In this sermon, the speaker, Pastor Dave, shares a story about a farmer who toiled his whole life on a rocky piece of land, only to die in poverty and discouragement. However, after his death, his son discovers that there is gold on the property. The speaker uses this story to illustrate that God sometimes allows us to go through difficult times as a test of our faith. He emphasizes that in the last days, there will be a gross darkness covering the earth, and it may seem like the devil is winning. But believers are called to trust in the Holy Spirit, who will be with them even in the midst of darkness. The speaker encourages the audience to seek God's guidance and comfort in times of trial and uncertainty.

This recording is provided by Times Square Church in New York City. You're welcome to make additional copies for free distribution to friends. All other unauthorized duplication or electronic transmission is a violation of copyright and other applicable laws. This recording cannot be posted on any website. However written permission to link to the Times Square Church homepage may be requested by emailing info at timessquarechurch.org. Other recordings are available by calling 1-800-488-0854 or by writing to Times Square Church Tape Ministry, 1657 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Receiving the Holy Spirit. Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed? Well you said Amen but I'm probably going to show that maybe you haven't. Even though you speak with tongues, you may not have received the Holy Spirit. You say, where are you going? Well stay with me. Father, I need you. Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, I need your anointing. I cannot preach this without your Spirit speaking in me, to me, and through me. I pray Lord for those in the annexes and overflow rooms and here in the main auditorium that you would come and speak a word, a strong word to our hearts. Lord, sanctify our ears. Give us ears to hear what the Spirit has to say. Touch me now. Let us speak your mind. Amen. I'm quoting to you from 2 Peter 1-3. You don't have to turn there. But one verse. Seeing that his divine power, that's the Holy Spirit, has granted to us all things pertaining to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence. God the Holy Spirit is in us and has given us all the resources pertaining to life and godliness. And how? Through the knowledge. It's a knowledge. It's not a manifestation in itself, but it's a knowledge. Through that knowledge we come in to the receiving of the Holy Spirit. Now, I've claimed to be baptized with the Holy Spirit since I was eight years old. I remember the time and the place. Eight years old at a camp meeting in a sawdust floor when the Spirit of the Lord came upon me and I was filled with the Holy Spirit. I remember the passion for Jesus that resulted. And I was there for some two hours or so and could not move because the Lord by his Spirit laid his hand upon me and called me to preach when I was eight years old. So I have known the working, the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. I have communed with the Holy Spirit. I have walked in the Spirit. I've tasted of the Holy Spirit. I've communed with the Holy Spirit. I have studied everything from Genesis to Revelation that has to do with the Holy Spirit. And I would say I've been filled with the Holy Spirit. He abides in me. And I trust that he will speak to me to you now. Yes, I believe in the baptism. I believe in the filling of the Holy Spirit. I believe in the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. But lately I've been asking myself the question, Holy Spirit, have I truly received you? Do I really know who you are and what I have in me? You see, you can have something very valuable in your heart and not be able to understand it. You can't enjoy or use what you don't understand. God wants, through the Scripture I just gave you, through the knowledge of him, through the understanding, God has to turn the lights on, so to speak, so we know who he is, so we know what we have. There's a story told of a farmer years ago who farmed a rocky piece of soil. He had a small farm. And all his life he toiled as a poor dirt farmer in that small farm. And he died in poverty. And he died in discouragement. And when he died, he passed the farm to his son. And his son was farming one day and he picked up a piece of nugget in an ore, it looked like a gold streak, and he had it assayed and found out there was gold on the property. And, of course, he became a very wealthy man. And that's a simple story, but it tells you that some people labor all of their life thinking that they have this treasure, believing they are filled with the Holy Spirit, that they have received the Holy Spirit, but they've truly not received him in his power, and he is not doing in their life what he's been called to do. You do not receive him until you have allowed him to accomplish his eternal purpose for which God sent him. Do you understand? I'm going to give you just a light of where we're going with this this morning. And I've been asking myself, you know, Lord, have I truly received the Holy Spirit in his fullness? Not just a manifestation, isn't it