In this sermon, the speaker addresses the situation of the Israelites in the wilderness, specifically focusing on their lack of water after three days. The people are complaining and questioning Moses' leadership, feeling abandoned by God. The speaker encourages the audience to remember all the miracles God has done for them in the past and to have faith in His provision. They point to a little cloud in the sky as a sign of God's presence and assurance that He will take care of them. The sermon emphasizes the importance of removing any hindrances that may block the flow of God's blessings in our lives.

This message is one of the Times Square Pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing to World Challenge P.O. Box 260, Lindale, Texas 75771 or calling 214-963-8626. None of these messages are copyrighted and you are welcome to make copies for free distribution to your friends. Please go to Hebrews 3, the third chapter of Hebrews. Hebrews, the third chapter. I'm going to read six or seven verses. Hebrews, the third chapter. Hallelujah. Do you believe the Lord Jesus is here? I'm going to ask that again. Do you believe the Lord Jesus is here? Well, if he is, he's going to magnify his word. Chapter three of Hebrews. Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the apostles and high priests of our profession, Christ Jesus, who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who built the house hath more honor than the house. Every house is built by some man. Every house is built by some man. But he that built all things is God. Moses verily was faithful in all his house as a servant, for testimony of those things which were to be spoken after. But Christ as a son over his own house, whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. Verse 12. Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily while it's called to day, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end. Hallelujah. The house Jesus is building. Now, this third chapter is where I've been led by the Holy Spirit for tonight. Two houses are outlined in this chapter. The house of Moses and the house that Jesus is building. The entire chapter is a warning to those of this generation today, a warning to the people of today, not to grieve the Lord like the house of Moses did. The whole chapter is a warning, so it shows us the potential of Christians today who belong to the house of Jesus of falling into the same patterns of unbelief, memory, complaining, and critical spirit that the children of Israel fell into. For forty years, the house of Moses grieved the Lord. Look at verse 17. For with whom was he grieved forty years? How would you like to be a child that grieved your parents for forty years? Forty years he got no pleasure. The whole time, Moses said, ever since I've known you, you've been stiff-necked and hard-hearted. He said, never in the time I've known you, even all the time you're shouting and praising and everything else, I never knew a time that your heart was really right with God. That's incredible. Boy, I put fear in my heart. I said, oh God, I've known you that long. Have I grieved you for forty years? I don't even want to grieve you for a minute. But boy, God began to deal with me on this. But with whom was he grieved forty years? Was it not with them that sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? Verse 19. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Now look what the Holy Ghost says. Verse 7. Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost said... Now this is the Holy Ghost talking. The Holy Ghost said, the day of you will hear His voice. Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. Look at me, please. What was the provocation? The provocation was the whole trip through the wilderness. Forty years of provocation. They provoked Him three days after He delivered the Horeb sin. We'll see it. They provoked Him from then to their dying day. The provocation was forty years of never understanding the ways of the Lord. And He says, today, if you hear His voice, don't you harden your hearts as in the provocation of the day of temptation in the wilderness. And your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore, I was great with that generation and said, they do always err in their hearts, they have not known my ways. So I swear in my wrath, they shall not enter into my rest. Now think of that. Forty years, they never understood the work of God. Please understand that God is not saying anything here at all about their complaining at the waters of Myra. He's not saying anything about that golden calf they built and danced around in their nudity. He doesn't say anything about the backsliding and mixing in adulterous affairs at Horeb. He's not saying anything about all the other affairs. He's talking now. He's talking about one sin, one root sin, out of which all these others sprang. A heart of unbelief. A heart of unbelief. He's talking about unbelief. He's talking about a heart of unbelief that's so hardened, they did nothing but murmur and complain and backbite. Now, folks, when I talk tonight about murmuring, complaining, backbiting, please understand, I don't know of anything in this church of that kind. We hear just a few little tidbits once in a while. We'd rather just take that to the Lord. So I'm not correcting anyone in particular. I'm just preaching as the Holy Ghost laid it on my heart. I don't know who needs it. I know I need it. So if you don't need it, I'll take it. The Lord said it's an evil heart of unbelief. And here is an admonition. Take heed. Exhort one another daily. Take heed. Exhort. I'm doing that right now. I'm exhorting you. I'm going to warn you. I'm going to show you what happened in the wilderness, and I'm going to say don't let it happen here. Now, I want you to go back with me. As a New Yorker, New Jersey, wherever you're from, I want you to go back. I'm going to project you back in time to the wilderness, and I want to take you into the wilderness of Shur, three days out of the Red Sea, and I want you to picture yourself there. I'm going to put you in a time slot and zip you back. You're dressed as a Hebrew. You don't have your New York accent. You're not speaking English. You've got a turban on. You look like a Hebrew. And God has allowed you to understand their language, and you speak Hebrew, and yet you have the advantage of being a member of the house of Christ in the 1990s. So you have an advantage over these people. And here you are suddenly, and you are standing right in the middle of the camp of Israel, and you hear babies crying. You hear children screaming. You hear mothers complaining. What are we going to do after their husbands saying it's been three days? Three days and there's not a drop of water? The baby is going to die of