This sermon focuses on the importance of repentance, highlighting the sins of the church and the need for a godly repentance. It emphasizes the urgency of turning back to God, acknowledging sins, and seeking forgiveness. The message calls for a deep introspection, repentance, and a genuine desire to walk in righteousness before God.

Ezekiel 22, please. Ezekiel 22. Ezekiel 22. We're talking about the sins of the church, the sins of Israel. Hath God really said? He's dealing with it that way then, He's dealing with it that way right now. The covenant's covenant, God's God, sin's sin. Alright, Ezekiel 22. Now I'll tell you what, I want you to be very careful. Now you listen to me, I hope you will. When we get into Ezekiel 22, when we start reading this, I suggest that we're going to stop all the way through this. You're going to need to write something, because when you go back through this again, and if you don't mark with me and do it, that's the reason I told you, you want to make emphasis on one thing, write it in there, so when you come back again, you can see it and you can stop, you can slow up and you can get the same thing when you read it again. Now, we're going to start Ezekiel 22 verse 24. It's talking about the sins of Israel. Son of man, say to her, you, Israel, church, are a land that is what? You're not cleansed. You're not cleansed with the word of God. You've not washed or you're a land that's are rained on. The Holy Spirit's not on it. In the day of indignation, that's a day of the Lord. There is a conspiracy of the preachers of the church. That's conspiracy. In her midst, they're like roaring lions. They're agreeing with the demons. A conspiracy. Flesh. They're carrying the prey. They have devoured lives and doing it. They have taken treasure, that's money, rewards, careers, and precious things. They have made many winners, lost people. In the midst of her, they're stumbling blocks. Her preachers have done violence. That's perverted, my word. They have profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between the holy and the profane. Don't upset the congregation. They have not taught the difference between the unclean flesh and the clean. And they hide their eyes from my Sabbath. In other words, they're not in arrest. They're like a horse charging into battle. And I am profaned among them. They want to make God look like them instead of holy. Verse 27. Her princes of the church, these leaders of the church, when in her are like wolves. They're just like the demons. They're manifestation of them in the flesh. They're tearing the prey. And here's how they're doing it. By shedding blood, teaching form. And they're destroying lives in order to dishonest gain. They're living out the flesh. When you make a ministry, a career, or look good, or build an image, or build, want to make a name for a church or something rather than God. And her prophets have smeared whiteboards. They cover it all up, make it look good out of the flesh. For them, they're seeing false vision, perverting, and pre-divining, preaching lies, traditions for them. Saying, thus says the Lord God, when the Lord has not spoken it, distort the truth and the gospel. The people of the land have practiced oppression. They've committed robbery. They have wronged the lost, the poor, and the needy. That's the sick and afflicted. And they have oppressed the sojourner without justice. Jesus can't help you. Thirty. And I search for a man. I hope you're one of those men. I search for a man among them who should build up the wall, stand in the gap before me for the land. What is that wall? The glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. He only comes after the Word. That I should not destroy it, but I found no one. They're defeated, intimidated by everything, scared of everything, scared of folks, scared of denominations, scared of the reputation, scared they'll lose a job, scared they'll lose their career. Thus I poured out my indignation on them. I consumed them with fire of my wrath. There's the powers of darkness. I consumed them with the fire of my wrath. Their way I brought down upon their heads, declares the Lord. Turn to Jeremiah 12. Jeremiah in chapter 12 had been telling the Lord that these people, they're near their lips, but far from their mind. Oh, Babylon. So here's what God answered to him in verse 7. And here's a church. Verse 7, I've forsaken my house. I've abandoned my inheritance. I've given the beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies. My inheritance has become to me like the demons. They're like a lion in the forest. She's roared against me. Blame God for everything. The devil don't ever get any credit for it. It's always God. Therefore, I've come to hate her. Is my inheritance like a speck of bird of prey to me? Are the birds of prey against her? Where? Now, when you say on every side, the birds of prey are the powers of darkness. When you say on every side, that's what we saw over in Jeremiah 50, over in 51 is what you see over and over and over. The birds of prey, they come from every side, which means they surround the church. They surround it. They're on every side. Go gather all the beasts of the field. Bring them to devour. Verse 10, many shepherds have ruined my vineyard. They have trampled down my field. They've made my pleasant field. That's a pleasant field. That's a field of peace and fruit for the Lord. A desolate wilderness. There's no fruit, no word, no water. That's what happens in words. Tell me a nice story, preacher. Verse 11, it has been made a desolation. Desolate mourns before me. The whole land has been made desolate. Why? Because no man lays it cognate to heart. On all the bare heights in the wilderness, the stores have come. For a sword, this is a curse. The cord of the Lord is devouring. Sick them from one end of the land, even to the other. There's no peace for anyone. They have sown wheat and what have they reaped? They've reaped thorns. They have strained themselves to no profit. But be ashamed of your harvest, the kind of fruit you're bearing, because of the furious anger of the Lord. Now, I want you to turn with me to Psalm 74. Psalm 74. Psalm 74. Now, what did I tell you? That the powers of darkness are of fire. Where is the temple? Show me. Is this a temple? Right. Where do you go to to meet? In a meeting house, don't you? That's not the church. It's a meeting house, isn't it? All right. They defile this temple. And when you see these manifestations roaring uproar, you know what you're talking about. And they are a fire. Now, this is another one of these scriptures. This is one of the most staggering scriptures that you'll see in the Word of God for today. I'd ask you not to go faster than what I'm going. Kind of stay with me and wait. Now, chapter 74, verse 1. Oh God, why has thou rejected us forever? Why does thine anger? You know what follies anger, don't you? Why does that anger smoke? That means anger against the sheep of thy pastor. He's angry against the congregation, right? The church. Remember, now you're going to see