In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes how most people spend their lives talking and chatting, engaging in worldly activities, and neglecting their relationship with God. He highlights the lack of commitment and dedication among Christians, who often prioritize gossip, criticism, and entertainment over walking with God. The preacher shares a story of a 16-year-old boy who desired to get saved because his friend had experienced the joy of salvation. The sermon concludes with the preacher referencing the apostle Paul, who considered his social standing, future prospects, and achievements as garbage compared to the knowledge of Christ Jesus. The preacher challenges listeners to prioritize knowing God above all else.

The Jesus freaks have something that we need. Now, we have a lot that they need, but they have something that we need. They got it from the hippies, and the hippies have something that we need. I'm not for communal living, neither am I for wearing dirty blue jeans and long shaggy hair, neither am I for the kind of public demonstration that the crowds make. But there is something of a self-abandonment that they have that most Christians don't have. Listen to me for a minute. Do you know why there is a Jesus freak movement in America? Because the churches just haven't meant business for God. I mean, we've gone about our business, and we've had our church service on Sunday morning, and a handful of folks have come back on Sunday night, but we've just honestly... The thing that has killed America in many respects is the formal Sunday morning church service. The average person has... the average Christian, he thinks he's done his duty. He comes to worship God on Sunday morning, fly across America as I do, look down and see little towns from the sky. Young folks, you listen to me while I'm preaching, every one of you, and you said your last word tonight in the service. Every one of you listen. Look down in the sky and see what I see, a little cluster of houses, looks like a toy box, and in the midst of that is a building, maybe two, with a steeple, and that's the house where the people in that neighborhood come once a week, and they look up toward the sky and say, God, whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever you are, we worship you. They walk out the doors, they go home, and that's the extent of their Christianity. Oh, they drop a dollar or two in the collection plate while they're there, but that's about it. Now, the honest truth is, if somebody has anything that's even near to real, in most towns, they've got to find it outside a church, because the average church in this country doesn't have one nickel's worth of reality in the pew or the pulpit, not one nickel's worth. I've said this before, and you've heard me say it. I go places across this country, and Jesus freaks come up to me, and when I say Jesus freak, that's the term they use, the Jesus people, and they say to me, if you'll come to our area and start a church, we'll be normal. We'll join your church. We're having no problem in our high school department. For example, we have a high school department for bus high schoolers, things growing like wildfire in the junior high department, too, growing like wildfire. How many haircuts did we have this morning, fellas? Dave, where are you? How many haircuts? We had 13 haircuts. We have barbers in our high school bus department. We gave 13 haircuts this morning. We said, how do you do it? We have a straitjacket over there. No, I'm talking about now, these are fellows that come to our church, and they get saved, and they voluntarily get a haircut, look like human beings again. Now, in most towns, if they get anything at all, they've got to get it somewhere outside the church, because there's no church like this that means business for God. Now, listen to me, listen to me. This country is crumbling because Christian people, I mean God's people, I mean the churches, have just piddled, just piddled. Last night, I got home somewhere before midnight. Dave was in a talking mood, and he wanted to tell me something about some of the kids. You just would have a hard time believing what's going on. Right here in First Baptist Church, Hammond, with a bunch of, I mean, a bunch of little hoodlum teenagers. Their lives are being transformed. I mean, the people say, boy, Chicago is the hardest place in the world to build a church. That's foolishness. It's foolishness. While the boys told me last night, two boys did, they said, preacher, the truth is, it's just like picking ripe fruit off a tree to go over in the Chicago area. Now, why has it been hard to reach? I don't know why it's been hard to reach. Some guys come with a, with a starchy kind of sermon, with the choir singing a seven-fold amen, and the Gloria Patri, I'm not sure what that is, but the Gloria Patri, I heard it one time, heard about it one time. And, and a bunch of people come, have a formal worship service on Sunday morning, where nobody's ever changed, and no life has ever transformed, and nothing miraculous ever takes place, and the world is sick of that kind of stuff. Of course, you won't reach Chicago with it. The honest, simple, listen, young man stood right here Thursday night on our nationwide radio broadcast. Teenager, I'm guessing what, uh, uh, where is, um, um, I've forgotten the name of the fellow, Murphy, 16 years of age. Stood right here. Tom Murphy, one of our boys, went over to the north side of Chicago, in a park. Was it Grant Park? One of those parks along the shore drive there? Park. And a bunch of kids had a football game, and Tom stopped the game. Won this 16, uh, 16-year-old boy to Christ. Now, I asked the 16-year-old boy, I, I asked, uh, well, look, how did you feel about stopping the game? He said, not bad. We were losing anyway. And