In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of patience and waiting on God's timing. He warns against making impulsive and fleshly decisions that can lead to disaster. The preacher encourages the audience to trust in God's ability to work things out in His own time and way. He also highlights the need to walk before the Lord in righteousness with joyful patience and long-suffering. The sermon is based on various biblical references, including Job, 1 Samuel, and Colossians.

In the sixth chapter of Proverbs, and we're going to talk tonight about the awful sin of pride. The awful sin of pride. I told you tonight if you came, God was chastising me with this in a loving way as a father. He said if He doesn't chastise us, we're really not sons. Whom the Lord loves, He chastens, so it's a good sign He loves me if He's chastening me, isn't it? But I figured if He'd chastened me in it, some of you may get in on it. It may be that I'm not the only one that's guilty of this awful sin of pride. It's not the kind of pride that you may think about. We're going to get a new description of pride, a new definition of pride as the Holy Spirit leads us tonight. Friends, if you've not been here to the Tuesday night meetings, you're missing the very heart of this thing around the Lord's table, how precious it is. We reach out around the whole world on Tuesday nights here, to the whole world in prayer. And then the Word comes forth, and there's a marvelous time for healing, and then the preaching of the Word, and then this wonderful time of communion. It's been so precious. Don't miss Tuesday night. You know, tonight, this is kind of an anniversary for us, the eighth week we've been here in New York City. You look around, it's not going to be too long before most of the seats in this downstairs are going to be filled, and that's an amazing thing to happen. We're just not looking for crowds. We're really not trying to build anything but His body, the body of Christ. And you that have been coming on a regular basis, we're not trying to draw you with any gimmicks or anything else. We're asking God to so change you and meet the need of your heart. And everyone that comes up here, Bob and Don and myself, and we have two other ministers, by the way. My son Gary is sitting in the audience, but he's also one of the senior ministers of the church. And we have our dear brother Victor Boutte joining us in two weeks. The black pastor who has been with us before, and what a powerful preacher he is. This will make five senior pastors. And I'll tell you what, we have so committed ourselves to New York City and the work here. He's going to put together all the men that it takes. I believe within six months we're going to be having services every night probably except Monday. And we are headed for prayer time. We're very close to making an announcement. You know, we say, what about the upper room? We're very close to being able to stand up here and say we've got it and invite you to come to an opening for our upper room where there'll be prayer, prayer going out all around the world, people coming from everywhere to pray. Revival on Broadway begins December 13th through 27th. The first night is Freedom Night with 150 to 200 drug addicts from all over the Northeast coming to worship from various ministries that are from Teen Challenge or branches of Teen Challenge or other ministries that evolved from Teen Challenge. And then every night except Monday night, Revival on Broadway. And then the New Year's Eve service right here, this place will be jam-packed. We're going to have the Florida Brass back with us again, that marvelous brass group. By then we're going to probably have quite a team of our own here, aren't we? Praise the Lord. Let's pray. Lord, tonight I ask you to come down on me and touch my spirit, touch my lips and send Holy Ghost fire. Lord Jesus, we bind every principality and power of darkness and we take absolute authority and dominion in the name of Jesus. Lord, you've given a word tonight and I ask you to let it go forth with unction, with power and your anointing. Lord, unless you build the house, we labor in vain. Lord, we come against every spirit that would keep people and deprive people from hearing the truth. Lord, you put it in my heart, you burn it in my heart, you're doing something in me, now do something in all of us tonight, we pray. Hallelujah. Amen. Proverbs, the sixth chapter, beginning to read at the sixteenth verse. Proverbs 6, going to read at the sixteenth verse. The six things that the Lord hate, ye seven, are abomination unto him. A what? A proud look, a lying tongue and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift to running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren. Now, you see seven sins listed there that God hates. And what's on the top of the list? Pride. Scripture says, now look this way please. Scripture says, for all that is of the world, the lust of the fresh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of this world. The lust of the eye, the lust of this world, and the pride of life. Now, most Christians that are here tonight would admit that they battle against lust of the flesh and the eyes, and you're aware of that, aren't you? You take precautions, you know you're in a spiritual warfare. And when I talk to you about, in fact the Scripture talks to you about, the lust of the eye and the lust of the flesh, you are aware that these things are in your life. You may not be openly flaunting it right now, but you may have had a victory in your life, but it has been a battle in the past that still may be a raging battle in you, and you're aware that through the power of the Holy Spirit, when it's exposed, you can deal with it. And thank God for the lust that's being dealt with in this church. People that have been coming here, that have been living for the past five or six years in a spirit of lust, they've gone to a church where they've never been confronted by their sins, and the Holy Ghost is confronting them about their sins in this house, and they're dealing with their lust, they're laying it down, and the Lord's bringing a purified spirit, and out of it a spirit of joy. And I'll tell you something else, you'll be able to tell when it's all finished. You'll be able to tell when you come to this church, when there's a genuine spirit of joy, it's not just noise, there's a life to that joy, hallelujah. Because the righteous are as bold as a lion. I almost danced across this stage tonight. Before it's all over, I still may, because the victory that He's bringing in our hearts and lies against lust. We know that we don't have to sin. Doesn't mean that you live above sin, but you don't have to. Now we're aware of the lust, but few Christians are aware of this thing called pride in them. Very few of them, very few of us here tonight would really admit that there's pride in us. Perhaps you see it in others, perhaps you see people that appear stuck up, they appear to you self-centered, they are ambitious, they're high-minded, and you say, there's a very proud person. And you can usually spot those, and it's not always just something you feel in your heart. But few of us would really consider ourselves to be proud. Let me ask you that question right now. Are you proud? Now think about that for a minute. Are you proud? Let me tell you what some of you be thinking right now. Well, I may be self-assured, I may be confident, at the worst I may believe and know that I'm a little talented and intelligent than some of the people around me. I've met some of them, they've