This sermon emphasizes the importance of humility, seeking the Lord wholeheartedly, and being faithful to God's commands. It highlights the need to remove idols from our lives, renew our commitment to God, and maintain integrity even in times of prosperity. The message warns against relying on worldly solutions over God's guidance and stresses the significance of prayer, humility, and love for Jesus in our daily lives.

I wish Lily would tell you also how, you know, Lily is a medical doctor and most of her practice was confined to the children because she became a great helper in my family. As the mother of the family, what a big job the mother has to do, but when she began to have this muscular degeneration from drug reaction, well, she was getting more and more helpless, you know, until sometimes she would have to ask me to help her, you know. And at such a time that she could not even lift up her hand, the Lord touched her and restored her and we must see more of his works and be humble to receive them and be grateful to give God all the praise. Now tonight, we shall turn to 2nd Chronicles, 15th chapter. Now let's read a few verses only. Now for a long season Israel hath been without the true God and without a teaching priest and without law. And when they in their trouble did turn unto the Lord God of Israel and sought him, he was found of them. And in those times there was no peace to him that went out nor to him that came in, but great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the countries. And nation was destroyed of nation and city of city, for God did vex them with all adversity. Be you strong therefore and let not your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded. And when King Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin and out of the cities which he had taken from Mount Ephraim. And renewed the altar of the Lord that was before the porch of the Lord. So dear friends, we see King Asa was encouraged by the prophet's message. Now you know many years ago when I was preaching in Washington D.C. area, one Sunday evening I recall I was accompanying a well-known speaker. And I was a very young fellow at that time and he said before I speak I want you to speak. And so after I had preached there was a movement of God's spirit and people were weeping and confessing their sins. And so he said to me, how do you know where these people stand? Well I said I don't know them at all, I've never been here before and yet I'm cast upon the Lord to speak what he gives me. Then he said to me I believe in prophetic gifts. You know friends we ought not to be beating about the bush. You know we can set up as great teachers, great people, but that childlike heart which says Lord I don't know what to say. I don't know these people, I don't know their situation, their problems, but you are the searcher of the heart. You must speak. So friends, this has been my trust from the days of my youth. Going to the Lord, receiving a word from the Lord. And unless God opens my eyes to see his truth, I'm afraid I'm pretty ignorant and helpless. Here, the message which was given by this rather obscure prophet. You will see some obscure prophets, you just hear of them once or twice. But he spoke these words at a time of great turmoil and lack of security. So we need a word from the Lord for Britain and for the countries around Europe. We need a word from the Lord. You know we can beat about the bush, we can shout, we can sing, we can dance, and do all these things. But they are to no avail. The word was, the Lord is with you while you be with him. Second verse. You know, we are always taking a lot of things for granted. We imagine we are okay to begin with. You know, someone said to my mother, the Lord Jesus Christ spoke about having faith as much as a mustard seed. So tiny the mustard seed is. And someone said to her, hey, my faith is as big as an apple. How many mustard seeds would make an apple? You know, we start like that. Somehow we are so confident about our religious standing. You know, I always say I know so little, and that's a fact. Why shouldn't I say it? You see, I want to know more of Jesus. At the end of his life, towards the end of his life, Paul said that I might know him and the power of his resurrection. Some of us miscalculate our spiritual life very badly. And we get very proud, very presumptuous. You know, these two things go together. Pride and presumption. And then we get very judgmental also. That is, we cut down everybody. And we say, hey, I'm the big fellow around here. We forget that our breath is in our nostrils. We are there today. We are gone tomorrow. So pride and then presumption. Here is a secret. The Lord is with you, Emmanuel, God with us. When? When you are with him. The Lord is with you while you be with him. You know how we have become kind of so superficial. Everything today is about more research and getting to the depth of a subject and solving problems. You know, every field. Take technology. They have to break through problems almost every day. But when it comes to Christian life, we take it all for granted. I can't see how that can be. The Lord is with you while you are with him. Have you got that humility to be with him? Have you got that broken spirit to be with him? You know, modern life is all about telling us how we need to be aggressive. And we have to push ourselves, promote ourselves. And self-improvement all the time. We have to work at this and work at that. And some of the people you will find at the universities who are just going from degree to degree. I do not know when they are going to teach anybody or accomplish anything else. But all they do seem to be half their life is spent that way. While all around us, people are crying for help. You know, I was on the borders of Burma and in a place notorious for killings. Killings. Just mindless killings. And a whole lot of people had fled the town because they could not endure any more of that insecurity and killings. They had shut their businesses, locked them up, and they left the place. Here I was preaching. You know, there was a great big Hindu temple just close by. But there was probably a