In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of giving to one another and giving of our spirits. He criticizes those who claim to love one another but do not show it through their actions. The preacher believes that this lack of giving is reflected in the decline of collections in churches. He also highlights the significance of knowing and understanding the Bible, and how it can guide our lives. The sermon concludes with a reminder that living a life of eternal significance is possible through faith in Jesus Christ.

You know, during the course of a series of meetings like these, I go through several different stages. I don't know whether you do. I... not exactly moods, but stages. It isn't wrong to have moods, if they're the right ones. Harriet Beecher Stowe was felt very hardly about her husband, because she said he used to cultivate indigo. I hope you know what that means. Harriet Beecher Stowe was a writer. She expected you to understand her figures of speech. She said her husband used to cultivate indigo. And you know what colour indigo is, don't you? That's right. In other words, he just used to sink into his black, dark moods, and that was that. And he used to cultivate them. Now, those kinds of moods are wrong. Absolutely wrong. But you know, God has moods, and he inflects his moods into scripture, so that the languages he used, both Hebrew and Greek, have moods in them, which the English doesn't quite have it. This is why God wrote his book originally, in languages that were far more flexible, even than the English, so that we could get shades of meaning, and tones, or overtones, or undertones. And he wanted to get this over to us. And it's a precious thing. You know that, don't you? So this is why we have a habit of saying, it's not what you say, it's the way you say it. That's right, isn't it? Even the simplest of words, they partake of the nature and the spirit, and the mood, and the meaning. A word changes its meaning according to the way it's said. Although in various letters, or as the word itself, it can never change. But we inflect into it. We bring the power of our spirit into it. We make things mean something just by the tone. And this, of course, is the important thing, because it's the tone that always indicates who you are, or what's your meaning. You know, it's very important for you to understand. It's most important for us to understand this. Because, you see, it's love or hatred that inflects tones, isn't it? It's an attitude of spirit. This is the thing that counts, and these are the things that count. God is love, so God is the word. You see? And the word God spoke always was love. And that's wonderful. And though he had sometimes to say some things that were rather, well, nasty as you see them in bare print, you know, how shall you escape the damnation of hell? Words like that. Yet, beloved, they're all so beautiful and real. Well, I usually, long-windedly, take a long time to come round to what I want to say. What I want to do with you this morning is browse. And I always get to this stage in a conference, the place where I want to browse. You get this in music, if you're a musical type. I don't know what you are. If you are a musical type, for instance, there's Mozart, Einer Klein, and Nachtmusik, you see. Or if you're a mathematician, you want to play Bach, who seems to be able to calculate any space he can put a note in. That's Marx's gene. That's Bach's genius, if it is a genius. But there it is. Or you get the melancholy of Tchaikovsky. Most people who are melancholic like Tchaikovsky's Pathétique, because he was a melancholic and he was a demon-possessed man. So if you like that miserable kind of heavy melancholy of Tchaikovsky, be careful you haven't got an evil spirit in you, for like appeals to like. You need educating out of it. Didn't you know this? That is what it's all about. We're in this world, we're in this realm. We're affected by the moods, by the spirits of these things, you see. What about Sibelius? Sibelius? Well, he partook of the moods of his country, you can get it in all his music. And the general mood of the Finns is one of depression and downcastness. Melancholy. You know that, of course. That's why I say when you get down amongst the fiery Italians, you get those lovely overtures of... Oh, you're not musicians, I thought you were. You know, who wrote La Scala di Seta and The Thieving Magpie? That's right, that's him. You see, there it is, you get it amongst these... As you move, you can only reflect what you are. It comes out in music, it comes out in poetry. Dylan Thomas, for instance, that somebody thinks is a poet. Some people think he's a poet. He was a pervert and a drunkard. Died in a drunken stupor, Dylan Thomas, in a drunken brawl, you see. Handel was a gourmet, an absolute pig of a man, Handel. Sorry to shock you, but he was. You give me the idea about Beethoven. Yeah, I'm with you with Beethoven, brother. Beethoven himself was a man who was undoubtedly under demonic troubles at times. And it's tremendous. And you know, like so many people who are under demonic troubles, sometimes, when they're normal, they can fly to the sublime heights. Take the marvels of his violin concerto, for instance. If you know how to move in the dialogue between the violin and the orchestra. All right, sorry, I'm not giving you a lecture on music. The wonderful way he went. And then, you see, he was a man who recovered from a big illness once, and he wrote a quartet. You will know it, I suppose, in thankfulness to a deity. He didn't know God, but he realised there was a deity somewhere. And he wrote that, the Thanksgiving Quartet, and so on. All right, I must get off this subject. I'm not talking to you about music this morning. But I will say this. If I'd have had a choice, I would have made that my career. But God altered it. That's if they would have had me. They might not with some of the comments I have to offer. Because, I mean, Donald Tovey and those, he didn't comment from a spiritual angle. He only commented from a musical angle. And I may not like spiritual comments on music. But these are the greatest approaches, beloved. And I just want to browse this morning with you in the scripture. And I think that if I'm going to take anything to browse in, I shall have to go to John. I always have to go to John when I want to browse. Because, you see, well, I suppose one of these times you'll stop coming to conferences where I am, because you'll say, well, he's sure to be talking from John sometimes, and I know it all. Well, I don't, you see. That's why I keep browsing in it. And if you think, or ever think you get to the place where you know it all, beloved, you're sunk. You're finished. And so, again this morning, I was in John, and I was in his epistle where we were yesterday morning. And I think this will about make the third time we've been in John's epistle in this week. Or in these days. Three meetings running, is it? Oh, was it last night? We weren't in John last night. Oh, did I? Sorry. Well, I never. Well, OK. Well, as a matter of fact, you see, you'll always discover this. It doesn't matter how you preach. If you're a proper preacher, I don't mean somebody who gives a 20-minute homily or something like that, which isn't worth going to listen to. But if you're really going to preach, you always have to finally come back to John's language. Always have to do that. It's impossible to be a real preacher of eternal life without coming to John's language. You know, you preach, Behold the Lamb of God. Well, that's John, you see. You're going to preach the Gospel. Anything like that, you must come here. Because the others didn't talk like this about Jesus. Not that they didn't know him like this. But they didn't do it. You see, this is what John's Gospel is concerned about, beloved. It starts off with telling you that he's the Lamb. And so John's Gospel is simply to enable you to have a look at the Lamb. And that's what he does. You remember, it says that John the Baptist, on the second occasion when he said, Behold the Lamb of God, it says, he looked upon him as he walked. And that's what John's Gospel is about. Jesus walked as the Lamb. And you're allowed to see him as the Lamb. You know, the lovely Lamb when he turned the water into wine, for instance. Everybody went and congratulated the governor of the feast. And they said, Jesus stood by, he'd given it, but he never said a word. He let everybody else get the congratulations, you see. You've got to look on him as he walked. This is it. And this is what John's Gospel is all about. And you'll find him, in the third chapter, in the fourth chapter, you'll find him dealing with the woman at the well. And, you know, as you go through, you'll just see him as he walked. He walked one day, say take the fifth chapter, this is always the Lamb. He walked