come up and told me how good they are. Some professional people have just been telling me how good they are. But I'm telling you that's not the kind of pride I'm going to be dealing with tonight, really. Me, proud? I really don't think so, I hear people say. I give God all the credit for all He's accomplished for who I am. After all, I don't do anything in moral strength, it's all in His strength. And we can go on boasting and bragging as long as we want, as long as we say, on top of it all, I do it in His strength. We just add that like icing to the proud cake. You know, we say proud? Well, I really don't think I can honestly admit, Think of it now, Christian. You that have been walking in holiness, you that have been really searching your heart, I really can't, Brother Dave, honestly admit to the idea that I'm proud because I really have opened up my heart and asked the Holy Spirit to search me and if it's that, He would have shown me by now because I'm so open to it. Recently, the Holy Spirit has been speaking to me about this very awful, hateful sin of pride and when He started talking to me about it, I said, Lord, you mean, don't you, that you want me to get a message about pride because there must be some people in the church that are proud and you're dealing with it. And the Lord said, No, David, I'm talking to you and after you get it, then you can preach it. And He began to talk to me about some subtle kinds of pride that I was really not aware of and I really didn't know that God considered it as pride. And I really thought that I was at least trying to be humble. Now, we mostly see ourselves as that way. Most people don't go around boasting, unless they're paranoid. You don't go around like the Pharisees, smiting your breast and saying, I thank God I'm not like other people. Most people have an appearance, at least, of humility. And you can honestly say I'm not arrogant, I'm not boastful, I'm not overly ambitious, so how could I be proud? And the Spirit of the Lord has really been shaking me to the core of my soul about a certain kind of pride. He said, Pride, David, in you. I said, Well, Lord, I don't know how to accept it because the last two years especially, I have really made an all-out effort that I may decrease, that you may increase. In fact, I've told everybody that. Over and over again. You know, and that's a form of pride. I must decrease, that he may increase. What a boast. John made it, but he had a right to because he'd been in the wilderness and he'd heard from God. He'd been in the wilderness and so far beyond anything I could conceive of in my own life. And I said, Lord, I'm really honestly trying to deal with all these things in my life, but then God began to show me, and I've got to acknowledge before you the kind of pride that the Lord's been showing me. I've been absolutely guilty. He's shown me that I've had a too narrow definition of pride. And God sees pride entirely different, out of different eyes than we see it. Yes, there is a wicked, boastful kind of pride that's in the world, the pride of life. And God's going to judge that. It's a damnable kind of pride. And almost everyone outside the door of this church that's not walking in holiness and rises to the Lord is afflicted with this kind of pride. It's the wicked pride of this world. Boastful, wicked pride. It says, I don't need God. This self-assurance, this self-assertiveness, it's not of God. But you see, there's a pride that only a spiritual man can commit. And only those who walk closest to the Lord can commit it in a way that's more grievous to God and the Holy Ghost than anyone else. In fact, you can commit this sin on your knees about as well as any other place. You can commit it when you're shut in with God. It's a sin that's often so committed, and we're not aware of it, we excuse it, but God says He will not excuse it again in my life. He's dealt with it severely. Now, for the sake of the message tonight, I want to give us a new definition for pride and humility. For the sake of the message, I want to call pride independence. And humility is dependency. And you're going to see that this is the root of all pride. Pride is independence in action, in thinking, and true humility is absolute dependence on the Lord Jesus Christ, getting all direction from the Lord. Now, let me show you the best I know how the Lord has been dealing with me in this matter of this awful sin of pride. First of all, what I've seen from the Holy Spirit is this. Pride is an unwillingness to wait for God to act in His own time and in His own way. Let me run that by you again and listen closely. Pride is an unwillingness to wait for God to act in His own time and in His own way. Pride takes matters in its own hands. The greatest temptation of Christian faces is to get ahead of God. Are you hearing it? The greatest temptation is not sexual, it's not anything out there. The greatest temptation to those who want to go all the way with God and walk in holiness is to get ahead of God when we believe He's acting too slowly. It's acting without a clear mandate from God. It's taking matters in our own hands. It's a spirit of impatience, and that impatience leads to independence. Now, I want you to go to 2 Samuel, and we're going to see it very vividly illustrated. 2 Samuel, in fact, much of my message will be taken from 2 Samuel. And I want you to go with me to the 9th chapter. 2 Samuel, the 9th chapter. I'm sorry, 1 Samuel. I've got you in the wrong book. 1 Samuel, the 9th chapter. And I want you to look at verse 25. That's where I want to start with you tonight. And people, before we go any further, could you look at me here, please? You don't hear any preacher unless you pray for a hearing ear. And before I go any further, I want you to just breathe a prayer. Lord, give me a hearing ear. Help me to hear what is said. Because if you have a hearing ear, God's going to bring this forth in a way that will change your life. It's changing me. I'll never be the same. It's not that this message is spectacular. In fact, it's very simple. But God, in the past week, has absolutely changed my life in it. And I want God to do this in you. Lord, give us a hearing ear to hear this. Right now, give us a hearing ear. I want to talk about Saul. King Saul, and how he committed this terrible sin of pride. This matter of getting ahead of God. Look at verse 25, chapter 9. And when they would come down from the high place into the city, Samuel communed with Saul upon the top of the house. Look this way, please. Saul has just been anointed king over Israel. And Samuel takes him up on the housetop. And he's about to pour the oil. In chapter 10 he pours the vial on his head and anoints him to be king. But just before that, he takes him up on the housetop. And he begins to explain to him, You're king in God's hands upon you. God has called you to come against the Philistines to deliver God's people from the enemy. And he said, there's going to come a time that war will be declared. The Philistines are not going to declare war on this nation. And he said, when war is declared, when you get to that point of warfare. And that's what he's saying on the rooftop. I really believe this. He's communing. The Bible doesn't say there, but the story will bear it out. He says, now, there's going to be a war. And as soon as that war, that first point is met, go to Gilgal. Go to Gilgal. Because that's where the place was. Remember when they came out of the Red Sea? They took stones out of the bottom of the sea. And they made an altar there, where they had their first Passover. And