I, I asked, well, how did you feel? Here comes the fellow up and, and, uh, talks to you about getting saved. It, didn't that sort of, uh, sort of rub the fur the wrong way? He said, no, I wanted to get saved. I wanted to get saved. And I asked him, I said, well, how did you want to get saved? He said, because he had been over there a day or two before, and won my buddy to Christ. And my buddy had told me how good you felt when you get saved. And I wanted to have what my buddy had. Don't you see what I'm saying? Brother, when, when, when it's real, folks will listen to you. That's why the building's full tonight. This, this church is not popular, and we get, we get cussing and criticized, and we're hated. I know it. A fellow walked in my office this morning, and he said, I lost my job. These college students have lost my job. And by the way, if you have a job for me, I'd like to talk to you. But, uh, see me and I'll point you in his direction. But I lost my job. I said, why? He said, I witnessed on the job too much. And I said, now look, while you're working, you shouldn't witness. You ought to, ought to work, witness before you go to work or after you get through, but you shouldn't witness on the other fellow's time. And, uh, and, uh, work hard and be a good employee. Well, while you're, while you're on your own, uh, on the, uh, the employer's time. And he said, I didn't witness. Uh, he said, I did it before or after, but I told him I went to Howe's Anderson College. And he said, oh, you were that proud, Howe. They got together and lied about him and said he, oh, I said, he found him asleep on the job and lied about him. And he got fired. I know what folks think about us when they say, well, I don't care what you think. You get mad, you walk out the door and never walk back in here again. And you lie and cuss and say what you want to say, but brother, there's something real going on inside these walls. There's something real here. That's why folks are coming. Folks walk in the doors back there that wouldn't, listen, that wouldn't admit they were here. But folks who hate us six days a week, come to hear us on Sunday. Why? Because I'm a good preacher, not on your life. Because we have good music, not on your life. This whole world is sin sick and this world is heart sick for somebody who knows God and makes him real to people. And that's why we have the hippie crowd, the Jesus freak crowd. I'll be honest with you. I know some towns, if I lived in them and had to choose, I'd, I'd run with the Jesus freak crowd rather than go to the starchy churches in town. Our country is going to hell. And the reason she is, because of God's people. Just go through the motions. Folks right here tonight, Jesus doesn't mean a thing in the world to you. There are folks here tonight, you'll walk out those doors and you won't read your Bible between now and next Sunday morning. You won't bow your knee to pray one time between now and next Sunday morning. You will let folks curse the name of Jesus Christ on the job and you will never say one good word about him. And you live like the heathen live. Buying and selling and eating and drinking and marrying and giving and marriage, just living for self and living for me and living just like the heathen live. This country could be saved if God's people would just be real. Just be real. Now, how do you make it real? You make it real when you come to the place with the apostle, with the apostle Paul who said, God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul could have gloried in his past. Philippians chapter three, the apostle says, though I might have also confidence in the flesh, if any other man thinketh that he hath wherewith of he might trust in the flesh, I more circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, on Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gained to me, those I counted lost for Christ. Paul said, I gave up all these things for Jesus Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but lost for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but done. What's that? Garbage. Paul said, I was a man of social standing. I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said I was a man with a great future. I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said I was a man of the elite, but I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said my family was on the social standing, but I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said I was going up the ladder from the Sanhedrin. I counted garbage. I gave it up. He said, all of it. Why? He said, for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. You know why we don't know God? We're trying to hang on to the world with one hand and hang on to God with the other. We're like these little lizards we used to have down in Texas. They changed colors according to what colors were around them. I mean, we want to be just as popular as the world is and yet no God. You can't do it, brother. We want to dress like the world dresses and yet no God. You can't do that. We want to wear our hair like the world wears their hair and no God. We want to go where the world goes. We want to go to the same movies. We want to go to the same dances. We want to use the same lingo. We want to have the same music the world has. And yet by some hocus pocus form of magic, we want to come to a church for a couple of hours a week and learn to know God. You don't do it that way. You take all of life's dreams and throw them in the garbage can for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. You take your own personal ambition and throw them in the garbage can, count them as done, for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Oh, I long for the people in this church to give everything to God, everything to God. All to Jesus, I