In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the importance of exalting Jesus Christ and proclaiming His message loudly and clearly, without seeking recognition or fame for ourselves or our church. The speaker also highlights the significance of having a heart that beats with God's, rather than just relying on intellectual knowledge. The sermon draws examples from the Bible, including Joseph, David, and Jesus, who were all sent by God to fulfill specific purposes in their respective times. The speaker encourages the audience to be like these biblical figures and be the ones who bring deliverance, faith, and accurate representation of God in their generation.

There was a time when the world lay in desperate need and God sent his son as a little baby. No different from other babies, there was no halo around his head. In fact, when the angels told the shepherds how to find this baby, I mean, if he had a halo around his head, they could have just told him, go and look for a baby with a halo around the head. It wasn't that. The distinctive feature was, if you go around town, you'll only find one baby lying in a cattle shed with the cows and the donkeys, and in a little sort of cradle, which is not a cradle at all, but the food, the thing in which the animals ate their food. We talk about a baby in a manger, but it wasn't a very attractive place where Jesus was born. And that is how God began that most wonderful ministry the world has ever seen. And Christianity has forgotten that. Christianity still thinks, like the wise men foolishly thought, that Jesus would be born in a palace. He was not born in any palace. He came in the most insignificant way, in the most insignificant place, as a little baby, and brought redemption to the world. And that's how the church is also born. Each local church, if it's born of God, is born like that. Unknown, tucked away in some corner, where nobody knows anything about what God is doing. Nobody knew anything about what God was doing in that cattle shed that day. No. But it was the most significant event in the history of the world. And so sometimes, the way God works is not the way man works, with great pomp and show. In some little corner, he begins something which looks very insignificant, which men don't care for. But one day, he'll discover that that which God has planted will one day grow and influence the whole world. So we can say that that's a little bit, those of us who have been here from the beginning. There are very few left of those who were meeting in the very first day we met. I think I can even count on my fingers how many there were. Just a very, very few. Less than 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, maybe 8 or 9 or 10 at the most, including children who are here with us today in the church, who were with us in the first day we met, on the 17th of August, 1975. But that's how God began his work. And through the years, we've had many ups and downs. And God has been faithful. And Jesus also was hidden away for many years. For many years, God hid us also. But we read in the Gospel of Luke, in chapter 3, that one day, this little baby that was born in a cattle shed, ignored and not known. One day, this little baby was 30 years old, like we are now. And we read about Jesus being 30 years old in Luke, chapter 3. And it says here, in verse 23, about Jesus' age. When Jesus began his ministry, Jesus himself was 30 years of age. And what a wonderful way his ministry began. It says, in verse 21 to 22, that Jesus was praying. You know, I've seen that all true work of God always begins with prayer. And this church was also born in prayer. Many, many times. I know, in the old building, before this church was born, Brother Ian and I used to meet frequently for prayer. My wife and I used to pray frequently in our own home, over a long period of time. And then one day, the church was born. So, that's how it begins, all ministry. Because prayer is an expression. It's not a question of how many hours you're on your knees. No, I don't think. The emphasis, unfortunately, today, is on length of time. It's not that. It's an attitude. You can spend a whole night on your knees and God may not even hear you. It's the attitude of your heart that determines whether you're really praying or not. A lot of people pray. It doesn't seem to change them. You know, I've seen people who, it always amazes me, people who spend all night fasting in prayer and days of prayer and all that. And in the end of it, they still love money. They still haven't overcome anger. And they still haven't overcome lust. And they're still seeking their own honor. I said, who are they praying to? They didn't have contact with God at all. You know, when you have contact with God, it's like putting your finger into the plug point. Have you ever tried doing it? Don't do it. But I'm just saying, if you