In this sermon, the speaker discusses the importance of different aspects of Christian ministry. He first talks about world missions and the desperate need for God in various places around the world. He then emphasizes the significance of discipleship, stating that it is crucial to not only reach out to lost people but also to make disciples. The speaker shares a personal experience of realizing that his focus had shifted away from God and towards his own work and family. He concludes by highlighting the importance of seeking Jesus above all else and aligning our priorities with God's heart.

It was such a blessing to see so many responses to my lecture. How many of you were mightily blessed last night? Amen. Say amen. How many of you are ready to be blessed again here this morning? How many of you are hungry for more of Jesus? Well, that's what we have to talk about here this morning. Turn with me in your Bibles, if you would. Psalms, the 24th chapter. I want to talk about the Jacob generation. The Jacob generation is a one-thing generation. It's a group of men and women who are totally set apart for Jesus Christ, who have no other agenda, who have no other desire, who have no other passion, except that Jesus Christ would come to have the preeminence over all things. Psalms 24, starting to read in verse 3. Who may ascend to the... He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol nor... He shall receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from God, his salvation. This is Jacob, the generation of those who seek him, who seek his face. If you want to be a man or woman who seeks God's face, if you want to be a part of the Jacob generation, I want to ask you to bow your hearts with me right now and let's pray and ask God to anoint this message and anoint our ears to hear that our lives might be changed. Let's pray. Jesus, we invite you to come in power. We know we're nothing without you and we're hungry and we're desperate for you. Our souls thirst for the living God, consuming fire. Come and speak to us today. Make us a people with one heart, with one mind, undivided, single, passionate for Jesus Christ. One thing generation. Bless these words. Let them be from heaven. In the name of Jesus. And everybody say together, Amen. I'm hungry to be a part of this generation. A generation that's not looking for success or popularity. A group of ministers who are looking for nothing but Jesus Christ and the fruit. Many, many years ago, young men and women would be called into the ministry. And when they were called into the ministry, they had this passion repeating the words of Paul, Oh, that I might know him. That was the one cry, that I might know him. Are you hungry to know him here this morning? Is that the cry of your soul? Does that stir you? Is there an ever increasing zeal in your heart for more of Jesus? But something has happened in the church. People got distracted. Ministers were persuaded to look elsewhere for life. They could no longer say, All my springs of joy are in you, oh Lord. Their springs of joy became success. Their springs of joy became power and honor. The desire of their heart to see a kingdom established. Their pride and ambition got in the way. So they worked hard. They began to strive in the flesh. They began to set man-made goals. They created agendas to make things happen. And they began to walk and move without the Spirit of God. And I've been so tired over the last 10, 15 years of seeing my peers who were in the ministry so driven and so given over to success. And I don't mean just godly success. I was thinking of a worldly success. Of how large the church is. Whether they could build a new building. How many people they have in their congregations. But God is raising up a new minister. A young minister. An old minister. Who's returning to the former desires. Who's going back home to the heart of ministry. They're tired of the hype. They're tired of the routine and the traditions of men. And they have one cry in their soul. One prayer off their lips. Take the whole world. But give me Jesus. Take the power. Take the success. Take the money. But don't go with your spirit. Leave me your spirit. That's the cry in the heart of a one thing generation member. Just give me Jesus. Just give me Jesus. I don't need anything else. I need his heart. I need his passion. I need his love for the world. I need his guidance and direction. I need his spirit to quicken me. And then the strategies. The programs. The ambitions. They grow strangely dim. Because of his glory. His light. This passage we're reading here. Speaks of a generation called the Jacob generation. Those who seek him. Those who seek his face. When I was 19 years old. I went to a conference very similar to this one. It was a conference that changed my life forever. Just as our prayer is that this one ever. Let me speak to you young ministers just for a moment. Those of you who feel that call of God. And just beginning to get into ministry. And you're looking for direction. When I was a young man I went to this conference. And an elderly pastor was preaching. And he told us young ministers. You're going to have to make a choice. Here's the choice. You're going to seek either God's face. Or you're going to seek God's hand. Now God's hand will move in power. God's hand will heal the sick. God's hand will raise up ministries. God's hand will open up doors. And God's hand. But there's also God's face. It's the cry that I might know him. It's the passion in the heart to see him face to face. It's the desire