surrender. We sing it and we sing it and we sing it. It means almost nothing to us. Come to the place in our lives where we say with the Apostle Paul, I was a Hebrew of the Hebrews, but accounted as garbage for Jesus Christ. I was circumcised the eighth day. I was in every way a high class kind of a kid, but accounted garbage for Jesus Christ. I was on the Sanhedrin or studying for the Sanhedrin, but accounted garbage for Jesus Christ. Look what he got. He got the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Now you listen to me for a minute. If you could ever one day in your life, just one day in your life, come to know God long enough to go to bed that night and say, I'll walk with God today, you wouldn't care any more whether you were popular or not. The average person in this house has never gone to bed at night and been able to say, honestly, today I knew God. Oh, you're saved. I know that. You've trusted Christ, but you don't know God any more than I know Spiro Agnew. I mean, if he runs for president, I'll vote for him. Because I'm for him and also because the other crowd that puts up a man every year, I wouldn't vote for them. There's Charlie Brown running against them. But I mean, you're saved. You've trusted Jesus, but you never have gone to bed at night and said, I'll walk with God today. I knew God today. Oh, for some people who know Him. Oh, for some people who walk alone if needs be, but they know God. Walk with Him and they know Him. I mean, they know Him. Paul said, I'm saved. But he said, I came to the time in my life where I got the garbage can out and I put my heritage in the garbage can and I put my race in the garbage can and I put my religion in the garbage can and I put my profession in the garbage can and I put my future in the garbage can and I put my social standing in the garbage can. Paul said, I did it. Why, Paul, why? Paul said, I want to know Jesus Christ. The excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. The longer I live and the more I walk with God, the more fed up I get with the flesh. I mean, just a little. Most of us, we live just to talk and chat, call somebody on the telephone and read some newspaper, read some magazine and watch John's other life on television or Secret Storm or the public hurricane and watch the television program and then turn the radio on right quick and listen to that call-in program and see if we can talk about house this time. And we just go from one to the other, just enjoying ourselves and talking a little bit and we'll gossip a little bit and we'll criticize somebody a little bit and read some more magazine and then go out, go talk to somebody a while longer and just chit-chat and fellowship one with the other. And most of us never one hour ever walk with God. And if anybody ever does decide to walk with God, everybody thinks he's nuts or thinks he's nuts. Paul said, I want to know Jesus Christ. And he said, I'm willing to put everything else in the garbage can. I don't claim to have apprehended. I don't claim to be all I want to be and all I ought to be. But I never did begin to know God until I started giving up some things that I wanted. I recall when the president of my college, when I graduated, called me on the telephone. He said, I want to have dinner, I want to have lunch with you today or tomorrow or next Tuesday or sometime at the Baker Hotel in Dallas. Dr. H.D. Bruce, president of my college, where I graduated, sat across the table from me and he said, Jack, I want to tell you something. And I was shocked to death. He said, you're one of the two outstanding young men ever graduated from East Texas Baptist College. Now, not my grades. My grades weren't that good because I was preaching every night somewhere and I take all the cuts I was allowed. I was preaching revivals and so forth. But he said, Tim Trammell, he said, Tim Trammell and you are the outstanding students that have ever attended East Texas Baptist College. Now he said, Jack, we want to honor you. We want you to come back to the school and be honored by your school. But he said, if we do, you're going to have to change your style of preaching a little bit. Now he said, go ahead and hate sin, but don't call it by name. Don't stomp so loud when you talk about it. He said, we want to honor you. He said, you, now forgive me, I sound like I'm bragging. I'm really not. But he said, you hold in your hand the hope of East Texas Baptist College influencing this country. And we want you to come back and be a part of our family. But he said, you will have to tram. And I got up from the table and I said, Dr. Bruce, I'm not going to change my preaching one whit, not one whit. He shook his head and he says, you're the same old Jack. And I said, thank you. I think I know what you mean. If it means I haven't changed, I thank you. And I hope under God, I said, I hope under God, if it's wrong, if sin is wrong tonight, it's wrong tomorrow, it'll be wrong the next day. And I said, come back 20 years from now. And I hope under God I'm still preaching against sin, just like I do tonight. What happened? I can go on the campus of the school where I graduated and they won't even ask me to lead in prayer. I came to a place in my denomination's life where I couldn't support the mission program and the schools that were liberal. And I decided not to give a dime. And by the way, not one dime is going to come from this pocket to support any dirty school that allows the Fosnicks and the Buttricks and the Norman Vincent Peals and all the rest of them to come and shake the faith of young preachers who ought to be hearing God's men bring the message of God. And so I decided I couldn't do it. And they gave me a choice. If you support the work or you won't belong to our group. And I took my denomination, tossed it in the garbage can. I tossed