ever do it, you'll never forget it. Imagine keeping your hand in that plug point for 15 minutes. Boy, you'll really be charged. The thing is, contact with God doesn't kill us, like plug point, but it's something similar to that. And people say, oh, we spent so many hours with God. Nothing has happened in your life. You're still in darkness. But Jesus' prayer was a living contact with God. It was power. And I'd rather have one minute like that with God than all your all night prayer meetings and hours and days of prayer. One minute of power, contact with God, it can charge you and change your life. That's how Jesus prayed. And that's the only way I want to pray all of my life. Not interested in preaching sermons on prayer and all that type of stuff. A lot of people who preach long sermons on prayer, I don't see much spiritual electricity in them. I don't see the lightning of God in their life or their ministry. It means they're not in touch with God. Jesus spoke very little about prayer. He prayed, but he hardly ever spoke about prayer. I mean, he said two or three times, but most of the time he was speaking on purity. So we see here, Jesus was baptized and in baptism he was choosing a way of death. That's another thing. Jesus began his ministry by choosing the way of death to the world, to the opinions of men, to his own self, to his own will. That's what he decided at the age of 30. That's the way he's going to give. And the Holy Spirit came upon him. That's another thing that happened at the age of 30. The Holy Spirit descended upon him in power. And there's no ministry that can ever be fulfilled without the Holy Spirit coming upon us in power. And heavens were open. That's another thing that happened. Heaven was open. And that's how God wants us to live all the time. That heaven is open over us and we can have contact with God all the time. Bible says, brothers, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence with God. 1 John 3. Heaven is always open over us. And the other thing we see there is, there was a voice from heaven which said, I'm well pleased with you. And that's the thing Jesus lived for. Father, are you happy with me? That's all that matters. That's the true church of Jesus Christ today. Because today, the church is called the body of Christ. That's the same body we read of here. And those values that we see here in Jesus Christ is what we must have. What Jesus was at the age of 30. My own belief is, my faith is this, and I want you to join with me in faith. That at the age of 30, Jesus was moving out into a ministry such as he had never seen before. And we want to believe that for our church too. See, all that time, it's not that he didn't live a holy life. He lived a holy life, I'm sure, for 30 years. He was a blessing to numerous people in Nazareth. People who visited his home, people who visited his carpenter shop, and people he contacted, the people whose houses he visited. But this was going to be different. Now, his influence was going to spread all over the country. And it wasn't going to stop. And let's have faith for that. Not for our glory. Jesus never did a single thing for his glory. Everything was the glory of the Father. At the end of his life, he could say in John 17 and verse 4, Father, I have glorified you on earth. He never glorified himself. And so when we say all this, we're not talking about people thinking greatly about church or CFC. No! God, there's many things God will give us. He'll give us his blessing, he'll give us power, he'll give us wealth, he'll give us health, he'll give us a thousand things, but there's one thing he'll never give us. It says in Isaiah 42, verse 8, I am the Lord, my glory I will never give to another. Because it's not good for us. It's never good for us to have glory. God will give us everything good for us, and glory is not one of those good things. And that's why a lot of Christians have gone astray. Preachers, churches, seeking honor for themselves, their name, their honor. Promoting themselves, their families, their church. We're not interested in that. We want to lift up Jesus. For 30 years, our message has been Jesus only. And that's what it'll be, till he comes again. We will lift up Jesus. Ever Jesus only will we see, all the time. And if people see him, I remember as a young man, I read a little poem about a painting of Jesus Christ. And somebody in the darkness was holding up a lamp to that painting. And everybody was seeing that beautiful painting. Nobody could even see the hand that was holding the lamp. And I said, Lord, that's the way I want to be. And people see Jesus, and they don't see the hand that's holding the lamp and shining on that painting. That's how it must be. And the second verse said about a trumpeter who blew the trumpet so loud and clear that everybody got the message, but nobody could see the trumpeter. And that's