one day to a pool in Bethesda, and he sees a man lying there for 38 years, been ill. And he says, Would thou be made whole? And the man says, Yes, I... Well, you know, in the end, he sort of got round to it. So Jesus said, Well, take up your bed and walk, you see. And the fellow took up his bed and walked and looked round for Jesus, and he disappeared. What's happened? Where's he gone? Who was he? I don't know. That's the Lamb. See, you might say, behold the hero, look he made this man walk. See, you get up on the platform and everybody has a look at you. Wonderful miracle gift. And they write magazines about you with glossy pages and pictures. But Jesus didn't do that. You've got to look on the Lamb as he walked. That's what it's all about. Because you're supposed to be like that, you see. I'm browsing, obviously, this morning. I should get into trouble because there's a gentleman here. He reckons I always ought to announce my subject first. And then he can get down to it, you see. Well, I haven't got a subject. Call it browsing. I'm a ruminant this morning. You know what a ruminant is, don't you? All right, good. And this is the whole glorious thing. And you look on him. And this is what his gospel is about, you see. I'm just writing these things so that you know what eternal life is, you see. That's what he says. I mean, he doesn't put it that way. I put it colloquially in the end of his gospel. He says, now, I'm writing this so that you know what eternal life is, you see. Marvelous, isn't it? That was eternal life. I thought eternal life was being saved. Jesus wasn't saved. You get it by being saved. But you've got to know what it is when you've got it, you see. Have a look on it, he says. This is what it is. Of course, I know you see him in the other gospels. But the other gospels set forth his works more, you see. He went here and he healed those. He did this miracle and he healed those thousands. He did this. And it's also right, of course. And it's proper. And they have their part to fulfil. But, oh, John, he says, now, you'd better have a look at this eternal life. In the beginning, you see. We get it right from the beginning. And he starts way through. And you just see him, the Lord, what he was like when he shut himself up in a room with his disciples. He starts off by absolutely loving them till he can't stop himself. He loves them and loves them. And it pours out of him. He thinks of his own eternal security. He knew that he'd come from God and went from God. Oh, you see. And he gets a bowl of water and he washes their feet. You see, that's him. That's what it is. I want these men to have it. You see, this is him. What can I do? Got down and washed their feet. Did he do it just to show how humble he was like Uriah? He didn't do that. That was him. Loving, loving, pouring down there. This life, beloved, have you seen it? And what it's all about, because you've got to be like it. And if you're not like it, you haven't got it. Do you know why I can't act like a pig this morning? Because I haven't got a pig's leg. I don't run around here snorting on four legs. Rooting about in all the filth. But I haven't got a pig's leg. So I can't do it. I can't come and sit on your ear and sting you because I'm not a wasp. It's right, it sounds funny. And I can't feed off the tops of the trees because I haven't got a long neck like a giraffe. That's true. I haven't got it and it's no good telling me about it. But if I've got the life of the lamb, that's it. Or else you haven't got it. This is what I tell myself. You know, I tell myself this. I hope sometimes when you, if you listen to me preaching, Oh, he's putting it a bit hard. Well, that's what I say. I say, Lord, I haven't got it. I've got it, one of the two. I want to face reality. I don't want pretty little sermons. I don't want them. I don't want charismatic, charismatic, charismatic. I don't want that. If I've got it, I've got it. It's the life I want. That's right. You see, the other Gospels are concerned with the charismata. Three of them, if you like the charismata. The miracles he did. The marvellous prophecies he gave. And all this, and they're fine. They have their place. But old John says, here, come on. And notice, put right at last. Get your foundations right. Let's have a look at this life. Let's see what it is. Of course, he will tell you about a few miracles. But each one of the miracles he did, they were, they were all tended, they were all slanted, if this be the word, at making him appear I was going to say, nothing. He healed this man who slipped away. He changed the water into wine. Let's take the miracles, you see. And, well, that's something. Let somebody else get the credit for that. He fed to 5,000. You say, well, now then, there you are. John the Sixth, he fed to 5,000. But you know how he fed to 5,000, don't you? He let the others feed him. He didn't do it. He kept out, he kept in the background the hidden source of it all. Don't you see? The disciples, the apostles, they were the people walking around. Bless you, bless you, brother, bless you. Marvellous. You see. And you go right the way through. You see. He stands at Lazarus' tomb. And he didn't even go to the house first. He didn't go to the house. Where all the crowds were, he stopped outside, you see. And some said, Jesus, come. So out goes Martha to Jesus, you see. And he says, where's Mary? So at last she goes back and she says, the master's come, he's calling for you, Mary. So out goes Mary. Then the others began to realise, you see, they got there, found Jesus weeping. Where have you laid him? Off he goes to the tomb. He says, roll away the stone. He didn't do it, you see. He didn't do it. He kept right in the background. But he was walking in communion with his father. And the third time he said, well, father, I know you're here always. And that's why I said, take away the stone, father. And then he says, Lazarus, come forth. He says, go on, you take the clothes off him. You take the clothes. You see? Do you see this, Lamb? Or did you think it's a matter of building a big pulpit, great big advertisements, getting a string steel band, having about four or five people to testify how they came from black magic to Christ, or something like that, beloved. Now I'm not saying these things haven't got a place. Don't misunderstand. But I want you and I, and this is what I face when I'm in my room alone. And if I come to public places, I want to present it to your heart too. That's right. This is the life. This is what it is. This is the genuine life. It's like all the way through. I mean, you've got it even in nature. This is why sometimes in the Bible, I'm really ruminating this morning, and I'm browsing. Because often I take the whole Bible as my text. I'm counting on you knowing the Bible. If you don't know the Bible, you'd better get to know it before the next conference. Get to know it. No penalties if you've only really just started to read it properly, as you should have done. No penalties. But some of you older ones who say you've been Christians for ten or how many years, I'm not allowing you to get away with it. You mustn't. There's no excuse for you. But I'm a busy person. Well, you're not the only busy person in the world. I hope you know that. Generally people are so busy because they don't know how to organize things properly. Organize themselves. I can remember when I used to start work very early in the morning. Finished very late at night. And I think I read the Bible through nearly three times in twelve months, generally. You see, it's all according what kind of a heart you've got in you. What kind of an appetite in you. What it is you really want. I know I was naughty, and all you young people, that is everybody under twenty, you're young. You can put your fingers in your ears. I used to read it when I was eating the meals. I know you shouldn't do that. But I did, you see. So it might do some of you parents good to encourage your children to read the Bibles when they're eating their meals instead of being so stuck up with Victorian stuffiness. Not that it isn't good to keep your table unlittered because you've only got a small table. But the whole thing is you've got to get at it. Well now, this is what you see in the Bible as you know tells you does not even nature itself teach you. You remember that. See you can be taught the truth of God in nature. Now I know it's got nothing of redemption in it and I know that. But nature itself can teach you some things. You see, you look out there you see the fruit trees the apple trees there are what are there if there aren't any black currant bushes there will be and you'll find flowers all round and you'll find chickens and you'll find bees don't get too near to the bees and you'll find cows and all this sort of thing and you look round where did it all come from? Let's