that was to be a memorial that God does everything by his own way, his own time, miraculously, sovereignly. They couldn't open that Red Sea. God, by his own might and his power, did it. And he wanted Israel to remember it. And every time Israel was about to launch some new program, God took them back to Gilgal. To remind them, look at those stones, remember that I'm a holy, sanctified God. You'll not do it your way, you'll do it my way. And if you'll trust me with it, as soon as I open the Red Sea, I'll give you victory in everything you do. I'll give you victory if you'll trust me to do it my way. Now, I've never been more convinced in my lifetime that I'm preaching a message that's needed by some that have walked in here tonight. I don't know who you are, but God, by his Spirit, put a touch on my heart, because you've been dealing with something in your heart, and you're about to take matters into your own hand, and God is trying to save your very life. And he's saying, Samuel, or Saul, as soon as that war is declared, you see this happening, then I want you to go to Gilgal, and I want you to wait seven days. And in seven days, I'm going to come. In fact, go with me to chapter 10, verse 8. Verse 8, chapter 10, verse 8. And I believe this is the instruction he knew very well about. And they shall go down before me to Gilgal. Thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal, and behold, I will come unto thee, to offer burnt offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings, seven days shall you tarry, wait for me seven days, till I come to you and show you what thou must do. Do you see that? Go to Gilgal, wait seven days, we're going to make an offering to the Lord, we're going to get the mind of God, and we're going to be told what to do. God's going to tell us what to do. Do you see it there in that verse? How many see that? Go down there, wait, I'll come, and it will be shown you, Are you wanting God to show you what to do? He said, I will show you what to do. Wait, wait, wait. This was God's doing alone. He alone must have total control. And Samuel represents the word of God, the voice of God. Do you know what was said of Samuel? That not a word of his fell to the ground. And you know Saul knew that. Because when Saul had lost, his father had lost the cattle, and he went to find them, when God said to Samuel, there's going to be a man coming, and described it to him, he's going to be the king of Israel, and you're going to anoint him, Saul, Samuel told him, he said, your father's cattle have been found, and he said, when you head home, there are going to be two men meet you, and there are going to be three men meet you, for out of the mouth of two or three witnesses, the matter shall be established. Look at the two, two men are going to meet you, and then three men are going to meet you, and then you're going to be walking up a hill, and coming down the hill will be a band of prophets, and you're going to see them, you're going to fall in line with them, the spirit of God's going to fall on you. Boy, did Saul know he knew the word. He had given him such a clear word, Saul knew that not a word of this man fell to the ground. But he said, go to Gilgal, wait seven days, we'll make a sacrifice, it shall be shown you what you must do. In other words, God says, I'm going to make all the plans. You're going to go to the altar, you're going to wait at the altar until the word comes. Now, the Philistines started gathering. I mean by the multitudes. Now at that time, remember, there was not an ironsmith anywhere in Israel. They had to go down to the Philistines to get even the sickle sharpened. There was not a single smith, you know, that worked with iron. They'd get all their instruments, and there was not a sword in Israel. The Philistines had them down under great bondage. In fact, when the army of Israel goes out, they went out with sickles and hoes and farm implements. And no wonder they're frightened, they're trembling, because they don't have any swords, they don't have any weapons, all they have are their farm implements, and the armies are gathering together, and the Philistines set up garrisons. These are raiders that went out and started raiding Israel. Jonathan saw a raiding group in Geba, and the scripture says Jonathan went out after them, he smoked 20 of them at a time, and something began to happen. Word spread that the Israelites, the Hebrews, had risen up against the conquerors. And you'll find that in 1 Samuel 13. Look at 1 Samuel 13, verse 3. And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was at Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying, Let the Hebrews hear. And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten a garrison of the Philistines, and Israel had an abomination with the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Gilgal. There's the declaration of war. That's what he was told on the rooftop. When this time happens, gather all, blow the trumpet, come to Gilgal. Wait seven days. I'll come in seven days. And at this time, the Israelites, Saul had a few thousand men gathered around him, Jonathan had a thousand men, but when this great army of the Philistines began to gather, the Scripture says 30,000 chariots, 6,000 horsemen, and it said there was an army like the sands of the sea. And here on the mountain stands Saul and the Israelites. And they look at that crowd, they look at that army closing in, and they run, the army begins to desert on all sides. A day goes by, and the Bible says they went along with Saul trembling. His motley army with their farming implements, they're trembling. And I don't know what was going on in Saul's mind, but he hears this in his mind. There's the enemy. And he's watching these people flee. The Israelites are going over the Jabbok, they're going over the Jordan. They're fleeing into distant lands. They're hiding in caves. And he watches, every morning he gets up, his army gets smaller and smaller. They're deserting him. And the fifth day, it's just a motley little thing that's left on that mountaintop. And the seventh day comes. And you see, he's waiting. And this is the problem with many Christians who wait on the Lord when there's something they desperately are praying about. Saul gives God a deadline. That's exactly what we do, we give God deadlines. Lord, we don't say it so much, but if it doesn't happen by such and such a time, I'll know it really wasn't God's mind. We give Him all kinds of deadlines. And the seventh day comes. I want you to look at 13th chapter, verse 5. 13, verse 5. And the Philistines gathered themselves together to fight with Israel. 