In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of practical truth and living truth, rather than just theoretical knowledge. He encourages the audience to follow Jesus and come to know Him as the truth and the life. The preacher also prays for God's grace and righteousness to prevail in the midst of increasing trouble and evil in the world. He urges the listeners to focus on serving one master, Jesus, and to keep their eyes fixed on Him, not being distracted by other gifts or ministries. The sermon references the story of Jesus and the woman at the well, as well as the disciples' confusion about Jesus' statement regarding his food being to do the will of the Father. The preacher concludes by emphasizing the importance of doing God's will and having a single eye and treasure for His glory.

You see, doesn't it bother you, you're getting older, and you might not live to see some of this that you're talking about? It used to, and perhaps I still, you know, I still have those desires. But when I read, this is life eternal, he's praying for his disciples, this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, who now is sent. So life eternal, then, is knowing God. So my pursuit is to know Him more and more, because that's life. And it could be, yeah, this mortal frame will disintegrate if the Lord doesn't, if He doesn't show us some other way, which I know God will have, I believe, a people in the end time live to a great age, believe He will, and just step off from there into immortality. I believe that will happen. I'm not boasting that, because I believe that, that I will qualify, I'm not saying that. But surely there's something in what the Apostle Paul said and what Jesus said, that we can't just brush off for the general day of the resurrection. And He stands before the grieving sisters, and there's Lazarus down there in the tomb, in their four days, and He tries to comfort Mary and Martha, your brother will rise again. Oh yeah, we know, Lord, we know the scripture. He'll rise again the last day at the resurrection. Jesus said, I am the resurrection. And that's what Jesus is referring to. He wasn't talking about time schedules. He was talking about who is the life. I am the resurrection. Believe us all this. Oh yes, we believe you're that prophet that commanded the world. That wasn't the question. I know that we've partaken of that as we ought, and I know God is going to reveal it. He's going to reveal it in end time as He did in the beginnings of the church. He's going to reveal it in end time. I believe in greater power. Paul had a great revelation, a great practical outworking of it. When he said, I carry about in my body the dying of the Lord Jesus. The dying of the Lord Jesus. Every day subject to persecution. Sometimes to stone. Once at least to death. All these guys fired these big rocks at him, and he sailed down there covered with rock. They went on their way. Paul got up. Went on his way to ministry. I carry about in my body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in my mortal flesh. In my mortal flesh. And so the resurrection and the life is not only to be revealed in immortality. It's to be revealed in mortality. Paul had a taste of it. I bear about in my body the dying of the Lord Jesus. This mark here, this is where my ribs were crushed in. This is where my eye was crushed out. And he bore marks. Why didn't God heal him? I believe he did. Why didn't God heal the wounds of Jesus? He did. But he left those wound marks there as a witness and a testimony of the resurrection life of God Almighty. This fact that he was dead and is alive again, I think he still has those marks. Because when John saw in the book of Revelations, when they talked about, the angel talked, showed him this book that was sealed with seven seals. And the cry went forth, who is worthy to come forth and open this book and break the seals? And no one moved. No angel, no archangel. No one came forth. So they understood the impact of the opening of that book. They understood there was something awesome about it. No angel would stir. Not one of the departed saints, if they were there at that time, dared to come forth and say, yeah, I'll open it. And John wept. It's just so important to John. You mean there's no one in heaven that's going to open this book which contains the final, it talks about the final victory of the Lord Jesus Christ over this universe and all its sin and iniquity? No one here that can open the book and hear about it? That day is a week not long. The lion of the tribe of Judah has prevailed. He's overcome and he will come and he will open the book and loose the seals thereof. I remember this minister, hearing him, you know, and he said, and so John dried his eyes and he looked and said, I want to see this powerful lion. And lo, a lamb. Not only a lamb, but a lamb as it had been slain. A bleeding lamb came forward. It took the book and began to open the seals. You know, it's the most awesome thing that when great kings and dictators or prime ministers or you name it in the earth and the earth has had men in them, from as far back as we have recollection and as far back as we have history, these potentates that would rise up and lord it over the nation. And the ultimate conqueror, it's