to be a friend of God. It's a hunger, a thirst. It says I want more of you Jesus. I must have Christ in fullness. And he said you have to make a choice. You either choose his hand or his face. I remember at 19 I said to Jesus. Christ I want to seek your face. Yes I want to see miracles. I want to do mighty works. I want to see the kingdom of God expanded. I want the lost to be saved. But I don't want to do any of that without you going before me. Without me knowing you. Anybody can preach sermons. Anybody can lead congregations. But what God wants to call forth is men and women of God who have this Jacob spirit. This one thing seeking. That I might seek your face. I remember choosing. God I want to seek your face. There was such a sweet spirit there. I began to have a cry in my soul for more of God. That day birthed something new in me. I've never been the best preacher. I've never been the most eloquent. I've never had the best leadership skills. I'm not a great organizer. But I have this one thing. I want to know Jesus. I want to know God. I want to seek his face. I want to be part of this Jacob generation. And it's my prayer now that he would raise up leaders older men and women of God who will lead the way into his presence who will be the model of what it is to be a generation of one mind. So that young people who are entering into the ministry who are early in their ministry can learn from you that one thing. So I chose to seek his face. There's been times since where I almost changed my mind. I said, maybe I'd rather choose the other. Maybe I made the wrong decision. I want to see more power. I want to see more success. I want to see more people healed. I want to see more people saved. Sometimes I feel like I've made the wrong decision. But then Jesus comes. He gets to visit me. I feel his presence. I feel his touch. I feel his love. I feel his anointing. And the glory of the Lord fills the place. Just like Isaiah who saw the Lord. He didn't just know about him. It didn't just work for him. He saw the Lord. He was high and lifted up. And his glory filled the temple. There was a filling. An outpouring. And out of that, out of that knowledge of God, out of that intimacy with Jesus, comes all true ministry. Comes all powerful ministry. Many years ago, his name was Leonard Ravenhill. I heard him preach one time at a minister's conference. He said, all of you men that want the power come and stand on this side of the auditorium. And I'm going to pray that God will give you a double portion. And those of you that are hungry to know more of Jesus, I want you to come and stand on this side of the auditorium. We'll pray that God will give you a heart to seek his face. And almost 99% of the men came up and stood on this side. They wanted the power. They wanted to be God's men. They wanted authority. And Ravenhill went over there and prayed for them. He said, humble these men, God. Give them a heart to seek your face because that's the path to power. Then he went over to the few men standing here and Jesus, I thank you for these powerful men of God who know what's most important, who know what to seek first. Give them their hearts crying because as they seek your face your hand will move. Seek God's face. Seek his face first and you'll see his hand move. You don't have to worry about his hand moving when his face arrives on the scene. He doesn't leave his hand at home and there are many people consumed with God's hand. Move this. Fix this. Build this. Move that. But Jesus is saying to us today seek my face and my hand will accompany. My hand will be there and it will bless you and it will fill you. But first of all there's one desire and one high calling and that's knowing Jesus. When I was 19 I set my face to do that and it's my desire that men and women in this place today to make that same choice to say God it's about your face. Now who can have his face? Who can know this true intimacy with Christ? Psalms 24 gives us insight to this. Who may ascend into this hill says verse 3. Not just the hill of ministry. Not just the mountain top of success. But the hill of the Lord. The place where Moses received the glory. Who can go up into those inner places? Who can like Paul see things into the third heavens? And who may stand in this holy place? Is it just busy ministers? Is it just pastors of growing churches? Is God's favored eye upon those who are doing more than others in appearance? Are those who get the invitation into the holy place those who look more successful? No, the Bible makes it clear. In verse 4 the one that ascends verse 3 the one that ascends the one who stands verse 4 says is the one with clean hands. The one with a pure heart. His hands have not been lifted up. His soul has not been lifted up to an idol. There's no idol of success. There's no idol of selfish ambition or desire. There's no agenda for anything else. I can't tell you how many idols I've had in ministry. I grew up in a Christian home. I never got into drugs or to wild and loose living. But my idols were in the ministry. Building an idol out of success. Out of self-ambition to get things accomplished. Let me give you an example. I was building a church. We had started it from scratch. Nothing. I went into a city didn't know anybody and just started walking around on the university campus praying for young people. Before long the church began to grow. In our very first service we had over a hundred people. Before long the church was getting close to three or four hundred people. It was looking successful in the eyes of