play field or some such thing. It was right in the midst of hilly terrain, you know. And so a flat land and torrential rain came down. But the people were there and they would not budge. And a lot of people turned up. All kinds of people. And I speak to the terrorists and address myself straight to them, you know. And some of them, as a matter of fact, they felt that it was a very dangerous place for me to go. And so some of the officials who had got converted had got some special security forces to cover my journey. I said angels are there for me. I don't need all this. However, somebody sent me a petition. You know what? And when I read that petition, there is no doctor here. Even to take care of the confinements and deliveries or to take care of the children. No doctors here. Please send us a doctor. My dear friends, when there are Christian doctors around in the world, should there be such a call, such a desperate cry anywhere? No, I don't believe so. However, look at the situation of total desolation that is spoken of here. In those times, the fifth verse, there was no peace to him that went out nor to him that came in. But great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the countries. And nation was destroyed of nation. You know, tribal warfare is a terrible thing. And people just kill, mindless killing. And so that kind of tribal killing is there all the time. And right in the midst of that, we live and work. And we don't run away. So, my friends, we are seeing a situation of desolation. Some time ago, you know, I read the papers here in Europe while I'm passing by. Some time ago, it said that they are going to audit members of parliament over their petty cash or whatever. And they were not entitled to what? To spending more than some paltry sum, you know. Maybe you can buy some three fish and chips with that money or whatever it is. And these men are said to account. Hereafter, you've got to give an account of, okay. If you have had three plates of fish and chips, by all means, say, I was so hungry, I had to eat three plates full. All right. Now, this time passing through, it's knife attacks. What? Are we living in some jungle area or what? Fellows carrying knives? Can't call this a civilized country if that's the case. No security. But when the prophet came and prophesied, saying, seventh verse, You know, we are apt to think that the preaching of the word of God is a vain enterprise. No, I don't think so. You know, when the word of God begins to sink into hearts, out of them come such tremendous potential. I've seen it happen in man after man after woman after woman. But it is the faithful sowing of the word of God. You know, when the word of God seems to lose its power, then something is seriously wrong. You know, we can all become very academic. Sometimes preaching can be dry as dust, and people can half the crowd get sleepy. And you might hear a couple of people even snoring in the front seats. You know, folks, what does that say? It says there isn't enough prayer. Now, a preacher has to set his own heart right. And then look at the low level at which we are living. What about the people around us? What are their worries? What are their concerns? You know, it looks like we're all in a bucket of crabs. And you know what they say about the bucket of crabs? If one crab tries to get to the surface, all the rest of them pull it down. Horrible. You know, I'm not here to pull you down. I'm here to encourage and lift you up. How sad that people have such little things over which they get wrapped up, excited. And a small thing is blown out of proportion. And God's glory goes out of the window. How sad. Is this glorifying to God? Is this talk glorifying to God? Is such an attitude glorifying to God? That's what you have to ask yourself. Here, when this prophet came and said, All right, this is the scenario. It is a scenario of desolation. But be strong. And let your hands not be weak. For your work shall be rewarded. And when Asa, King Asa, heard these words, and the prophecy avoided the prophet, he took courage and put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin and out of the cities and renewed the altar of the Lord. You see, friends, removing these idols, somehow, you know, I do not know if there is the loud cry in the early morning from the top of minarets in Britain today. All right, we say we have freedom. But I find that many of these things are very intrusive on the privacy and the quiet which I cherish. I have a right to be quiet. If I choose to live in a location, I want that location to be a quiet location. But wherever idolatry goes, there is nothing but confusion. So when I see some of these ethnic groups and ethnic clubs, they are just dinner clubs. They are just social clubs. They may call themselves churches. They are just social clubs. They are to just invite each other for parties, dinners, and celebrations of birthdays, this, that, and the other. Now, the response to this prophecy was he removed the idols and abominable idols out of the land and he renewed the altar of the Lord. You see, my friends, it takes some doing to renew the altar of the Lord. You can see people married to each other for years, but they just don't seem to agree in prayer. Why? What's wrong? They say we have no time to pray together. No, there is no altar. There is no glory for God there. The Lord is not there. That's the point. If the Lord is there, there would be an altar of prayer. If the Lord is not there, there won't be an altar of prayer. There won't be time for prayer. There would be time for TV, time for relaxation, time for camping, and everything else. But there would be no altar. Now, we want revival. We want a country to rise. We want Europe to rise. But we don't seem to think that rebuilding the altar is necessary at all. We must go on with our hackneyed prayers. All right, some of them are well-framed petitions in the liturgy and so on. And, of course, they can be very meaningful if your heart goes into those prayers. But if you keep repeating them, you know, like the chants. I say, you know, on the radio in some of those countries over in the east, you will have Sanskrit slokas, you would call them, stanzas. And do people understand it? No, they don't. And I say, what is that sing-song incantation going to produce? