tell us about thorny soil that became good soil. Because the preacher will produce his kind, it is critically important that the right type of man, the right type of woman goes to a mission field. That the witness be the one that can produce seed that falls on the good soil. That the people with a good and honest heart towards God, who go out as hearers of the gospel. It is not just education, diplomas that matter. And I'm not against diplomas. It is not just some school that matters, and I'm not against schools. It is not some talent for the other that matters. It is that the person should have a live union with the Lord Jesus Christ. And that the life of the Lord Jesus Christ should be flowing through him. So that the gospel of Jesus Christ will flow through him, and reach out to the people who are hearing. I know there is a theory about getting the gospel to those who have never heard. But we must be careful. At least we send the wrong people to go and inoculate those who pull against the gospel. So that when the right people will go, it will be impossible to inoculate those who have been inoculated against the gospel. Anyone who sends people out who are not filled with the Holy Spirit, who are not sanctified, who are not consecrated, will answer on that day for those who are sent. The matter of sending out people to God's field is not a voluntary enterprise. The harvest truly is great. And the laborers are few. On that day we say, okay, let us hurriedly send unqualified people. Unconsecrated people. So that they may hurry to get the job finished. No, they will hurry to get the job not to be finished. Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest. The church, instead of praying, sends out unqualified people. The church, instead of praying, arranges programs. Let's get down to something more. Listen. If someone is living in sin, should he give to the Lord? If someone is living in sin, why should he give his money to God? The sinner who will not repent is rejected. His money is also rejected. God is not a rubbish heap on which people throw whatever they want to throw. God is not a charity organization where people throw the leftover. Giving to the Lord is a function of sanctified people. They have given Him their hearts. And then they give Him their wealth. Almost saved. Almost saved. Are you almost saved? You may be in this church for a long time. But you are not saved. Because you are deliberately living in sin. Because you are deliberately living in sin. Apostle Paul says, I warn you as I warned you before. That those who live like that will not inherit the kingdom of God. If there is sin hidden in your heart, you better forsake it or perish. Whom are you deceiving? You can only deceive yourself. And God will catch you. What we are saying tonight is that if you are secretly living in some sin. We command you the name of Jesus Christ tonight. To repent. To forsake that sin. To seek the Lord for forgiveness and cleansing. And restoration to Him. You once walked close to the Lord. But now sin has come between you and God. You continue to say the same words. But the reality is lost. Whom are you deceiving? Tonight, God is extending to you an invitation. To come back to Him. There are a number of steps back to God. For the person who really wants to come back. How can I come back to God? The first step is a Godly knowledge of sin. Godly knowledge of sin. In Godly knowledge of sin. A person sees sin for what it does to God. Primarily. And not for what it does to my life. The sinner is apt to think. Oh, I will suffer this sin. I will suffer this for myself. The sinner is self-centered. He sees what will happen to him. What will happen to him. What will happen to his family. What will happen to his children. That is not a Godly knowledge of sin. In the Godly knowledge of sin. A person receives a revelation of what sin is doing to God. I hate sin for what it is doing to God. Godly knowledge of sin. He sees sin as God sees it. And he sees sin for what it will do to God. Have you ever confronted what your sin is doing to God? We say that there can be no real hatred of sin. Until what sin does to God is sin and confronted. When there is a Godly knowledge of sin. It will lead to Godly sorrow. There are some people who shed a few crocodile tears. Then they start laughing. But Godly sorrow is that their heart is as if it were stabbed. It sees what sin has done to God. And there is inward grief. There is Godly sorrow. There is Godly sorrow. My sin has blocked the congregation. My sin has blocked the city. My sin has blocked the mission. My sin has blocked this. My sin has done this. Godly sorrow. An example of godly sorrow is seen in the case of Nehemiah. The Bible says in Nehemiah chapter 1, verse 4, When I heard these things, I sat down and I wept. Nehemiah heard about the plight of Jerusalem and the plight of those who had not got an exile. He said, When I heard these things, I sat down and I wept. He wept. For some days, I mourned. First of all, he wept. First of all, he sat down. He threw a position. He was not concerned. Then he wept. He sat down and then he wept. I sat down and wept. Then for some days, he said, I mourned. He mourned for this. He mourned. And then he fasted. Strategic people just jump to prayer. In order to avoid this deeper work of the Holy Spirit. But Nehemiah was not into a joke. He sat down. He wept. He mourned. He fasted. And