30,000 chariots and 6,000 horsemen. And people as the sand which is in the seashore multitude. They came up in pits at Micmash, eastward from Beth-Avin. When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait, where the people were distressed, then the people did hide themselves in caves and in thickets and in the rocks and in the high places and in pits. And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal. And all the people followed him, trembling. They were all trembling before this mighty host. And Saul gives God a deadline. Look at verse 8. And he carried seven days according to the set time that Samuel had appointed. But Samuel came not to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. Now, look at me, please. You see, it's not just a matter of waiting on the Lord. We know all the Scriptures. Wait on the Lord. David said, when the Lord said, wait on the Lord, my soul did wait on the Lord. They did wait on the Lord so we knew their strength. I could stand here tonight and roll off to you 50 Scripture verses, and most of you are familiar with them. Wait on the Lord. Wait on the Lord. We think about it. We preach about it, but we seldom do it. And you know that's the truth. We do not wait on the Lord for direction. Now, where is Samuel? Why is he not coming? Isn't he a man of his word? Surely a prophet would not lie. Well, I'll tell you where Samuel is. He didn't show up exactly that time, because I believe that Saul really sacrificed on the seventh day in the middle of the day. At the time of sacrifice, about three o'clock in the afternoon. And the problem is, the hardest part of faith is the last half hour. Just when God is about to answer. Because Samuel is right at the door. He's got the Word of God. He's got the answer. And here's this man waiting on the Lord. He's waiting for the Word to come. But look how he's waiting. The impatience of his heart. The petulance of his heart. The anger of his heart. Now, where is he? Where is he? Where is he? He said he'd be here. And he's watching the timepiece. I almost said his watch. He's counting the hours. And he's so impatient. He is not waiting, as the Scripture says, joyfully. And I'm going to show you that that's the only kind of waiting that God honors. Patient, joyful, waiting till the Word comes from heaven. But you see, I believe God delayed Samuel. I believe God was testing Samuel. And God works exactly like that. Because God was speaking clearly to Samuel's heart. He said, this man has got to go through a test. This man is looking at all the conditions around him. Everything looks so hopeless. And an impatient spirit begins to overwhelm him. He looks at how late it's getting. You know what he says? I can't take this indecision any longer. And brother, sister, that's when we get in trouble with God. I can't take this indecision any longer. I can't live like this. Am I... Is that just for me? I told you I'm preaching to myself. Did you hear what I said to myself? I can't take this indecision. Here, God sent me to do His work. I'm willing to die for His cause. I'm willing to go out on the battlefield and lay my life down. And here I am, sitting down, doing nothing. There's no guidance. There's no word from God. I've got to make something happen. Something's got to give. Or it's all over. Things are spinning out of control. They're leaving me left and right, and here I sit. Is this what God wants me to do? I want to get out and fight. I want to lay my life down. Where is He? Where is the Word of the Lord? And here is unmitigated pride. You see, you and I think of pride as being boastful. God wants to look what I've got and look who I am. No, it's not God at all. It's getting ahead of God. It's this unmitigated pride of praying God, as far as Holy Ghost timing. Taking things in the wrong hand. Running off, saying, God, I've given you enough time. I've prayed enough. I've fasted enough. This is what the Lord is beginning to show me, where I've so often failed. Because, you see, I like to be in control of situations. I don't like it. I feel uncomfortable and I'm not in control. It's not because, really, it's not because I want to be the boss. If I know my heart before a holy God. It's not because I want to be calling the shots. But I don't like, I get nervous when things seem out of control. I've never had to live in a high-rise apartment before. Now, you know, I've been in New York City, started here 30 some years ago, 1958. And I know this, see, but it's the first time, coming back, that I've had to live in a high-rise. I live in the 22nd floor of a high-rise in Upper West Side. And I tell you, I feel out of control. I have to, those elevators get stuck. You have to wait for superintendents. Everything sometimes is chaotic. And I came down to Dawn and Bob one day and said, that's enough. We're going to buy our own building. We're going to get a hold of this thing, get in control. It's this terrible need of being in control. This feeling, things are slipping out of my hands. I can't control it, it's getting away from me. Held it in the Holy Ghost, brother, sister. There's some of you here right now hearing this. Because it looks in your own life like things are spinning out of control. You want to wait on God, you want to do His will. But you've got your eyes on the conditions. And this feeling, I'm not in control anymore. You know, regarding Times Square Church, I'm going to get personal now. Very personal. I sometimes feel like Saul did, I guess. You look at this big city, and it's almost like coming against the Philistine armies. 30,000 chariots. 6,000 horsemen. And those chants are riding up and down Times Square. And everywhere you turn, I run into these chants and these giants. And I feel like we're that motley group with the fire instruments. I don't like the fact that in the next six months, we have to find another place for 45 meetings that we do not have this building. It's not the fault of this building. They've been very kind and generous to us. This has been booked, this is an institution here. My goodness, this goes way back. There were religious services in this building many, many dozens of years ago. In fact, I saw some of the history of this building. The daughter of the leader of the Salvation Army, Mrs. Booth, she preached from right where I'm preaching here now. And there's so many famous preachers that have been in this place. They've been very kind to us, but we don't have it. So, for example, we don't have any Tuesday night here in January. And I've been trying to get a theater. And we've been negotiating and negotiating, and it just keeps being put off. And I have to confess to you that right now, we do not have a place for 45 nights in the next six months. Some of them include Sunday mornings and some Sunday nights. And the last month or so, the last two weeks especially, I got the feeling, Lord, we're not in control of this thing. I don't like jumping around from building to building. I want a building now. Lord, we're here to lay our lives down. Lord, we'll do anything. This is your church, but we've got to have a place. We've got to have it now. I'm going to boast on Jesus right now. When we came here a year and a half ago, the Lord put this in our heart. We didn't have any money in the past year and a half. We've been telling our friends around the country. And by January the 10th, we're going to have $4 million in the bank toward the project already. And God has promised a building, and we're going to have a full-time church. God's going to give us a building in the Times Square area. There's no question about that. That's not the problem. God's going to do it. But He's going to do it in His time and His way. Not the way Bob or Donna or anyone else, but He's going to do it in His time and His way. And I said, Lord, alright. We don't have a place. If we have to wait until New Year's Eve and we don't have a place for the first Tuesday, we're going to wait? And Lord, if we don't have a building then, we'll just not have a service Tuesday night. We'll do it your way. Now, you can rest assured there's going to be a Tuesday night meeting. Because I believe God's putting faith in our heart, but He's bringing us to a place where we finally have to say, Lord, we will not have any part of this pride that says we must have it now, our way, or else. God will not work with us that way. He'll not work with you in your individual life that way. You know how many times we say, how long, oh Lord? This feeling of being out of control and we want action. We've