something that we keep saying when we get in a problem or trouble, Oh God, send a sweeping, come down Holy Spirit, we're looking for some power to come down from heaven and sweep away our problems, when all along that treasure, that power is within us. That power is here. And we think we're in a Holy Ghost meeting, and people run all over the world to get in what they call a Holy Ghost meeting, where they say the fire has fallen and somewhere the Holy Spirit has come down from some cosmic area, and now people are falling and people are manifesting. Folks, I believe in the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, and I'm not knocking that whatsoever. But you see, there's a deeper walk with God. There's an understanding, a quiet, something that's happening, a daily understanding, a daily yielding and giving oneself over to the guidance and comfort of the Holy Spirit, rather than running off somewhere and saying, Oh God, I'm seeking the Holy Spirit. If you're walking with Jesus, you were saved by the power of the Holy Spirit, and he abides in you. You don't have to travel anywhere to find him. He abides. This is his temple. He is here. John the Baptist said to the Pharisees, There stands one among you whom you don't know. And Jesus said to Philip, one of his own disciples, Have I been so long with you, Philip, and yet you have not known me? How long have you said you know the Holy Spirit? How long have you said I'm filled with the Holy Spirit? And I wonder if the Holy Spirit can say to many of us this morning, If I've been with you so long and you don't know who I am. There is one in you, among you, and you still don't know who he is. I wonder if we do not measure up to the believers in Paul's time. There seems to be something missing, because during Paul's time, especially in Thessalonica, people were going through the hardest time of society in his age, in his time. They were being persecuted. They were in incredible situations. They were losing their homes and their goods, and they were in trials. Their homes were being bombarded out of hell, and yet they didn't quit. In great afflictions, they were encouraged. I'm reading to you in 1 Thessalonians 1, 5 and 6, Paul writing to the Thessalonians like a church. Our gospel came not unto you in word only, but in power, in the Holy Ghost, in much assurance. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy in the Holy Ghost. And Paul says this, you became examples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. And from you sounded out the testimony of the Lord in every place your faith has been spoken of all around. He said you have become a testimony to nations, to vast numbers of people, because they know the suffering in Thessalonica, they know what you've been through. They know that you're going through the greatest testing of your life, and they have heard of your joy in the time of much affliction. And you've become a testimony. He said you rejoice in the midst of your pain and your much affliction. And you could go to that church and everybody said, you go there and you're going to find that society under great pressure, stress. And you're going to find that the pastor's rejoicing, you're going to find the people in that congregation rejoicing. And this became the testimony that people in a hard time can still have the joy of the Lord. Paul said you're the talk of nations. What did they know about the Holy Spirit that we don't know? Because never in history have we seen so many believers under affliction. There's never been a time like this, of many believers suffering financial crisis after financial crisis. We think of what we've seen when we travel around the world. Pastors quitting in every nation by the hundreds. The same thing happening here in the United States. This past week I talked to a leader of a great Pentecostal movement, organization, denomination. And he said, David, we're losing pastors on the left and on the right all over the nation. Churches are closing. Pastors are under such pressure, under financial pressure, marriage problems, children in rebellion. You look at the church of Jesus Christ today and you see incredible problems. People going through situations that are indescribable. You see fathers who are unemployed and they're in panic because they can't find a job. They can't support their family. And they say, what am I going to do? I may lose my home. There are elderly people that are on a mailing list that write to us. And they tell of their situation, their friends that are elderly, that are in pain, excruciating pain, because they can't afford to pay for their medications. And they're suffering like we've never seen. My team, my advanced team right now is in South America. And I got a call last night from Bettina who sets up our pastors conferences around the world. My son and I, Gary, and I travel all over the world in these ministers conferences. And they were, the team just came from three very poor nations in South America. She said, Brother Dave, I went to this country, it was poor. Next country it was even poorer. And now she's in one of the poorest nations. Just close. Ministers from various denominations come together to plan our coming. And Bettina