starvation. What are you going to do about it? And you hear a murmuring all over the camp of Israel. Now see, three days before they were dancing and shouting because they saw the Pharaoh's army go down, sink like lead, the Scripture says. And they were singing the praises of God and dancing and playing their tambourines. And they were saying what a mighty God we serve. Singing what a mighty God we serve. Three days later, here they are, there's no water, there's no food, and they're hungry, they're tired, they're weary, and now the complaining begins. And the men are getting together, meeting in the tents. What are we going to do? This is getting serious. Our children can starve. What plan does he have? And you hear all this. You're walking around in the camp one tent after another. All you hear is this murmuring and complaining. This is getting serious. Moses, if he's got something up his sleeve, he'd better tell us. If there's another miracle he's going to try to pull out of the hat, he'd better tell us. I wonder if God hears the cry of our babies. And you're walking among them and you're saying, these people sound like heathen. Where's their faith? My goodness, they just came through ten great miracles. They watched in amazement as the Egyptians were hauling wagonloads of dead toads out to burn them. I mean, when those toads, those frogs took off, they never came into the land where the Israelites were, but the whole land of Egypt was covered with frogs everywhere. You couldn't go anywhere. You couldn't go to your bed and pull out your blanket without frogs everywhere. How would you like that, sister? You can't even stand a roach. I went back the other day, and Sister Marianna is about to stand on a chair, Brother Bob had to kill a roach. She's about to stand on a chair screaming. What would she have done in Egypt? Lice, frogs, they saw God do so many mighty things. They were in the daylight and they looked at this pail of darkness so thick you could feel it. And they heard the screaming, the crying, the wailing in the middle of the night when the death angel passed. And the firstborn of all Egyptian families died, the firstborn of the cattle, the firstborn of their pets, everything dead. Animals, humans, they'd seen God open that Red Sea. They'd marched over and drawn land. You know, just before God opened that Red Sea, they had pictured their babies thrusted with swords. They had pictured their wives ravished. They'd pictured themselves laying all over in a bloody battlefield, no weapons. Pharaoh was going to wipe them out. And they'd marched over on dry ground. And here they were, having been delivered. Now just three days later... You know, it doesn't take long to forget the miracles. It doesn't take as long as Christians to forget what God did yesterday, the day before, because when a new crisis... Oh yeah, God moved back there, but can He do it again? And that's exactly where they are. And here you are, you're trying to get somebody's attention, but nobody's paying attention to you, because someone is yelling, Water, water! And they go to the edge of the camp, and I mean thousands are screaming up. Everybody's getting their vessels. Everybody's got their little canvas bags and whatever they have, and they're going out, Water, water! The children are running. Everybody's running. And you, you're caught up in this flow, so you go to this little brook. It's called the Waters of Mara. And suddenly you hear people screaming, yelling, and they're spitting out the water. Poison, poison! Don't touch it! It's bitter! And they can't believe it. Nobody's about to believe it, because these people are so thirsty, they reach in and they've got to prove it themselves. You see them swallowing? Everybody's spitting it out. And I ain't telling you suddenly you're in the middle of a mess. You're in the middle of a mob scene. What in the world is this all about? What kind of a God is this? He knows we're thirsty. You can't drink the stuff. Where's Moses? And I tell you, you're suddenly caught up in a mob. I mean, these fathers are angry. These children are screaming. The women are screaming. The whole... I'll tell you what, the Bible doesn't show it, but I'll tell you, knowing human nature, just living in New York, I know what that's... I know what that scene is all about. You do too. And there you are, and you're caught up, and you're just moving along. And they're saying, what kind of man is this, Moses? How hard-hearted to bring us out here. He doesn't have a plan. We're out here with no plan to be fed. No water system. We thought he must have had... Spies went ahead and had all these wells. He doesn't have a well. He doesn't have anything. We're abandoned by God. I'll tell you what, you're standing there right now, and you see a little girl, and you say, wait a minute, I want to say something. Here you are, New Yorker from 1990. A member of the house of Jesus Christ. And you see from this vantage of history, you say, wait a minute, don't you remember all that God did for you? Look up there in the sky. You see a little cloud up there. What about that cloud? It doesn't evaporate. Look, the whole sky is blue. You've got that cloud. It's been there for three days. It's going to lead you. And last night, did you see how dusk had started to glow red, and when it got dark, it looked like fire boiling inside. And at night, that's going to lead you. That's God speaking, saying, I'm your Father. I'm going to take care of you. Look up there. Nobody wants to look. Nobody is thinking about that now. We're thirsty. We want water now. And you say, wait a minute. A God that can open the Red Sea. See those stones up on the hillside there? I'm telling you, God can bring water out of any one of those rocks. And I mean, you've got a crowd laughing at you, and everybody's saying, hey, come here, hear this. Come here, come here. We've got a crazy kook. He's talking about water out of a rock. The next thing, somebody says, you're going to tell us that all Moses has to do is go up there and take his rod and hit it and spank the water out and throw it right in our cups. You say, well, yes, that's about what I was going to say. If you trusted God, there's enough water, according to my God's power, to open up one of those stones and get salt water to fill an ocean. And I'm telling you, those Israelites are so stunned that they're looking back at you and making this crazy sign. And somebody says, next thing we know, you're going to tell us that God's going to rain food down on us, and all we're going to have to do is go outside the camp, pick it up, and eat it. If you're going to fantasize, go the whole way. You say, well, in fact, that's what I was about to say. You're going to go out there one day and there's going to be food, you're going to eat angel's