a lion, but he's got the character of the lamb of the tribe of Judah. I mean, the lion of the tribe of Judah got the character of a bleeding, bleeding, a wounded lamb. Carries those wounds as a badge of honor, as a medal. God could have healed him with hands. No, that's no sign of death to him. That's a sign of victory. I suffered that on a cross. Here, Tom, he's come and look. He didn't want to even, I mean, he was so dumbfounded, you might say. Jesus, come here. If he had said, I won't believe until I put my finger in his hands and in his side. Come here, Thomas. He came forward. They put his finger in the hands and in his side and cried out, Oh my Lord and my God. All through the book of Revelation, a lamb is conquered. That's not all. He's got followers who followed in that way. God help us to be followers in the way. Knowing even as I speak that that way is going to be very, very hard and difficult. It's not going to be an easy one. Now, yes, now. Perhaps worse than that. It's going to be filled with many, many dangers, many temptations, many trials. That, oh, I just, I know sometimes I emphasize those things. Because we're living in the land of plenty, we have freedom to gather like this without putting shutters over the windows or locking the doors. The time might well come, if not in my time, in yours, when it will be as it was in the days of the early church. When because, because of the power of the Lamb on the throne and the message that came forth by the Spirit who represented him in the earth, who spoke of that cross and of that death and of that resurrection. That was the thing that enraged the governments there in Judea. Kings of the earth risen up against the Lord and against his anointed. They took him on and they crucified him and he rose from the dead and they took him on again. Because though he rose, though he was crucified and put away, he rose from the dead and he ascended. But there was a people on the earth who were in such close contact with him that they were like their master. They took note of the disciples that they'd been with Jesus. What do you mean by preaching this Jesus that we crucify? Peter says, we mean this, he whom you crucified, God has raised from the dead and has appointed him king of all kings. Before him all people will bow and acknowledge him as Lord of all when they repent. And I mean the Lamb was walking again in the earth in his followers. These are they when John saw this great company ascending Mount Zion. Who are these? These are the overcomers. These are the ones who follow the Lamb which withers whoever he leads them. Notice that. These are the ones that follow the Lion of the tribe of Judah. He's never seen again as a Lion of the tribe of Judah, as a fictional Lamb of an alliance. 28 times in the book of Revelation he's spoken of as a conquering Lamb. The Lamb that leads his people by the rivers of the land. The Lamb in the throne that leads the armies of heaven, and the kings, and the dictators, and the rulers, and whatever they're called in any nation. They've got to know that there's a Lamb riding on the throne because he's got a representative Lamb in the earth in the body of Christ that's prepared to take up their cross and follow him. These are they that follow the Lamb with us wherever he goes and loveth not their lives unto the death. Proceeded by saying they overcame these people, this great crowd. Overcame by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their witness, the word of their testimony. Overcame. They overcame most of them by dying. Dying for the cause of Christ. Bearing about an old body the afflictions that Christ bore on the cross. Same afflictions that which comes from the hatred of men's hearts because they don't realize that in doing all that they're releasing. They're releasing a people who are filled with the very love of Jesus. The love of Jesus is going to be known as that which is the ultimate victory of God's people. Nothing more powerful. Nothing more powerful than the love of Jesus. Do you know what apostles, and prophets, and evangelists, and pastors, and teachers, and elders, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we come to this statue. You know, people, it's strange though. They know these things and there's a lot of emphasis on five-fold ministry. And I think of one man, he's almost every time you hear me, the five-fold ministry. God's setting up the five-fold ministry. Yeah, I know. He is. Along with the old, the accompanying ministries, deacons, and elders, doors of mercy, and you know, many, many different aspects of ministry. There was a time when I suppose we all wonder, well, what's my ministry? I want to fulfill my ministry. And that's good. But I think teaching has fallen short in this area of reminding such people that no matter what the prophetic utterance might be about your ministry, you only come to that in fullness as you follow the Lamb. I don't care if it's the greatest apostle or healing evangelist on earth. If he doesn't follow the Lamb, his ministry might be effective, but with healing people, it won't give him any credit in the courts of heaven if he isn't following the Lamb. And that is pretty awesome and pretty disturbing to some people who might be apostles and prophets. And