Jesus right in the middle of this. Don't you know where he's talking about? And it's about right now. Verse 2. Remember what? Thy congregation which thou has purchased of old, which thou has what? Redeemed to be the tribe of thine inheritance. And Mount Zion where thou hast dwelt. That's a church. He's talking about the church and a sheep of his pastor. Turn those footsteps toward the perpetual ruins. It's there in the church, but mark that perpetual ruins. The enemy and you're going to see it's them. The enemies have damaged everything within the what? May I point you to something right here? Right there. The enemy has damaged everything within the sanctuary and right here, they're in this temple right here and thine adversaries, you know who they are? You know where they are when you see they roared. You know what kind of adversaries you're talking about? Your adversaries have roared in the midst of thy meeting place. If we had time, I'd turn with you to Amos. I believe it's four and I could show you that the powers of darkness roar. Enemy roars after he's captured it. Now look at me. You have just read about the perpetual ruins. Look at me. You'll read about the perpetual ruins. It's right here in the sanctuary and in the meeting house. Amen. Now we're going to go ahead and look at them and see what's happening right there. The adversaries have roared in the midst of the meeting place. That's the church house. All right. They have set up their own, what? Standards for signs. You know what that is? That is the doctrines of demons. They've set up their own center. This is a standard right here and they have another standard. They've set up their own standard. It seems is, now here you see the tree cutters. It seems as one is lifted up his axe in a forest trees. There they are. And now this carved work they just smashed with hatchet and hammers which is going on right now. And they have burned, they are a fire. And they burned thy sanctuary. Here it is. Look at me. This sanctuary, these sanctuaries are being burnt to the ground just like a moth eating away and rottenness, just deterioration. The powers of darkness with sickness and disease. They have burned thy sanctuaries to the ground. They have what? They have defiled the dwelling place of thy name. Will you please see that right here in these temples they have been defiled. They're the dwelling place of the Lord. They've been defiled because the living act, the heart goes out, the lust, the flesh and agreement, the powers of darkness that move in the temples. They defile the dwelling place of thy name and they said in their heart, here's what the powers of darkness says, let us completely subdue them. They have burned all the meeting places of God in the land. Is that clear? And so here it is today right now. You hear many people saying many, many different things. And in the midst of all that you wonder, well, what is right in all this? Well, here you are in verse nine. We do not see our signs. There's no longer any prophet, nor is there any among us who knows how long, how long, oh God, will this adversary revile and the enemy spurn thy name forever. Why doesn't thou just withdraw thy hand, even thy right hand from within thy bosom and destroy them? Look here, here's the way Lord is. He's letting them go, sick them and all the Lord has to do is just put out his hand and that puts the end of that. They said, yet you're going to see Jesus. Here he is. Verse 12, yet God is my what? King from of old who works what? Deeds of deliverance in the midst of their... Folks, is this pretty plain? Okay. 18, remember this, oh Lord, that the enemy has reviled and a foolish people has spurned thy name. Verse 19, do not deliver the soul of thy turtledove to the what? Don't deliver our soul to these demons, to the wild beasts. Do not forget the name of thy afflicted, afflicted, and that's what you're doing forever. Consider this covenant right here, Lord. Verse 20, for the dark places, that's the churches that's full of darkness like we read in Ezekiel 34, for the dark places of the land are full of the habitation of violence, the powers of darkness who are perverting the law. Let not the oppressed return dishonored. See if they're oppressed and that's what you got when you got to violence. Look here, you get the wild beasts and then you have the affliction, then the dark places, they bring the dark places, they bring violence, they bring oppression, and there you are, you see in the... There it goes. 21, let not the oppressed return dishonored. Let the afflicted and the needy, that's the sick, praise thy name. Do arise, oh God, and plead thine own cause. Remember how the foolish man reproaches thee all day long. Do not forget the voice of thine adversaries, the what? So you know what adversaries you have, the uproar of those who rise against thee, which ascends continually, which ascends continually. And now I want to share with you, I want to show you a dead, I want to show you what a corpse looks like. We're now going to look at a corpse. Turn to Lamentations. It's between Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Jeremiah and Ezekiel, Lamentations. You in the back can't see this Bible, but right here above Lamentation, I've got corpse written. You'll fix your look and see what a dead body looks like. It's dead. All right. This is the sorrows of the church. Of course, it's called Lamentations. It's a corpse. It's a dead body. Starting in chapter 1, verse 1, how lonely sits the church that was full of people. She's become like a what? Widow lost, who was once great among the nations. She who was a princess among the providence. She has become a forced laborer. Judah, which is a type of the people of God, the church, has gone into exile under what? There's affliction, affliction, the powers of darkness. Under harsh servitude, that's exactly what's happening now. She dwells now among the what? The world nations. She has found what? No rest. There's no peace. All her pursuers have overtaken her in the midst of distress. Do you see the distress right there? The roads of the church are in mourning. Why? Because no one comes to the appointed priest. All her gates are desolate. That means a defense. Her preachers are groaning. The preachers are sick. Do you see that? The virgins are afflicted, sick, and she herself is bitter. Verse 5, in this dead body corpse, her adversaries, the demons, have become her masters. That's what the doctrines of demons do. Her enemies prosper, for the Lord has caused her what? That sounds like that sickness that I told you that he bore her griefs over in Isaiah 53, 4, didn't it? The Lord has caused her griefs. Sick them. Because why? The molecule of her transgressions against the covenant, right? Her little ones have gone away as what? As captives before what? The adversary, the powers of darkness. Isn't that right? Isn't that plain? Okay, let's look in verse 9, please. In verse 9, her uncleanness, now you understand that's walking out of the flesh, was in her skirts. That's harlotry. She did not consider her