how we must be, brothers and sisters, as a church. That we exalt Jesus Christ our Lord and proclaim the message so loud and clear that people don't need to know our name. People don't even need to know where we are located on the earth. I mean, if people get a message through the internet, they don't need to know that it is from this particular church, this particular town. They don't even need to know it. So long as they are drawn to Jesus, and they are prepared for the coming of the Lord, we have done our job. That's all. That's why in thirty years we have never sent a report of our work anywhere. We don't send photographs. We don't ask anybody for money. Because we're not interested in promoting ourselves. That's how Jesus was. And so if we live like that, I believe that the blessing of the Lord will be upon our lives. It says about John the Baptist, these wonderful words. John chapter 1 verse 6. There was a particular time and a particular need among God's people. And for that time and that particular need, God sent a prophet. His name was John. And it says about him in John chapter 1 verse 6. There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. And at different times in history, when God sees a particular need, particular people, God sends a man. Because he always does his work through a man. He doesn't do it, I mean, or a woman. But he doesn't do it through angels. I mean, there are millions of angels who would be delighted if God would say, Hey, you better go and do that. There'd be competition among them to go. But it's so sad that God can find so few, so few men and women. Very rarely can he find a man or a woman totally given over to him. I've heard stories of some of the great men of God. I don't remember whether it was George Muller or William Booth, one of the two, when somebody asked him the end of his life, what was the secret of his life? And he bowed down low to the ground and he said, There was a day that came in my life as a young man, when I decided that God would have all that there was of me, completely, totally. And that was the secret of his life. And that's been the secret of every man and woman God has ever used. At some time in their life, they decided that God would have everything. From head to foot, all their ambitions, plans, desires, money, time, energy, everything would be God's. And he finds very few like that. He finds very few people and very few churches like that. But that's always God's way. There was a man sent from God. So, I want to look at three such examples this morning. First of all, in Psalm 106. Psalm 106, God knew that in the land of Egypt, and Egypt is a picture of the world, there was going to be a great famine. A famine that would kill everybody. It would last for seven years. But God, in his mercy, was going to send seven years of plenty before the seven years of famine. But there wouldn't be anybody with wisdom to think about it, because they didn't know the future. I mean, when you have plenty, do you think about the time when a famine may come? I mean, how many of you brothers and sisters who earn a lot of money today think of saving something for the future? No, you say, oh, plenty, I can spend it all. That's how foolish man is. Even the ants have got more wisdom, the Bible says. They store up for the future. They don't eat it all up. They are not gluttons, because they think of another day. And people who think like that will never have to beg or borrow or steal when the time of need comes. Because they have planned ahead, learning from the ants. But in Egypt, there wouldn't be people like that. Because they think, oh, plenty means there will always be plenty. And so God sent a man into that situation. It's the one we read of in Psalm 106. We read about this man whom the Lord sent into, sorry, Psalm 105, not 106. Verse 17, Psalm 105, verse 17. God sent a man before them, Joseph. And when he was sent into Egypt, he was to be the savior of Egypt in a few years. You know how they treated him? They sold him as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters. And laid him in irons. This man whom God sent to be the savior of that nation. That is how blind man is. How did they treat Jesus when he came to save the world? That's how blind man is. The world doesn't realize what a blessing it is to have God's people. The Bible says that if there were 10 people in the city of Sodom, Sodom would have been saved. Do you know that the blessing of God on any city depends on the number of righteous people in that city? The Lord told Abraham in Genesis 18, that if I find 10 righteous men in Sodom. There may be thousands there, but I'm not bothered about all of them. If I can find 10 righteous men, I'll save that city. Not 1,000 compromisers who come and praise the Lord on Sunday morning and live for themselves the rest of the week. No, they will not have any