showing the fruits of it, I mean by the fruits of it, I mean what they mean by it, that they can prophesy true prophecies. They can heal the sick, might raise the dead, might perform all kinds of miracles. If they're not following the Lamb, it doesn't qualify them to reign with Christ at Mount Sinai. So, Lord, we're not saying we're qualified. We're just saying, Lord, if we know these things, God, help us to qualify. By that I mean, God, help us to follow, oh, not just the enthroned Christ, but the Lamb. Take up our cross and follow you. And you said we can't be your disciples. We can't be your disciples. Lord, we want to be your disciples. We want to follow you. And God sees the intents of our heart, and he sees the thoughts in our hearts. And if our thoughts please him and our desires please him, he'll answer. He'll cause us to walk in his way that will bring us to that. So that's encouraging, to know that our hearts are right, and that's the most important thing. Give all diligence to keep thy heart. Keep it with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life. That's why we say, Lord, renew my heart and my mind. I don't know, probably a little difference there, but renew, Lord, make it new, that we might think that's the mind of Jesus. Be motivated, that's the mind of Jesus. For by nature, we don't have that. For thus says the Lord, my thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways. How much difference? As the heavens are high above the earth, so are my ways above your ways, and my thoughts above your thoughts. Oh, that's a long distance. And so then, how can we ever stand God's Word, except we have a bridge between, oh yeah, be nice. I thought it'd be great to be a master of Greek and of Hebrew. I don't say I set out to do that. I didn't. I just wanted to have a little understanding. Which, when God showed me this, I mean it. I don't care if I never know Greek or any more of it, if I come to know Him better. And the Lord seemed to show me when I stopped worrying about Greek and Hebrew. He sort of showed me this way. Here's English and German and French and Latin and Greek and Hebrew and Chinese and Japanese. And let's see them as the size of this zero here on this cover. Separated by, oh, three sixteenths of an inch. And that's the barrier between Greek and English. Eighth of an inch. But the barrier between Greek or German or Japanese and the mind of God is infinite. That's the real barrier. Infinite. So no matter if I could master every language on earth, including the dead languages of Latin, Greek and Hebrew, if I could master that to perfection, could read the scriptures, I wouldn't know God. Saul of Tarsus was such a man. I mean, he knew Greek and Hebrew to perfection. I'm sure he did. On occasion, though, he spoke Greek or Aramaic. And he started to speak in Hebrew. He's Hebrew's old, that man. He knows Hebrew. And they listened. What's a great oration then? Hebrew. He knew it thoroughly. Didn't know God. The light from heaven shone upon him and knocked him down, blinded him. Blinded his eyes that he by the light of Jesus. Caused him to be in that state of blindness. Was it for three days? Totally blind. Gone all his hopes to wipe out the church. He did it. What's this all about? Oh, God's ways, you know, are so far beyond us. He chose the chief persecutor of the church to be the chief, you might say, the chief apostle in the church. God is sovereign. Again, I say, I'm not going to get into Calvinism or where Calvinism will lead you if you follow it to its utter conclusion. But he's sovereign. He knows what he's doing. He's doing it right. And in the end, all creation will know everything he did was right. The Lamb rules on the throne. And one of these days, next year, the year after, a decade from now, I'm not a prophet. I don't know those things. But he's ready. He's a bleeding lamb to reveal himself to a bleeding people. And kings and dictators and presidents and archbishops and go to... No, there's a lamb that's angry. They're going to cry out to the rocks and the mountains, cover us, cover us for the day of the wrath of the Lamb has come and we can't overcome him. They're going to cry out that. Oh, they're going to know there's a lamb up there. They don't believe it now. They're going to know there's a lamb reigning. And this lamb people are going around in the earth, a lamb people witnessing of him, not only by the words they say, but by the life they live. And they'll... That's that Jesus, people. Jesus. We see Jesus there crucified in these people. That's going to be so real in the earth that the captains and the great men are going to know it. So there's a long way for us to go yet. But it doesn't need to take long to get there. But I'm just saying this. I know somewhere along the way, every one of us, if we're true to him, we'll come to the crossroads. Let's see, can I go this way or that way? And until we are, what's the house I put? Assured in our hearts, it's settled between our hearts and minds and the Lord Jesus. The Lord was going to follow you wherever you lead us. We'll be tempted to turn aside. So that's why it's so very important today that this confirmation of the life of Christ in us and the requirement of Christ for a disciple is known. Not that