food. And somebody else says, now wait a minute. I'll tell you what, if you want me to believe that kind of stuff, then you tell me that these waters right here, somebody you can't touch, just tell me that all Moses has to do is go up there and cut a tree and throw it in there and the waters will heal. If I can see that happen, then I'll believe God can bring water out of a rock. You say, well, that's just what I'm about to tell you. If you would have gone to Moses if you people would just humble yourself and remember all that he's done for you, if you would quit complaining and murmuring and finding fault and judging God, if you would just go to him and say, Moses, we're thirsty. We're afraid. We don't know what to do. But we know God has delivered us in the past. Will you seek the Lord and tell us what to do? We humble ourselves before God and we commit ourselves to the Lord. Moses, we're not going to give up. We believe with you. I'll tell you what would have been that moment. God would have had those hillsides. Every rock on that hill would have been gushing. They would have been flooded. And I believe that when He did smite the... You know the rest of the story, don't you? You know that Moses did take that tree that God appointed and cut it down and cast it in the waters which represents the cross and those bitter waters were healed and they were able to drink. You do know that He struck that rock and water came out and followed them all through the wilderness and that rock was Christ. That rock represents Jesus Christ. The rock that you and I stand on. The very rock out of which you and I drink today. Hallelujah. That rock has never stopped spewing out its glorious healing waters. Glory be to Jesus. But these people don't learn. They never did. You could tell them, say, listen to what you said three days ago. Who is like unto our Lord? Glorious in holiness, fearful in praise, doing such wonders. Thy right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power. You will guide us in strength. Thou shall bring us in and plant us. The Lord shall reign forever and ever. You could tell them God hasn't changed but they wouldn't believe you because they were going by their belly. God was their belly. I'm telling you, folks, there is a spirit in this camp that overwhelms when you look at it. It's just so overwhelming it's hard to grasp the unbelief. I want you to turn to Psalms and you'll see it better in Psalm 78. Psalm 78. Now if you plan to come to Times Square Church on a regular basis, you'll soon learn you need your Bible. Psalms 78. Now, beloved, will you take this home tonight and read all of 78? I don't have time to go through the whole chapter but it's pitiful. It's awful. It ought to embarrass you out of your unbelief. It ought to shame us out of our unbelief. I can't read this without hanging my head. These are children of God. God said I carried you in my own bosom. He said I carried you like a father carries his child. But I want you to look at verse 13. Let's begin to read at verse 13. He divided the sea. He caused them to pass through and he made the waters to stand as a heap. In the daytime also he led them in the cloud. And all the night with the light of fire he claimed the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as out of the great depths. He brought streams also out of the rock caused waters to run down like rivers and they sinned yet more against him by provoking the Most High in the wilderness. Do you know what that bears out? If your heart's not right and Bob spoke about this morning if God does answer your prayer it won't change a thing. You get your miracle it won't change anything unless your heart is right before God. He brought streams out of the rock caused waters to run down like rivers they sinned yet more against him by provoking the Most High in the wilderness. They tempted God in their heart by asking meat. There they spake against God. They said, can God furnish a table in the wilderness? Behold he smote the rock. The waters did gush out. The streams overflowed. But can bread also come? Can he provide flesh for his people? Verse 23 Though he had commanded the clouds from above and opened the doors of heaven he rained down man upon them to eat and given them of the corn of heaven. Man did eat angels' food. He sent the meat to the fool. He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven and by his power he brought in the south wind. He rained flesh also upon them as dust and feathered fowls like the sand of the sea. And he let it fall in the midst of the camp and round about their habitation so that it ate and were filled. For he gave them their own heart desire. Verse 32 For all this they sinned still and believed not for his wondrous works. Verse 36 They did flatter him with their mouth they lied unto him with their tongues their heart was not right with him neither were they steadfast in his covenant. Verse 40 How oft did they provoke him in the wilderness and they grieved him in the desert they turned back and tempted God and limited the holy run of Israel they remembered not his hand nor the day when he delivered them from the enemy. Look at me please. Does that shock you? That God's own people having seen miracle after miracle would not believe him they limited God they spake against him they'd flatter him with their lips but their hearts were far from him they took for granted all the signs and wonders and miracles they soon forgot God they soon forgot every miracle. Now I want to tell you beloved God doesn't take this lightly God doesn't take it lightly and he said these things are recorded as an example for us upon whom the ends of the world have come. I'm going to read to you don't turn it but numbers 13 verse 28 to 32 remember, here's the setting of the story this was the last straw this was all God could take they send in the spies remember the spies that went out and they come back and there were ten spies only two spies that had faith Joshua and Caleb the rest of the spies brought up an evil report their hearts full of unbelief the whole time, the whole 40 days that they were spying out the land they were building a case of unbelief they were persuading themselves God has abandoned us they were murmuring and complaining the whole time everywhere they went look at those giants look at those walls look at this look at the mess God has got us in Joshua, Caleb Caleb was marching up the mountain saying God I claim this mountain that mountain was full of giants and he was standing there with his hands oh God I claim it nothing is impossible with you but see these spies brought up an evil report they said there are giants there in high walled cities they're too strong for us we're not able to go up against this people for they're stronger than we are and they