be all naive always can't I see it? No. You see all the manifestation of this but himself hidden. You see now when Jesus comes on earth the manifestation take up your bed and walk where is Jesus? Hidden. Where is he? What man was he that said I don't know it's the man that healed me he said take up the bed and walk well where is he? And until Jesus goes and finds him in the temple he hasn't got a clue isn't it lovely you see so nature itself teaches you we haven't even got common sense so how do we expect to have spiritual sense? Now then beloved this is John and at the end of his book you know he says well I've written these things that you might believe well let's have a look at it shall we this is in John chapter 20 Oh praise God Hallelujah at the end of the 20th chapter of John this is what you read many other signs verse 30 Jesus truly did in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book but these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ the son of God and that believing you might have life through his name and then we go into his epistle and you know how it starts you remember don't you how we read it the other morning that which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen which our eyes have looked upon and our hands have handled that the word of life for a life was manifested you see this is what he says it's just so he's continuing years after oh I don't know quite when it all happened and he's writing this this is what we saw and that believing you might have life now then here's the life now he's going to tell you in his epistle as we were said now if you've got this life this is what it is now this is why I like John I like to get hold of the Ephesian letters and let my mind go soaring if it will into all the superlatives and all the glory of the revelation of church truth and it's marvellous and I don't know whether I've got a head for the heights or not but I always come back down here what's the use of me dreaming dreams about sitting with Christ in heavenly places if it only be a dream and it will only be a dream if I haven't got my feet right down here on the earth in this marvellous life that God is talking about and living it in all its fullness and so you see when you finish up the epistle of John this is how it finishes up verse 13 of chapter 5 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life you see the first one was not that believing you may have life through his name now he's saying that I've written this letter that you may know you've got it Amen that you may know that you've got it and what a tremendous thing it is and so the last the right at the end of the epistle we read this and we know in verse 20 that the Son of God is come that's blessed and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true and that we are in him that is true even in his Son Jesus Christ this is the true God and eternal life there it is and so we're right on this lovely ground beloved as we were thinking yesterday morning John progresses from believing to knowing and he gets from knowing to confidence he uses the word confidence and then in the end he's finished up with understanding it's a tremendous thing knowledge confidence understanding beloved I I hope it's like that with you knowledge confidence understanding what a tremendous revelation it is then beloved when God speaks to us to bring us into these marvelous things and I confess to you that this is what my heart loves it may be I don't know you could I know all the advice of men is man know thyself that's the summary of human philosophy man know thyself and of course you know the revelation of scripture is man know thy God that's very different and according to here it's man know thyself in thy God alright eternal life here it is we may know him that's true verse 20 and that we are in him that is true that's man restored to his original position for as we were thinking last night it all started with an election in God in God's thoughts God willed me into being in himself so I have to be of him he thought way back there in a past eternity of me willed me there and now I know I'm in him now you're right you're back there where you came from isn't that a tremendous thing and here's your understanding really enlightened of when you're back here and you're not living in the world at all you understand that don't you you're only walking down here you're not living here you live in God you you walk down here Jesus said that he said I live by my father don't you believe I'm in my father and my father is in you he said well Lord we thought you were you see this is what they first started when they started to follow the Lord he looked round when two were following him on the day when John Baptist announced him as the Lamb of God and they started to follow Jesus he looked round and saw them following and he said what are you seeking they said where do you live that was the first question yeah you find it in John chapter 1 where do you live he said come and see come and see one of them was old John who wrote this he found out in him don't you don't you see I'm in my father and my father I'm only walking down here John Baptist looked on him as he walked that's right you're only walking down here you think you live at Rora you're utterly mistaken all you people get it out of your head see I don't live at 25 Belmont well I won't I'm soon leaving anyway but I don't live there hallelujah hallelujah live in him when will we see this beloved this will colour everything you do if you think you live down here on the earth you strive yourself to death to get the best home better than all the Joneses and the Jameses and the Johns and everything because you're living down here that's what you're doing you see but if you're living in God and if we really did if the church had really lived in God we wouldn't have had our young people running out on drug trips because they saw through the materialism that was called Christianity you see not that they had an excuse to go and sin but this is it beloved they saw through it all bless God they did we're living in Jesus we're living in the Father got this great and marvelous life we're understanding and it's as well for us to see this beloved in fact we must it's absolutely important that we we get this deeply into our hearts because you see we're dealing with absolute reality in God oh I don't know what you think about it but always trust God to be completely honest with you always trust Him He'll say things and sometimes as we read our Bible we get the things He says a little obscured we don't see them clearly as God intends us to see them often the writing itself obscures what God wants us to see and understand come with me for instance we'll take an instance of this and we'll move on I'm in the fourth chapter of this first epistle of John and as we get down to the end of well at least let's come to the end of the third chapter He that keepeth His commandments verse 24 dwelleth in Him and He in Him and hereby we know that He abides in us by the Spirit which He hath given us praise God He's given us the Spirit and we know that He abides in us isn't this wonderful this is what He said in the 14th chapter of His gospel He abides in us then we come down into the fourth chapter and we read we're not to believe every spirit now you and I beloved are so to be in touch with one another that we're in touch with spirits we're in touch with spirits when I come near to you it's your spirit I want to touch as a matter of fact I do don't know whether you touch mine or not sometimes we're not always aware of it because what we see is the color of somebody's eyes or whether they got fair hair or dark hair or whether it's curly or straight or whether their nose is that much long or or not this is the kind of thing we sort of notice but we've got to come to one another and we meet in spirit we contact spirits and you're not to believe every spirit you see you have the holy spirit given to you if you are a child of God and there he is and I meet your spirit and immediately I know I know you you know I know you you see if everybody was to come down onto the basic reality they'd get the charismata in proper perspective you see great discernment that man's got you're all supposed to be able to discern spirits that's the thing yeah go on let that sink in now that's the basic thing of our life you're not to believe that well if I don't know and I'm a worker what are you telling me whether to believe them or not are you aware of spirit now I did say are you aware of demons this is how it gets translated people twist it in their minds and think oh I'm conscious of demons terrible place demons they were on the shoulders or behind the curtain just there let's go and sprinkle that curtain with the blood of Jesus and all that business God save us we're