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. All right, what is the meaning of it? Go ahead, take more brides. Steal and plunder. Is that the meaning of your prayer? How sad. Some people pray prayers which they don't even understand. It's so sad. What is the priest praying? Do you know it? Do you follow it? No, I don't know Latin. So I can't follow that prayer. I don't know Syriac, so I can't follow that prayer. Why? Is God confined to some language? There is no altar there. That's the problem. And all these people are going through the motions, standing there apparently very reverentially. No, friends, there should be a way by which wherever we go, wherever we meet, there should be an altar for the Lord. You know, it's pretty easy to have Bible clubs in the United States. People seem to enjoy coming to Bible studies and so on. But you say it's a prayer meeting. Oh, people say, oh, I have no time. Prayer meeting. They don't know how to breathe. That's the problem. TB of the lungs, spiritual lungs. So to get together a few people for prayer is so difficult. Why? What's wrong? It's not so convenient. It's not this. I've got children. I've got this. I've got that. But all those things don't seem to interfere with your entertainments. So, folks, what was the upshot of this? Now, he removed the abominable idols and 12th verse, and they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul. And after a time, these words become mere phrases. With all their heart and with all their soul. Can you tell me when you prayed with all your heart, all your soul, last? Can you tell me what it is that made you pray and covenant with God to pray and to seek him with all your heart? You know, even our retreats can become pretty nominal. If we reduce our religion to just empty phrases, my soul is cast upon the Lord. And when I go to any place, I tell the Lord, Lord, unless you go before me, there's absolutely no point in my going there unless you work. You see, it should be the Lord working, and that should never be confined to just the place of worship. It should be carried through into the week of work. If the quality which we derive from our prayer life is not taken to the workplace. You know, friends, I was checking out of the University Hospital of Michigan. And I had gone in for an emergency when a lot of fluid was collecting. And so we pulled into the emergency, and they checked me in for two days to treat me. And I was being wheeled out to the car, and the young nurse, a young man, began to say, I have never seen a patient. I've been here many years, but I've never seen a patient draw the hearts of so many people until they began to give such close attention to you. And what is it? How is it? Well, did I do something extraordinary? No, I did nothing extraordinary. I was just conscious of the Lord, not just conscious of my sickness or my frailty or no complaining, nothing. Friends, there is a quality that you take with you wherever you go, and that quality impacts people. It should impact people. Now, what happened was, you know, however, when so many people began to come to us from Israel, somehow, Asa could not extend these reforms to such a lot of people. So, in the 16th and 17th verses, and also concerning Maka, the mother of Asa, the king, he removed her from being queen because she had made an idol in a grove, and Asa cut her idol down and stamped it and burnt it at the brook Kidron. Now, you know how sentimental people are. I have found this, and it has been one of the sad discoveries in my life. When it comes to the crunch, you know how people react? They don't react for the truth. They react sentimentally. Oh, this is my own person. This is my own family. No, God's name should be glorified. Is God's name glorified? No, I have always stood with the truth. Okay, am I perfect? No, I am not. So, a little boy comes and tells me some evident fault which he sees in me. Should I not take it? Why? Why not? I am not perfect, but I want to improve. So, one of you comes to me and says something which will greatly benefit me if I humble myself and obey it. Should I not take it? What is the big deal in that? I don't see any big deal in that. Just love for the truth. You see, friends, love for the truth should exceed our friendships, our relationships, our sentimental frame of mind. Love for the truth. Loyalty to Jesus. So, as I see it, you know, the world appears in small, little tribal groups to me. So, I say to people, okay, you're not mountain tribes anymore, but all I see is a tribal pattern of thinking in you. You can only think of your tribe. You can only think of your family. You can only think of, you know, protecting or safeguarding the reputation of your little circle. You're not thinking of the honor and glory of God. That means we're not Christians. If I am a Christian, my loyalty is to the Lord Jesus. You know, there's a slogan about which I was making fun the other day in one of the big congregations that I was addressing. Behind the bus transport, government transport, city buses, they have a little slogan, be Indian and buy Indian. And I said, look, who would think you're an Englishman anyway? You know, my dear people. I said, that's all a bunch of rubbish. You know, the glory of God transcends national boundary. You can't help but be international. You love everybody. That's all. You can't help it. You go to Africa, you fall in love with the people. Wherever I go, I just love the people, and I want to serve them. You know, if you have got one of those upish minds which looks down on people, please be rid of that kind of horrible mind. It's a horrible, dirty mind. He is made in God's own image. He is my brother. I will love him. See, we have not shown the Islamic world the love of Jesus. I don't believe that they understand at all the love of Jesus. They are talking about the old crusades and the cruelty of the crusades. Of course, that is a documented fact of history. Misguided people going there to do all kinds of valorous things, to kill and to