Milton Green emphasizes the critical need for the church to confront sin and immorality within its ranks, arguing that true love must align with God's truth rather than compromise. He discusses the dangers of allowing unrepentant individuals to remain in the church, warning that such tolerance can lead to spiritual decay. Green highlights the importance of repentance and the transformative power of God's grace, asserting that believers must choose to live righteously and not be deceived by false teachings. He encourages the congregation to seek freedom from sin and to embrace a life led by the Spirit, ultimately leading to eternal life. The message serves as a call to action for the church to uphold biblical standards and to be vigilant against the powers of darkness.

Welcome to From the Pulpit and Classic Sermons. Each week we bring you a different message from some of history's greatest speakers in the Christian faith, and powerful sermons from modern preachers too. This week we have Milton Green with part two of his message, The Flesh and the Power of Darkness. For I on my part, though absent in the body but present in the spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this as though I were present. In the name of the Lord Jesus, when you are assembled and I with you in spirit with the power of the Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan, for the destruction of his flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Now, God said, get him out of there, didn't he? This man's continuing something without any repentance and everything. What does he know about the Lord? But something up here says, just love him into it. Just love him. What kind of love is that? Love is not love until you say what God says. See, when you love him into something, you have him up there singing a special. That's not a good example. It's not God. I'm telling you what, when you deliver this man over to Satan, he'll get his head whipped on to where he'll repent and get saved. Oh, he's already saved? Well, let's look at verse 9. I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people. I did not at all means with the immoral people of this world or with the covetous or swindlers with dollars, for then you'd have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote you not to associate with any what kind of brother? So-called brother, if he should be an immoral person. Is that plain? Now, we live in a time of compromise and everything saved that walks in front of a church house. He's a so-called brother. And I'll show you more about that. If he should be immoral person or covetous or idolater or reviler or drunkard or swindler, not even to eat, don't even eat a meal with such a one as him. He's refusing to repent. And the church I was in, when I came to that church, there was a man who was in the office right there, a responsibility, who was in adultery. And after I came to know a few things, I asked the pastor, one day, what about that? You know, people see him and he helped had that same position. And he said, we just need to love him. And he kept his position. And when I left there, seven years later, he still had that very high position in the church and still being counseled for immorality. Now, I went back home here lately, and that man's not in church. He's married the other woman. I cannot believe a curse of immorality is on the church. Now, in 1 Corinthians 6, look with me in verse 9, please. Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be what? Oh, when God says, do not be deceived, does it mean that you might be deceived about this? Is there something you might be deceived? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, is that immoral? Huh? Okay. Neither fornicators or idolaters, nor adulterers, is that immorality, folks? All right. Nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, homosexual, little immoral, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor the drunkards, nor ravelers, nor swindlers shall inherit the kingdom of God. Is that plain? Now, that settled a homosexual question, didn't it? And adulterers, it's all the same. That's got that plain, didn't it? Did you hear it? They don't make it unless they quit being a homosexual, unless they quit being, choose against being an adulterer or fornicator. It's all, I mean, whatever, you know. I've seen, I know some precious, precious people who have been set free from that sin of homosexuality. Oh, let me, folks, I want you to, I want to share a burden with you. Let me, let me just kind of, let me just kind of put something on you. I was in a fullness conference. When I had been in a church in North Little Rock, Indian Hills Baptist Church, and the Lord would just give tremendous freedom, and the pastor was at this Lord had done his church, this pastor was began relating to the people, how the people had been being set free from the powers that are, and what a difference, you know, it was making. And there were a lot of pastors there. And one of these pastors, right after that meeting, I came up to Brother King and he asked him to, he just needs some help, he needs some deliverance. And my brother asked him, he said, would you mind if I get one of these other pastors just to kind of go, and we'll go back in the office and we'll just, we'll just deal with that bond, we'll tear strongholds down. And he said, well, it'd be fine, it'd be all right. And so he got another pastor there that he didn't even know. He said, would you come and just let me pray for