not even sane we've drifted into the magic realm hallelujah did you ever find Jesus doing that that's the life you ought to read John's gospel that's the life that's what it is that's how it's got to be lived that's the kind of language to use it's all so lovely what you've got to do beloved is be a lab see and now when we move in this realm we we know spirit we're supposed to know spirit and we'll be able to tell we must tell what the spirit of God is hereby know ye the spirit of God verse 2 got to know that spirit of God must know that then when you get down the chapter you read something else about the spirit verse 13 hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us because he hath given us of his spirit now note the difference he's given us the spirit then he gives us of his spirit hallelujah that's what we all do we all give of our spirits that's what you do you give of your spirit don't you now that is what the teaching in chapter 3 is all about you know it's no good you saying you love one another if you don't give to one another and when we give we've got we give of our spirits so when you talk to me or when you meet me or when you smile at me or frown at me you're giving me of your spirit and that's why in many churches for instance shall i say this the collections are down every week the collections are down this week because people give of their spirit they are mean and parsimonious they'll argue blacks white and they'll lie like truth to tell you they can't afford it that's right i'm not being cynical and hard that's right they'll lie like truth and when it comes to it and if you went if you went and lived with them you'd soon see it wasn't right the extravagance and the wastage in the home isn't right people will buy great big cars that only do 15 miles to the gallon when they could have one that did 40 or 50 you see i mean even in the car realm now i know if you're supposed to run a bus because you get a bus filled up well that's different and all all this kind of and people people give up their spirit my beloved brothers and sisters you know the spirit even if you've got any intelligence and after all we're all moral intelligences and we all know beloved it's plain as a pike's toe and you're giving up your spirit god has given up his spirit to me and this is again if i may say this why i like this epistle of john because it gets right down to these basic things hallelujah and i know i know this let's have a look here god talks so so plainly look at verse 13 again we'll read it again hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us because he has given us of his spirit now i know i live in him because i'm getting everything of his spirit everything of his spirit he's given up to me you see this you must check out are you getting everything of god's spirit everything of his spirit oh hallelujah of his spirit you know what when it comes out of his spirit you get the absolute quintessence of it all right out of his spirit all his words come from his spirit all his works come from his spirit all his gifts come from his spirit all of them he leverages out bountifully all the sweetness all comfort comes from his spirit so much so that the holy ghost is caught in the comfort of it all his forgiveness comes from his spirit i was thinking a little earlier this morning you know human brains minds are marvelous things aren't they the things you can think of in about half an hour and i was thinking i don't know when this morning of jesus again and he said when they crucified father forgive them forgive them father they don't know what they think of him from his spirit because spirit determines attitude attitude comes from a fixed disposition hallelujah you got this i hope you are getting this very clear and they crucify you what do you say if your spirit if your attitude is fixed if your disposition is right forgive them lord see that's it think of him this is a high standard hallelujah it's a high standard of course it is did you ever read in luke's gospel forgive me for going outside of john at the moment but in luke's gospel chapter 6 did you ever read it well now one of my advice to you is sometimes a day read it luke chapter 6 and in this he comes along the lord saying this he said do so and so so and so so and so don't do so and so and so he said you may be the children of the highest he told them that before they were born again told them that he said you got to be the children of the highest if you follow me the highest praise god the highest bless god for everybody that puts the standard right up there we've had enough of it being trampled down in the mud up there so i know and now let's go on you see he's given us of his spirit and this is the only way you can really see now i might detect your spirit when i come up close to you or meet you you see but when you start giving me of your spirit i see you then give when you start giving me of your spirit and you can't help giving me of your spirit you see you might be very polite and very nice but it's unavoidable and that's when i see i've got it now you see and then i can testify i didn't say run about and talk about you behind your back that's sin i can testify but now here let's have a look at another point and isn't the bible so tremendous i hope you understand that really get down to it you've got to get the thing right i remember taking three years on a bible study taking it week by week in just the book of ephesians three years hallelujah that's how powerful the word is but we are here beloved listen and it says the father sent the son to be the saviour of the world now those words to be thee are not there in the greek and the best way the better way to write that would be if you could do it with the bible is to write son stroke saviour you know when you write them together not son hyphen saviour but son stroke saviour meaning the same because that's what you're being told he sent the son saviour of the world that's what he sent him he was the saviour well now you see not just to be the saviour he was the saviour and that's why and this is the point i want you to see that's why he called him jesus because jesus god calls a thing what it is that's right he calls you what you are always call his name jesus he said he's going to save his people in other words he'll not only call you what you are but he'll call you what you do you better know your father he'll call you what you do that's you see that's where your testimony comes from i testify he's given me of his spirit so i call him now what he is i testify he's my saviour i call him what he is i call him what he's done because what you are you do alright that's what you do what you are you see if what you do is get up in the morning and start giggling and giggle all day long then you're an inconsequential non-entity we don't want anything to do with you that's what you are keep giggling from the morning or if you get up and all you do you start crying as soon as you get out of bed and you cry every day of your life and you cry all day long well you know what you are that's it that's what you are God calls everything what it is isn't that lovely I know where I am you see with you and er this is a precious precious thing and this is how it is isn't it God why does why does er Jesus say Father well that's what he is and that's his name his name is father you see but er what do you mean by that well what I say his name is father you know I want to say this because there's a kind of a teaching about today that Jesus is the name of God all of God and it's wrong father I wouldn't be baptised in the name of only Jesus for all the money in the world father is his name oh but it's not a name father but it is that's where the whole idea of father see we make it a title but it's his name all right once you see there father Jesus apparently that's their names and and the whole glorious truth beloved my son he calls him what he is father father when you get to heaven you say what am I going to call the first person of the trinity you call him father that's who he is don't you see and he projected who and what he is into humanity and now we make it a title well he's my father oh but you say what's his oh his name is Bill you see or Jimmy or Jack but he's my father but it isn't like that with God that's his name father hope you've got that clear and I hope it'll land you a lot of mischief we're called what we are amen amen that's a tremendous thing he sent the son saviour glory isn't this a precious thing he did exactly what he is now it's like that with us and we've got to be like this this is why we've got to be in God we've got to move in this tremendous being I've got to know I'm in him ah to know him his life eternal his glorious true and living God and Jesus well beloved if I go up to the beginning of the chapter chapter verse two