got to see, Lord, anything. Let there be some movement anywhere. But it's this feeling of being stuck. That feeling of being trapped and out of control of a situation. And brother, sister, that is the bottom line of pride. This need in our lives to be in control of everything. To borrow a phrase from brother Phillips. Do you hear what I said? Do you know what I mean? And I say that kindly. I mean that. Are you hearing what the Holy Spirit is saying in that? I told you the hardest part of faith is the last half hour. Because that's when you're being tested. And look at verse 8. And he tarried seven days according to the time that Samuel was appointed. But Samuel came not to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him. And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt offering to me, and peace offerings. And he offered the burnt offering. And it came to pass that as soon as he made an end of the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came. And Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. Do you know, now look this way if you would please. Do you know that when we take matters in our own hands, there are some very serious implications of the gospel involved? Very serious implications for Christians. First of all, you're charging God with deception. And that's exactly what Saul was doing. Charging him. He said, God sent me out to do his work, and then he left me alone to figure out how to get it done on my own. God tells me to do something, then he makes me sit and wait. If God won't answer, if he's not going to do it, certainly he can't judge me if I do the only thing left to do. If I take the only option left, if I do it, how's God going to judge me? And then the deadline passes. And then an anger rises against God, and we can't wait, so we run off trying to make something happen. How many young Christian women there are that are living in hell? They're living in hell because they wanted a husband. And, you know, I found out I'm wasting my breath anymore. If they're not walking in holiness, if they're not in the word of God, if they truly don't love the Lord, you can tell them all they want, just seek Jesus with all your heart, love Him with all your heart, seek Him, don't seek a husband, and one of these days you'll cross your path. I told that to a young lady. And she'd sit in church. She'd pray and pray, seek the Lord, but every new guy walked in, she'd say, is that Him, Lord? And if he was good looking, she'd say, let that be Him, Lord. Aren't we like that? We get a hold of something in our hearts, and our desire gets a hold of it, or something we won't let go. It's so attached itself to us. And all our battles come because of something that's attached itself to our hearts. You could be, all the pressure that could be taken off your life if you just give everything up to His hands. But oh how we hold on! We won't let it go, and when we get a hold of something, we really get a hold of it, we won't let it go, and then we fast about it, we pray about it, and we try to get others to pray about it, we find the demons and the devil stopping us from getting it. And all the voices we hear backing it all up. I want to tell you something. There are people hearing all kinds of voices today, and it's just a mishmash. It's just a web of confusion. If I listened to every prophecy that came at me, I'd go crazy. Everybody's got a word from the Lord. I believe there's a word from the Lord. I believe He has holy prophets. But I want to tell you something. Until you've laid everything down on the altar, until you're dead to this world, you can't hear the voice of God. You can't hear it. You're going to hear your own imagination make it sound like the Holy Ghost. It'll sound sweet, it'll sound angelic, but it's not of God, because you haven't laid it on the altar. Until it's dead, you can't hear God. In fact, until you're dead, you can't hear God. And he's now taking things in his own hands. He's charging God with deception. And really, what we're saying is, God, you really don't care about me. You've let me down. And really, it comes to the point, if you don't see it in God's time, and you give God in your mind, you don't set the deadline. But I'm going to hold out and tell. Then finally, we give up. And then we're saying, prayer really doesn't work. And I just can't sit here any longer. God's given me a good mind. He's given us intelligence. And we've got to figure this thing out all ourselves. And you see, the reason for that is because we really don't trust his word. Saul's command was simple. Go to Gilgal, and wait. I'll come, and I'll give you direction. And you know before a holy God. The only thing that Saul was responsible for was to wait in here. If he did nothing else but sit on that mountain and say, alright, let every man be called a liar. God is not. Let the whole army go. Let my son Jonathan go. God told me that I'm to stay here before this altar and wait until he tells me what to do. Because God doesn't have to have the whole army. God can save by one. He can save by two. He can save by an army. And God was looking for that kind of faith in Saul to establish his kingdom. And this is what God was waiting for. He was yearning for that all of Saul could just say, if I'm the only one left, he'll send me an angelic army. And he'll wipe out these Philistines just with one sweep. Because he's standing right in front of a pile of stones that reminds him of the God of glory who opened the Red Sea. And brother, sister, believe it or not, if that's all you did, but say, Lord, I'm going to take you at your word. Sink or swim. Live or die. I'm going to wait on the Lord. They that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength. They that wait on the Lord, God said he will come in his time and his way. You put your confidence in him and you wait until his word comes. If that's all you did, God would reward you for your faithfulness. God's never too late, by the way. He's always on time. Not our time, but his time. God doesn't work on Christian daylight savings time either. You see, instead of standing on God's word, we start figuring it out. How much sleep have you lost trying to figure it out? How many beautiful plans have you laid telling God how easy it would be to do? Lord, here's how it could be done. Evangelists sit down and look at their debt. You know, 10 million. Lord, if only 100,000 people would send $100. And I get those letters. We got a letter from an evangelist in our office asking people to send him a bag of dirt. That's right. Television evangelist. Send us a bag of dirt. And he said, I'm going to go down and get some water and I'm going to sanctify the water and pour it over the dirt. And it's going to be a type of the Holy Ghost washing all your sins away. A bag of dirt. Really, it sounds funny, but it's blasphemy. It's absolute blasphemy. It made my heart burn in me. Would you go to chapter 13, verse 11 with me now? And Samuel said, what has thou done? And Saul said, because I saw that the people were scattered from me, that thou camest not within the time appointed. You see, I waited, he said. And that the Philistines gathered themselves together at Michmash, therefore said I, the Philistines have come down now upon me to go down, I have not made supplication to the Lord. I forced myself, therefore, and offered a burnt offering. Couldn't help it, Lord. I just couldn't help it. I had to do it. Something had to be done. Something had to be done. I just can't sit here and wait. Man, I'll be swept away. The enemy is coming at me from all sides. Did you