then he prayed. This is the pathway that is produced by godly sorrow. He wept. He mourned for this. Then he fasted. And then he prayed. Those who are hardened towards God cannot know this. They might shed a few crocodile tears, but the next second they are rejoicing. Oh yes. For some days, I mourned. He mourned for this. For some days, I mourned. For some days, he fasted. He was in for the deep work of God. He was not out for the superficial things. Godly sorrow will lead to weeping, mourning, fasting, and then praying. I want to ask you, when did you weep for your sin? When did you mourn because of your sin? When did you fast because of your sin? He wept. He mourned. He fasted. These are the marks of godly sorrow. Godly sorrow for sin will lead to godly confession of sin. You know, some people confess and say, just forgive me. They want you to forgive them for what is not known. If you went out and your child broke the glass, stole some money, smashed the window with a ball, all you can say is, Daddy, forgive me, forgive me, forgive me. Just forgive me for all the wrong things I have done. That child is not serious. He says, Daddy, I broke that glass. Daddy, I stole this amount of money from this place. He will confess the sin in detail, hiding nothing. In godly confession, all is so confessed that it is not possible for you to hear something afterwards from somebody that you did not hear from the person. Sin is presented in total clarity, hiding nothing. Because the sinner does not want to justify himself. He wants to cover nothing. He is not out to defend his name. He is not concerned about what they think about him. He knows that God has arrested him red-handed. It is rare to find godly sorrow. Very rare to find godly sorrow. That is why there is so much false repentance. That is why the consequences of sin are not taken away. Because there is no godly sorrow. There is no great confession of sin. Why? People are very concerned about their reputation. They don't want to be known for being as corrupt as they are. Who are we deceiving? Not God, but ourselves. In godly confession, you confess sin the way God knows it to be. And what does God not know? After this confession of sin, there is forsaking of sin. Many women go to forgive them before they are forsaking their sin. There was a man in Cameroon living with a woman. He made a commitment to the Lord at an evangelistic meeting. In the course of counseling, we found that he was living with a woman. They were not married. So a certain brother and I went with him to take the woman away. We took the woman away so that the woman may start living with her sister. And the man may now start living alone because he has no right to live with her. You can't receive Christ and go and continue to fornicate and say that you have received Christ. Which Christ? Christ the fornicator. So we went there, waited, the girl packed, and we drove her to live with her sister. Later on she too believed. Then he went and asked the parents to marry the girl. And the marriage was arranged. They were married. And they now live together as husband and wife. Because? I believe, I believe. And you continue to live in fornication? No. You have belief in what? In fornication? Or in Christ? If a person does not forsake his sins, he has not believed anything. He has believed a lie. Oh, there must be radical separation from sins in order that there may be union with Christ. And I have somebody who was working with a tobacco company. He believed. We told him, no, you have to go and resign that job first. You cannot be producing poison in the name of Jesus. So he said, no, he wants me to baptize him. He said, no, no, we cannot baptize a poisoner. When he resigned, we baptized him. And began to pray that God would give him another job. But you cannot carry a sin into a new life. Because you will poison the new life. So there must be the forsaking of sins. Then there must be restitution. I know many people say, we don't want to hear that word restitution. It's not just restituted. And there's a lot of teaching on restitution. The truth is whether you want the true salvation or you want to be deceived. After restitution, forgiveness is sought. Forgiveness is sought. And forgiveness is received. It is sought from the Lord and granted. Forgiveness granted. Since this is the way back to God. After you are forgiven, restoration is sought. And restoration is granted. You don't always seek to be forgiven. You seek to be restored to the heart of God. Because forgiveness means that the barrier is removed. But restoration means that you are back into the intimacy with God. So forgiveness is sought. It is received. Restoration is sought. It is received. And communion with God is established. And communion with God is maintained. Communion with God is established. And communion with God is maintained. And the person is now back to where he ought to be. That's the way back to God. Now, my dear brother, my dear sister, where are you? Maybe in the past, there was an intimate relationship. But now, it's so vague. Before, you plugged into God. And there was union. And there was sweetness. But now, you just don't know how to plug in again. You are like a plug that has lost the direction to the socket. So there is no current. But you know what it was before. When you were intimate with him. When his light flowed through you. When all of you was on fire. When