hereby you know the spirit of God every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ come in flesh I've missed out the words that aren't there in the original read it again hereby know ye the spirit of God every spirit that confesses Jesus Christ come in flesh is of God praise the name of the Lord that's how he's really got to come to you this is what he said you see in John 14 he said now I'm coming to you now I'm to you now I'm coming to you now I'm to to coming to you now I'm coming you now I'm coming to now I'm coming to you now I'm coming you but they really are silly. They say, oh, go to Glastonbury. You know, it's thin there. Do you know what that means? When they say, it's thin at Glastonbury. What do they mean when they say, go to Glastonbury because it's thin? Oh, the sort of veil between flesh and spirit is so thin there. And they think they can touch God anywhere. They don't know they're touching the devil. That's what they're doing. They're all deceived, all of them. It's a tremendous thing. There are certain spots where the devil works much more than others. I won't acquaint you of them. I've had to find out because of the long way Jesus the Lord has led me. Not that I go to these places, but I find out. And because I find out, I avoid them. I don't know what you do. God, beloved, wants us to be in this relationship with himself. Well, Jesus Christ has come in the flesh. That's what it means that when the scripture says that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. Your body. When your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, then and only then will Jesus Christ have come to your flesh. We sing, Oh come to my heart. Don't we? Don't you? Well, that's the beginning. He wants to come into the flesh. It's got to be. You've got to live it in your home. You've got to live it 24 hours a day. When we do this, the people will really believe us. Thou not only contact spirit, but thou contact flesh. And thou decide that you're a clean person. Thou decide that you're a holy person. And that's what they're supposed to do. They're supposed to be able to tell. We're walking, walking, walking with the Lord. All the way. And this will prevent us from the sort of suddenness of so much that happens in people's lives. Now, I know we all have a sudden conversion. That starts that way. When something really takes place, God meets us low from that moment we're changed. That's passing from death unto life. And of course you expect that to be cataclysmic. Just as Jesus passed from death to life. When Jesus passed from death to life, what happened? I tell you, people were falling down as though they were dead everywhere. Angels were sitting around on stones and shining all over, brighter than the day. Graves of the saints opened. It seemed to give the saints a resurrection. When Jesus, that's right, that's right. And that'll happen when you, if you really get born again, you pass from death to life, the saints will get a resurrection. All the saints are running around saying, hallelujah, you know, he's got born again now. Angels sitting around on stones and instead of seeing devils and darkness, everything's marvellous. The kingdom of God's come. Isn't that right? It's resurrection life. If you haven't got resurrection life, if you haven't had a resurrection, you're not born. You pass from death to life. We labour and sometimes we go through long labour stages of getting to this place, you see. But oh, when it happens, glory. You know, sometimes I feel what we need is some good midwives. I don't mean all you young ladies take up the nursing profession. But people who really know how to bring to the birth and out of the womb and into life. Amen. What a tremendous thing it is that people don't know the way to do it, you see. They tell them all sorts of things and they say, well, you believe this text, that text. I can give you the selection of text you're supposed to believe. But that only makes you a textual believer. But to know that they've got to pass from death to life, not just from unbelief to belief, though they've got to pass from unbelief to belief. From death to life. Glorious resurrection. Like Jesus passed from death to life. See, everything Jesus did, we have to go through the Jesus person all the way through. He says, I'm the way. Nobody comes to the Father but by me. Well, when he rose from the dead, he said, now go and tell my disciples, I go to my Father. Your Father. I go to my God. You see, it's all so simple. And up he went. Hallelujah. It was all worked out for us, if only we'd had eyes to see it. It's all written in the book. How did he go to his Father? Not before he went through death and resurrection. How am I right or wrong? What's this Bible being written for, if we don't understand it? Hallelujah. It's written so that we should understand it. He shouts it all over the place. I'm the way. I'm the truth. I'm the life, he said. See, he went and called old Peter. He says, follow me. Well, where's he going? No matter. Follow me. But where are you going, Lord? Don't do it. Just follow me. Follow me, he said. He goes up to Peter. Did he call you, Peter? Where's he going? What he wants is to follow him. Where's he going? Follow me. And when you get to the sixth chapter, and lots of them say, well, no, we can't stick this. This saying's too hard. He says, we've got to eat his flesh and drink his blood. And if we don't, we've got no life in us. Can't take this. See, it's all right. We don't mind following him when we see him healing the sick and casting out the devils. And that's lovely. We can all shout hallelujah and stamp around saying, well, this man was never so seen in Israel. He does everything well. And then, I wish he hadn't talked like this. I've been following him now for weeks, months. Then he says, I've got to eat his flesh and drink his blood. I'm not alive if I don't do it. What was the man talking about? I'm not blaspheming. They only thought he was a man at that time. Do you understand this? That's what got them all mixed up. What's the man talking about? Come on. I mean, I don't understand him. What's the use of following anybody you don't understand? So, they go back and then he turns around to his 12 apostles. Says, do you want to lead me too? I want you to follow me, but it's got to be voluntary. Now, do you want to? Yes. No, you've got the words of eternal life. We can't go to anyone else. Follow me, he said. Somebody else comes up, he says, Lord, I'll follow you. Where do you go? He said, there. He said, now look, I want to say something too. I'm rather reversing the order of it. It's all in the same text. You'll find this at the end of Luke chapter 9, by the way. Needn't turn it up. And he says, now no man, if he sets his hand to the plough and looks back, is fit for the kingdom of God. And the kingdom of God was still ahead yet. It had to come in power on the day of Pentecost. You're not fit. See where he's heading? See? And he said, when someone said, now I'll follow you Lord, where do you go? He said, now look, foxes have got holes. You go and tell that fox Herod, he's got a hole. He calls it a palace. I wouldn't have that hole for anything in the world. That's right. Wouldn't have that hole, see? Why, that's where they, that's where the dreadful, drunken, murderous, devilish plot to murder John Baptist was hatched out in Herod's palace. The fox. Foxes have holes, he said. The birds of the air have this. He said, I haven't got anywhere to put my head. Do you want to come? Follow me. Know your terms. There's no stopping. There's no stopping, beloved. We're not even stopping overnight to find a hole. We're moving on. Do you want to come? All right. And so he goes on and on and on. I won't stop on all the sort of dialogue that went on. Follows and follows, you see. Where is he going? You see? Follow me, follow me. Takes them into the upper room, washes their feet. Now if you're going to follow me now, you'd better have clean feet. So on he goes again. Where's he going? That somebody had said, is he going to disperse amongst the Gentiles? Where's he going? I'm the way, he said, when he got them in the upper room. Just follow me, you see. They follow him and they follow him and they follow him. And he goes into the garden and he starts to sweat like blood on his face before his father, you see. And then up comes a crowd with sticks and stones and lanterns and soldiers and swords and I don't know what. They're off. All the lot. They couldn't follow him in now. I knew Peter had said, Lord I'll follow you with us wherever you go. I don't care where you are. Lay down my life for your sake. Jesus didn't believe him. You have to be careful that Jesus believes you. Jesus didn't believe him. He said to Peter, before a cock crows, you'll deny me. Nevertheless, don't let your heart be troubled. Come on, keep