my school in the garbage can. Over 13 years ago, I tossed my state in the garbage can. Now, that's getting serious when you come from Texas. I'll tell you what, I didn't ever really know God. I was saved, but I didn't know God. Well, I came to a place in my life where I decided to count everything else but loss, all of it but loss. Paul said, I've determined, God forbid, that I should glory in nothing save the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul could have gloried in his past. Paul could have gloried in his sufferings. In 2 Corinthians chapter 6 and other passages, he lists his sufferings. How that he was beaten so many times and he was shipwrecked so many times and he was in jail so many times and how he was in prison and how he was hated and all the things that happened. Paul could have said, I have glory in the suffering that I have done for Jesus Christ. But Paul said, God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul could have gloried in his revelations. In chapters 12 of 2 Corinthians, he told about the time when he was called up into the third heaven and Paul said, I could glory. But he said, lest I be exalted above measure that was given me afar in the flesh. Paul could have gloried in what he saw in his revelation. He could have gloried in his sufferings. He could have gloried in his past. He could have gloried in his education. Paul said, I'm going to glory in the cross of Christ. But now, wait a minute. Notice he didn't say I glory in Christ. He said, I glory in the cross. Paul didn't say, God forbid that I should glory save in the incarnation of our Savior. The incarnation was wonderful. My, my, my, Christmas is coming and I get a little weary of Christmas time, us talking about a little baby born in Bethlehem and the average kid, all they know is that 2,000 years ago a little baby was there in a manger. Here was Mary and here's Joseph. Ten thousand times more happened than that. God, the eternal, pre-existent God of glory came, became flesh and walked among men in Bethlehem's manger. God incarnate. God clothed the form with flesh. Don't be deceived and hoodwinked by the world's attempt to direct your attention away from the incarnation toward a little baby in a manger and a woman and a man beside him. God became flesh in Bethlehem. We beheld his glory, the glory as it only had gotten to the Father full of grace and truth. Paul could have said, I glory in the incarnation, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in the life of Christ. Never a man lived like he lived. You've heard me say from this pulpit again and again almost every Sunday, oh, never a bad word came through his lips and never a bad thought entered his mind and never a bad thing entered his eyes and never a bad path was trodden by his feet. The perfect Lamb of God, Paul could have said, I glory in nothing but the life of Jesus Christ. I glory in the fact that he stilled the wave and calmed the storm, caused the dumb to speak and the lame to leap like a heart and the dead to live and the sick to rise. He stilled the storms and calmed the waves and blessed the little children and raised the dead. And Paul could have said, he the sinless Lamb of God, I glory in his life, but Paul didn't say that. Paul could have said, I glory in his resurrection. Ah, his resurrection. You've heard preacher after preacher say it, but still it's true. The Buddhists can take you to a place tonight and say here lies the body of Buddha. Mohammedans can take you to a place tonight and say here lies the body of Mohammed. Confucius followers can take you to a spot and say here lies the body of Confucius. Joseph Smith followers can take you to a spot and say here lies the body of Joseph Smith. But twice I've been to a spot where I can say here was the body of Jesus Christ. He lives, he lives. Christ Jesus lives today. Paul could have said, I glory in his resurrection. Oh, it seems to me that'd be a lot more glory about than in the cross. It seems that blessed incarnation when angels sang the songs to shepherds watching their flocks by night. When wise men came to the little Christ child and brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. When Mary and Joseph looked in the face of God becoming flesh as he was in the manger and all of heaven still to a holy hush as they looked down and saw God becoming flesh. What a glorious thing in which the glory or the wonderful life of our Lord as he lived among men and walked as the perfect son of God. Walk with sinners, but never sin. Walk with liars, but never lied. Walk with murders, but never murdered. Walk with thieves, but never stole. Walk with bad folks, but never did bad. Walk with haters, but never hated. Walk with those who curse, but never curse. Walk with those who did wrong, but never wronged. Paul could have said, I glory in that kind of a life, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in the resurrection, that empty tomb, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in the ascension. Oh, we don't say enough about the ascension of our Lord. We don't say enough about it. Ah, when Jesus died, all the saved who had ever been saved before he died had gone to a place called paradise, a part of Hades. And there they were waiting, the time when our Lord would ascend into the pit of paradise and bring captivity captive. And our Lord, when he died, went down to paradise, the division of Hades and paradise, and took those spirits that had been in prison in paradise ever since Abel had died. And he lifted them out of the prison and carried them to heaven. And he rose up into heaven to be the intercessor and the priest of all those that trust him. Paul could have said, I glory in that, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in his second advent. He could have said, I glory when I think