brought up an evil report and all the congregation cried and wept that night now I want you to go to Numbers 14 if you will please I think I'd rather you see it with your own eyes Numbers 14 now we have a patient loving Heavenly Father you know that don't you but there comes a time when God says I'll show you He said Moses how long am I going to put up with this murmuring, complaining people how long must I hear in their tents this, this grumbling this complaining and I want to show you what happens to a critical people before I go into this can I have your good ear give me your both good eyes then too I, I, this is where I I tread a little softly because when I prepared this message I didn't intend to go this way this afternoon the Holy Spirit just kept urging me I want to show you what happens to people who belong to a house of God they belong to a house that God is building God was trying to build a house for Moses it would be a type of the house that was to come it was to be, it was just to grow right into this house of Christ it was to be brought in to this house of Christ and I want to show you how dangerous it is to criticize your brother, your sister the work of God as a pastor, God's made it clear I can't criticize another pastor I can't criticize the work of God we can judge righteous judgment we can preach on principles godly principles but we can't name names we can't put people down and the danger of that God's really been drilling this into my heart because a lot of Christians in the church are hitting some people looking for jobs they can't get a job now, this may not be your problem there may be something else God may be proving, testing you but I know many, many Christians they can't find a job everywhere they go if they're in the ministry God blocks them everything fails, everything drops and they wind up in a desert of confusion and they're not even aware they're not willing to admit that there may be something that has angered the heart of God that something has taken the blessing of the Holy Ghost out of their lives there's a reason why it's all stopped up that will show you that that will even destroy your children it will destroy your family and that's all brought out but Numbers 14, verse 26 and the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron saying verse 27 this is Numbers 14 how long shall I bear with or put up with this evil congregation which murmur against me I've heard the murmuring of the children of Israel which they murmur against me saying to them as truly as I live, saith the Lord as you've spoken to my ears so will I do to you your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness and that word carcasses in Hebrew means die a slow death you're going to die a slow death of despair in this wilderness and all that were numbered of you according to your whole number from 20 years old and upward which have murmured against me verse 32 as for you your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness your children shall wander in the wilderness 40 years and bear your hornet worms until your carcasses be wasted in the wilderness after the number of days in which you search the land even 40 days each day for a year shall you bear your iniquities even 40 years ye shall know my breach of promise I, the Lord, have said I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation that gather together against me in this wilderness they shall be consumed and there they shall die and the men which Moses sent to search the land who returned and made all the congregation to murmur against him by bringing up a slander upon the land even those men that did bring up the evil report on the land died by the plague before the Lord they died by a plague before the Lord brother, sister under grace the judgment is more severe the scripture says how much sore the punishment in the day of grace I still believe God works this way those who've hardened their hearts toward the Lord those who've given themselves over to murmuring, complaining, spit it and I want you to look at verse 6 13 verse 6 this is what God answered to all the unbelief and the murmuring and Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Japheth which were of them that searched the land rent their clothes and they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel saying the land which we've passed through to search it it's a good land, exceeding good land and the Lord delight in us he'll bring us into this land he'll give it to us a land that flows with milk and honey only rebel not against the Lord neither fear ye the people of the land for they're bred for us their defense is departed from them the Lord is with us, fear them not and all the congregation bade stone them with stones these are God's people wanting to stone the prophets of God who want to walk in righteousness and faith before the Lord and the glory of the Lord appeared in the camp and after the congregation before all the children of Israel the Lord said unto Moses how long will this people provoke me? how long will it be ere they believe me? for all the signs which I have shown unto them I will smite them with the pestilence and disinherit them and I'll make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they and of course you know that the man of God fell on his face and interceded and God spared them from distress in that moment and turned them over to their own murmuring spirits and released them and their carcasses to the death in the wilderness would you skip over to the right Deuteronomy the 11th chapter please or rather Deuteronomy the 1st chapter just a few pages and I want to read just one portion of scripture here just four or five verses Deuteronomy the 1st chapter let me show you what happens to a people who never learned their lesson never learned to trust God never learned to quit murmuring and complaining verse 31 Deuteronomy 1 verse 31 and in the wilderness where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God bared thee as a man doth bear his son in all the way that you went until you came into this place yet in this thing you did not believe the Lord your God who went in the way before you to search you out of place to put your tents in in fire by night to show you by what way you should go in a cloud by day and the Lord heard the voice of your words and he was angry brother, sister, stop a minute and the Lord heard what you said now I could stop right here and preach a message just on that the Lord heard what you said to your brother your sister he heard what you said about the church he heard what you said about pastors about leadership he heard everything you said he heard every word there's not a person in this house tonight that can say God didn't hear me God has heard and recorded every word you said every