future, therefore she has what? Fallen astonishingly. That's apostasy. She has no comforter. Well, I wonder who that is. See, O Lord, my affliction, for the enemy has magnified himself. The adversary, the demons, have stretched out his hand over all her precious things, for she has seen the nations, and that's them, enter her what? She's seen them. Enter her sanctuary. The ones whom thou did command that they should not enter into the congregation. They were ordered not to enter into the congregation when they were under blessings, or when they broke covenant. They come in. Verse 11, all her people groan, they're sick. They're sick in what? Bread, the word. But here's the problem. They have given her precious things, their silver and gold for food, and things to restore their life, what? They're going to do it some other way besides the word. They're going to manufacture their own bread. See, O Lord, and look, for I am despised. Let's look in verse 14. The yoke of my transgression is bound, and by his hand they are knit together. They have come upon my neck. That's the yoke. He has made, that's the powers of darkness, has made my strength fail, and I want you to know that, you know, you're warned that you might have the strength to stand in the last days, huh? Satan, who weakens the nation, that's what they come in. They just start attacking you, and just strength leaves. As in a wine press. You see that? The virgin daughter of Judah. For these things, verse 16, you're looking at a dead body. Did I tell you this is a corpse? For these things I weep. My eyes run down with water, because far from me is a what? Well, there we run into that again. Far from me is a comforter, the one who restores my soul. My children are desolate, because the enemy, the demons, have been rebelling. Apostasy. Look in verse 18. The Lord is righteous, for I have rebelled against his word, against his command. I've rebelled against righteousness. Hear now, peoples, and behold my pain. This is Zion. Babylon. A corpse. A dead body. My virgins and my young men have gone into captivity. I called to my lovers of the world. Yes, sir, Babylon, but they deceived me. My pastors and my elders, leaders, have perished in the church city, while they sought food to restore their strength themselves. Chapter 2, verse 5. The Lord has become like a what? Did he say he's going to come as a thief? Are you seeing this over and over and over? He's become like the enemy, a thief. He has swallowed up Israel. Sic them. He's swallowed up all these palaces of Babylon. He has destroyed its strongholds and multiplied in the daughter of Judah, mourning and mourning, because they don't want to walk into the blessings. They hold stubborn and stiff-necked for the curses. Verse 13. How shall I admonish you, and to what shall I compare you, O daughter of Jerusalem, the church, the dead church, captive church? To what shall I liken you as I comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? For your ruin is as vast as a sea. Who can heal you? Verse 14. Your prophets have seen for you false and foolish visions, lies and traditions. Now watch very closely and mark this good. They have not exposed your sins, your iniquity, so as you could be restored from what? Until you deal with the sins, you'll stay a captive. And if you get free, you'll not stay free, if you still walk in them. And they have seen for you false and misleading oracles. Verse 16. All your enemies have opened their mouth wide against you. They hiss and gnash their teeth, and they say, we have swallowed her up. Surely this is the day which we waited. We've reached it. I told you Satan's never been more successful than he is now. We've reached it. We have seen it. Verse 17. The Lord has done what he had purposed. He has accomplished his what? The word, the curse. That's what he said in his word. That's what he's called a sword, which he commanded from days old. That's the curse. He is thrown down without sparing. He has caused, the Lord has caused the enemy to rejoice over you. Who has caused it? The Lord has caused it. He has exalted the might of the demons, your adversaries. Now look in chapter 3. I'm skipping a lot. Let's go in verse 10. This is the Lord. He is to me like a bear lying in wait. There's your thief. Like a lion in secret places, the Lord has come. See, there's no deliverance until there's repentance. Verse 11. He is to turn aside my ways. He has what? Lord, you do to me and more if I don't walk in his covenant. He has made me what? Desolate. The moment of the word. He bent his bow and set me as a target for the what? What did we read over there that those arrows do? They come right straight and go into your body, into your liver, your body. That's what I told you before. That's a little hard to handle when you first say it, isn't it? But the Lord has set a bow. He has set a target for the arrow. He's made the arrows, that's arrows, these demons of his quiver to enter into what? That's a dead body. This is a corpse. The powers of darkness. I want you to know this is what vultures like. You know what? The birds of the air, they like to come and eat up these dead bodies. Amen? Boy, I tell you what, if they're dead, they can just eat them right up. They can eat them right up. Now, this is kind of heavy. Lamentations 3, look in 37. I'm going to add a few scripts. 37 through 42. 37. Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass unless the Lord has commanded it? Now, if you think the Lord don't have anything to do with these, I want you to remember this verse and you'll see some others over in Deuteronomy. Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that both good and ill go forth? You seeing that? Good and ill comes in the mouth of the Lord. Amen? He's in control of it all. Now, why should any living mortal or any man offer complaint in view of his sins? You see that? Let us examine and probe our ways. Let us return, repent, change directions to the Lord. And then the next thing you can do, you can lift up our heart and you can also lift up your hands. You want to know which direction? Toward God and heaven. In case you wonder if that's in the Bible. 