of the Savior coming in the clouds and those who are dead and Christ rising and we which are alive and remain being caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Paul could have said, I glory in that. Paul could have said, I glory in the fact that Jesus is going to be crowned at the judgment seat of Christ when he gives us our crowns and we hurl them at his feet. I glory in that. Paul could have said, I glory in the time when Jesus shall come on a white horse and put down the Antichrist and establish a kingdom of peace that will cover the earth with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea, and King Jesus shall ascend the royal stairway of Mount Zion, and he shall rule and reign on the earth for a thousand years. Men shall beat their swords in the plowshares and their spears in the pruning hooks, and they shall not know war any more. The knowledge of God shall cover the earth like the waters cover the sea. A little child shall play at the hole of the cockatrice den and lead a lion down the street. An old man shall die at a hundred, and folks will say, what a pity, just a baby died. And that age where sin shall be put down, and God's people shall be mayors and presidents and city councilmen. We are on the show for a thousand years. Paul could have said, I glory in that, but he didn't say that. Paul said, I glory in the cross. For a minute, would you please, would you compare that old bloody cross to that precious empty tomb and wonder why Paul would glory in a bloody cross? Oh, that old rugged cross so despised by the world has a wondrous attraction for me, for the dear Lamb of God suffered and bled and died on dark Calvary. Oh, the cross for glory not in the ascension, not in the coming of Christ, not in the incarnation, not in his sinless life, but the cross. God's own darling son was nailed to a tree after being scourged with a cat of nine tails, and hated and jeered and mocked. Here's the King of glory. Lift up your gates. The King of glory is coming in. Here's the King of glory with no throne but a cross, no crown but a crown of thorns, and no royal scepter but a walking stick, and no robe to wear but a borrowed overcoat, no subjects but a jeering mob. Here's the King of kings and Lord of lords on the cross and blood running down his face and his hands and a crown of thorns on his head and those old Middle Eastern thorns down into his brow and blood running down his cheeks and a spear in his side and blood and water came out of his side and dogs licking his wounds and people laughing and mocking and suddenly Pilate stands up and says, at this time of the year, we always let some prisoner go, some criminal go. On this side we have a wicked man named Arabus and on this side we have Jesus. I find no fault in him. And so on this side we have a man guilty of sedition. On this side we have Jesus, the sinless one about whom the centurion said surely this was the Son of God. On this side we have a man who's been caught in robbery and in sedition. On this side we have Jesus, whom shall I let go? The angry mob cries, crucify him, crucify him, crucify him, let Arabus go. The wicked criminal goes loose while the darling, perfect, sinless Son of God goes to Calvary. See, from his head, his hands, his feet, sorrow and love flow mingle down. Did e'er such love and sorrow meet a thorns composed so rich a crown? Were the whole realm of nature mine that were a present far too small? Love so amazing, so divine, demands my life, my love, my all. Paul said, that's my glory. I glory in the spittle on his face. I glory in the nails in his hands. I glory in the crown of thorns on his head. I glory in the spear in his side. Why? I'll tell you why. That's the hope of the world. There on the cross, that's the hope. Paul said, I glory in that. But now wait a minute. There are three deaths on this cross. Are you listening? Are you listening? There are three deaths on this cross. Jesus died, the second Paul died. Galatians chapter 4, verse 16 says it. God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I am the world. Three deaths there. Give me just a trifle more volume, please. Three deaths there. What? First one, Jesus died. Why did Jesus die? You know, let me have your attention for a minute. We have the strangest idea that all Jesus died on the cross for was so we could go to heaven. No, Jesus died on the cross so God could get us back within his righteousness and justice. Did you know that God was happier about Calvary than man was? Did you know that Christ died for God before he died for sinners? Did you know that God had to accept Christ before you had to accept Christ? You could accept Christ all you want to, but unless God accepted Christ and his penalty on Calvary, you'd still be lost in sin. Christ died for God. Father, man has fallen. Yes, I know it, son, and I want him back. I don't know why, but I love him. I love old Adam. I love him. I don't know why I love the old sinner. Ate the forbidden fruit, but I love him. And I love Eve. I don't know why I love her. She's going to be deceived by the devil and she's going to turn her back. I don't know why I love her, but I love her. And I love old Bob Billings. I don't know why I love him, but I do. And I love old C. W. Fisk and John Colston and Ron Perkins. I don't know. I love old Jack Hiles. I don't know why, but I do. Oh, why don't you forgive them? I can't forgive them. My justice must be met. Their price must be paid. And Jesus said, Father, I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll go to the cross and I'll take Ron Perkins' sins and Hiles' sins and Billings' sins and Adam's sins and Eve's sins and the sins of all the world. And I'll put them on my record and I'll dip my own soul in the hell and pay the penalty for their sin. Oh, let me tell you something. Let me tell you