word we've said all of us he's recorded every word every word the Lord heard and was angry he was wroth surely he said and swore saying surely there shall not one of these men of this evil generation see the good land which I swear to give unto your fathers save Caleb the son of Jephunneh he shall see it and to him will I give the land that he hath trod upon and to his children because he hath wholly followed the Lord now go to Deuteronomy 31 quickly please I want to show you that that spirit in these people destroyed their own children destroyed their own children now if you will look at me again please brother sister listen I'm not jumping around here on stage and I'm not yelling but I've got the anointing of God on me the anointing of the Holy Spirit for this message and I want you to listen to it very closely please there's something worse I see in this whole thing than this generation of unbelieving children of God going out in the wilderness and dying in unbelief hard hearts I'll tell you what what did these children have to put up with 40 years of sitting and listening to grapes 40 years of sour grapes these kids grew up listening to the rundown the leadership of Moses and Aaron I don't know how this man survived they so provoked him that he was provoked to speak unadvisedly with his own lips and it kept him out of the promised land could you imagine 40 years of living in tents the people getting more sour and more sour I've met Christians like that they are not getting sweeter and sweeter they're getting sourer and sourer they're getting meaner and meaner I think by the time they had a funeral most of these they were the meanest people on earth I mean they were I believe they got up every morning complained about the weather every day complained they complained about it they complained about manna manna burgers, manna everything I mean everything is manna they complained about everything there wasn't a day in their life they didn't murmur and complain I'll tell you complaining and murmuring is more addictive than drugs absolutely addictive and you know what they damned the next generation they damned their children Moses is about to die he's about to be glorified and taken home to meet the Lord and what a thing to hear at your dying moment you're about to die you spent 40 years with these people and here's what the Lord says verse 14 Deuteronomy 31 and I think this is the worst I can't comprehend this the Lord said unto Moses behold the day's approach that thou must die ok this is his dying message call Joshua and present yourself in the tabernacle of the congregation that I'll give you a charge and Moses and Joshua went and presented themselves in the tabernacle of the congregation and the Lord appeared in the tabernacle in a pillar of a cloud and the pillar of the cloud stood over the door of the tabernacle and the Lord said unto Moses boy I tell you I sure don't want to hear this I wouldn't want to hear this and the Lord said to him behold thou shall sleep with thy fathers and this people will rise up and go a whoring after the gods of the strains of the land see they haven't even gotten in yet but these children have been so corrupted by the complaining spirits of their parents the murdering complaining spirits of their parents they're damned they didn't even get a running start they shall sleep with their fathers and this people will rise up and go a whoring after the gods of the strains of the land whither they go to be among them they will forsake me they're going to break my covenant which I've made with them my anger shall be kindled against them in that day and I will forsake them and I will hide my face from them and they shall be devoured and many evils and troubles shall befall them so that they may say in that day are not these evils come upon us because our God is not among us I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evils which they have wrought in that they are turned unto other gods now therefore write this song for you and preach to the children of Israel put it in their mouths that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel how would you like to hear that before you die there's a pastor isn't that awful to say you know it'd be like the Holy Spirit coming and David you're going to die but this congregation I've raised up they're all going to backslide why because they were born and raised they had been exposed with spirit that had leaped upon them and possessed them and try as they will their lives were destroyed not only were their fathers and mothers blocked out of all the blessing not only did they die with their carcasses in the wilderness bleeding away into nothing now they passed it down to their children and I tell you so much that I see of our children today growing, backslidden we've got parents mourning about the way their kids are backslidden and they sit all day and watch filth on television and then they say pray for my kids my boy, my girl, my sons my daughters, I can't get through to them, no wonder you sit there watching filth, come here and raise your hands and praise God and then go home and watch filth and wonder why your kids backslide or you sit around in the house you sit around your dinner table and you preach it for dinner chew him up say I don't agree with what's happening down there or you come here and praise the Lord those pastors are not right they don't have the whole gospel and your kids sit there and listen and you want them to come here and hear us preach and you have taken their respect out of their hearts for us Lord I'm not spanking anybody I'm not mad at the devil, I'm not mad at people I'm not mad at you not at all we're fighting for your kids we're fighting for your family every principle I'm talking about here proves beyond a shadow of a doubt God said I heard you and I'm angry about it and you can't get away with it you can't talk about preachers you can't talk about your neighbors you can't have a spirit of criticism on you without a damn in your family well, I've got to change here I'm coming back we come now to the house that Jesus is building you know what Peter said we also as living stones are built up as a spiritual house a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices to God by Jesus Christ now the Bible makes it clear the gates of hell will not prevail against the house that Jesus is building never in fact, if you remember what John wrote in Revelation he said I'll be held in law a great multitude here's proof that the house of Jesus is going to survive with glory here's absolute proof that there's going to be an army, a true army, sanctified that will not fall, whose carcasses will not die in this modern wilderness God's going to see them through because the prophets that I'll be held in law a great multitude