we're going to go out looking for some cross somewhere. But that we know what God wants. That when the time comes, God says there. To pick that cross up. If we've already got it in our hearts and minds, I believe God will have grace in that day to pick it up when it's there waiting for us. Like Jesus picked his own. Which is all prepared for him. His heart was fixed. He even said in that closing prayer, well, you might say that closing prayer in the presence of his disciples, John 17. Father, I come to thee. I have finished the work thou gavest me to do. Well, that was, I forget, a day or two later, two or three days later when he would hang on the cross. So commended that he could say, Father, I have finished the work thou gavest me to do. And now come I to thee. And from then on in that prayer, he was praying for a people. Praying for you and I. Not only for these that you have given me here, but for those that will believe on me through their word. I pray for them also. And we need to read John 17 often. Pray for us. We'd be one as he was one with the Father. I in them, thou in me. That they might be one in us. And what's the outcome of that? That the world might believe that thou hast sent me. That's the outcome of this union in the body of Christ. It's not a mechanical thing. It's not saying, oh, come on, let's have a great show of unity here. Let's all get together. Forget doctors. All that. Let's get together in this building that seats 10,000 people. Show the world we're one. Nothing to do with that. The people coming into harmony with Jesus. Having the same union with Jesus that he has with the Father. Then the world will believe. Then there'll be a witness in the earth that Jesus was and he was here in one man. Now it'll be in corporate people all over the earth that may never get together. As one great crowd. But here and there, a handful. Here and there, another handful. Babylon always wants to get all the pieces together. They're not satisfied with a group here that loves the Lord and a group there. That doesn't work. Great church organizations have come up because they said, people, they're going to get scattered if we don't do something about this. We've got to have a headship. I'm told that by 100 AD, and I forget who it was that said, this is the rule of the church. People will submit themselves to the bishop and the bishop to the archbishop. And that became an established thing in the church. The Lordship of Christ soon gave way to the Lordship of man. And I've seen in my church, many organizations, several I can think of, started out with a great flowing of the Spirit of God. And in short order, there was one who was king, one who was recognized as the head. I did. So how can we avoid then getting popularized if we have a great and mighty gift? There's only one way, and that's to follow the Lamb. If you're following Him, He'll show you your cross, which could be, go lay down your ministry. In fact, He did that for a while. Somehow, I guess they, I don't know, got back into it. Go and take a job. Go and work out there in the work sector. I'm just saying, it doesn't matter what, but God's so jealous over His people, He will not give His glory to the greatest apostle, prophet, teacher, evangelist that ever lived. He won't share His glory with them. He's still jealous of His own glory. Then He gave it all to Jesus. As in Jesus, He was the Son of the Father, the expressed image of the Father, coming into the earth, sealed with this covenant on His lips, Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God, and tempt it concerning it. When they're out of temptation, tempt it concerning that covenant. You're the Son of God. Here, you're hungry, aren't you? Forty days, turn that to bread. You can do it. You're the Son of God. People think every time the devil challenges us, we've got to accept the challenge. Oh no, Jesus wouldn't. He knew the mind of God. He knew what God said. He wasn't going to react to what the devil did. He would only react to what the Father said. God is going to have this true testimony of Jesus in the earth, the same testimony that Jesus was Himself when He was here as one man. He's going to have it in a people. Testimony of Jesus, which is better than any, higher in order than any prophet. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. And this prophet that was showing John around in the heavens, one of the prophets apparently that had gone on, we don't know who it was, but he was so ablaze with the light and glory of God that John thought it was Jesus, and he fell down to worship Him. He said, No, no, don't do that. I'm of your brethren. And of your fellow, how does he put it? I'm of your brethren. Those that have the testimony of Jesus. I'm your brethren that He meant for the prophets there. And of the prophets that have the testimony of Jesus, keep this from me. So apparently it was one of the prophets who had gone on. That was there showing John around. And John, twice he was tempted to fall and worship Him. Don't do it. Worship God for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. When he says it's the spirit of prophecy, to me it indicates it's far higher than having a gift of prophecy. It's the spirit, the whole being of this prophetic people. It's