has a presentation. I have about a five minute, something from my heart. And then there's some tapes of other conferences and reports from ministers of how God moved. Bettina started the presentation and all the pastors began to weep, just cry. And Bettina and her associate began to cheer up. And they said, what is going on in this room? And Bettina said, please talk to me. And they said, we are so discouraged. There is no money. There's no money for our wives or our children, for even the necessities. And we want Pastor Dave to come, but nobody comes here to our particular country. We don't even have enough money to get to the meetings. And you see, we pay even to come. We'll rent buses and they said, well, we'll come in tents and we'll sleep in tents around the venue. Anything, this would be like Christmas to us, but we don't have the funds. And many of them are just so discouraged. They have to work a secular job and then they try to pastor on top of that. And the despair and absolute discouragement. Saying we feel abandoned. And I remember when we were in one country in South America last year. I saw a leader of a denomination, a whole denomination. And he had traveled 10 hours to get to our meeting. And we didn't know he didn't even have enough money to get home. And the Holy Spirit put on my heart. I'm not boasting, just the Holy Spirit said, give him a thousand dollars. And he began to weep. He said, that's a year's salary. A year's salary. Folks, we live in America. You sit here now. You have money to get back home. You probably have enough money for lunch. And even though you live paycheck to paycheck. And you have no confidence, no idea sometimes of what happens in the slum areas. Where in Rio de Janeiro, there'll be 250,000 people living in the slums overlooking Rio de Janeiro. And you see Christians in there, sleeping on dirt floors. And when it rains, water pouring through their little tin sacks. And still see them praising God with the joy of the Holy Ghost. Incredible to see how God can take care of his people in those hard times. Even though it's just bare sustenance, still having the joy of the Holy Ghost in their heart. Knowing and understanding him. As very few do, even in the best of times. And I see this trouble breaking out. And so we're driven. Absolutely driven to our knees. And we say, oh God, what do I say? What do we preach? What do we preach to those who need comfort? What do I preach this morning to you that are sitting here now and you're going through the trial of your life? Whether it's children. Whether it's looking into the future and you can't see very far. And it's so undecided what lays out there. The possibility of losing everything. The possibility of losing a job. And so we're driven to our knees. Folks, when we go to these countries especially. I said, Lord, I can't, I can't just have, we don't have the resources to just help everybody. It would last a week and we'd be, we couldn't even travel. And I can't come and just preach pity. And we can't preach platitudes where we just say, oh, tomorrow the sun's going to shine. It's not sympathy. It's the word of God that must come forth. It's something from this book. It has to be something of the power of the Holy Spirit in us. That we have within us the power and authority to withstand anything that hell throws at us. Anything the devil would throw at us. Or society or nature. Whatever it may be. There has to be something from God. There has to be a word from heaven. I didn't, this is not the message I started with. I started with another message called War on the Saints. From Revelation 13 chapter. Where it says the dragon, which is the devil, gave power to the beast. And that's, that is the ruling entities. That's the government forces and the institutions and special interest groups. Like, could be gay and lesbian coalition. It could be some political group. It could be others that have their own agenda to be forced upon society. But the Bible says the dragon gave power to the beast. And the beast overcame. Let me read it clearly. And power was given unto him over all kindreds, tongues and nations. Power was given to him. And the Bible says the beast overcame them. Overcame. And you look at what's happening now in this country and in this nation and around the world. Many believers are staggered in their faith. Their faith is shipwrecked. The beast, the powers. You see, every institution now is being challenged. The institution of marriage is challenged. Right now they have a problem because one of the gay couples who got married just recently has filed for divorce a week after they were married. And now they can't get a divorce because the law, the Constitution says that the only people can get divorced is marriage between a man and a wife. Just hold it. Hold it up. You see, we're into a time of lawlessness. The beast power that is arising. And see, that's where I was coming from because I read this. Power to make war against the saints and overcome them. Power to make war. To test and try the elect. The Bible says the devil come to try even the elect of God. To deceive if it were possible even the elect. And I read these words. It's a mad dragon. In other words, Satan