going, keep coming. And he got up at the end of the 14th chapter, because you know that's the end of the 13th chapter. And he starts to lead them, you see. They keep following him. I wonder where he's going. Into a garden. Oh, I tell you, with strong cryings and tears in the garden. We're told in Hebrews chapter 5. This great one, this great Melchizedek now, he's approaching his most precious ministry and his mediation. And he agonizes in the crowd. And here comes the crowd and they're off. They're off. And he goes and he goes and he goes. But they couldn't take the cross. They wouldn't follow him. In fact, Jesus said, you can't follow me, Peter. You can't follow me. He says, nevertheless, you will do afterwards. And on he goes, onto the cross, into the grave, out of the grave, on the way. But you've never followed him to death and resurrection, perhaps, you see. That's the trouble. You've followed his lovely sayings. You've followed his mighty miracles. You've followed when other people have turned back. Well, what's happened? He says, oh, he's gone back. I say, well, what's happened? Well, I don't know. He's gone back. I thought he was saved. Well, he's backslidden, you see, or something like that. You sure? He hadn't followed far enough through death and resurrection. That was his trouble. That's the trouble with the multitude of people. They won't come there. You throw on a big healing campaign, I'll be there all right. Boo! I'll be on those things. Well, not that they shouldn't be. Jesus didn't refrain from it. But to follow him there. Amen. You know, the soul deviates. It won't come to reality. But when it comes to reality, it's there. Now, you know, beloved, this is the tragedy with so many people. I'm browsing, I told you, I'm moving all over the place. This is the tragedy with so many people. They don't, they cannot see. I've already hinted at it. The trouble with us is that we don't understand that God has to be able to receive our words. I'll give you the key to it. Take John, take Acts chapter 2. In Acts chapter 2, you know it's the great day of Pentecost. When Peter stood up, and he preached on the day of Pentecost, it says at the end of the chapter, verse 41, they that gladly received his word were baptized. Now, it's just a matter of receiving the word. Now, this morning here, you're either receiving or rejecting my word, what thing I'm saying. You're either receiving or rejecting. And this is the important thing. You see, Jesus did not receive. Let's take Peter for a start. He didn't receive Peter's words. Listen, here's one. Jesus comes to the lake of Galilee. The crowds press on him. He goes into a boat, it's Peter's. Get in the boat, after he finishes preaching, he says to Peter, now you let down your nets for a trial. And Peter said, now we've fished all night, and we've caught nothing. So, Jesus said, launch out into the deep. And of course, you see, you get lots of people preaching sermons around this, launch out into the deep. I think there's a hymn written about it. But these people had been out in the deep all night. See, they say, you've never launched out into the deep, but they had. They'd been out in the deep all night. They don't fish in the shallows. Let's at least be sensible when we read the Bible. Then we shan't make up sermons and concoct things on excuses, to get an idea over. They'd been out in the deep all night. And they'd come back, and they hadn't caught a, I was going to say a sausage, they hadn't caught a sprat. They hadn't caught anything. They were up, they were mending their nets, and Jesus comes down. He says, go on, launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a trial. This is what old Peter says, don't you think we haven't been out in the deep all night, see? See, these people said, you want to get in the deep? And Peter says, does he think I haven't been? Well, all right, I won't comment on that. But, he goes out, nets down the net, you see. And you know the tremendous, the draught of fishes. And you know the result, that when everything was loaded up, nets were breaking, ships were sinking, because they were so overloaded with fish. Peter paused, Jesus, and he said, depart from me, I'm a sinful man, oh Lord. And Jesus didn't receive his word. He said, no, come on, follow me. I'll make you a fish of a message. He didn't receive his word. Why? And I'll tell you why. He made a discovery, but he was just full of emotions. Now this is why people don't get through with God. Or, again, you see, I could, instance after instance, where Peter's concerned, another disciple, Jesus did not receive their words. They said it under the stress of partial knowledge, of big emotional upheavals. Bless God, he doesn't take our words sometimes. If he'd have taken Peter's words, he'd have said, oh, that's right, little Peter, good. Where would Peter have been? Don't you see? But he's got to be able to take your words. And this is the trouble, you see, with us. I hope you're taking this in, because it's possibly the key to your situation. Your experience. You see, we have tremendous experiences. Say this is the normal level, all right. Something happens, and we're getting depression. He says, oh, Lord, I'm terrible. Don't let's laugh at this, it's terrible to be in this. Distress, depression, troubles. The cry of the Lord is here. We say all sorts of things. Oh, I've had them come to me. They say, oh, Mr. Northwood, it's been terrible. And I've cried, I've broken my heart. I've wept, I've called on God. And I've asked and asked, and nothing's happened. So on and so on. Have you met these kinds of people? I have. I meet them all the time, you see. And they say, oh, well, God forsake them, you see. Then you meet the other sort. They go up here. They're in a mighty meeting. It's lovely. They're floating about on the air and hanging onto the beams almost, you see. It's like this. The glories come, or something of this, you see. And they make big statements up here. I ask a question, but he doesn't receive it. He doesn't receive it. Because this is the level you've got to live on. And when you see what God is after, and when you want what God wants and not what you want, say, oh, I'm terrible. He does help you if you're terrible. He does do all sorts of things. He gives relief. He pours in oil and wine. He does all sorts of things. Bless him! Hallelujah. But you're only after what you want. You say, Lord, make me better. Lord, I feel terrible. Lord, take this burden away. Lord, stop my husband doing that. Lord, prevent my wife from doing this. Lord, Lord. You see, that's right. That's right. It's right, isn't it? I'm not joking. This matter of life is serious. But you've got to see it, beloved. You've got to see what he's after. What's he after? You've got to come and see. There it is. Yes? The resurrection for you. That's what he's after. It's what Jesus did. See, didn't I? Up, down. Following me? Come on, follow me. Follow me. Lord, let me go and bury my father. He says, follow me. Lord, I'll follow you if but, please do this, my this, my the other, me something else. Follow me. Why? If he's so egocentric that you must follow him. No, no. It's your only salvation, don't you see? It's your only salvation. I'm the ways. I'm the truth. I'm the life. Glory be to God. Do you see what God's really after? And when I believe that, he'll receive my word. Lord, Lord, I see it. Now, don't sort of sink down here and say, oh Lord, I want to die, I want to die. Well, probably everybody else wants you to die too. Because you're so awful. I don't mean literally, because we all love you in the flesh, but you know what I mean. Lord, I wish it would all end. Terrible Lord, it's, yeah, that's right. Weeping, weeping. You take Mary Magdalene. Jesus had died, had risen again. You say, well, you can't blame Mary Magdalene. She didn't. No, well, I'm not blaming her. But the Bible's written so that we can see. I tell you, the days come. Angels have been sitting around, shining on tombstones. Hallelujah. Saints, the great, the saints have risen from the dead. Some have gone into Jerusalem. Hallelujah. A sort of a little type of the general resurrection. Because that's what happens when the great trumpet blows and the saints rise, they're going to rise and go into New Jerusalem. You must read your Bible with your eyes open. It's all perfect. Everything God does, the little cameo glimpses are pictures of the whole. Everything is wonderful, you see. And then all the saints are rising, going into Jerusalem. It's marvellous. And there's Mary. She says, oh, Lord, Lord. Oh, I can remember He cast devils out for me. She turns around. She sees Him. Oh, she says, Mr. Gardner, if you take Him away, give Him to me. I love Him. But before that, He said to her, Woman, what are you weeping for? She said, In her emotions. You have to bring her out of them. Don't