expect me just to sit here and wait? Yes. Sit and wait. I want you to see something. Go to 2 Samuel 5 and I'll show you the other side for just a minute. I'll show you how David, the same army later, came back against David in David's time. 5th chapter, look at the beginning of verse 22. Now this is David, a man after God's own heart. Here's a man who waited on the Lord. And look at 2 Samuel 5, verse 22. The Philistines came up yet again and spread themselves in the valley of Rephraim. And when David inquired of the Lord, what did he do? He waited and inquired of the Lord. He said, Thou shalt not go up, but fetch a compass behind them and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. Well, look at the clear direction David's getting because he waited on the Lord. And let it be when thou hearest the sound of it going in the tops of the mulberry trees that thou shalt bestow thyself. In other words, don't take action. He said, there's going to be a sound rustling in the top of the trees. Then thou shalt go out before thee to smite the host of the Philistines. And David did so as the Lord had commanded him and smote the Philistines from Geba until they came to Gezer. Do you see the difference there? A man who waits on the Lord, he gets his direction from God. Hallelujah! Now, I've got to rush on very quickly. What time did I start? You're not clocking me? Okay. Alright, I've got a little more time. The second thing that I've been seeing on pride. Pride is repelled at the idea of servanthood. Pride is repelled at the idea or the concept of servanthood. You know, everybody today is wanting to be everything but a servant. Do you know that the number one game in the United States for children is Masters of the Universe? But that's also theology in the church. Masters of the Universe. I mean, it's spread everywhere. It's even in the church now. Don't we quote that scripture? Thou art no more a servant, but a son. And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. And they've taken that and called it King's Kids. Now, I'm not knocking that phrase. Some use that very devoutly and they mean it honestly. But there are others that use that only in the fact that say, I am not a servant, I am a son with all the rights and all the royalties. Everything that belongs to God belongs to me. And I'm going to have it, by golly, I'm going to have it. I claim it! But you know what Paul was really saying? If you read the rest of that chapter, and don't turn to Galatians 4.7, Paul's saying a son who's been tutored right, knows that he's legally the king's son with all the rights, but he so loves his father, he chooses to serve him as a servant. Just at the end of side one, turn the tape over to side two. He prefers to be a servant, though he has all those rights available to him. He says, no, I'm a servant. Because in Galatians, the same chapter, I mean the same book that says, you're no more a servant but a son and an heir of God. And folks, that's true, we are heirs of God with all the rights that belong to us. But Paul in the same book says, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ. James called himself a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, James 1.1. Peter says, I am a servant, an apostle of the Lord Jesus. And listen to what Jesus said, don't turn there, but Philippians 2.5. He says, let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus. In other words, here's the mindset that you and I should have as Christians. He made himself of no reputation, though you know, he could have come claiming all the rights of Godhead, because he was God in the flesh. All the rights of God's own Son. He could have come that way. And Brother Bob has a powerful message on that. He could have claimed those rights. But he made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of man, and he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. He made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and he humbled himself and became obedient unto death. A servant has no rights. Now he may have them, but he doesn't choose, he doesn't choose to have any part in the rights alone, because his master's will is his will. And this strikes at the very heart of pride. I don't know if you're seeing it or not, but the proud person cannot accept this kind of mindset. He can't humble himself, he can't lay aside all of his rights, he can't come as did Christ, and he said, let this mind be in you, because you see, the cross represents the death to my own will, to all my plans, to all my ambitions. Humility is really crucifixion of self. That is what humility is, it's the death to everything that's of my own plan, my own desires, my own will. Jesus said to his disciples, my will, or the fulfillment I get in life, is to do the will of him that sent me. He said of my own self, I can do nothing. In other words, Jesus, listen to this, Jesus who is all knowledge, Jesus who is all light, Jesus who is all intelligence, Jesus who knows the mind and the will of God, the Bible said he learned obedience to the things that he suffered, and he said, I will not do anything, though he knows everything, has power to do everything, I do nothing except what I see and hear from my Father. And you say, Brother Wilkinson, I've got more light than that, I'm in a message that's opened my eyes, I have revelation that you don't have anything about, and you people down there in Times Square Church preaching that repentance message, why don't you come out into the light of all the rights that belong to you? I want to tell you now, I'm not standing here railing against prosperity preachers or even the prosperity message, I believe God's already moving on far beyond that, so far beyond that, and I'm not here to rail against that, but in these last days, God is going to have to have a people with this servant attitude, not just to one another, but to the Lord himself, Lord Jesus, I am your servant, you're my master, I'm going to die to my will, and that's what it means, take up your cross and follow me, deny your will, deny your plans, deny everything that you've been thinking about, as far as doing in your own strength, lay it all down, crucify it, and I'm asking you right now, if that thing that you desire, that thing that you want so much, can it withstand the cross? Can it withstand the cross? The Bible, Jesus said, the day is coming when those that are in the graves are going to hear the sound of my voice, you know how to hear his voice? Go down in the grave, take down every one of your plans, everyone in the grave shall hear my voice, and then you'll come out, and the voice you hear after resurrection life will be the real mind of God, you won't be hearing strange voices, you won't be hearing sweet little voices, that's why like that great old Methodist hymn, I dare not trust the sweetest frame, the sweetest voice, in other words, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. Hallelujah. As a servant to him. And that's what Saul could not be, Saul had his own mind, the scripture said as Christ is in this world, so are we to be in this world. If you're here tonight, and wanting to be in the perfect will of God, you've got to face this, the scripture I just gave you, by the way, if you're following, writing it down, it's John 5, 25, the hour is coming and now is when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, all that are in the grave shall hear his voice. Now, I've talked to you about pride, I want to talk to you before I close about humility, what I conceive now in the spirit to be true humility. Is there a desire in your heart to have the humility of Jesus Christ? Let me show you what I believe, I told you the definition I had for pride was independence, the definition of humility is dependency on the Lord Jesus Christ. It's trusting God to do the right thing at the right time in the right way. Humility is trusting that God will use you in the right way at the right time. Humility is patiently waiting on the Lord in the spirit of expectant, joyful faith. Now don't turn but listen to Psalms 37, 7, 8. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him. Fret not yourself because of Him who prospers in His way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. Fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. You know what David is saying? He said, here you are waiting on the Lord, trying to get His mind, you pray and you fast and you seek the Lord, nothing's happening. And then you turn around and you see this man that's taking shortcuts. Here's a man who's not walking in holiness and they seem to prosper. And I'll tell you, you'll see some of the biggest cheats in the world prospering today. And it finally comes to the place you say, here I am trying to do it honestly, trying to do it righteously, and here I am. Look at this man. Look at this character. He's a cheat. He's a thief. And he's prospering. You know what the Lord says? You wait patiently on the Lord. You lay all your burdens. You lay your financial needs. You lay your career choices. You lay everything in your future. People coming against you, harassing you, trying to get a hold of your very life, hating and despising you. He said, rest in the Lord. Wait patiently for Him. Fret not yourself because of Him who prospers in His way, because of a man who brings wicked devices to pass. Fret not yourself in any wise to do evil. God says, don't take those shortcuts. Don't be like that. You wait because God says, they're on banana peels, in other words. They're in slippery places. They're on banana peels. They're going to slip. You watch. You just wait patiently. You don't look for revenge. Just leave them alone. Pray for them. But you watch and see. And even in the ministry, I see young preachers who wait on the Lord, fasting and praying, and nothing seems to happen. Here comes a young man. He doesn't dig in His Word. He's got a couple little sermons. He comes, and he knows how to turn on a crowd. He knows how to hype the people. And he gets crowds. He can call people out. And I mean, they flock. Here's this poor little preacher, fasting and praying, seeking God, and the doors seem to be closed. The Lord says, don't you fret. You just wait on Me. The day is going to come. You won't be sorry. You won't be sorry for waiting, because I'm going to open Heaven's gates. I'm going to open the windows of Heaven and pour you out a blessing that you can't contain, because you waited on Me. You waited. You took it to the cross, and you died to your own desires. You said, yes, Lord, I'm going to wait. And you waited. I'll tell you what. God equates walking before Him. Don't you want to walk before the Lord in righteousness? He equates walking before Him in righteousness with joyful patience and long-suffering. Patience and long-suffering joyfully. I'll read this one Scripture. That you might walk worthy of the Lord to all pleasing. Now, you want to please and walk worthy of the Lord? How many want that? I want to be pleased and walk holy before the Lord. Alright. Strengthened with all might according to His glorious power. Do you want to feel His power in this time of crisis? Alright. Unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness. Waiting with joy. Waiting with expectancy. In the black of the hour. And I'll tell you what. The closer you get to the answer, the blacker the hour is going to get. The more hopeless it's going to seem. But it's a test. Did you hear me? It's a test. And if you fail here, the consequences are incredible. Now, we don't lose the kingdom. You see, Saul didn't lose the kingdom here. All he did is lose the blessing on his posterity because his seed should have inhabited the throne from then on. That was given to David. He lost the blessing on his posterity. He was given another chance even to repent after this. That's when he was stripped of his kingdom. He wasn't stripped at this point. But you see, the thing that happens, what you can't get back when you fail God in this crisis and you won't wait for Him and you take matters into your own hands, something's got to happen. You've got to make it work. Then when you fail, suddenly, it all opens up. The answer comes, but it's too late. You've already failed the test of faith. You've given up. And God was right at the door. The answer was right there. If you'd have just resigned and said, Lord, this is not my war. It's yours. It's your battle. What can you do anyhow, by the way? What are you going to do? You're going to fight the whole devil's army? What can you do without Him anyhow? I look at this city, brother, I look at this city and say, what do we do without getting direction from God? If God doesn't tell us what to do on everything, in all thy ways, acknowledge the Lord and He will direct your path. If it's not that, it can't be anything else. It's got to be that. It can't be halfway. It's all the way. In every step. And the way to be sure that you hear His voice is to die to your ambition and to self. You can be sure that the will and the mind of God will come. Can I give you one little last prophetic word before I close? In fact, I need you to turn to Revelation. This is the last verse. I'm going to wrap it up here now. Revelation. Third chapter. You know, I get a feeling tonight. You know, I felt very strong when Brother Bob was preaching this morning that God was doing something supernatural that would change lives forever. Boy, what I heard. We had the lead guitarist of a rock group get saved this morning and just laid his record down here and just heart just broken before God. His life was changed and so many came up here. Absolutely changed. And you could sense, especially the last third of the message, I could feel God, you're moving all through the audience changing lives. And I'm sensing tonight that God's trying to save some people from some disaster here. Because you're about to do something so stupid, so fleshly, so carnal, and yet deep in your heart you want God's best. You know that God can do it. He can work it out, His time and His way, if you'll just be patient and let Him have His time and His way. You say, well, what if I lose it? God will give it back to you in another measure so far beyond anything. Job lost it all and got it back more. He said, you've seen the end of God. You've seen what God does if you're patient and wait for Him. You've seen how He takes care of His people. Don't accuse God of taking anything away from you. You lay it down, God will give you. That doesn't mean He's going to give you more. It means He's going to give you something in His eyes that'll better, and it will produce more joy in your heart than you've ever had. I don't mean it's going to be worth more financially, but it's going to bring peace of mind. It'll give you something so more in value than you have now. How many believe that? Oh, yes, I do. I have a supernatural sense tonight that God's speaking to some hearts on this. Look at verse 10. Because thou hast kept the word of my, what? My patience. In other words, you're waiting on me. You're waiting for me to work. I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation. What is that hour of temptation? That hour