empowering wicked governments, possessing wicked special interest groups. An outright war to shipwreck the faith of people who are being tested. Numbers have been overcome. It can't be denied. The devil has so caused questioning among some believers. They look at the hopelessness of their condition, few human eyes. And they said, what's the use? And they've given up. They're no longer, they say, it's too much of a struggle. I don't want to go on like this anymore. And their faith has been shipwrecked. Now, Jesus spoke of an hour of power and the rulers of darkness. For the rulers of darkness. When they took him captive in Gethsemane, this is what he said. This hour and the power of darkness is yours. Just before the cross, just before the light break forth. They that sat in darkness saw a great light. That was when Jesus came out of the grave. And he dispelled the darkness. But Jesus said this hour, this last hour belongs to you. And the powers of darkness. There's an hour of darkness given to the rulers. God has allowed this final test to the Jewish nation. And even to the Gentiles who believed him. Will you believe in the hour of darkness? Will you believe that I'm sending you, Jesus said, the Holy Ghost. I'm not going to be here, but my spirit will be with you. I will not be just in Jerusalem. I will not be just in Judea and Israel. I'll be all over the world. And I'll be abiding in the hearts and the lives of all who trust me. Now, beloved, we are facing now Satan's last hour of power. Both in Daniel and Revelation, we're warned in the last days there'll be a gross darkness that will cover the earth. And for a short season, for a short season, it's going to look like the devil is winning on all fronts. Now, you stop and think about it. If you are a true believer, your heart grieves when you see how fast this nation is spinning into chaos. The immorality. Television has become a filthy cesspool. The movies. The theater. Here, just across the street, what's playing next door? Wicked. That's the name of wicked. The boasting, the pride. Coming against everything that has held this society together for centuries. Falling left and right on all sides. Being challenged by these evil forces and the beast spirit that's unloosed on the earth today. It's going to seem like the devil has even defeated many in the church. In fact, ask so many thousands of Christians on our mailing list. Some are here visiting us today and you're on our mailing list, you get our messages. And the number one complaint is, I can't find a church that has life. I can't find a church where there's any fire of the Holy Spirit. I talked to a couple recently, a godly couple, and they've just moved to another city. We've tried at least 25 churches and we couldn't find one where the word of the Lord was coming forth with conviction. There was no fire, there was no anointing. It was death. And when you see this happening, I see it all over the world. Absolute death and discouragement. And you look at it and you say, it looks like the devil is winning. It looks like he's going to have his day. Well, folks, that's all he gets. He gets a short time. A mad devil has come down on earth mad because he has such a short time. That's what the Bible says. And he's throwing everything out of hell. But folks, God foresaw these days. God foresaw these days before the world was formed. That he had a plan in place. He had a plan. God wasn't taken by surprise by all this wickedness. Not at all. And folks, this is the whole point of my message this morning and I want you to hear it. God had a plan. That you and I would not only survive, but we'd be more than overcomers. No matter how wicked the world became. No matter what the devil would bring on society. We would have within us, what the Bible says, a power that is greater than he that's in the world. He that's in you. Who is he that is in you? The Holy Spirit is in you. And he that is in us is greater than he that is in the world. When you go to the book of Revelation, you read about what is coming in the last days. You read about beasts. You read about dragons. You read about horned beasts. You hear about Antichrist. You hear about Mark of the Beast. You hear of all of these images and creatures. Yes, they have a meaning. But let me tell you something. You don't have to know the meaning of all these beasts and all of these things that are happening. You don't have to fear the Antichrist. You don't have to fear the Mark of the Beast. You don't have to fear any of that. Because no matter when Jesus comes, and I believe he can come at any moment. But no matter what, God says, I have given you and you have abiding you every resource, every power, everything that you need. Now, what about these afflictions in hard times? Let me tell you this. The power of the Holy Spirit is not released in us until we take him as our burden bearer. I'll say it again. This is the heart of my message. You have not fully received the Holy Spirit until you allow him to do what he was sent to do. You have not fully received him. He may be abiding in you, but you can ignore the Holy Spirit. You can go on. Don't tell me we've received the Holy Spirit when we've been told to cast every burden