42. We have transgressed, transgressed, coveted, and rebelled, and thou has not pardoned. Now, let's go to chapter 4. Boy, you have a lot of trouble with scorners and scoffers believing. Lamentations 4, verse 11. The Lord has accomplished His what? What follows that wrath and anger? That's right. The Lord has accomplished wrath. He has poured out His fierce what? Anger. He's kindled a what? Fire. Where? In what? In the church, which has consumed its what? That's what they come against the foundations. We already saw that in Luke 6, that they come against the foundation. And if you've got a foundation on sand, if you've got another foundation by this right here, you're going to be shook off and great was the fall. Is that right? Okay. Now, the king, verse 12. The kings, that's the leaders of the earth, did not believe, nor did any of the habits of the world. A lot of people have a lot of problem believing about this. They weren't supposed to be able to get in there, were they? Well, why'd they get in in verse 13? Because of the sins of her prophets and the iniquities of her pastors, shepherds, who have shed in their midst the blood of the righteous while they teach in form, religion, and many of these things to please folks and have the approval of men and what have you. Well, I don't have time to turn there to Amos 2, 4 through about 8 right there, but did you notice a corpse right here? Did you notice a few vultures, a few birds of the air just kind of hanging around, just kind of eating away right there? Hey, listen, was there going to be some vultures trying to eat flesh in the last days? Oh, my. You know, they said that over in Israel that the buzzards are laying about three times more eggs now. Well, we sure want to keep our eyes on Israel over there. Let's don't look at this Israel. Let's just keep counting those birds over there, looking at the vultures, and we won't see these birds eating us up, will we? Huh? Well, okay. Now, I want you to look with me, please, in Matthew 13. Matthew 13. Matthew 13. Matthew 13. We might start shifting gears a little bit. I'm having to leave a lot of things out. I wish I didn't have to. Matthew 13. I want you to start reading with me in 36. Then he left the multitudes and went into the house, and his disciples came to him, saying, Explain to us the tares of the field. Now, that's supposed to be the tares you let grow up in the congregation. And then, huh? And, love, now, let's see what this tares of the field is. And he answered and said, The one who sows a good seed is a son of man, and the field is the church. A field is a world. Those tares are not supposed to be in covenant with God's children. And a field is a world. I told you what it said before. And as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom, and the tares are the sons of the devil. Now, how can they walk and be in covenant with one? Huh? And the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the ages, and the reapers are the angels. And just, therefore, just as the tares, just like the tares are gathered up, and they're going to be burned with fire, so shall it be at the end of the age. The son of man's going to send forth some angels. Right? He's going to send his angels, and they're going to gather out of this kingdom all that want. They're coming for old Babylon right there, the stumbling blocks and those who what? Who walk and practice sin. Now, verse 49. So it will be at the end of the age, the angels shall come forth, and what are they going to do? They're going to take out the wicked from among the what? Well, how about that? Some wicked folks are going to be taken out from among the righteous, it looks like. Well, let's look over in Luke 17, please. Luke 17. Luke 17. Why, we first look with me in verse 20. Now, having been questioned by the Pharisees to when the kingdom of God was coming, he answered and said, The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed. Verse 26. And just as it happened in the days of Noah, where some wicked didn't make it then, and the righteous did. Right? Amen. And what came to destroy them? Flood. Do you notice that there are two things that this destruction is called? A flood destroys and the fire destroys. Isn't that right? Isn't that real interesting of all the rock and roll actors as the demons use these folks in the rock and roll to sing about the flood and the fire? And they put these little images on their pinball machines up there, and there sits a big old line up there, the roaring line. And on that line, on that pinball machine, he's got claws like a bird beats the field and birds in the sky. And then coming out of that line is a serpent's tail. And they're just drawing and getting their hearts and everything. And of course, no one knows, you know, it's just, I could get into a lot of things, but let's get here. Verse 26. And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it shall be also in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating, they were drinking. We read that in Matthew 24 before, didn't we? And we saw some people that says peace and safety that were headed for destruction that was in darkness. Is that what we saw earlier? Amen? They were eating, drinking, they were marrying. They were being given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the what? Ark. And then what came? Flood. Flood came, and what did it do? It destroyed them all. Did it say it's going to be the same way in the last days, just like in the days of Noah? Okay, let's go on. 28. It was the same as happened in the days of Lot. The same way. They were eating. They were drinking. They were buying. Doing a lot of buying out there in the world. They were doing some selling. Boy, their hearts tied up in this world. They were planting on the land. They were doing a lot of building. 29. But on the day that Lot went out of Sodom, it's going to be the same way. It rained what? There's the fire and the flood, my folks. And brimstone from heaven and destroy them, and that's going to come on the wicked. It's going to come on the wicked. Now verse 30. It will be what? Just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, let not the one who's on the housetop and who's what? Goods are in the house. Go down to take them away. Better not get your heart on any goods. And let no one who's in the field turn back. Remember Lot's wife. Will you please look at me? Now Lot's wife was part of the family of Lot who was supposed to be the righteous of Sodom and Gomorrah, and this church of Babylon is called Sodom and Gomorrah. You see it in Jude. You see it in 2 Peter 2. You see it over there when we're talking about Babylon in 49, Jeremiah 49 and 50, and you watch for it because they're people who live to the flesh. That's what he compares them with right there. Now he came and got Lot and his family, and he told them. Now he says, I want you to get out of this place. I am destroying this place with fire. And so here goes the family, and he said this one last thing. Don't look back to this place. And here they left. Here they left, and they start going, and they start walking. And Miss Lot, Miss Lot, Miss Lot, oh her heart was still back there some. Her heart was still back there in Sodom. Her heart was still back there in the world, and she just had to turn around. Miss Lot just had to have one last look at her Sodom, and she immediately became a pillar of salt because her heart was still there. And you are warned right there about your goods that's in the house. You're warned about Lot's wife. You're warned right then, and you saw it. You've been warned by God to remember Lot's wife. Now, verse 33. Whoever seeks to keep his life, Carton's going to lose it. But whoever loses his life, you know that was my sake in the gospel, shall preserve it. That's covenant. Verse 34, we've already seen in Matthew 24, who is the one that's going to take them out, and that's the flood that takes them out. And this is what this is saying. I