my ministry friends. But I got so busy spending all my energy on the external ministry that I began to forget about Jesus. I wasn't seeking the face of Christ. I was getting distracted. One day I went home from my church office and I got out my guitar and I began to worship the Lord. Singing this one song we sing in America which says Lord you are more precious than silver more beautiful than gold more wonderful than diamonds and nothing I desire compares to you. That's a beautiful song. And I was singing it and I thought so sweetly to Jesus. Nothing I desire compares to you. Nothing I desire compares to you. And I felt the Holy Spirit stop me. It was as if the Lord was asking me a question. Are you sure about that? You say nothing you desire compares. But what about your ministry? What about all your activities? You spend such little time with me. You can spend hours strategizing and hardly even minutes in prayer. The way you spend your time and energy tells you what your priorities are. So I was telling Jesus nothing compares to him but my life was giving him a different message. That message was this Jesus you are important to me but not as important as my church. Not as important as me building this up. And it broke my heart. And I told Jesus Christ I'm sorry Lord. Please forgive me God. I don't want that to compare to you. I don't want it to outshine you. Yes I want to be fruitful in ministry but years ago I set my face like flint to seek your face and I got off the track and I've been distracted by many things but this one thing is needful that nothing would compare to you. And I felt so refreshed the returning joy and presence of the Lord. I got the guitar again sang the song again not to the last part and nothing I desire compares to you. Nothing I desire compares to you. And the Holy Spirit stopped me and said there's something else I want to talk to you about. What about your family? You love your children. You love your wife. You enjoy your vacation time. And I didn't feel like the Holy Spirit was saying I was putting them ahead of God. I did not feel like I was putting them ahead of God but the song was this nothing compares to God. And my family my family began to compare to God. I was putting them putting them on the same level and God wants us to love our families but not compared to how we love Him. And so I repented again. Jesus I'm sorry. Forgive me God. I didn't know that was in my heart. I got out my guitar again sang the song again joy again and nothing I desire compares to you. And He stopped me again and He said this what did you do last Sunday after church? I said I watched the football game. What did you do in the evening? I watched the second football game. What did you do on Monday night? I watched Monday night football. So that's a lot of time isn't it? That's a lot of time. And the Lord said to me that's comparing to me. That's beginning to compare to me. I repented again. Jesus forgive me. This desire it's not a wrong desire but it should be a small desire compared to you. I must have spent at least a half hour with that guitar that song. And every time I start singing it over again nothing compares to you. I get stopped again and again and again because I found many things in my life that were being lifted up being exalted not evil things not sinful things but things that compared things that I was lifting up and the one who is going to ascend if you're going up to the place of Jesus if you're going to know Christ more you can't have any other agenda besides Him first. He has to be here all in all. Look more at verse 7 Lift up your heads O you gates and be lifted up you everlasting doors and the King of Glory shall come in. There's something that has to be lifted up first something that has to be moved out of the way certain things have to be put away otherwise God gets shut out it hinders Him David when he was crying out to know this one thing he writes about this generation that's going to seek the face of God he gives them this warning and this encouragement first something has to be lifted up something has to be moved out of the way get the doors out of the way the things that block God from full access to your heart so that you're seeking nothing else and then it says the King of Glory will come in did you hear me here this morning Jesus Christ the Living God the Holy One the Most High God's Anointed will come in His Blessing His Face His Hand His Presence His Love His Power His Authority all that He is will come in as everything else the hindrances are gone we run from sin we run from idolatry so that the King of Glory may come in we're hungry we're thirsty not just for ministry not for our own agendas but so that the King of Glory may come in and fill His Church with the Spirit of Christ a fresh touch a new anointing the Holy Veil the big fire for more of Jesus lift everything out move everything away have no other agenda it's so easy to get agendas I get an idea every day some scheme some new plan that pops into my head if I did everything every idea that came into my head I would be so busy I would have no time for Jesus and that sounds ridiculous but that describes many in this place running after a multitude of ideas carnal ideas visions and dreams of your own and you wonder why you're so weary you wonder why you're so busy you get angry because your church isn't helping you enough they don't have the vision but the truth is you're the one who doesn't have the vision yes, you have ideas you have programs but the vision is to be of Jesus this is the