the spirit of prophecy. God has great work in mind in His people. I believe it will be in this generation. We don't know that. We're not to be concerned about that, because it can be in this generation, and many are in this generation, not seeing it, not learning about it. These are they that keep the testimony of Jesus. These are they that follow the Lamb whether it's wherever He goes. Followers of the Lamb. Knowing Him is the way, practical truth, living truth, not just theoretical truth, intellectual truth. Follow Him in the way we come to know. Him who is the truth, the Logos of God and the life. Well, I think that's it or not. Heard something from the heart of God that will stay with you? Dear Lord, I thank you. I thank you for this opportunity, Lord, you've given me to come here in fellowship with these brothers and sisters here. Thank you, Lord. I found it to be refreshing in my own heart. And I think of the time that you were sitting there in the well, Jacob's well, and there came a woman to draw water, and you had words from the Father to give to her. And she went away excited because she had heard the words of one whom she believed to be the Messiah. And the disciples came back with bread because they had traveled a long way and they were hungry. They said, here Master, here's something to eat. And he says, I have meat to eat that you know not of. And they said, oh, has someone come and given you something to eat? And he says, my meat, my food is to do the will of Him that sent me and to finish His work. Because it's done, O Lord, that our very substance, our very life is in doing your will. He didn't say, my meat is to heal the sick, to raise the dead, to preach, to prophesy, to cast out devil. My meat is, my food is to do the will of the Lord. Lord, bring us to that one thing that David spoke about, one thing of the desire of the Lord. Bring us to that one thing, Lord, that Jesus spoke about. And he spoke about having an eye, one eye, a single eye for your glory. One treasure, not many treasures, but one treasure laid up in heaven where neither thief or robber or rust could steal or corrupt. One master, not many masters, one master. Knowing that we can't serve two masters, it has to be one or the other. Bring us to that. Where our focus is right, we have one eye on one master and on one treasure. And God and I will be satisfied, but we cannot be satisfied until you bring us to that, by your grace. Do it with these young people, Lord. O God, I know your hands on them, and I pray, Lord, you will keep them, always looking unto Jesus. I enlist in that that we see Him not with our physical eyes. O God, send forth the light in each one of us. It is such a brilliance of the glory of God that we'll see you, Jesus. I enlist to see you and keep our eyes on you, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Not detracted by anything that you're doing, not to be detracted by the gifts that are functioning in people. Mighty ministries that are there in the land, not to be detracted by it, but yet not despising them or thinking we're superior. Thanking you for every good and perfect gift you've given, Lord, but let it not detract us from it. Don't give us those crossed eyes, Lord. We can't see clearly. Give us an eye that is single, a few, an exalted one, high enlisted. And may we then, as we proclaim Christ, have that own administration. The apostle had to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery. Make them see. You can't do it, Lord, with any kind of gimmicks that we have. Lord, to have an administration of light that will cause men to see. Do it, Lord, we pray for this group here. Keep looking unto him. That in the days to come, when there's a lot of trouble in the land, much more than there is now, O God, we'll be fortified, fortified with that assurance. God, you sent us, and you sent us in this generation, and you promised that in the greatness of the evil, no matter how great it was, there'd be more grace. Sin and iniquity abound, you said there'd be more grace. It would abound beyond that. And we pray, Lord, that you would do that for your name's sake. Put that burden on the hearts of all of us, Lord, more and more, the burden that Isaiah had. As watchmen on the walls, we will not be able to rest or take our peace, Lord, until the righteousness of Zion goes forth as brightness, and the salvation is a burning lamp. A message, yeah, but more than that, a burning lamp. That's your burden. You declared to the prophet, for Zion's sake, I will not hold my peace. For Jerusalem's sake, I cannot rest until the righteousness thereof goes forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burns. Thank you for the burden of your heart. We accept the burden of your heart, Lord, when you lay it upon us, but make us worthy to receive that burden through no withinness of our own, but by coming into the yoke of Christ. Which he bids us to do. He carries only the burden of the Father and none other. We want to come into that yoke so, oh so thoroughly, Lord, that we have no burden but the one that you lay upon us. Look upon you and learn from me, for I make them lowly in heart, and they shall find rest unto their souls. Dear Lord, we thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.