there was joy. When there was a song. When there was intimacy. Where you could say that, take the world, but give me Jesus. But now, the world is too close to your heart. Where did you lose him? Where did you lose him? Where did you break intimacy with him? Maybe the Holy Spirit told you not to do something, you did it. And after that, it's not quite the same again. You are not just struggling. You do this, do this. But the reality is lost. That inward joy. That inward intimacy. That fulfillment that you knew inside your being. In your relationship with him. Is no longer there. You carry this activity, carry this activity. But in the depth of your being. You know you have lost your heavenly lover. You are now a holy activist. Instead of a holy lover. You are now doing things for him. But you have lost him. And the things you do for him now become more painful. You have lost him. You sing. But something is lost in your song. You pray. But something is lost in your praying. You give. But you have lost that sense of begging him. To receive your gifts. There is a coolness. That has settled between you and him. Before you used to turn and just fall on him and relax. But now. You have lost the freedom to approach him intimately. Something has come. And separated you from him. Somehow. You are like old strangers. You are like an old acquaintance. This is not an old acquaintance. The intimacy is gone. When you are alone with him. You don't even know what to say. You write a few words in tongues. Throw a few words here. And there is no clue. You have lost him. You are justified. You are going to heaven. But you are no longer in love with him. You have become his servant. You are no longer his lover. You have become his servant. You are no longer his lover. You do all the correct things. But the fire. The flame. Has gone out. You are now seeking. For what you want him to do for you. You now want to use him. You want him to heal you. You want him to bless you. You want him to foster you. You want him to do things for you. Things have changed. Instead of you doing things for him. You now want him to do things for you. Jesus bless me. Jesus give me this. Jesus give me that. Jesus do this for me. Jesus protect me from this. Me, me, me, me, me, me, me, me. You have lost him. And you are only trying to get some worldly reward. Out of him. Whereas when he was your lover. Oh. He just gave. And his presence satisfied you. His voice makes the world go sweet. Now you complain about everything in this country. The people are bad. The roads are bad. The cars are bad. This, this, this, this. You have a lot to complain about. When people have lost the Lord. They are full of complaints. You criticize this, criticize that, criticize that. They have criticized everything on you. You don't know what to criticize again. You are jealous of those who are enjoying their walk with God. And you accuse them of being hypocrites. Because you are the hypocrite. The lover has become the servant. If a man was to step his wife out and say, from today, you are no longer my wife. You can come and cook my food. Clean my house. Wash my clothes. And I will pay you at the end of the month. That would be a dangerous woman, isn't it? When the lover becomes the servant. And I want you to be honest and say, Lord, this is standing between me and you. This is standing between me and you. The apostle represents God. He represents God. And there is no barrier between us. But I go and bring a sin. I say, well, God cannot judge a sin. I say, well, I can still judge him. I can judge him, but I can no longer embrace him. I can touch him, but he doesn't touch me. I bring a second sin. God does not have to go to business. I say, well, it's not too bad. I say to my family, it's not too bad. I bring a third sin. I am separated from him. I am separated from him. has separated me from him. He loves me, but there is nothing he can do while my sin stands in the way. And you know, many people say, God, take away the sins. God will not take away the sins. God will not put them. The one who brought in the sins must be the one to take away the sins. I must say, this sin is separated me from God. I must call it by name. I must forsake it, and I must take it out of my life. Because what is important is not only that I touch him, it is that he touches me. I must not say, this other sin, and I must call it by name. This other sin is standing between me and God. I must call it by name. I must ask for the Holy Spirit to create a hatred for it in my heart. And I must take it out of my life. I will not ask God to take it. Because God is not the one who brought it. I say, well, I am touching God, but God is not touching me. Oh, this cherished sin. This may be the sin on which you earn your salary. This may be the special sin on which your life revolves. You may feel that if you take out this sin, you will break. You better take it and break it, because broken things are useful to God. And the devil will tell you a thousand and one reasons why this sin must not go away. Someone told me abroad, if I get this sin out, I have to leave Europe and go back to Cambodia. And I don't want to leave. He said, okay, stay here and go to hell. Because those who leave and continue in sin will perish. Jesus cannot save a man from a sin that he continues in. I must save this sin with all that it promises in standing between my God and myself.