on him. That he is our burden bearer. And that's why Jesus Christ sent him. The Father sent him through the Son. If the Holy Ghost abides in us, it's not just manifestations. It's this quiet, ever increasing knowledge. If I turn every problem, every burden over to the Holy Spirit, I'm receiving him. I'm allowing him to do what he was called to do. I'm receiving him. You can call me to come and visit your house. I've been like this. When I was a young evangelist, and then when I came to New York and started Teen Johnson, I had to travel to help support the work and also to help establish new drug centers across the United States. And I would stay in homes, pastor's homes. And I remember vividly going into one home. They put me in a bedroom and said, God bless you. And if you want to think deep, the refrigerator's got some hot dogs and Pepsi. And they never, that was it. There was no fellowship. I was there. Sure, they opened the door to receive me. But they really didn't receive me because they didn't fellowship with me. They didn't talk to me. They ignored me. And I still remember to this day. I remember the hurt. And I just walked around an empty house. And they were always gone. They were doing their own thing. Even one of them had a boy who was in trouble, a teenage boy. I had the answer. But they never consoled me. They knew I had the answer. That's why they invited me. And still ignored. We say, well, the Holy Spirit has been sent to empower us to be witnesses. True. But what is the witness? The witness is not just talking about Jesus to the sinner. That's scriptural. That's necessary. It's more than getting your Bible out and trying to lead people to salvation through the word of God. That's true. And that's what we're called to do. But folks, there's more to it than that. The receiving of the Holy Spirit. The real witness is the believer who all around them know that there's overwhelming problems and trouble. And yet they see the joy of the Lord. They see a peace. They see a secret. There's something coming out of that life. You see, a long face and a downcast look is not a testimony. People going around murmuring and complaining and talking about their problems to everybody. That's not the testimony to a lost world. The testimony to a lost world is somebody approaching you and they know what you're going through. They know that you suffer. They know that there's pain. And they find you encouraging them. There's something of a hidden joy. There's something breaking out in you that they don't understand. And they're going to ask you what your source is. They're going to ask you where the power comes from. Then you begin to witness. And there's not one in this place that's not going through something of a trial. And if you're not, wait till six o'clock this afternoon. Paul spoke of having the sentence of death upon him. But we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead. And in the original Greek, he said we had a response of death. What he's saying, I looked at my situation. I looked at what I was going through and some believe that this was, Paul was enduring a sickness that could have been fatal. Some believe that it was when the mob came against him in Ephesus. But Paul was going through one situation where he said, when I look at this and I look into the future, my only response is the only way out of this is that I die and go to heaven. That I'm at the end. I have a sentence of death on me. I don't see any human way out of this. I have the sentence of death on me. And some of you know what I'm talking about. God put this burning in my soul. That there be those that are sitting here right now. And you are in a situation that's unlike anything you've ever been through in your life. And hear it from the Holy Spirit. You look at it from every angle. You figure every way you can figure. But you finally come to the conclusion. There's no way out. It's death. And even a desire. Lord, I can't handle this anymore. Take me home. We were pressed down, burdened, beyond strength. We even despaired of life. Utterly at a loss to find a way of escape. Utterly at a loss. Pressed down beyond strength. And even the great apostle Paul said, I just wanted to die. The sentence of death. The only response I have now, humanly speaking. I don't see any way out. You see, God allowed this in Paul's life. To literally force him. To never trust in his flesh. Never trust any human way out. But to cast himself completely on the power of the Holy Spirit. And folks, God sometimes allows things in our lives. And he allows it in those who walk closest to his heart. Whom the Lord loves, he chastens. And we can't see it, but often it's one of the greatest evidence of the love of God for us. That he says, I want to raise up in you and through you testimony. Of the power of my spirit. And those who have given up trying it. You see, you haven't received the Holy Spirit until he's in full control. May I say it again? You have not, I have not received the Holy Ghost and his fullness until he's in control. Until I list, I go to the Holy Ghost and I name every burden I have. I name every crisis I'm in. And I name it and say, here it is, Holy Spirit. It's written that there's