which no man could number of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues Russians, Czechs, Romanians, Chinese Americans, all stood before the throne and before the Lamb clothed with white robes and palms in their hand these washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb you see there is going to be a great host but nevertheless we would not have Hebrews 3 we would not have these warnings take heed he said you're a part of the I'll read it again but Christ is a son over his own house, whose house are we if, if, if, if some people think that God's going to do such a mighty thing on the earth that you can just be as careless as you please God's not going to sweep you in no we're going to have to be on guard more than ever as this day approaches the river is going to flow, but he said you're not going to be in that flow, you're not going to be a part of it unless you take hold, take a firm grip on Christ hold fast to the hope the hope is the return of the Lord Jesus and his abiding presence with us now don't let anybody take that hope from you no doctrine, nothing, take that hope from you hallelujah the Holy Ghost says if you will hear him today, hear his voice we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end, that first burst of love you had for Jesus that overpowering love that you saw give up everything for Jesus, hold it fast let it grow until the day of the Lord I tell you what I was preparing this message and the Holy Spirit put a hard question to me in fact I put it to myself, a real hard question said Lord, could it be possible, I want to put this question to you, choir, everybody on stage in here, the question I put to my own heart is it possible that in some way I've grieved the Lord, I want to be one of those living stones built into the house of Christ, and I know he's building a house and I don't want to miss it I want to be a part of this thing that he's doing in these last days, I don't want to see some big great thing, I just want to be a part of Jesus, I want to be in the flow of the presence of Jesus I don't want him ever have to be grieved with me, but my question was Lord, is there something I'm not saying if I grieved you, these were your children and there are times that I may have said and done things and there's grief, Lord if I grieved you in some way, bring that out, and I think that's in most of us, I think probably the majority of you that are sitting in this building tonight you don't want to grieve the Lord, that's the last thing in the world you want to do but why do we have these warnings why did Jesus say, when the son Jesus himself, when the son of man comes will he find faith on the earth will he find faith on the earth well what about us Lord, we're here at Times Square Church, look at the hundreds that are coming here, look at the hundreds all over the United States and around the world now full of faith and he says when he comes will he find faith on the earth, why did the Hebrew writers say let us therefore fear lest the promise being left us of entering into his rest some of you seem to come short of it, for unto us the gospel was preached as well as unto them, but the word preached but the word preached did not profit them not being mixed with faith in them that heard it they had a gospel, they heard the gospel but they didn't mix it with faith their gospel was preached by the Lord himself, they heard it right from the lips of the Father and we have a gospel who says they heard a gospel but they didn't mix it with faith and they lost it and you see what we preach and what you hear has to be mixed with faith Lord I believe you can keep me by your power, I believe what you said I'll tell you what, you know what I want to do it's only fair since I let you go back there, it's only fair to raise one of those carcasses and bring them back here and talk to us, and let's imagine one of these dead carcasses raised and spends a month here in New York City, Times Square Church and visits all our homes and then after 30, 40 days well let's make it 40 days, the amount of time they went through the spying out the land let's let him spy us out and 40 days later we let this man, he speaks English and he's standing here and he's telling us what he sees, looking from that perspective, you know what I believe he'd say, yes we had God's law in two stones and tablets that we couldn't touch them or handle them yes we disobeyed it but they were just stones far removed from us, locked in a closet but you people have a book in your hand that you handle and touch daily, it's inscribed in the very heart of your being, that word is inscribed in your very heart and yet you break it, your sin is worse, he would say yes, we disbelieved and we provoked the Lord in the face of all his miracles, we looked at that guiding cloud and the fire by night and we sinned, we did we did grieve God we murmured, we complained, but what you do in this century, what you do in these days is worse than what we did, because you disobey in the face of an infallible book of promises the examples of history are example of us, the example of all of our children that failed but in the face, not only of that, but you sin and complain and grieve God and murmur in the face of an indwelling Holy Ghost we had no indwelling Holy Spirit yes we murmured in our tents we doubted God in every time of trouble but you see, we only lived in the shadow of heavenly things, all we had was a pattern, but you have Christ the reality, but now he Christ, has obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much more he is able, he is the mediator of a better covenant, established on better promises, you have a better covenant, you have better promises and still you murmur and complain yes, we flattered him with our mouth, and we lied to him in our hearts, but what you do is worse, you come to your assemblies, you loudly praise him with your heart and with your lips, and you shower flattering songs of worship then you retire to your home and you permit doubts to flood your mind, you read that he's promised to keep you from falling and present you faultless before the throne of God yet you very seldom fully rest in that, you're always always doubting his ability to keep you oh yeah, he'll say we did not trust the Lord to take care of our children or of us, time after time, he heard our cry when we were in trouble he always delivered us, then we went right back to our unbelief and our children watched as we died and wasted away in our unbelief and they saw how dull we were they saw how unhappy we were they saw how miserable we were they saw the unbelief that harms our hearts, but he says you have all that example and you have ministers that cry out and say, don't go that way, and yet you go that way beloved, let me tell