tell you on that what? Night. This is a time of darkness. There'll be two men in one bed. One will be what? I tell you, the flood takes them. They're going the wrong direction, and the other be left. Now, there'll be two women. There they are. They're grinding at the same place. One will be what? Taken, and the other be left. And two men will be in the field. One will be what? Taken, and the other be left. And they asked him a very interesting question, answered and said to them, Where are they going to be taken to, Lord? And he'll say to them, Where this dead body is, there are also these vultures. They'll be gathered. They're the flood. They're the fire. They're the birds of prey. They're the birds of the sky. That makes it pretty plain, don't it? They eat on dead bodies. There's no defense. There's no defense for a dead body. Now, I want to show you something. I was talking about those birth pangs. I want to show you how they're coming. Please look with me back in Isaiah 13. Isaiah 13. Have any problem with this? Pretty plain? How did you fear of God? What would you rather do, be alert and sober, or would you rather be asleep? I'm going to tell you what. I'm going to read you some scriptures. We end this thing that God, in just a moment, a brief moment, is going to call out an escaped remnant by grace. You hear the word? It's up to you. You can remember Lot's wife. You can remember the word, or your heart can go somewhere else. It's up to you. Isaiah 13. Who did the Lord say? Did he say that from his mouth goes both good and evil? Right? I can't hear you. Thank you. And then from his bow he sends arrows. Right? And this is all the day. He said, I'm going to come like a thief. Right? Here they are. Isaiah 13, verse 3. I have commanded my what? My consecrated ones. I have even called my mighty warriors. Well, what about that? My proudly, that's them, exalting ones to execute my what? There it is. He uses them. He uses them before he destroys them. My proudly exalting ones. They're the ones that execute the anger. Is that plain? Now, let's go and read about them. Four, a sound of tumult on the mountains. Like that of many people, a sound of the uproar of the kingdoms of nations gathered together. The Lord of hosts is mustering the what? Army for battle. Did he call them an army? You know what? If I had time, I'd show you this army in Job. When Satan and his demons were turned to get loose on Job, if we had some time, I could show you where Job calls them his troops. The troops that's come against him. I would go then to Nahum, and then I would take you to Joel, and we'd have time to look at the army that's around Jerusalem. This is army. It's an army. The Lord of hosts is mustering the what? The army for battle. They're coming from a far country, from the farthest horizons. Thank you. The Lord and his what? His instruments of indignation. Now, what these instruments of indignation are? They are the flood. They are the fire. They are his proud, exalting ones. They are his war club that he destroys the shepherd and his flock, we read about. You remember? And the ones that fall in right after flesh. Let's go. To destroy the whole land. That's the day of judgment. Well, for the day of the Lord is near. And I want you to know these things are being turned about in increased numbers. Well, for the day of the Lord is near. It will come as what? Destruction from who? Almighty. Now, we saw this destruction in 1 Thessalonians 5. Well, it's going to be turned loose against all those who were saying peace and safety. They were in darkness. Is that right? Shake your head. Okay. Therefore, all hands are going to fall limp, and every man's heart will melt. They're going to be terrified. Pains and anguish will take hold of them. They're going to be very surprised too. They will writhe like a what? Woman in labor. Don't sound like that's giving birth to a church there, does it? That's the birth things I was trying to tell you about in 1 Thessalonians 5. They will look at one another in astonishment, be very, very, very shocked and surprised. Do you remember that virgins over in Matthew 25 that knocked on the door and couldn't get it open? They'll look at one another in astonishment. Their face is a what? Flame being burned up. Powers of darkness. Behold, the day of the Lord is what? It's coming. It's cruel, with fury, and what? That's the burning anger. And it's going to make the land a what? It's the abomination that makes desolate. And he's going to exterminate what? The sinner from it. And where do you think judgment's going to begin? House of God. For the stars of their heaven and their constellation are not going to flash forth their light. The sun is going to be dark when it rises. The moon's going to shed its light. Now, you know that's... Oh, I'm not going to get into all that right now. Verse 11. Thus I'm going to punish the world for its what? Evil. Sure doesn't look like he's just going to use Russia to punish the world, does he? Looks like Russia might get punished too, doesn't he? Thus I'll punish the world for its evil and the wicked, there it is, for their what? Their sin. I will also put an end to the arrogance of what? The proud. And abase the haughtiness of the ruthless. I will make mortal man scarcer than pure gold and mankind than the gold of Ophir. Therefore, I shall make the heavens tremble and the earth be shaken. Now, see why I told you about their earthquake when they turn loose and come against your foundations? Now, he's a lot more scripture short. But the earth will be shaken from its place. The earthquake. The fear of the Lord a host in the day of its what? In the day of its burning anger. Now, see, I only want you to confuse something, one thing. See, I believe to some degree... Now, I don't understand all about Revelation, but I don't think anyone else does either. And I'd be sure I didn't receive anything except what I understood. What I heard from the Lord. It's the Bible to be understood. But see, while you're seeing natural things happen, while people are looking for the natural things, they're not looking for the spiritual. You hear what I mean? By the way, if something gets built over in Israel, you could be on your way to hell looking for something in the natural or reading books and literature. I'm telling you, God is saying, He's blowing a trumpet today, and if you're going to walk in, He's going to show you something. Because He said the brethren are going to know. Is that right? Well, let me tell you something about the brethren. They're the image and likeness of God. Now, let me just turn back to Isaiah 5 there just a minute. Turn back to Isaiah 5. You know, we started out in Isaiah 5. We were seeing where the vineyard right there produced bad fruit. Is that right? That's a church. They produced bad fruit, and we know that the Lord removed His hedge, didn't we? Is that correct? He removed the hedge, and then it became trampled ground. They laid it waste, and what was happening in this church, they were shedding blood, and there was a cry of distress in that church, and, you know, that's the powers that are. Let's go on in 5 and begin in verse 12 right there, and look at this. And their banquets are accompanied by lyre and harp. Here's your entertainment. Tambourine and flute and by wine, and they do not pay attention to the deeds of the Lord. See, you can't pay too much attention to the deeds of the Lord when you're caught up in your own works. Nor do they consider the work of His hands. They don't understand the work of their own hands. 