one thing generation seeking nothing else the church I grew up in had many guest speakers you know what it's like to have a guest speaker in your church you have missionaries come speak you have evangelists come speak people from the Bible Society have you ever noticed something about guest speakers in your church whatever they're preaching about or whatever ministry they're involved in they always try to convince you that what they're doing is the most important thing on God's heart so I got confused as a young man I'd hear somebody come in and talk about intercession and they would say this prayer and intercession is the most important thing on God's heart so I said that's what I want to give my life to I started praying started seeking His face and then the next month there'd be another guest speaker and he'd talk about world missions and he'd talk about the needs around the world and the places that were desperate for God the pagan lands that needed missionaries and they'd say this is the most important thing on God's heart that we'd save the lost and so I said that's a good message I'm tired of all that praying I want to do something for God so I'm going to become a missionary and then the next month they'd have somebody come to our church and he'd talk about discipleship and he said many people can go to foreign lands and preach to lost people but if you don't disciple them you don't bring them into the world so the most important thing on God's heart is discipleship and I'd say yes, that's it that's what I want to give my heart to I want to be a discipler I want to get a small group of people and teach them and my heart was always changing because they're always saying there's something that's most important to God but God has something else in store he makes it clear what the one thing of his heart is God has a passion as well God has a desire as well God has a mission it's not just that the world be one not just that the church would be involved in intercession not just discipleship would take place but what is on the Father's heart that his Son Christ Jesus might come to have first place that he might be supreme over all that all things be summed up in Christ and if you want to know what's most important to God and what should be most important to us and you truly want to be a man after God's own heart then the Father's heart is after his Son Christ Jesus he wants everything to be wrapped up into his Son he wants him to have a preeminence over all things this is God's desire I was having in my church I was reading from the Old Testament and I was reading about the end times when there was the building of the temple and when the temple was finally rebuilt Zerubbabel and those who were rebuilding the temple they put the capstone the last stone on top of the building and all the people saw the finished work and they began to lift their hands they began to cry out grace, grace to it because they understood it was by God's grace that the work was finished and that capstone in your life and in your family and in your church is not only the cornerstone but also the capstone the beginning and the end the Alpha and the Omega the all in all from first to last is Christ Jesus every knee bowing every tongue confessing with the whole heart that Christ is Lord all of a sudden I saw this picture of my church with me in heaven we were standing around the throne of the work that God had built they began to put the capstone the final touches on it the exaltation in the highest place of Jesus Christ and all of heaven was shouting grace grace to it it's Jesus Jesus Jesus and all of a sudden I heard these strange voices I looked around and I saw people from my church and they were yelling something different they were saying intercession intercession evangelism evangelism discipleship discipleship they didn't get it they didn't know what it was all about they weren't yelling Jesus Christ because they had been trained to see something else first catching the lost first saying your prayers first making disciples first all those things are good but when you stand before Jesus in heaven you're not going to be shouting home groups home groups home groups you're not going to say glory glad to home groups you're going to say and He wants to be first in your heart not just when you stand before Him in heaven but here right now His will be done on earth like that which is in heaven and the Father's will in heaven that we shout Christ Christ no other message no other desire no other passion no one thing generation let me close the first is Mary of Bethany you don't have to turn there but it's found in Mark 14 Jesus comes into a house of Simon the leper and Mary of Bethany walks into that house all these men were talking about their agendas they were all questioning Jesus about their theology but this young girl she takes this bottle of perfume that she has the Bible says it was worth over a year's wages many church historians tell us that they think this woman was an orphan so here's this little girl no parents probably that was her life inheritance probably something her mother and father left her it could have been her future it represented her prosperity it represented her security it wasn't just a little cheap piece of perfume it represented her whole life there she break it open others might say Jesus and she takes and she kneels at his feet and tears are in her eyes she takes that precious bottle all her life all her security all her hopes for the future a little orphan girl and she breaks it and it pours