you something the house that Jesus is building and the house that Satan cannot tear down, is a house of faith that is unshakable in their confidence of the saving, keeping power of Jesus beloved, God's gonna have to have a people in this city, in every wicked city in America, he's gonna have the people not shaken by every lie of the devil you're not gonna be shaken by your feelings there are many times I don't even feel saved if I went by my feelings the devil comes in with all kinds of lies saying, you're not understanding Lord, you're not hearing right, you're not doing right and all these lies pile upon you there have to be a people that stand up by faith, and say, I know in whom I have believed, and he's able to keep me from falling, present me faultless before the throne of God we've gotta believe in his saving, keeping power he's gonna hold us in the palm of his hand and all you have to do is have a hungering yearning heart, and God will keep you amen hallelujah this is a house of hope hallelujah you know the scripture says this house has a priest if you're in Hebrews I'll just read 14 seeing then that we have a high priest great high priest, he's passed into the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us hold fast our profession, for we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but was at all points tempted just like as we are yet without sin, let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need this man would say, we didn't have anything like that, we had a high priest who was just like us he went in once a year, you have a high priest that's gone in one time and he's settled it, you have a high priest who intercedes for you you have a high priest that's opened up the temple and said walk right in I'll help you in all your troubles all your needs, you have an open door we didn't have you've got an open door I'm going to close in just a few moments, but I just have to get this off my heart this house that Jesus is building is not going to be a house of boasting it's not going to be a house of boasting the worst thing you can do to destroy the impact of what God's doing at Times Square Church is to think this is the only church in New York it's to go around to your friends and go to other churches and say you've got to come to our church, we've got it we have got it, our pastors are preaching the best gospel around, you've got to come, folks that is not of God and God help us as pastors this is not the only church in New York City I was in a meeting this past week, about 500 pastors at Brooklyn Tabernacle and this was a prayer conference had been called and I'll tell you, my eyes were open I sat next to a black sister pastor's church somewhere in Brooklyn, I don't think it's a large church then I sat next to her, was the pastor of the Christian Missionary Alliance Church on East Side over here near 68th Street and I'll tell you what, I saw that dear woman, tears rolling down her cheeks, so hungry for God and she said, I just want Jesus and I want Jesus to be formed in all my people the pastor of the Christian Missionary Alliance a very godly man reached over and said David, we're all praying for you in Times Square Church and I saw hunger, I saw thirst and God opened my eyes and said David, don't you ever think that you're this church is the only place, this is only a part of what God's doing in New York City it's only a part of what God's doing many of you come out of a little clique, you came out of a church that thought they had it all don't come here and try to start another camp, no we've not asked that anybody look up to us as though we were some kind of prophets we are just His servants, we have just a bit of the light, we're so far from having all that God wants for us we haven't even started folks and if we don't humble ourselves God will go down to Lower East Side He'll go somewhere else and pick up a humble group of people and He'll move through that little group He wants to work here but He can't do it if there's pride please, please, if you have that in your heart get it out, this is just one of His works it's just a part of what God is doing in New York City how many are hearing this? Raise your hand raise your hand if you're hearing it, please something else, if you go out and you hear folks saying well, I've heard that down at Times Square church they think they have it all it's the only church in town get this tape and give it to them and folks, I'm speaking out of my heart, these are not platitudes, I'm not just speaking off the top of my head, I feel it in the very spiritual gut of my soul God says no boasting in the house that I'm building no looking to man we've had enough stars signing this no more stars out signing the sun hallelujah something else, this church this house that Jesus is building is not going to have familiar spirits in it, He's going to drive out every familiar spirit, you know what a familiar spirit is? It goes something like this I'm home praying and I'm thinking of certain widows or divorcees in this church and I get to thinking oh Lord, how are you going to protect them in these days, we have every church has a few that are wolves in sheep's clothing that pray there are men, for example, that pray on women who hurt they get to them right after their divorce they get to them when they're hurting and they go and say I'm hurting too what they want is money and I'm praying oh God how can we protect them, and you know the answer the Lord gives me, you don't have to protect them because if that sister has a heart to God and she's not on the prowl God will make sure you know that man makes a detour all around her, there's a wall around her but you mark it down sister if you're on the prowl, you've got lust in your heart, I promise you there's a familiar spirit that will meet you, lust to lust I'd like to do a study someday, how all of these people get together Don talked about it and Bob talked about it, it's a dilemma for pastors all complaining spirits eventually are magnetized to another spirit if you complain and murmur I promise you you'll find that circle in this church that loves to murmur and complain you'll be right smack in the middle of it those who, you know in case you hear somebody, oh I heard it three or four times, that's Times Square music, it's all gone black it's all gone black well praise God I've been to a lot of dead white churches in the south too, I'll tell you, I just soon have it that way you know what I'm saying that if that's in your heart you're going to find truth, you're going to feel just like you do you're going to get together, so let's go out to eat, now usually you didn't talk to each other, one of you sat over here, one over here, but somehow you got together how did it happen? familiar spirits familiar spirits