something. When God the Father turned his back on Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago and Jesus Christ looked up and said, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? I think it broke the heart of God to turn his back on Jesus. But I think while his heart was broken, I think God said, hallelujah, I can take them all back now. I can have them all back now. My justice is satisfied. That's the thing we ought to glory in. Paul said, I glory in that. Paul said, nothing good about me, I just glory in the cross. But there's a second thing. It said, Paul said, I glory in the cross. Nothing said the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom the world is crucified. I mean, what does that mean? That means that while our Lord was being crucified on the cross, the world was dying to Paul. What do you mean? I mean, when Paul came to Christ, the world died. Boy, I wish I could get you there. I wish I could get you to the place where the world is dead. I wish, listen, some of you ladies that sit home in the afternoon and watch one of these little old soap, harlotries, operas after another. You just can't wait till the medics come on. Or, I'm trying to think of them. I read the news, the television scheduled in a paper for this sermon. I forgot them now. Secret Storm. What are some of the rest of them? As the world turns. What's the one you watch after that? As the world turned. You know what? If you ever get a good old glimpse of the cross, now you listen to me. If you ever get a glimpse of the cross, and ever one day walk with God, that'll be the deadest stuff you ever saw in your life. It'll die! And you'll look at it, Ron, if you ever one time, and I'm just kidding you, of course. You don't watch that. You only watch the Carson Show and other good Christian programs. But one time, boy, tomorrow afternoon, you'll say, I got to be sure and get the ironing all done, and I got to be sure and get the house all clean, and be sure to take the phone off hook, because the world's going to turn now. And so you turn that little knob on, and boy, you just can't wait. You say, I just wonder what's going to happen. I wonder which one she's going to run off with this time. And so you sit there, and all of a sudden you say, you know, it's not as good as it usually is. You know what happened? It died last night. The world died last night. That's what the Apostle Paul meant when he said to Timothy in 1 Timothy chapter 6, I think it is, where he said, she that liveth in pleasures dead while she liveth. Dead! This may come as a great shock to you. You folks say, you folks go to church all the time. Come back on Wednesday night and go to church all the time. One fellow said, I got one of you members next door to me. He said he's never home. He's never home. He said, we do go to church. We get home two hours before he does. He said, what do you folks see in all that? I'll tell you what we see. We see in your life exactly what you see in ours. We drive by this little old tavern down here, little leaf-in, limp-out place down here on Soul Street, and we look in there just like you look in here. I mean, we drive by and say, good night! It's dead! Why? The world is dead! That's why Max Helton, Max Palmer, said a while ago, and he said, I haven't wanted a bottle of liquor, a whiskey, since I got saved. You know why? The world died! He said, two days after I got saved, I quit smoking and had more than a cigarette since. The world died! Paul said, I have glory in the cross. Jesus died for me there, but the world died to me there. Maybe he said, I went back to the world, but it wasn't—it was dead. Went back to the old crowd, but the old crowd was dead. Went back to the old habits, and the old habits were dead. Went back to the old drink, and the old drink was dead. Went back to the old literature, and the old literature was dead. Listen, once you ever get a taste of walking with God, and if you ever just take one good glimpse of that cross—I want to say a word tonight. I probably shouldn't say it. I hardly ever mention the name, brag on folks in the pulpit in a sermon. There's a lady in this church, and I hope I'm not overstepping my bounds, but I see her a lot around town, an awful lot. She moved to our city from Pontiac, Michigan. She's one of the simplest little ladies in this church. Her husband's in heaven, but I see her as I drive around town quite a bit. Mrs. Bartels. Mrs. Bartels. I don't know how many dresses she has. Maybe another one or two. Most of the time I see her, she's wearing the same dress. Most of the time I see her, she's wearing the same coat. You know, her husband's gone. She lives alone, maybe with somebody, but no family. She came here by herself. She came here because First Baptist Church is here. I don't think she'll decorate a Christmas tree this Christmas because nobody will be there to share it with her. I doubt she'll have any grandchildren dancing around the tree, opening presents this Christmas. But everywhere I see her, and she doesn't know I see her, she's got a smile on her face. Always does. Always does. And the people that have what they think makes them happy are all frowning and human, but she's always smiling. Always smiling. I saw her the other day out visiting, out soul winning, down here on Fayette Street. You know, I say, well, that poor thing. No, don't feel sorry for her. The world's dead to her. Well, you see, the world hasn't got a thing in the world to offer her. Let's suppose that beagle dog that lives where we live were to die. Oh, happy day. Let's suppose he were to die. Huh? And I woke up and I said, hey, hey, Tenny, that's for Tennessee. David was down at the ranch and they didn't give him a love offering and gave him a dog instead. And so I said, hey, Tenny, hey, Tenny, hey, stand up. I want to give you