power in me. Now I turn this over to you. And do it. Turn this over. I'm not going to lose sleep over this. I don't care what it is, I turn it over to you right now, Holy Spirit. And you start naming them. You start laying them down one after another and say, Jesus, Lord, I can't handle this. It's beyond. As I've said so many times to this Pope, the evidence of faith and trust is rest. When you're able to look it in the eye and say, alright, if I die in the process, I get glory. I go directly to the heart of Jesus. I'm going to trust you even if this ends up that the solution is death itself. Because I can't take it on myself any longer. Praise the Lord. Paul trusted in the Spirit and God answered. Now, God is not going to leave you the rest of your life where you're at. He's not going to allow you to suffer all your days without bringing seasons of deliverance. You see, let me show you what Paul said. Who delivered us, speaking of the Holy Spirit, who delivered us from so great a death. And he now delivers. And whom we trust that he will continue to deliver. Paul the Apostle says, I trusted the Holy Spirit. There was no way out, but I trusted the Holy Spirit. And he gave me a way out. He delivered me. And I am now evidently in another struggle. I'm in the process of being delivered again. And he said, no matter what I face, no matter what downs the road, I believe I can be delivered by trusting in the Holy Spirit, in the power of the Holy Ghost. How many times has he delivered you? How many times has he brought you out? You see, the issue is not just saying, well, the devil is after me. Yes, the devil does these things, but sometimes God allows the persecution. God allows seasons of affliction. He allows these overwhelming things because he has no place else to go to find the testimony. He has no other place to go but those who have walked close to him. Where is he going to find it? The majority of those who walk a distance from here are cold or backslidden. No matter what happens, no more did God allow in their life, they'd turn bitter. But God knows better about you. And I hope he knows better about me. That no matter what comes, no matter what I face, and I don't know what's ahead for me, and you don't know what's ahead for you. But there has to be this confidence in God. We're not looking to the devil to get discouraged that he has the power. No, no, no, the Bible says that God's in control of all things. God has all the power, God has all the authority. And my message to you this morning is get your eyes off of conditions. You say everything's going down? Yes, there'll be judgment. But even when times of judgment, God says, I will deliver my people in that dark hour. Folks, we're not in darkness. We've seen the light. And that's what we need now, the revelation. And I'm asking the Holy Spirit, oh Holy Spirit, be my friend. Let me talk to you. Be closer than my wife, be closer than my children, be closer than anyone I know on this earth. And oh Holy Spirit, let me know and settle this issue once and for all, that you care, that you've been sent to bear all my burdens, and I want to receive you in your fullness. Of His fullness we've all received, the Scripture says. Of His fullness we've all received. May I say one last thing in closing? If you're going to turn everything over to the Holy Spirit, and this just came to me before the service that I had to share it with you. Take it as this unfathomable counsel. If you're going to let the Holy Ghost be in charge, you're going to have to be ready for changes. You see, God sent messengers into Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot and his wife opened up their home and received these men. These men had the power to deliver them. It was a time of judgment, pending judgment, impending judgment. And God sent deliverance. But you see, Lot's wife resented them, I'm sure, being there, because he's talking about changing everything. He's talking about, you may have to lose everything now. You may have changed all your plans. This is what you see, this is what you want to hear. And I'm sure Lot's wife was praying, oh, I'm trusting God. I have a great God, he's going to either delay judgment, or he's going to work a miracle for me, I'm staying right here. And the angel of the Lord said, no, if you're going to let God be in control, you're going to give the reins, you're going to be delivered, but you're going to have to be willing to go another way. You're going to have to leave your plans. And if you wait on the Holy Ghost, he'll tell you what those plans are. The angel told him clearly, he said, we're going to have to get you out of this city, you're going to have to give up this house, you're going to have to do this. You see, God, if you're going to hold on, say, well, this is the plan, this is what I feel is right, you're going to be in turmoil. And when things don't happen the way you think they should happen, and you're going to dig in and say, whatever, I'm going this way, you've not received the Holy Spirit. Because receiving the Holy Spirit is saying, Holy Spirit, whatever you, you know the way, you lead, and I'll follow. And if you wait on the Lord, he'll give you that direction, he'll tell you