hallelujah Absalom how is it that he can stand outside that gate and people are complaining against his own father how is it he can hug those people and say if I were judge I'd be on your side I'll tell you what Absalom found every critical spirit in the land they were attracted to him why? because they were familiar spirits and there are familiar spirits in the church today and they're magnetically drawn together, mutual disgruntlement they're modern murmurs but I'll tell you what, this church that Jesus is building, this house that Jesus is building he's going to shut all these mouths I guess I guess I want to I told the Lord in prayer today Lord if I were to find if one of the pastors of this church and I found out that there were a group of people complaining and murmuring about me or the pastors and that, I probably don't have the patience of Moses, I'd be praying oh God, do something about him and Moses gets on his face and says oh God have mercy on them and that's what I want tonight I want to hear the mercy of Christ I want to hear through the preaching of the word, people convicted enough saying I heard it Jesus, I heard it I don't want to be a part of anything that is murmuring, complaining I don't want to complain Lord that you've forgotten me and with this I close, there are some of you facing a crisis right now, you're going through a hard place and you wonder if God has heard you things keep going on, make sure first of all you don't have a complaining spirit make sure you've not been criticizing make sure of that please we have a brother in this church that can testify to that one night we may ask him to come up here and testify how God showed him a spirit that he had on him something like we're describing and when God showed that to him and he got it out suddenly God opened all the doors that had been closed one after another the doors all opened God began to work what is it that's blocking the flow of the Holy Spirit there should be a flow God doesn't want anything to be blocked there should be a flow of the Holy Spirit will you stand with me please now that wasn't too bad was it that didn't hurt because we poured it down with the oil of the Holy Spirit glory to God up in the balcony you that make Times Square Church your home you know I know you know that we love you you know that we're here not to make a name for ourselves we've had all that we're not here you know that you come to church all the time we're always here you'll see us all here we're not running around the country preaching somewhere now we've been invited to Russia and there may be some time we'll be gone one at a time two weeks maybe but we only go like one Sunday we'll take two weeks but we'll only miss one Sunday because God's called us to shepherd a flock and lead them into righteousness and so when you hear what you heard Tuesday and then this morning and tonight the only purpose behind it all is to not get you agitated but it's to say hey look in the mirror here's what happened when they did it this way with rebellion and unbelief but we don't have to go that way there's another way and all we have to do is submit to that way and there's blessing beyond anything you can imagine God will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing you said you can't even contain it hallelujah you know God's not mad at any of us did you hear me he may be mad at our sins but he's not mad at people he's not mad at people now we suffer because of these things but when we submit, repent and ask God to take it out of our lives oh what great restoration happens to us Heavenly Father I pray that you deal in love tonight turn on the searchlight don't let anybody say well that message didn't fit me at all that's not for me I don't murmur I don't complain, I don't criticize Lord I don't believe that any of us can say that I believe we all have to stop and say Lord there are times I failed you on this but I don't want to fail you anymore give me a sweet tongue baptize my tongue in the Holy Ghost let me speak only the mind of Christ let me be one who edifies and lift up my brother and sister in the Lord there will not be any criticism there will be no murmuring, no complaining in my life, hallelujah Lord I don't want my children to grow up like that I want my children to hear grace and mercy and love hallelujah hallelujah bless you Jesus just in quiet silence, now bow your head for just a moment because I feel the Holy Spirit wants to unplug a whole lot of people he wants to remove that blockage, there's some blockage there maybe you've been praying about something it's not happening you see nothing but these blocks everywhere you turn, you're blocked I'm convinced I'm convinced in my heart that a critical spirit will do that yes it will, it will block everything it blocks the blessing of God it blocks the promise God said then you'll know my breach of promise you'll know my breach of covenant he said I can't work with you if you have to confess to that tonight and this is family I've had to confess it publicly God's dealing with me on this and I want it out I have a tendency, like Bob said if somebody didn't agree with him on certain doctrines or so forth he'd come like a tornado I've got that same tendency and there have been times in my ministry I'd sit with other pastors and I would say things that I'd have to go home and repent for just talking about somebody and now I know how dangerous that is and I don't want that folks God wants to do something in this church he wants to send a mighty outpouring of his Holy Spirit and he wants to have such praises in this house that people can just sense the glory as we praise him but that can't happen until we've got clean hands and pure hearts and our tongues are wholly given to him if you want to give your tongue to him tonight you can do it in your seat but some of you may be here tonight you're backslidden, you have a coldness in your heart you don't have the fire of the Lord you've been convicted about something tonight, the Holy Spirit convicted you and I know I had the mind of Christ I know I preached under his unction so now he's got to convict your heart Lord do convict tonight there are people in the balcony here on the main floor need to come up here and humbly submit and say Jesus, I heard you that was for me that was for me if it's for you, get out of your seat and come and stand here right now let's ask God for deliverance, let's ask God for victory and ask him to open up the blockage remove all the blocks remove all the hindrances so that the blessing of the Lord can flow again in our lives God wants to save your children he wants to heal he wants to do so many things for us don't let anything block the blessing the flow of his righteousness in our hearts this is the conclusion of the tape