a piece of meat. She just lays there. She's dead. Hey, thought you liked meat. Meat doesn't appeal to her anymore. You know why? She's dead. She's dead. Did you know when you ever get to the place to where you just look at the cross and you just start, you just start taking things and just put them in the garbage can. Say, you know what, I want to be an All-American football player. I'm just going to put that in the garbage can. I want to be a Hollywood movie star. Well, you could be, if Lassie dies. And, but just put it in the garbage can. I want to make a million dollars by the time I'm 40 years old. Just take it and put it in the garbage can. You go home and your folks will think you lost your mind. You may have to put your mom and dad in the garbage can. And don't go home tonight and put your mom and dad in the garbage can. I know what you're going to do. Last Sunday night, I said, I said, right, if you get baptized, I said, you walk out the baptism door and you find the devil's waiting for you. No, Bob Lee, I was right out there last Sunday night. So don't take me literally now. I said, sure enough, there's the devil outside the baptism door. But you see, folks would think you lost your mind. Your dad's going to say, you're going to do that? There's no money in that. See? And the world can, can just wave all the money she wants to in front of you. Doesn't matter, the world's dead. It's dead. It's dead! The other day, I was sick down in Birmingham, Alabama. I was watching the news. All I did was stay in bed and, and, and groan and moan to the glory of God. And then when time came, 15 minutes before I preached, I mean, I didn't go for the service. I didn't hear the other fellas preach. I just crawled out of bed and the fella came and got me and took me right to the pulpit. I leaned up against the pulpit and talked about like this and preached. And then, during the, and I said, let's bow our heads for prayer. And while somebody's praying, I'd get out in the car and be driven right back to the room. And so I turned on the news and I was too, and I had to chill. And, and I couldn't get out of bed. You know, you just move and, and I, so I just, so I was watching the news and the news went off and another program came on. It was a rerun of the Andy Griffith program. Back in the days when they had something halfway decent. Don Knotts, the only spiritual man to ever been on television. That was back before I died. Back before the world was crucified to me. But I, I watched that thing. And it's all right. And then, then a talk show came on. Young people, a talk show came on. And I forgot the guy's name. He's from Philadelphia. Um, uh, he's sort of a stocky fella. Comes from Philadelphia. What's, I mean, I'm not trying to trick you. What's his name? Mike Douglas. Yeah. Mike Douglas. And he had a bunch of guests on there. I mean, there was a real in crowd. This old gal walked out and her dress was about that big around here and here. And then she, it wasn't a dress, it was pants. But, but when it got down to her ankles, it was about four feet in diameter on either leg. And she had barred some eyelashes off some corpse that didn't have the same color hair as she did. And she had glued them on with tar. And she had taken walking lessons from a snake. And she had a hat on. The last time I saw one like it, mama used to wear it for sun bonnet years ago. And she came walking out there. She said, hello, Mikey. And I thought, good night. She must be a patron saint of Westville. And she puckered up to kiss him. And I thought, God give him grace to go through this. I was sick, but I, I tell you what, I'd have been sicker if I had to kiss that. You know, I said, I laid there and watched that thing. And, and, and my chills got worse. And I watched those idiots come out, one after the other. I mean, Peer Kim felt just written a book. And he, I say he had on blue jeans. He had off blue jeans. They're just, just hip huggers, but they were just sort of thigh huggers. He came out, had long shaggy hair, Afro sort of hairstyle. Hello, Mike. And I, I thought, now you reckon they really think that's the stuff. You know, you know what? I died to all that stuff. And that stuff died to me. Fellow said, said, uh, do you ever think about drinking liquor? I said, I drink, I drink every, every bottle of beer I want, I drink it. I mean, if I want a bottle of beer, go down and drink and get it and drink it. I just never do one bottle of beer. Why? Because it's dead. Hollywood's dead. When I passed by a movie theater, no joke, I walked by one. Where was I? Pasco, Washington. I was taking a little jog and, and, and jogged by a movie and looked in that thing. And I was thinking, I guess the only other thing in town I'd hate to go in more is a morgue. They're dead. Hollywood's dead. World is dead. Why? Listen, like one little, little Nazarene kid had never been to a picture show. He went to a picture show one night and he came home and he said, mama, he said, if you ever went to a picture show, you'd never want to go to a prayer meeting anymore. Now he's got to just turn around. If you ever one day ever get a glimpse of Calvary and you ever one day really walk with God, you'll, you'll be amazed at how dead the old life will look. Paul said, I have glory in the cross. Why? Jesus died there, but the world died there. And he said something else. He said, and I was crucified to the world. By the way, here's one of the blessed things about, about that. When you get saved and you get a glimpse of the cross, you start living for God. You don't really have to worry a great deal about crucifying the world. They'll crucify you. You say, well, I didn't have to give up the old crowd. I just said, praise the Lord. And they gave me up. They said, you don't have to worry about that. So Paul said, hallelujah for