influence in the city. But if God can find 10 righteous men, it's the same today. People don't recognize that one righteous man can make a difference. In fact, in the time of when God wanted to send the Babylonians to punish Israel for all their sin, God gave them one last chance. He said, before I send the Babylonians to take you into captivity for 70 years, Jeremiah, I'll give them one last chance. I want you to read this verse. Jeremiah 5, verse 1. The Lord told Jeremiah, roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a picture of Christianity, the church. Jeremiah 5, verse 1. Roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem. Look now. Search in the market squares. See if you can find one man. Not 10. In Sodom it was 10. Here it is 1. If you can find one man in the whole of Jerusalem. Not those who go and offer the sacrifices and praise the Lord on the Saturdays and go to the temple. No, no, no. There are thousands like that, the Lord says. But one man who does what is right. Who speaks the truth. Who lives a true life. And I will pardon the whole city. Of course, Jeremiah himself was like that, but he was a prophet of God. He was excluded. The Lord said to Jeremiah, go and search, search, search, search, search. There was not even one. God said, okay, judgment. So, remember this brothers and sisters, if you want to bless your city, you don't need to get a mega church with 10,000 people. That's what a lot of people think, we're going to influence the city with mega churches. They haven't read these stories in the Old Testament. God is looking for one man. Let me show you another verse, Ezekiel chapter 22. This is also in the time of Babylonian captivity. Where the Lord says, Ezekiel 22 and verse 30. I searched for a man. You know, the people did so many wrong things, verse 29. They practiced oppression, committed robbery, they wronged the poor and needy, they oppressed the surgeons without justice. They did all types of wrong things. And in the midst of all this compromise, the Lord says, I searched for one man who would stand up for the truth. Who would build the wall. Build the wall means, you know, the wall was broken down. Broken down wall means compromise. You know, the walls of Jerusalem were the thing that separated Jerusalem from the rest of the world. So when the church loses its walls, it's like a church that's compromised. And the Lord said, I look for one man who will build the wall again. And stand up for the things that I stood for. So that I don't destroy that. But I did not find even one. I believe it's the same today. It's the same today. There are many people who come to church and praise the Lord and say so many wonderful things. But they don't have 100% integrity in their life. They're not true before God. God is not everything to them. There are other things in life which are more important to them. God doesn't force them. He says, OK, come do what you like. But God can't use them. There was a man sent from God. And like we read about Joseph. They treated him so badly. They put him in fetters. They put him in a jail. But notice this. What it says about in the book of Genesis chapter 39. What it says about Joseph in the years when they treated him badly. Genesis chapter 39. He was first put as a slave. In the house of an Egyptian general called Potiphar. And it says here in verse 2. The Lord was with Joseph. And not only that. His master saw. Verse 3. The Lord was with him. He was a slave. Slave means without a salary. Lower than servants. This is the lowest level of people. Bought. You don't have to pay them. You can make them work day and night. You don't have to feed them. You can kill them. Nobody questions. Like furniture. Slaves were like that. And this man Potiphar. This general. Looked around and said. Boy that slave. Whatever he does. There's something about him. He saw that God was with that man. You know that's how it is with a man of God. When God sends a man. The whole world may oppose him. He may not be dressed properly because he's a slave. But you'll see that God is with him. And you can't fight against it. Then we read that his wife falsely accused him. And put him in jail. What happened in the jail. It says when he was put inside the jail. So. Verse 20. Same chapter. Joseph's master took him and put him into jail. Because of this false. Allegation. This lie that his wife told him. But in the jail. Verse 21. The Lord was with Joseph in the jail. You see it's just. That the Lord was in Potiphar's house. Because Joseph was there. When Joseph moved to the jail. The Lord moved to the jail. Isn't that great. Poor Potiphar. The Lord left his house. He was so stupid to. Push Joseph out. That's what happens when you. Push a man of God out of somewhere. God goes with him. And you're left. Alone. Without God. Poor Potiphar. I've seen churches. Where they push the man of God out. God went with that man. And the church is left without God. See exactly what happened. The Lord was with Joseph. Think my brothers and sisters. I don't know whether this challenges you. I don't know how many of you. Rise up to this challenge. To be a man. Or a woman. Sent by God. To this generation. My generation is. Getting over. You know that. It's your generation. Young people. Be a man. And a woman. Sent by God. To your generation. That's very very important. So we read here. In Genesis. In chapter 41. No. One more verse. Sorry. Verse 26. 