13. Therefore, my people go into exile. They're deceived for their lack of knowledge of the Word. And their honored men are what? They're famished, ever learning, famine of the Word. Their multitude, that's a congregation, is parched with thirst, no word. They need the Word, the water. They're parched with thirst, the congregation. Therefore, Sheol, hell, has enlarged its throat and opened its mouth without measure. And the church's splendor, her multitude, her congregation, her den of revelry, and the jubilant within her are going to descend right into hell. Verse 20. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil. Woe to those who are substituting darkness for light and light for darkness, who substitute the bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. 24. Therefore, as a tongue of fire, they are the fire-consumed stubble. That's what they're going to do. And dry grass collapses in the flame. They are a fire and a flame. So their root will become like rot, and their blossom not going to be any fruit. The blossom's going to blow away as dust, no fruit, for they've rejected the word of the Lord of hosts and despised and hated the word of the Holy One, the words of Jesus of Israel. 26. This is what the Lord is doing. He's going to lift up a standard. That's the word. That's the curse to a distant nation. He's fixing to say, Sikkim, he'll whistle for it from the ends of the earth. And behold, it will come with speed swiftly. No one in it is weary or stumbles, none slumbers or sleep, nor is the belt of its waist undone, nor is sandal strap broken. Its arrows are sharp. There they are. And all its bows are bent. The hoops of its horses seem like glint. Its chariot wheels like a roaring whirlwind. Now, here you go. Listen to this in 29. It's roaring. Do you see the roaring? It's like a what? There they are. And it roars. There's your roaring. Roars like a what? Young lions, that's them. It growls. It seizes its prey. It cares it off, drags it off, with no one to deliver it. If you're not in covenant walking, there's no deliverance. And it shall growl over in that day. It's the powers of darkness like a what? Oh, they're going to be like a roaring of the sea. Well, these other places, that's them. It seems like I've read that before somewhere, about a roaring of the seas in the last days. If one looks to the land, behold, there is what? Darkness and distress. That's them. Even the light, there's no light. It's darkened by the clouds because of the powers of darkness. Well, you know, in 6, I want you to know that the Lord wanted to send someone to that congregation. So I'm going to add something in chapter 6, Isaiah 6 there, and then plan on and put 8. Then I heard a voice of the Lord saying, Who can I send to this congregation? Which one of you will go for us? Then I said, Here I am. Send me. And he said, You go and tell this people, this church, that they just keep on listening, but they just won't perceive. They just keep on looking, but they won't understand the Word of God. They were learning. Render the hearts of this people insensitive. Their ears are dull. Their eyes are dim, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and then they can return and be what? Since we're there that close, and I think this would be an encouragement, particularly to shepherds right here, people, I want you to turn over to Ezekiel 2, because the Lord has just shown me something else. I didn't plan on using, but I want to just... Ezekiel 2, please. Ezekiel 2. Ezekiel 2. What did he say? Here I am, send me? Is that right? He had something else to say probably here. In Ezekiel 2, verse 3, Then he said to me, Son of man, I'm sending you to who? Verse 2, I'm sending you to church. Ezekiel 2, 3. To a what? They're rebellious people who have rebelled against me, and their fathers have what? They've transgressed against me to this very day. They've transgressed the covenant. Verse 4, I'm sending you to them who are what? They're stubborn and obstinate children. You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord God, as for them whether they listen or not, for they are a rebellious house, whether they listen or not. They're going to know that a prophet's been among them. And you, son of man, you neither fear them nor fear their words. Though thistles and thorns are with you and you sit on these demons, these scorpions, you neither fear their words nor be dismayed at their presence, for they are a rebellious house. But you shall speak my words to them whether they listen or not, for they are rebellious. Now you, son of man, you listen to what I'm speaking to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth. Eat this word. Take it to heart that I'm giving to you, shepherd. Turn to Luke 21. Luke 21. Luke 21, verse 20. But when you see what? Jerusalem surrounded by what? Armies, do you recognize that her what? Desolation is at hand. Let those who are in Judah flee to the mountains. Let those who are in the what? Midst of the what? Depart. Let those who are in the country enter the city. Let not the ones who are in the country enter the city, because these are days of what? Vengeance for the covenant, isn't it? Vengeance for the temple. In order that all things which are written may be fulfilled. Woe to those who have child and to those who nurse babes in those days, for there will be great what? There are going to be great distress upon the land and wrath to who? This people right here, Jerusalem. This Jerusalem, Babylon. And they're going to fall by the edge of the what? Sound like a curse? And will be led what? Captive into all the nation. And Jerusalem is going to be what? They're going to be trampled underfoot by the what? That sound like law, folks? Until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled and there will be signs in the sun and moon and stars upon the earth, dismay among the nations and what? Perplexity. You recognize any perplexity today with all the things going on? Perplexity. But there's going to be perplexity of what? There they are, the roaring of the seas. And the what? The waves, the words. You see that? Men fainting from what? Fear. And the expectations of the things which are coming upon the world for the powers of heaven are going to be what? They're going to be shaken and then you're going to see the Son of Man coming in a cloud of power and great glory. Now when these things what? When you see them begin to take place. Straighten up. Lift up your heads because your redemption is drawing near. Brethren, I read this before and I want to add it there. And if it's going to 34, be on your guard that your hearts, circle hearts, your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and what? Drunkenness. And the worries of this life that this day come on you suddenly like a trap. Remember Lot's wife. For it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of the earth but keep on the alert. Stay awake and watch at all times praying in order that you may have strength to escape all the things that are about to take place. And then you stand before the Son of Man. We're going to look at these Pharisees. But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments and they love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues and churches. Verse 12. But whoever exalts himself shall be humbled and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. But woe to you scribes and Pharisees and hypocrites because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from men for you yourself do not enter in yourself nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. Verse 23. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees and hypocrites for you tithe, mint, and dill, and cummin and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law. Justice, mercy, faithfulness. But these are the things you should have done without neglecting the other. You blind guides, you strain out a gnat and swallow a camel. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees and hypocrites. You clean the outside of the cup and of the dish but inside they're full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee. First you clean the inside of the cup and of the dish so that the outside of it may be clean also. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees and hypocrites. You're like white horse tombs which on the outside appear beautiful but inside they're full of dead men's bones and all uncleanliness. Even so you too outwardly appear righteous to men but inwardly you're full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. Verse 33. You serpents, you brood of vipers. How shall you escape the sentence of hell? Ezra 9. Ezra 9. Ezra 9. Keep your mind on the Lord. Ezra 9, verse 8. But right now for a brief moment I thought some of you hadn't found it. Ezra 9. Here you go. Verse 8. For now for a brief moment. This is a brief moment. Grace has been shown from the Lord our God to give us an escaped remnant and to give us a pig in his holy place that our God may enlighten our eyes and grant us a little what? That's a revival in our bondage that's going to grow fast. For we are slaves yet in our bondage. Our God has not forsaken us but he has extended what? That's a God kind of love, loving kindness to us in the sight of the powers of darkness, the kings of Persia, to give us reviving, to raise up the house of our God, to restore its ruins and to give us a wall in Judah and Jerusalem. And this wall is the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. You'll see it over in Zechariah. Was we reading that in four, Bob? Hold up your hand. How many? It was in Zechariah, the glory of the Lord, the wall around the house? Pardon me? Five, okay. That's right, I couldn't recall where it was. All right, turn to Nehemiah, please. Nehemiah, this wall is being built right now. This wall is being built right now. Nehemiah 1, I want you to read with me. It's the next book. That's the next one after Ezra. First chapter. Verse 3, And they said to me, The remnant there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress and reproach, and the wall of Jerusalem is broken down. Its defense, its gates are burned with fire. Chapter 2, verse 17. Then I said to them, You see the bad situation we're in, that Jerusalem is what? It's desolate and its gates are what? Burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem that we may no longer, praise God. Praise you, Lord. Be a reproach. And I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king's words, which he had spoken to me. Then they said, Let us arise and build. So they put their hands to the good work. But when Sanballet, here comes Satan, the Horonath, the Tobib, the Ammonite official, Geshem, they arrived. Here they come. They heard it. They mocked us and despised us. Here come the scorners. Here come the mockers. Here comes the flesh, who are worldly-minded and said, What is this thing you're doing? Are you rebelling against the king? Chapter 4. Turn to chapter 4. Now it came about, verse 1, that when Sanballet heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious and very angry and mocked the who? What are we? And he spoke in the presence of his brothers and the what? The wealthy men of the world, of Samaria, and said, What are these feeble Jews doing? They're not smart like us. Are they going to restore it for themselves? Can they offer sacrifices? Can they finish this, finish in a day? Can they revive these living stones from the dust and rubble, even these burned stones? What is a living stone? Look at me. Jesus Christ is a cornerstone. We're living stones that make up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood. They offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God in Christ Jesus. We are a holy generation, a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a peculiar people to show forth praises unto him who's delivered us out of the darkness into the kingdom of his beloved Son in whom we have redemption and have forgiveness of all our sins, who has owned us, took away our weakness, sickness, disease, infirmity, curse, and sin, who by the stripes of the Lord Jesus Christ we were healed. And who's going to harm him who follows after that which is good. The Spirit of the Lord God is upon us. The Lord has anointed us to bring good news to the afflicted. He sent us to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captive, reason to the prisoners, to proclaim the fable year of our Lord and the day of vengeance of our God. We rejoice greatly in our Lord. Our soul exults in our King. He's clothed us with garments of salvation. He's wrapped us with a robe of righteousness like a bridegroom who dresses herself with a garland and a bride who adorns herself with her jewels. He keeps us from stumbling. He makes us stand in the glory of his presence, holy, blameless, beyond reproach, with great joy. The only God is our King, our Lord Jesus Christ, the only King, the only wise God, our Savior, who is Jesus Christ, O Lord, to him be glory and majesty, dominion and authority before all time, now and forevermore. Oh, the riches of the glory of the inheritance of the saints and exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe. According to the work of his mighty power, the same power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead and set him at his own right hand in heavenly places, for above all principality, power, dominion and might, he placed all things under his feet and gave him to be the head of all church. That's us, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. He disarmed all the rulers and