you see what it's all about? Now, the revelation came. Rabboni, she said. She saw Him. She'd been wallowing down there. The disciples themselves didn't believe. No. It couldn't be. It's too good to be true. Don't tell me this about this marvellous life. It's too good to be true. I'm 30, 40, 50, 60. I've lived. I know. I want to tell you, beloved. And it's that. And it's more than could be stated in words. Of glory. When you're really there. Now, come out of it. Come out of your moods. Don't you cultivate indigo. Don't try and make yourself black and dark and gloomy. Keep doing all the things. And going over the same old ground that makes you like it. And keep on thinking it up and churning it over. Stop it. Stop it. But I love you, Lord. Give Him to me, gardener. You see? I love Him. What's the use of that if you don't come into His life? And the tremendous thing is, beloved, that we've got to face stark reality. Now, stop making excuses. Beloved, I beg of you to stop it. Keep on this level. Faith will only come from a determined spirit. It isn't something that lights on you suddenly. Like, quickly speaking, you have feelings in the back of your neck. You suddenly feel all nice and warm or something. Faith. Jesus was the author of faith. Jerusalem. The cross. The resurrection. Love. Faith. The unswerving line of the Spirit. The unshakable will of a man fixed in God. The undeviating soul. Lord, I don't care man or woman for self, for him, for her, for anything. I've heard you. Comes a time when you've got to be as ruthless as that. Ruthless! Especially with yourself. Then you're on the line and on the plane of faith. And then God will receive your words. Then He will. What you say will be right. And you will then speak the word of faith. That's right, isn't it? Yeah. And it'll all happen. Jesus Christ will be in your flesh. That's what you want. It's what I want. To really come. And when He comes He's come that He might come through to others. For the Son is always sent. Father sent the Son Saviour. Always sent. He's on a mission. Amen. And He's going to keep on. And He's going to come through you. He's going to come right out of your eyes and out of your mouth. He's going to flow out of you right out of your belly like rivers. He's going to He's going to Hallelujah! That's what He says. And this is what He's determined to accomplish. So that's why He always gives you an opportunity to go back. Always gives you the opportunity to go back. That's why we should always be subject to temptation. It must always be the sovereign choice of my being to be right and go right. Always. That's what keeps me alive. Vivid. I cherish you Lord. I'm in communion. Choice and communion go together. Decisions and communion go together. I mean there are times when I go and lie in the arms of God. And sometimes I mean that literally. I suit my action to what I do within. Sometimes in the course of a conference for instance I'll make my bed in the morning. We might as well be nice. Might be. And then I place a pillow or a cushion at a convenient spot. I won't tell you the spot. It's all according to your height. You have to bury this on your bed you see. It's one of those beds that are nice divan beds or that. But you have to go across it if you're not otherwise. But you place a bed there you see and this is what I've done. It always spoils the counter pain but I've always got good hosts and hostesses. They don't mind. I don't think I should enjoy staying in a house, a proud woman's house. I don't think I'd enjoy that a bit. I place the cushion just convenient you see and I go up when I go up and I go back you see. I keep my shoes off your bed. You have to do that. You mustn't put your dirty shoes on the bed. You let your legs hang over the edge from the knees down you see and you've got your cushion at the right spot and you've got a flat back. You lie up. It's marvelous. You just enjoy God. See you relax. That's what you do. You see. Because sometimes you kneel postures often reveal the attitude of your spirit. You understand that? Or your needs of the moment. God intends that. Isn't that right? Hallelujah. For instance if you were going to have your lunch you wouldn't think of standing on your head up against the wall would you? What would you do? Sit down at the table I hope or walk about eating your sandwich, whatever it is. And the Lord intends this you see. And let yourself relax in the Lord and be in the Lord and you've got to commune with him and lie back there but there have to come the moments when you're up on your two feet before the Lord and with the Lord Lie on your back too long and you'll become jelly. He beheld Jesus as he walked and he said Behold the Lamb of God Amen. Everybody could see he was suited to Calvary. He was absolutely perfectly adapted to Calvary. He walked that way. Do you walk Calvary way? Do you talk about the cross walking away from it? Or do you talk about the cross walking backwards to it? Or do you talk about the cross? You see you've got to follow the Lord. He'll receive you if you will on that level. He'll receive what you have to say and then when he receives what you say you'll be there. You'll be there alright. That's the faith position. I talk to people a lot along this line. You believe in your heart and you go out there and tell everybody. If you don't tell everybody you haven't believed and that's why your knees are wobbly. And in two days you'll say well nothing's happened. Well of course it might be before that you'll say that. Because you haven't believed. When a man's believed he talks what he believes. When he's believed what he's received he talks it and you can hear it. His voice isn't tentative. It's all in the voice. You can hear it alright. If I walked about here and said to you I'm a negro. I'm a negro. I'm a negro. Well you wouldn't believe me because I'm not a negro and that's that. I'm saying it in faith. Well of course I'm not saying it in faith. For faith is actuality. Faith is reality. You can only say reality in faith. You understand that don't you? Well I didn't think faith was that. I mean you hear such words as claim it in faith. Well when you claim it in faith you have it immediately. Here see that's a book. Well anybody knows that but I'm saying that in faith saying well of course he's not saying it in faith we can all see it's a book. What's he talking about now? But that's what it is. That's faith. Do you realise that? That's what it means when he's the author and finisher of faith. He is solid real. He actually is. You could see him but he was faith. Jesus is it sinking in? If I say that's a piece of leather it's a glass as he's saying that in faith I'm saying that in faith. Say well we can all see it. It's not faith. Because well faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen but you see the tragedy was so much this is one of our tragedies in Bible interpretation. I hope you're taking note of this. You write this down brother. He writes down everything until the spirit gets hold of him then he forgets to write. I've seen them before they all start with good intentions until the Lord really gets hold of them and they can't. You see. The tragedy of Bible interpretation with Bible interpretation is this. You must make a note of this if you're making it. That because the Bible says something in one place we think that's the be all and end all of the matter but faith is more than what it says in Hebrews 11. That's the point you see. If you say now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence. Now that's that. Can't be anything other than that but of course it can't be anything other but it's something more. Don't you see? That's the whole thing. When the Bible speaks of something it speaks of its nature. If it only speaks of it once then that's that. That's the only thing that can be said about it or we're able to receive about it. But it says something here something more there and something more there we put them all together then we begin to see what it's about. Don't stick on Hebrews 11. I was taught this when I went to school. This will show you how old I am because they don't do these these days. I mean I had to learn Hebrews 11 a lot of it when I went to school. I had to learn a lot of John 14 when I went to school. Did you? Oh no. Not when you went. You see I had to learn it. It did me good. This is the whole trouble about it. They read John 2 and they say this is that which Joel said. Well that's all there is isn't it? But that's only what Joel said about it. Don't you see? This is where it all gets stuck and they build denominations up on this on what Joel said. But it's what Jesus said as well what the baptism of the spirit was and what Paul says it is too and then you come off your little sort of island on which you've been floating and you begin to see the largeness of