of temptation. Look, before we read that, could you look up here for just a moment? The hour of temptation is on us. And by the way, that hour of temptation was stamped and blasted around the whole world on October 16th. Right down here in Wall Street. What was already at work in the land, the great hour of temptation was already at work. God just made it public. He brought it out in the open. And He said, that's it. In fact, they call it, what? Black Monday. I could stand here tonight and begin to reel off what I see coming and what others who have a prophetic moving of God's Spirit on their life have seen. It's so incredible. They talk about AIDS growing twice as fast as they anticipated. You and I know it's much more than that. You and I know that it's already pandemic and out of control. Do you know that there's not an economist in America or the whole wide world that can understand what's going on now? Isn't that what you read in the paper and hear in the news? Nobody knows what's happening. It's spinning out of control. And it's only the beginning. Things are going to keep spinning and spinning and spinning. But God has to have a people in this day of confusion. He's got to have a people who say, Lord, if it all goes down, if it all goes down, I have something with you. I have the word of His patience. Hallelujah. He's going to see me through. It's not enough to say, God has everything under control. We have to let Him have control in our lives. I'll tell you what, God told me I'd better give up control. Let Him do the controlling. Let Him do. If there's going to be any manipulation in me, let Him manipulate me. Let Him do it. Let Him urge me. Let Him stir up my heart the way it should be. But He said, He caused this out of temptation, which shall come upon all the world to try them that dwell upon the earth. But what's He said? Because you've kept the word of my patience, I will also keep you from this out. Doesn't mean He's going to keep us out of it. He's going to keep us from doing what the others are doing. They're going to take matters in their own hand, and they say, we need a world leader. You know what they're saying? They call, not my words, but all the democratic, please Democrats, don't get mad at me, but they call them the seven midgets, the candidates for presidency of the United States. I'll listen to this tape a year later, and I wish I hadn't said that. You know, there's a cry now, there's a vacuum of leadership. Am I right? There's no leadership. You know what's going to happen in all this confusion? They're going to take matters in their own hand, and bring forth to birth that man of sin. There is an antichrist spirit, but it's going to be embodied. And that antichrist spirit is just coming together now with such force and blinding speed. And that's going to be a whole world turning to a man for direction, for guidance, for leadership. But God's going to have a people who recognize that, and say, no, in my life, I don't need antichrist, I have the Christ. The Christ, the Holy Christ, the Son of the Living God. And I've turned my life and everything over to Him. And my brother, sister, that's humility. He shall not be afraid of evil tidings, because his heart is fixed, trusting in the Lord. He'll not be afraid of all these reports. Are you afraid of all these reports? I had a dear sister here this morning, works for Merrill Lynch, I think it is. I said it again. Merrill Lynch, forgive me. She said, I see the turmoil. If she's here tonight, I say honestly, I don't even remember her name, but she said there's such fear everywhere. Terrible, terrible fear. And should I look for another job, or should I stay there, because consequently I'll probably lose my job there. And I've been feeling that sense of, this panic that's coming, I might lose my job, I might be out of money, I may be penniless, I may suffer. But you see, the Bible says, they shall not be afraid of evil tidings, because they have fixed their eyes on the Lord. Friends, if you don't have your eyes fixed on the Lord with what's coming, you're going to get shaken. You won't make it. You will turn. You consider now saying, I'm a Christian, I could never turn to an Antichrist spirit. You'll be surprised how many Christians are going to turn to that, because it gives them a sense of guidance. It gives them a sense of knowing where they're going. And I'll tell you one thing. David said, I've walked with God a long time, and now I'm an old gray-haired man, but I've never yet seen God's children have to beg for bread. Never had to beg for bread. And if you don't have anything but the clothes on your back, Jesus said, be content with the food and the raiment that you have. Now, if you want to chase off after Gentile faith, that's what Jesus said, that Gentile faith of wanting the things of this world, He said, that's not for you. He said, but if I've got my eye on the sparrow, I've got my eye on you. And I'm not going to accuse God of not loving me. God's not going to let one of His children starve. He's not going to let you starve. You may get hungry once in a while, but He's not going to let you starve. Someone said, well, what happens if there's mass unemployment in the city? I have friends that are out in the country, and they're worried about us here in the city and all the New Yorkers. What if, you know, there's a food shortage? Well, bless your heart, if there is, there'll be a watermelon truck, he'll fire a hydrant and those watermelons just roll out, and he'll roll a few out my way. God somehow, I'm not trying to be facetious, God's going to take care of His children. Hallelujah. And I'll say it again, God has everything under control. Do you believe that? Now, what is pride? Independence. Independence. Acting independently of God and His Word. Humility is dying to all your will and all your plans. Now, I'm going to get to an invitation in just a minute, but I want everybody to bow, please. Holy Spirit, come now, I pray. I've delivered my soul to this people, and Lord, I have confessed, and I've repented of this kind of pride in my heart, and if you show me another area of pride, Lord, I want it out. I don't want to act independent anymore. I don't want to take matters in my own hands. And I don't want to charge God of being neglectful. Lord Jesus, you've got your eye on every one of us. If you've numbered the very hairs on our head, you know where we're at. You've numbered every hair on our head. Surely you know where we're at tonight. And there are people here tonight, Lord, that the devil is trying to back up against the wall and make them act rashly and quickly and get out of the will of God. Sir, keep your head bowed. And I don't know who you are, where you are. It might be a dozen, maybe more. There's fear in you. There's fear, and I come against that in Jesus' name. And I ask God to deliver you from that. And the hardest thing you're going to have to do tonight, the hardest thing in the world, which really brings the greatest peace to your mind, is to give it all up and resign and say, Lord, I can't run this anymore. I can't run my life. If you're a businessman, you can't run your business. Not these days. If God's not in control, it's never going anywhere. You housewives, you can't run your house. You can't do anything anymore without saying, Jesus, I give it all to you. I'll lay it down. Hallelujah. I'll lay it down. This is the end of this tape. For a copy of this tape, or any other tape, by David Wilkerson, write to World Challenge, PO Box 260, Glendale, Texas, 75771. Or call, area code 214-963-8626. Thank you.