butcher. All right, the memory of those things still lingers. But we have not projected the love of Jesus. Now, my dear friends, so here is this king. He tells his mother, Mother, you dare set up an idol in your garden? I am going to tear it down. I love you, Mother, but I am going to tear your idol down. So, my dear friends, he tore the idol down and cut down the grove that was around it. 17th verse introduces a little anomaly there. But the high places were not taken away out of Israel. They were taken away out of Judah. That was his own domain. Now, when Israel began to fall to him, oh well, you see, I did it in my own country, but what am I going to do in this country that has rejected me? Am I going to be able to do this? So, let me leave that alone. Let me leave that troubled spot alone. Many people have preached the gospel with this kind of attitude. Let me leave their culture alone. Let me leave their demonology alone. Let me leave their caste system alone. My, let me leave the curse alone. Can you say that? Let me leave this death-bringing plague alone. Can a doctor say that? No. But Christians have said it. So, they did not have the courage to uproot some of the evils till they have grown deep today. You know, my dear friends, there's a lot more I wish to say, but I must move on to the end. This great king, who started so earnestly, however, when it came to the end of his career, he did not maintain that same integrity and faithfulness. There was a prophet who came to him and told him in the 7th verse, 16th chapter in the 7th verse. And at that time, Hanani, the seer, came to Asher, king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria and not relied on the Lord your God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of your hands. 8th verse. Yet because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered you out of the hands of the Ethiopian army. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong on the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly. Therefore, from henceforth thou shalt have wars. You see, here was this prophet telling him, All right, till now you relied upon the Lord, but what is this you have done? When the armies of Israel came down against you, you went to the Syrian king, this heathen king, and you relied upon his army. You didn't rely upon the Lord. You see, as long as we are human, we are apt to do things like this. We may carry on very wonderfully all through our lives, but towards the end of your career, or life, or during some weak moment, you can suddenly rely upon the arm of the flesh and take up the advice or counsel of some ungodly person. But when the prophet warned him Oh, he found it hard. By then, you know, he was a very successful king. Who is this fellow to warn me? He clapped him up in prison. Clapped up the prophet. Prophet is only a man who speaks on behalf of God. You see, he does not, you know, unlike, unlike some of those that are referred to as prophets that taught in their writings jihad or war or to kill the unbeliever. My dear friends, a true prophet from God will only give a message of loving warning. And Asa couldn't take it. He was too big. Now listen, friends, when money increases and prosperity increases, let's never become too big for our shoes. Too big. I don't want this warning. And the prophet said henceforth you'll be diseased in your feet. Asa, because he did not seek the Lord, yet in his disease, 12th verse, he sought not to the Lord but to the physicians. They could not help him. So friends, it is for us to walk with fear and trembling and be humble. If God ever condescends to use you or me, it is his sheer mercy to an unprofitable, unworthy person. Let us be humble. It costs nothing, you know, to be humble. It costs nothing. I don't know why people find it so hard to be humble. I don't care for the honors that people want to bestow. I don't care for their gifts. I want to be found with a humble heart before God. That's all I want. Let us pray. O Lord, our God, let it not become so hard for us to be humble. We see this great king of Judah, reformer, cleaning up the land, pulling down the abominable idols, and yet, towards the end of his life, he could not take a simple correction, simple warning, and he died in his disease. O Lord, our God, we pray and ask you, before you allow afflictions of any sort to overtake us, before you lay us down and humble us, help us to humble ourselves. We are nobodies, and we see desperate need around us. This is no time for sentimentality and indignation for ourselves or for somebody close to us. Help us to be indignant that there is so little glory for Jesus Christ. Let there be our concern. Let there be our sorrow. Why is it that my Lord is dishonored in this fashion? Why has it become sport to this nation to set Jesus Christ at naught, set him aside, sideline him, ignore him, break his commandments, and grieve God's heart? O my Father, let some of these greater concerns come to us. Save us from our small minds, small minds, and we go round and round, our little afflictions. There is some flea on my tail, like the foolish dog that chases its own tail. O save us, Lord, save us. Let us be concerned. Give to us that altar of prayer. Father, we need the altar. Our altar has become disused and desolate. Our altar has fallen. Help us, we pray. Lift your altar. O give to us hearts of love for Jesus. Let us not swarble with our lips. He died for me, and I am ready to do this, that, or the other. Lord, all that kind of bluster may cease, and we might learn to speak the truth. Truth is, our love has waxed cold. Forgive us, Lord, forgive us. Let not sin, let not vanity, let not pride dominate in our personalities. O God, save us, we pray, at a time when we do not even know the harvest of misery that Harry Potter's books alone have generated. Lord, we do not know how many children are waking up with nightmares in the night and terrors surrounding them and live in a world of fantasy. Lord, save the people who write these books, we pray. O my Father, the sin of the nations is reflected in the very literature of these lands. Father, save us. We ask this in Jesus' holy name. Amen.