23. Genesis 39. 23. The chief jailer. Did not supervise anything. Because he saw the Lord was with him. I mean. That jailer saw. Hey. Something happened in this jail. After this new prisoner came. Isn't that wonderful? If. You know. You move into a hostel. And all the boys and girls say. Hey. Something happened here. This person. One person has come. And everything's different. Or somebody comes into an office. And say. Hey. Something's happened in his office. Because. This guy has come here. Or this girl has come here. Things are different. That's how it was. And it doesn't matter. I mean. He may be a despised prisoner. Everybody recognized that. God was with him. Now we turn to chapter 41. Verse 46. After all this time of difficulty. We read. In chapter 41. Verse 46. Joseph was 30 years old. When he stood before Pharaoh. This is like we are. And there. At the age of 30. Joseph. Moved out into the city. into the most wonderful ministry. That anyone had ever seen in the land of Egypt. For 80 years. 80 years. And he administered. The collection of all the food. In the time of plenty. So that in the time of famine. He could give it out. And that's what saved. That nation. Otherwise. The nation of Egypt. Might have disappeared. From the face of the earth. If there's an Egypt. There in the world today. It's. You got to thank Joseph. For it. Otherwise. All those guys. Would have died. The entire population. There wouldn't be any Egypt today. I don't think. Egypt recognizes. Their gratitude. To Joseph. He was the man. Who saved that land. Can you imagine. Seven years of famine. If you have seven years. In famine. In India. There won't be any Indians left. Somebody else will come. And take over this country. It won't be India anymore. And. You know. We are living. In a time like that. I don't know. Whether. You realize. There's a famine. Of the word. Of God. Everywhere. And it is. Going to get. Worse. What people are preaching. From the pulpits. Of Christendom. Today. And a lot of it. Over television. Is. Psychology. Christian. Psychology. Make people. Feel. Nice. Make people. Feel. Secure. Don't talk to them. Don't talk about. Sin. Don't preach. Like the prophets. Of old. Against. Sin. Don't tell them. That you cannot. Serve God. And money. Don't talk. About such things. They don't want to hear it. I preached. That once. On television. They took me off. The next week. That's it. They don't want to hear it. There's a famine. Of God's word. It's been replaced. By. Psychology. Gimmicks. Magic. Tricks. On the platform. Evangelists. Who. Dressed. Like. Magicians. Have you seen. Magicians. Evangelists. Who. Come. Dressed. Like. Magicians. For. Their. Magic. Show. And. Disappear. After. The. Magic. Show. Is. Over. They're. In it. For. Money. Just. Like. The. Magicians. Are. In it. For. The. Money. The. Magicians. Become. Millionaires. And. The. Evangelists. Become. Millionaires. You. Think. This. Is. The. Gospel. Of. Jesus. Christ. You. Gotta. Be. Off. Your. Head. Gotta. Have. A. Few. Screws. Loose. In. Your. Head. If. You. Think. That's. The. Gospel. Of. Jesus. Christ. It's. Not. My. Brother. Sister. Can. Imagine. Jesus. Coming. Like. That. Doing. A. Magic. Show. On. A. Platform. And. Collecting. Money. And. Becoming. A. Millionaire. Through. That. And. Saying. God. Blessed. Him. You. Really. Be. Off. Your. Head. If. You. Think. That's. The. Gospel. Of. Jesus. Christ. It. Is. Another. Jesus. Young. There's. A. Famine. There's. A. Famine. All. Over. And. Going. Get. Worse. Worse. And. Worse. It. Doesn't. Look. Like. A. Famine. Because. A. Lot. Of. Believers. Don't. Have. Discernment. I. Mean. They. Happens. To. A. Lot. Of. People. After. Watching. Too. Many. TV. Programs. Is. Their. Bank. Account. Becomes. A. Little. Less. Because. It's. Gone. To. That. Evangelist. That's. All. It. Doesn't. Get. Them. Holier. Godlier. Bolder. Listening. To. A. Lot. Of. Preachers. Today. That's. The. Famine. And. In. The. Midst. Of. That. Famine. You. Know. What. God. Does. Because. He. Do. In. Egypt. He. Sent. A. Man. Do. You. Want. To. Be. That. Man. Or. The. Woman. In. Your. Generation. Well. I'll. Tell. You. It's. A. Adulterer. Imagine. Calling. This. Man. Who. Was. Perhaps. The. Purest. Young. Man. On. The. Face. Of. The. Earth. I. Think. So. I. Think. Joseph. At. The. Age. If. Accused. To. Be. Pure. In. The. Midst. Of. Temptation. Then. You. Can. Be. The. Man. Who. Will. Minister. God's. Word. In. A. Time. Of. Famine. That's. Calling. A. Church. To. Minister. God's. Word. Purely. Without. Compromise. None. Of. All. This. Psychology. Not. The. Power. Of. Positive. Thinking. Not. The. Power. Of. Possibility. Thinking. But. The. Power. Of. The. Holy. Spirit. Not. The. Power. Of. Music. Or. Emotional. Power. No. Not. The. Power. Of. Money. But. The. Power. Of. The. Holy. Spirit. Very. Very. Few. Have. That. I'll. Tell. You. This. I've. Been. Around. Christendom. For. Forty. Six. Years. And. I've. Seen. Very. Few. Men. In. My. Life. Whom. I. Can. Really. Say. There. An. Anointed. Man. Every. Time. He. Opens. His. Mouth. I. Hear. God. You. Can. Be. Like. That. Brothers. And. Sisters. That's. How. Joseph. Was. A. Man. Who. Represented. God. In. A. Wicked. Godless. Nation. In. A. Time. Of. Famine. He. Had. Enough. To. Give. To. Everybody. And. In. A. Time. Of. Famine. God. Has. Sent. The. Church. In. Time. Of. Famine. In. The. Midst. Of. Christendom. And. Joseph. At. The. Age. Of. Thirty. Began. That. Ministry. And. That's. What. We. Need. To. Do. Also. Now. That. We've. Come. The. Age. Of. Thirty. That's. Our. Calling. And. For. That. There. Was. A. Long. Preparation. He. Was. Faithful. At. Home. For. Many. Years. God. Test. Him. Tested. Him. In. His. Home. And. God. Tests. People. In. The. Home. He'll. Test. You. In. Your. Home. He. Will. Test. You. In. Your. Workplace. Joseph. Was. Tested. Workplace. Whether. He'd. Be. Faithful. How. Many. Young. Men. Christians. Who. Are. Unfaithful. In. The. Workplace. Fooling. Around. With. Women. Not. Committing. Adultery. But. Flirtatious. Type. Of. Conversation. Can. You. Imagine. Joseph. As. A. Young. Man. Even. If. He. Didn't. Touch. Party. For. His. Wife. Having. A. Flirtatious. Type. Of. Conversation. Can. Imagine. Joseph. Having. A. Flirtatious. Type. Conversation. Can. Having. A. Flirtatious. Can. You. Imagine. In. Such. A. Way. That. People. Will. Recognize. God. Is. With. You. Your. Clothes. May. Not. Be. The. Smartest. In. Your. Office. Or. In. Your. Home. But. They. Will. Find. Your. Family. Members. Causing. You. Problems. The. Man's. Enemies. Will. Be. Those. Of. His. Own. Family. And. If. You. Don't. Have. Problems. If. Your. Family. Members. Don't. Oppose. You. I. Wonder. Whether. You're. First. Class. Compromiser. Who's. Out. To. Please. Those. Unconverted. Nominal. Christians. In. Your. Family. You. Don't. Care. Whether. They. Go. To. Hell. Your. Family. Only. Your. Family. Members. Go. To. Hell. Because. You. Don't. Take. A. Stand. Against. A. Stand. For. The. Lord. But. God. Can't. Make. You. The. Man. You. Should. Be. If. God's. Laid. Hold. Of. You. Like. You. Laid. Hold. Of. Young. Joseph. I. Want. To. Say. That. By. The. Time. You're. Thirty. God. You. To. Be. His. Representative. But. During. Those. Thirty. Years. He. Has. To. Break. You. Humble. You. Test. You. In. All. Types. Of. Situations. To. See. Whether. You. True. Him. Want. To. Move. On. To. Another. Example. In. Acts. Chapter. Thirteen. We. Read. Of. Another. Man. Who. Began. A. Ministry. At. The. In. Two. And. He. Raised. Up. David. He. Sent. A. Man. David. You. Know. What. God. Said. About. David. I. Want. To. Read. In. The. Message. Bible. In. Verse. Twenty. Two. I. Have. Searched. Throughout. The. Land. And. I. Found. This. Young. Man. David. He. Is. A. Man. Whose. Heart. Beats. With. My. Heart. A. Man. Who. Do. Exactly. What. I. Tell. Him. To. Do. I. Want. To. Be. Like. That. I. Hope. You. Want. To. Be. Like. That. A. Man. Whose. Heart. Beats. With. My. A. Man. Whose. Heart. Beats. Boy. How. Excited. He. Was. When. He. Saw. Job. Standing. Up. For. Righteousness. When. He. Lost. All. His. Children. And. Business. Whose. Heart. Beats. With. My. Heart. That's. What. David. Young. Man. His. Parents. Despised. Him. And. If. You. Want. To. See. How. Much. They. Despised. Him. We. Read. Of. A. Time. When. Samuel. Went. To. His. Father's. House. Jesse's. House. And. Said. Bring. All. Your. Children. I've. Got. To. Anoint. One. Of. Them. To. Be. King. And. We. Read. In. One. Samuel. Sixteen. Jesse. Didn't. Them. He. Had. Eight. Sons. And. At. Least. One. Daughter. But. He. Had. Eight. Sons. And. Samuel. Said. Call. All. Your. Sons. You. Know. What. He. He. Seven. Of. Them. The. Oldest. Seven. King. Must. Be. These. Ones. And. If. You. Had. Asked. Jesse. Hey. Isn't. There. Another. One. Out. There. Ah. Just. Strumming. His. Guitar. All. Time. And. Singing. Songs. To. God. He's. Not. Good. To. Be. The. King. And. He. Called. His. Seven. Sons. And. We. Read. In. Verse. Ten. Jesse. Made. His. Seven. Sons. Pass. Before. Samuel. And. Samuel. Said. The. Lord. Has. Not. Chosen. Any. Of. These. And. Samuel. Said. You. Mean. That's. All. Your. Did. I. Make. A. Mistake. Are. These. All. Your. Children. Oh. He. Said. That's. The. Youngest. One. He's. Just. Pretty. Useless. We. Just. Send. Him. To. Look. After. The. Sheep. It. Can't. Be. Him. Can't. Be. Him. Bring. Him. In. Till. He. Comes. We're. Not. Going. To. Sit. Down. And. As. Soon. As. He. Came. Young. The. Lord. Verse. Twelve. To. Samuel. Arise. This. Is. The. One. I've. Chosen. You. Know. It. Doesn't. Care. What. Your. Father. Doesn't. Matter. What. Your. Father. Thought. About. What. God. Thinks. About. You. That. Matters. I. Love. That. You. Know. I. I. Go. To. Home. Sometimes. And. In. Many. Homes. As. A. Black. Sheep. You. That. Always. Does. Something. Wrong. And. Very. Often. The. Parents. Will. Complain. To. Me. Brother. Zach. Please. Pray. For. This. One. Didn't. Study. Properly. He. Does. This. Is. Always. Messing. Up. And. Going. On. The. Wrong. Friends. And. I. Never. Pray. For. Them. Because. I. Have. Hope. For. This. Black. Sheep. I. Have. Seen. It. In. So. Many. Homes. That. Black. Sheep. Is. The. One. God. Picks. Up. Because. That's. The. One. Who. Is. Despised. By. Everybody. Nobody. Has. Any. Hope. For. Him. This. Samuel. The. Prophet. Says. Call. All. Your. Sons. He's. A. Prophet. Speaking. From. God. Call. All. Your. Sons. One. Of. Them. Is. Going. To. Be. King. He. Doesn't. Even. Call. Person. Can. Imagine. How. Much. He. Despised. David. That's. The. One. God. Chose. Because. God. Saw. In. That. Young. Seventeen. Year. Old. Boy's. Heart. A. Heart. A. Time. Of. Famine. We. Saw. That. Spiritually. In. David's. Time. It. Was. A. Time. And. Everybody. Was. Afraid. Of. Goliath. Goliath. Was. Defying. Christianity. I. Can. Corrupt. Your. Church. I'll. Make. Sure. There's. No. Preacher. Left. Who. Preaches. Victory. Over. Sin. And. I. Tell. You. The. Devil's. Pretty. Well. Succeeded. You. Tell. Me. How. Many. Preachers. Have. You. Heard. That. Tell. You. How. To. Overcome. Anger. Or. The. Lust. Of. The. Eyes. Or. The. Love. Of. Money. Tell. Me. I'd. Like. To. Go. And. Meet. That. Man. Who. Preaches. Those. Things. Today. No. You. See. The. Philistines. Have. Done. Such. A. Good. Job. And. The. Devil's. Done. Such. A. Good. Job. And. Everybody's. Just. Trembling. And. Afraid. No. They're. Not. Preaching. Victory. Over. Sin. Today. They're. Preaching. What. The. Devil. Likes. People. To. Hear. You. Can. Make. A. Lot. Of. Money. You. Can. Live. A. Big. House. You. Don't. Have. To. Have. Just. One. Car. You. Can. Have. Two. Three. Four. Five. And. Better. Ones. And. This. Will. You. Then. You. Call. That. The. Blessing. Of. God. Well. Then. Jesus. Wasn't. Blessed. At. All. If. That. Was. The. Blessing. Of. God. These. You. Can. Live. A. Big. House. You. You. Can. Live. A. Big. You. Can. Live. A. Big. House. You. Can. Live. A. Big. House. You. Can. Live. A. Big. House. You. Can. Live. A. House. You. Can. Live. A. Big. Can. A. Big. House. You. You. Can. Big. You. Live. A. You. Can. You. Can. A. Big. House. You. You. You. Can. You. Can. Live. House. You. Can. Live. A. Big. You. Can. Big. You. Live. A. You. Big. House. You. Can. Live. A. A. Big. Can. Live. Big. Can. Live. Big. I want to say one final thing before I move on. It says in 1 Samuel 10 that when Saul was selected, he was head and shoulders above everybody else. You know, when Saul stood in a crowd, we read in 1 Samuel 10.23 that his head stood out. He was, if the others were five feet nine, he was about six feet eight. He stood out, head and shoulders. You could see him in a crowd of a thousand, one head. The distinctive feature about Saul was his head. The distinctive feature about David was his heart. We have a Christianity today, a Christendom that is majored on the head. That's the kingdom of Saul. Head knowledge, head knowledge, head knowledge, Bible study, Bible schools. Look at the number of Bible schools. One of the biggest rackets going on in this country. Number of them. Which apostle came out of a Bible school? Which prophet came out of a Bible school? It's the head. Study, study, study to get a degree, get a diploma. In the midst of all that, God's looking for men who got a heart that beats with his. Not the head. He's not looking at your head. He's looking at your heart. That's how he prepares us. And then thirdly, we saw Jesus. That's the third example. We saw that in Luke chapter 3, how he was thirty years of age. Look at these three examples. There was a man sent from God. In Joseph's time, to deliver people from famine. In David's time, to deliver people who were in unbelief. And Jesus came to represent God accurately. In a time when God was being misrepresented by the Pharisees, to represent God accurately. That's the third thing our calling is, as a church. First of all, to minister in a time of spiritual famine. And secondly, to bring in true faith, so that we can defy the devil. And third, to represent God accurately. It says about Jesus also, as a man, you know, you may say, well, you can't put him in the same category as others. Well, it's true, he's the son of God. But I want you to read these words. In Acts 2.22, on the day of Pentecost. The first gospel sermon. The first gospel sermon. Okay? The first gospel sermon. Acts 2.22. Peter preaches. Men of Israel, listen to these words. Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God. Have you read those words? Inspired by the Holy Spirit, he says, Jesus, a man sent from God. He was the son of God. He was equal with the Father from all eternity. He was God, even when he was on earth. But he's so completely identified with our fallen race, that he could be called a man. We worship him, because he's God. We follow him, because he's a man, like us. Man who is attested by the Father. And you and I need to be attested by the Father, not by the recommendations of people. Whose attestation do you seek? Here was a man, Jesus lived on earth as a man. He's only attested by the Father. Thirty years, again, at home. David was faithful at home. Joseph was faithful at home. Jesus was faithful at home. That's the first place he tests all of us. Joseph was faithful in his work, whether he was a slave or a jail, in the jail. David was faithful in his work as a shepherd of sheep. And Jesus was faithful in his work as a carpenter. That's the second place he tests us, in our place of work. Are you faithful? Are you faithful with money? Are you faithful to do your job faithfully before God? Thirty years of that, and then one day he came forth. That's God's will for us as a church, and that's God's will for all of you in the younger generation. I pray that you will take up this challenge, that you see in the life of these men whom God raised up at different times to meet a particular need, whether it was in Egypt, or in Israel in David's time, or in Israel in Jesus' time. There was a particular need, and to meet that need God sent a man. And now he sends men and women, because now he's poured out his Spirit on all flesh, so that the sons and daughters can prophesy, and you can be a man and a woman for your generation. God doesn't need only one today. He needs many. But you're not going to get there overnight. You're going to get there through pressure, jealousy of others, problems with relatives. It says in John 7 verse 5, Jesus' brothers didn't believe in him. He had problems at home with his four brothers and two sisters, and they rejected him. He had jealousy, just like Joseph and David faced jealousy. Jesus, people were just jealous of Jesus. His brothers were jealous of him, because he was so good. He wouldn't sin like they did. And that always irritates somebody, when you don't sin. When you don't love money like all the other pastors do, they get worked up with you, because you're not like them. It's like, if your clothes are clean and that guy's clothes are all dirty, he's a bit jealous that your And so he wants your clothes to become dirty, but he can't make it dirty. That's how Jesus lived, facing jealousy from others. But it didn't affect him, it was part of his training. And if you find opposition from relatives, jealousy from so-called brothers, it doesn't matter, it's all part of your training. If you can be faithful, God had to break Joseph. He had to break David. And do you know, it says in Isaiah 53 verse 10, it pleased the father even to crush Jesus. He crushed him. Through 30 years in his home, he crushed him. I've seen many young men in my lifetime, very gifted, knowledgeable in the Bible. The only thing missing in their life, they even baptized in the Holy Spirit. The only thing missing in their life, God could not succeed in breaking them before they are 30 or 35 years old. He laid hold of them when they were 19 or 20. But when somebody tries to crush them, they react. They cannot take correction from older brothers. They get offended. Where is there hope for such people? God's work is hindered because young men and women are not broken. That's the tragedy, brothers and sisters, today in the world. And I've seen that happen in our churches. Wonderful young men who have the tremendous potential to be used by God all across this country, to be anointed, to be prophets. But they're not broken. They're so strong-willed. They live for themselves, though they are good people. They're upright. They don't fall into sexual sin or any such thing. But they're not broken. That's the only thing missing. So I would say to you young people, let God break you. He'll never be able to succeed in doing what He wants to do if He doesn't break you. Let Him break you, humble you, crush you, so that one day He can take you out into ministry, just like Joseph, just like David, just like Jesus. We look forward to wonderful times in the days to come, so that you and I can fulfill God's purpose in the coming generation. Shall we just bow our heads for a moment of prayer?