the way this is to go. But many of you have not seen deliverance yet because you're holding on to your plans, not willing to let the Holy Ghost lead and guide you. Now, they had to literally take them by the hand and drag them out of that city. But they were no danger, they were going to be safe, God was going to feed and clothe and take care of them. But the Lord says, you have to let me in control. And folks, in the days of judgment ahead, we're going to have to be willing to let God make all kinds of changes in our life and say, Lord, I'm not going to fret about it, I'm not going to try to plan out into the future, the future is yours. Does this make any sense to you at all? Will you stand, please? Now, I know because the Holy Spirit told me that there are numbers here in this place this morning. You're here in Times Square Church and day by day, recently, it's become darker, darker and more unsettled. And you're going through the time of your life, I don't know what it is, it's between you and the Lord. But God told me to comfort you and bring you hope. Get your eyes off of the devil, get your eyes off the beast condition that's in the land today. Don't fret about politics, don't fret about any of this, keep your eyes on the Lord. And ask the Holy Spirit to take full control of your life. God has a way, yes, He does. He's going to deliver you. This is not going to go on, this nightmare is going to end. God has ended every nightmare I've been through. And you know why I have hope for the future? Because even though there may be a nightmare tomorrow, I have a history with the Lord. I've seen His delivering hand. And folks, you've got to look back and say, I was in this mess and God delivered me. I was in this trial and He delivered me. God's been good, God's been faithful. I'm going to open these alders for those that are in a crisis. You say, Pastor Dave, this message was from heaven to my heart. Because I really don't see any way out. Maybe a financial hole that you're in. It could be physical pain, it could be sickness, it could be disease, it could be anything. But you say, Pastor Dave, I'm in a crisis. I need help. I need the Holy Ghost. I need to trust the Holy Spirit and I've been staggered. And the enemy wants to plague me with doubts and fears. I want you to come. I'm going to pray for you and believe God. And in the annex, the same thing. You can just go to the front and stand between the screens and I'll pray for you there. And up in the balcony, go to the stairs on either side and come to the front. Now, if you're not right with Christ, you have turned away, you've backed away from Christ, you're not walking with the Lord, and you don't know Him. You've never been right with God. You've never known Jesus as Lord and Savior. I want you to get out of your seat and come and join these that are coming now. Holy Spirit, do your miracle now. Oh, my great physician, Jesus, the healer, come and heal the hurts and the wounds in this congregation this morning. In Jesus' name. I talked to you just a moment ago about the two angels that came to deliver Lot. And even though they received him into the home, they hadn't received him in the purpose for which they were sent. And there's not full reception until that happens. Now, in that day, they had to drag them out. They had to work against their will. And literally took them by the hand, dragged them out of the city. Now, in the dispensation of the Holy Spirit, He doesn't work that way. He will not drag you into a place of faith and confidence. And unbelief aborts the work of the Holy Spirit. He cannot, He will not work where there's unbelief and fear. And so you're going to have to ask, Lord, forgive me of my unbelief. Holy Spirit, forgive me. The Holy Spirit is the one who gives us power over sin. Power over doubts. You say, well, how do I believe? Well, how did you believe to get saved? And then how did you believe that Christ come into your heart? That same simple faith. Holy Spirit, I commit myself to a life of dependence on you. I'm going to depend on you. I'm going to talk to you. Have you been talking to the Holy Spirit? Wherever you go. You know that New York, you can talk out loud anywhere. You can talk to Jesus anywhere. No one will look at you. And those from Alabama will say, another crazy New Yorker. I'm not being facetious. I'm telling you, talk to Him. All hours of the day. Get up in the middle of the night if you have to and your burdens. Say, Holy Ghost, I can't handle this. Take it, help me. You're my comforter, I believe that. And trust that He will comfort your heart. He will come and be your guide. I want you to repeat this with me. Holy Ghost is my burden bearer. Again, the Holy Ghost is my burden bearer. So I give Him all my burdens. Raise your hands. Say it right out loud. Lord Jesus, thank you for giving me the Holy Spirit. Thank you for cleansing me. I give you my sins, my doubt and unbelief. Thank you for the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, I give you the reins of my life. I put you in charge. And I cast all my burdens. On you. Right now. Now give Him thanks for answering you. Lord, I thank you Jesus. I give you my burdens. This is the conclusion of the message.