authorities. He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them, and he's given us authority to tread upon all the works of darkness. So we tear down every stronghold, cast down every imagination, every argument, every thought that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We will bring every thought captive in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ. We let the high praises of God be in their mouth, a two-edged sword in their hand. We execute vengeance upon the heathen, punishment on the people, abiding their kings with chains, their nobles with fetters of iron, to execute upon them the judgment written, This honor hath every saint. You don't have to call some man to town. There ought to be no experts. Walk in covenant. Praise the Lord. You say in the last days they're going to sing a new song. I believe I heard what that song is going to be. I believe that song ain't going to sing in the last days. The name of that song is Jesus is Lord. And the only ones that's going to be able to sing it is the ones that know him as Lord. Glory to his name forevermore. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. You ready to give praise some more? Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. Well, let's just do it then. We're not getting run inside or nothing. You and me are different, folks. You already are. The glory of the Lord is already on you. The spirit of God is already on you, folks. Ain't nobody that controls that. He just does what he wants to do. He gets all the glory because he sent his word to heal. You receive the word. Blessings on you. Blessings on you. Lord, thank you right now that you're healing and delivering. Thank you that you get all the glory. Lord, thank you that you're teaching us how to decrease. Thank you that we can decrease. Hallelujah to your name. Praise your name. Praise your name, Lord. Lord, it's just all right to praise you. Bless your name, Lord. Hallelujah. Bless the name of Jesus. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. All right, folks, right now. There is some confessing and some repentance that he wants you to do. I'm going to tell you what. All these hurts and things in your life with bad memories and everything, he's going to remove them from you in here. He's going to set you so free with his spirit. If you'll repent, if you'll turn your heart to him. Folks, don't forget about how you're going to look to him. You get this part right in here right. That's how come you're here. I want you to know you're here because of divine appointment. I don't care what you think he's here for. He's here for divine appointment. This is divine appointment of God that you're here. Now, we're going to go through a time right here that if you want to lay down, you lay down. You get on your face. You want to cry, you cry. I think it's crying time. If you want to sit down, you sit down. If you want to stand up, you stand up. But one thing I ask you to do. At this congregation, you close your eyes, you close everything out of your mind except the Lord Jesus Christ. And everything, any unforgiveness, and any of these things that you have in your heart right now, you come before him, the godly repentance, because I want you to know right now this is nobody's program right here. This is nobody's thing. This is between you and God, and nobody's going to count you. Brother, you just talk to him, and you'll be right with him. I would like for you now to stand, sit, lie down, because now I'm fixing to pray that God, and he's going to start bringing to your mind, if your heart is toward him, he's going to start showing you things that you've forgotten about, and he's going to show you what to deal with, but you deal with all that undoubt. You deal with all that unbelief. You deal with all that letting your hearts go somewhere beside the Lord. You deal with unforgiveness. If you have ought against someone, if you're not willing to forgive the one, the powers of darkness have used these people to come against you, and if you won't forgive someone else, I can promise you right now that the Lord is not going to forgive you. Just exactly what his word said. And you'll look around, and you'll see people, and things happen to them, but then you'll see, you'll wonder, well, what is all this strange thing you haven't figured out? Because you'll walk out here in a lonely thing, and you'll be lonely because you would not repent before the God. Now, I want you to understand what I'm saying. This is not jacking up flesh here that we're doing. This is getting you before God. I think you've heard enough right here. There ought to be some kind of fear of God, only if you can hear the word at all. If you need to get saved, why don't you ask him and make him Lord? Why don't you repent and receive him as Lord of your life, just right where you are? If you fell down, get back up again. If you fell down, get back up again. I'm telling you, it's time to walk in righteousness before God. It's time to walk in covenant before God. I'm telling you, it's no more church and praying funeral. I mean, it's as serious time as you've ever been in your life right now. You'll choose from your heart. You'll choose where you'll be like Lot's wife, or you'll choose where you come to the Lord with all your heart or all your soul. Now, I'm telling you, the word has gone forth. There's a word, atmosphere, right here. The presence of God is all over this place, and in your heart right now, you'll choose who you're going to serve. Your flesh or the powers of darkness, or you'll choose if your heart is totally given over to the Lord Jesus Christ. I'll tell you the last thing I'll ever tell you right here when you leave here. I don't know other than to tell you to keep your eyes on Jesus. You better know him. You better know him. And now just close your eyes, please. I don't want to force anybody to be a part of this that don't want to. The Holy Ghost does not behave himself unseemly, and if you feel uncomfortable with this, nobody's going to condemn you. If you just pick up your books, whatever you do, and if you decide, you just want to be a part of it. Lord Jesus, Lord, your word says it when we declare the word. Lord, just as pure I stand before you right now, just as honest about my motives, but I know that there are things in my own life, I too am seeking you, Lord. Dear God, your word has gone forth, and you said you'd watch over your word, that you work with us. You confirm your word, and signs follow. Your word has told us to repent. Dear God, and now in the name of Jesus, to each one's heart and mind right here, dear Father, precious Lord, I pray it's your spirit right now, begin moving on each one whose hearts turn toward you right now. To move on them, Lord, I pray in Jesus' name for a godly repentance. Oh, blessed Lord. Hallelujah to your precious name. Bless you, Lord, for the freedom. Thank you for the revelation. Thank you, Lord, that you lead us to be in the image and likeness of you. Now, Lord, in Jesus' name, I pray that you break their hearts. Break my heart. In Jesus' name.