the cross. Jesus died for me there. The world died to me there and the world crucified me there. And brother, I want the world to crucify me and the world doesn't crucify you. There's something wrong with your Christian testimony. Paul said, I died by the way, he knew what he was talking about. Are you listening? He knew what he was talking about. Of course, when an Orthodox Jew gets converted and leaves Judaism, they actually have a funeral service for him. I mean, they have a casket and they bury him. And Paul was actually dead to his family. My good friend, Dr. Jacob Gartenhouse, a Jew, was saved on the streets of New York City. The day he got saved, he was stoned and left bloody on the streets of New York City because of his testimony for Christ, a Jewish man. His father's a rabbi in Jerusalem or was. Ninety years of age, Dr. Gartenhouse was saved. His mother and father had a service and buried him. Funeral service. Jacob is dead, they said. Dr. Gartenhouse got burdened for his mom and dad, got on a plane, flew across the ocean, flew all the way to Jerusalem, got a cab, went to the home of his mother and dad. His mother came to the door. He had flown 6,000 miles, I guess. He said, Mama, this is Jacob. This is your son, Jacob. His mother said, You're not Jacob. Jacob is dead. We buried Jacob. He said, Mama, I'm Jacob. I'm your son, Jacob. From America, I'm Jacob. Mom, I'm Jacob. No, she said, Jacob is dead. We buried Jacob. She closed the door in his face and wouldn't even speak with him. He went down to the synagogue where his father was rabbi. He walked in the synagogue and said, Father, this is Jacob. I've come from America to tell you about Jesus. His rabbi father looked in the face of his son and said, Jacob is dead. Jacob is dead. We buried Jacob. He's dead. Dr. Gartenhouse went back and got on the airplane without even his mother and father even taking him into the house. He came back to America. He prayed. He prayed. Got on the airplane and flew to Jerusalem again. Went down to the synagogue and his father was praying in the synagogue. Something had happened to his father. He said, Jacob, my son, Jacob. They embraced him. Dr. Gartenhouse knelt on the altar of the synagogue and told him about Jesus, the Messiah, the Lamb of God. His father got up off his knees and lifted his hands toward heaven and said, Actually, Jesus, Jesus. He was in his nineties. Dr. Gartenhouse never saw him again. He went to heaven before. Dr. Gartenhouse saw him again. All that to say this. Jacob was dead. Jacob was dead. Paul said, I'm dead to the world. I'm dead to the world. He wrote a letter to the Corinthian church and he gave some of the most beautiful words ever written. In 2 Corinthians chapter 6 when he said, As deceivers and yet true, as unknown and yet well known, I thought the other day when little Miss Bartell was out trying to get folks to come to church and it was snowing and she had no hat on and she had no car to drive. Nobody knew she was there except me. Young people. Nobody knew she was there. But all of heaven knew she was there. Unknown yet well known. Dying and behold we live. The world says, Boy, she looks dead to me. Oh no, you just don't know what it is, brother. You take one glimpse of Calvary and then you'll die to the world. Sorrowful yet always rejoicing. What does that mean? It means the world says, This year looks sad. I can recall, Mama, when you'd take me to church. I'd sit beside you at Farnwood Baptist Church and you'd begin to cry. You'd wipe a tear and begin to cry. And I'd say, Mama, what's wrong? She'd say, I'm happy. And I used to worry about Mama. She'd cry more. Pretty soon she was sobbing. And I'd say, Mama, Mama, what's wrong? She'd say, I'm getting happier. And I'd say, Mama, sure has a strange way of being happy. Huh? We come to church and God speaks to our hearts and tears come out of our eyes and the world says, She's a dead life. The Bible says we're always rejoicing. Hear little Phyllis Penton down here. Two foot ten. She says she's two foot ten. That's a big lie. She's not over twelve inches tall, I can tell. But I bind you to one thing. I bind you that there's not a Hollywood movie star half as happy as Phyllis Penton. Phyllis Penton is tonight. You know why? She's dead. She's dead. I haven't died completely, but I won't do. I won't do. Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face and the things of this world will grow strangely thin. In the light of His glory and praise. How does the world look to you tonight? You kids have to say, Boy, I wish I weren't a Christian so I could do that. Boy, I wish I could do that, but I can't because I go to Hammond Baptist High School. That's why a lot of you get out of school and shorten your skirts and look like a bunch of Jezebels when you get out of school. That's why in the summertime, a bunch of our kids last summer decided to have a beach party. Our high school kids have a beach party. I said, You do and every one of you will go to some other school next fall. You going to live outside school like you live inside the school? Don't you laugh at what I'm preaching about that. It's time God's people decided that Jesus means more than a hippie communist kind of a haphazard world. It's time we got to the place where we said, I just glory in the cross. I just glory. I'll close with this. If you glory when you have money, then you'll be sad when you're broke. If you glory when you're popular, you'll be sad when you're unpopular. If you glory when you're on top, you'll be sad when you're on the bottom. If you glory when you're well, you'll be sad when you're sick. If you glory in the sunshine, you'll never glory around here. You'll be sad when it's cloudy. But if you glory in the cross, you'll never know a dark or a sad day. Let me ask you a question. Is Christ real to you?