out and fixes with her tears she says Jesus it's all about you I don't need anything else I don't need security I don't need to feel like I'm okay because if I have you I have everything so she poured it all out I love this story of Mary of Bethany and the Lord told me one day that's your model of ministry to pour it all out for Jesus and when the Lord first told me that I didn't like that you want me to be like Mary of Bethany she's a woman she's feminine she's walking around with perfume I want to be like John and Peter you called them the sons of thunder they were the powerful men let them be my model this is your model we need more Mary of Bethany you have this one thing desire to pour it all out to Jesus this is the same Mary who when Jesus came to her house her older sister Martha was busy about many things she was busy about many many things as a matter of fact she wasn't just busy doing cooking she was troubled she was worried she was fearful she was uncertain she had a lot of anxiety and she was so busy but she was missing the one thing needful you're here in this building today and your life is full of fear you're afraid of failing you're afraid of the future you're anxious about many things there's no peace in your heart you're always worried about your church you're always worried about your future and your success then you have that Martha spirit troubled about many things and she comes in to Jesus and she says Jesus, Mary's not doing anything she's not working but Jesus disagrees she says she's doing a good work most of us when we think of good works we think of preaching we think of leading of building ministries of writing books of doing great works for God but Jesus says to Mary and Martha this is a good work to break your heart open before Jesus to sit at Jesus' feet to sit before Him and Jesus not only calls this a good work but says Mary has found and I want you to find today the one thing the one thing that is needful the one thing that we can be truly passionate about so that we might have Jesus all of this is born out of this intimacy it's an all consuming pursuit it's your pursuit that consumes you and sometimes I'm afraid to give this one thing heart to Jesus I'm afraid that if I do that He'll keep me in a secret closet He'll allow me to have wonderful prayer times I'll be a sweet worshipper of Jesus but I won't accomplish anything in the world and that's a deception that's a lie from the pit of hell because the most successful ministry the greatest men and women of God are great men and women of God because they have a great knowledge of Jesus won't you stand with me if you would and I'm not going to invite you to come to the front here today just to get a greater ministry but there are people in this place today that you're more like Martha than you are Mary you've given your heart to many things you're troubled over many things you're stressed out over many things but for many weeks, many months even years now you've been missing that one thing and what I want you to do today is picture what you have in your hands all your future all your hopes and dreams your security, your success your direction your plans, your ambitions all that you have I want you to picture taking that bringing it before Jesus breaking it saying Jesus break my heart break my heart once again give me a fresh touch from you Jesus return me to this one thing desire to this one desire almost all of you remember that one thing you had it at one point and it's gone and if you should repent of that take that bottle put all those things in it come to the front of this auditorium come to the front here and break that open before Jesus let's break that portal in front of Jesus let's give it all to you Jesus I cling to nothing we all need Jesus more there's people here today desperate people who have forgotten God days without number and you need to make that right with God come out of your seat right now stay here in front right now where you are and get that one thing just begin to worship Him lift your hands to Him just call on His name He's been longing for you He's been waiting for you He's seen your busyness and now He's saying to you I'm so blessed that you've chosen the one thing make this your life this one thing say that to Jesus one thing I desire one thing I seek that I might know you Jesus cry out for that refreshing now, would you? use your own words tell Him out loud now how desperate you are for Him Jesus we're desperate we're hungry for you Jesus we're thirsty for you God we want you now more than ever come Jesus come bless you now bless you Jesus give it all to you Jesus hallelujah hallelujah just wait on Him now He wants this intimate moment with you but He wants a moment of your time to set your face like flint to Him fit your desire to be this Jacob generation repeat this out loud dear Jesus I've been busy I heard something it reminds me of my thirst I'm sorry Lord that I've missed you and I'm coming back to this one thing that I might know you I choose to seek your face and then I trust your hand will accompany but it's your face I seek forever make this my one thing desire give me the heart of Mary that I'd live my life with this one thing that is needful and that's you Savior that's you my Lord that's you my friend that's you my lover I love you Jesus and I thank you Jesus that you're putting in my heart a greater desire a greater desire and I just thank Him thank you Jesus bless you Jesus thank you my all in all Jesus hallelujah, thank you Jesus thank you Jesus we're all together