things. Now beloved faith is calling a spade a spade. Did you know that? Reality. Reality. Now whether you see the manifestations of it in me is quite another point. But once you see it now got it then you're in reality and this will keep you out of what we call cloud cuckoo land and it'll keep us going on right with Jesus. We're on the basis of reality with the Lord. Hallelujah. And I want to be there because God calls a thing what it is. He sent the son saviour of the world called him what he is. So call his name Jesus. See? Oh it does put me down four square. I know where I am now. I'm not wandering about and losing myself and all the things that seem to be so mysterious lose their mystical shape. There are enough mysteries in the bible without us concocting thousands more. But the mysteries of the bible come clear when we move on the ground of reality. The Lord brings us right into his everlasting truth. And we keep on beloved and there are lots of fields drop away. Do you know where you are? What it's all about? And you're not standing a spectator. You're in it. And I think we ought to draw to a close. Oh my it's twenty past twelve I think. I'll try and be through in ten minutes Malcolm. Now yesterday morning I stopped in good time but it's the others that kept on. We're nearly through. Yeah. Reminded them that we're getting hungry. We come down to the end of the chapter five in John. Isn't this lovely? I do love this epistle. I really do. Alright. Verse thirteen These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. Now how do you know you have it? Because you've been living it. When you go to bed tonight if you've been living eternal life all today you know you've got it. Hallelujah. Don't you? That's how I've been living it. Today is not going to be lost it's going to last for eternity. How I've lived today my manner of life today lasts for eternity. The essential spiritual quality of it is going to be there forever. You see now you've got to be filled and thrilled with love then don't you? That's the eternal thing. Light. You've got a walking light. You see? Hallelujah. This epistle makes absolute common sense when you understand it. You see? Why the world doesn't know you. A lot of lunatics up there at Rora. Been up there a week. They don't understand them. They don't want to go and see the highlights of Torbay or something like that. You see? What's wrong with them? The world doesn't know us. And we live in this tremendous realm and we walk with the Lord and it's all so lovely and we go on with him and it says this is the confidence that we have in him that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. Isn't this lovely? Oh praise God. You see? Here's your confidence you walk with the Lord. This is what you've got to know because this is the Jesus light. This is the confidence that he had. I've remarked on it already this morning. John 11 Father he says I know you hear me always for their sakes I said no roll away the step. He was walking out of confidence I know you hear him always. Now you've got to walk like that. That's the walk. He was walking when you said that. You read John 11. This is the Lamb's walk. But didn't he go up to the corner and say let's have a prayer meeting now. We're going to ask no he just walked. In other words I'd like to ask you a question which is the more important the prayer life or the life of prayer? Which is the more important? Do you live the prayer life or a life of prayer? Well live the prayer life. I wasn't reading to you enough I didn't hear what you said. That I turned to you was quite accidental I might have turned this way I will turn to you. Live the prayer life. That's what Jesus lived. He lived the prayer life. Amen. Marvellous. That isn't to say you shouldn't have time for prayer. Jesus spent sometimes all nights in prayer. But he lived the prayer life. That's why you see he just walked along and said well I haven't seen you always. If you live a life of prayer it means that prayer is the big thing capital P that they'd write over your life on a banner. But if you live the life of prayer it will be capital L that's on your banner over the top of you life. Alright. And to be able to walk and move in this tremendous thing is the reality of it. And this is behind the thing that brother prayed this morning. He also prayed for John's Gospel. You see you always have to come to John's Gospel to get to reality. You realise you prayed for John's Gospel brother didn't you? You know the chapter you prayed from too don't you? Doesn't matter. But it says he said this. Jesus said it. I nearly shouted hallelujah when brother said that. Nearly shouted hallelujah. But it wasn't that kind of a meeting this morning. Was it? I mean it was beyond that wasn't it this morning? It wasn't that it hadn't reached there it was beyond it. You've got to understand. Some people want to get shouting hallelujah when you're beyond that. This is what people don't understand. And he he said this. He never quoted it exactly but he gave the real meat of it. Jesus said when the Holy Ghost came he said at that day that's the day of Pentecost. He's talking about those that are baptised in this bread. At that day. Now you'll know whether you've had your baptism then. Your real baptism. He said you will ask me nothing. How about that? He said well I'm full of questions. I'm always asking this. See? Well you haven't been baptised in this bread. Not properly. Because I mean I can only quote you see that's what I mean. When I mean when I talk about it isn't just what Joel said about the baptism in this bread. It's what Jesus said. He knew more about it than Joel. And he said at that day you'll ask me nothing. And he put his finger right on it. It stops you asking. The Holy Ghost does all the asking after that for you. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. Romans chapter 8. See? But the spirit maketh intercession for us with groanings which can't be uttered. There it is. And you'll find this. Listen. When Jesus walked through the tomb of Lazarus he was groaning in his spirit. You read, you read 11. John 11. The Bible's perfect. Jesus is it. Jesus is everything. Jesus is marvellous. Jesus is indescribable. Jesus is all. He's everything. He was groaning in himself. Came to the tomb. At last he found words. I know you hear more. Why? Groaning. As he walks to the tomb. Why? This was the big thing that was going to show the glory of him. Resurrection. He couldn't talk. Jesus couldn't find language. Jesus. But he was the word. He was the word with groanings in him. That's the life of prayer. You say, well I'm absolutely full of questions. Why this? Why that? Lord, why did you? Lord, won't you do this? Lord, Lord, Lord. And this is supposed to be prayer. Will it may be at baby stage. Oh that we may grow up. And this is, this is what it says. If this is the confidence Jesus lived here and walked in it. This is the confidence. 1 John 5. 40 That we have in him that if we ask anything. Now I've put the comma there. According to his will he hears us. His will is to hear us. Amen. Well if I can ask for anything. I'm going to ask him. What are you asking for? 45,000 pounds to be given to Malcolm Ford. I'm going to ask for this. I'm going to ask for that. Oh I'm going to ask for something for the O.M. I'm going to ask for something for, oh boy. But that's the trouble. You see somehow you come into line with his being. Somehow by the divine wonder the glory of this mighty work. Glory. And my asking gets cut right down. Especially that which revolves around myself. And then you can spend your life asking for others. Lord. Lord. Lord. Heal this man. Lord. Lord. Do something. You see. That's how it all works. And you come off the self centered line. You move into God. Blessed be the name of the Lord. But I want him to do this. I want him to do that. Yeah. Hallelujah. But when you're integrated into one and everything of your being is saying the same thing. Everything is consistent within you. The groanings of the spirit are quite sufficient to interpret your needs to the Lord. And you're free to think about others. If that's strong meat Jesus might turn around to you and say well do you want to leave me? I follow you now but I can't understand. This is too hard. I well you have to meet some hard things sometimes in your life. You have sometimes come to the place where God feels he can take you off milk. Start putting you on some solid food. I want to eat your flesh. I want to drink your blood. And then the whole wide world becomes your parish. And other people's needs and other people's states are your chief concern. And your eyes are really lifted away to the plains of usefulness. And you can see it. God wants us to do this more and more and more. I think I'm going to stop. I think I want to as well as the time factor. Let's pray shall we?