this brother? And they walked into an office there and they, and they were in the office and they got in there. And this pastor began crying. And he's telling about his compulsion ever since he'd been a little child toward homosexuality. Can you have some kind of idea of what kind of torment that is for you? And you have a compulsion, you're not taught to deal with it. Now, you see, folks, where I'm coming from right here. See, while people are being offended, you know, talking about the powers that are, if something comes up that don't fit in the box, there are people like this walking all around, you know, at least. And he began crying. And so what the brother did, the man's repentant. Of course, he's crying. I just cast that demon out. Man knew he's free. And that's good. That's good not to have a homosexual demon in you. And then the man left. He came through the office and then Brother King, he came to the door there and said, Bill, will you come in here a minute? And I walked in the office and there the other pastor sat there and he was crying. When the first pastor walked out, after he got set free, the other one began crying. He said, I've got the same problem. And I cast the demon out of him. It's an amazing thing just sitting in here right now. People that love you, you know, you're not going to come and sit for three days in a word unless you're a critic and want to write a book, or unless you really love the Lord. You just don't want to do it. And many of you right out there sitting out here right now, bless your hearts. I love you. I want to tell you, you can be free from that thing. Such a simple thing. Be free. Sir, you can be free from that. Adultery. And that compulsion, pornography. You can be free from all that temper and anger and the lust. Folks, let me just tell you something. You can be free from all of it. What do you think about that? All these things that's coming against your mind, your will. All these things, these compulsions. You know, you've seen these, some of these things in your family, on your ancestors, on your mother, on your father. And you don't come down. And it's just, you know, in my family. On my father's side, my father's mother, you know, they call it the Lillards. And the Lillards was all so proud of their temper. You know, we always brag about our Lillard temper. We could just throw the awfulest temper fit. It's a curse. And along with that was a curse of alcohol. The compulsion. I'm going to tell you something. Oh, you say the sins can't be visited on the children. It goes, those things happen. Well, you know, that's what I used to think. Adam's sins got visited on you, didn't they? I'm going to tell you something. The Lord is so precious. Repent. Just be repentant. Will you do that? And nobody ain't going to be put on any spot around here. Now, I'm going to tell you what, when we pray here on Friday. And folks, I just feel led just off and just tell you right here, right now. There's stuff coming off of you. All over this place. You're going to be so different. You're going to be being set free as you receive this word these three days. And on Friday, but I want you to do something in Jesus name. Don't just make mental assent the thing. Just agree that these things are right. Turn from him in your heart and say, God, that's right. And in my heart, I turn from you got unforgiven. Say, God, I choose with my will to love and everything. I forgive everybody that's ever hurt me. And I'm willing to go to anyone you tell me to go to. You show me to go to them because I'm going to have it right in your eyes. Now, when you have that kind of attitude, folks, look out. And if let me ask you something. You got some that arthritis bothering you and these things. What you do with that unforgiveness? You don't have to have other arthritis. What is these things that call you sneeze and whatever allergies? That's a big, long word. Well, it just wouldn't come and I need to say it. Thank you, brother. And you see what Rick's for. He knows all the big ones. Allergies, folks. You don't have to leave here with allergies. Receive the word of God. Go back home without any allergies. OK, is that all right? He sent his word to heal you. Just receive it. Don't try to figure it up here. Just get in on it. He'll heal, won't he, brother? OK. All right. I turn to Romans 6, please. Romans. We're going to start in verse 1. All right, now. Romans 6, verse 1. What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? Did that answer your question? That's a good question. You continue in sin that grace might increase? May it never be. God forbid. God forbid. How shall we who died to sin, believe me, Mark, died to sin? How will you die to sin and still live in it? Is that plain? Or do you not know, verse 3, that all of us who've been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into his what? I'm going to tell you what. When he died, we died with him. We're one. We're hidden in him. Isn't that right? Now, this thing of grace that where you go and you just walk after the lust of flesh, folks, is not what we've been reading, is it? Matter of fact, that's what's been getting you killed. Now, verse 4. Therefore, we have been buried with him through baptism into what? Now, this death in order. Now, I want you to circle in order. That is, Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we might walk. Now, I want you to circle walk and then underline that walk in unison of life. Now, we were buried with him in death that we might walk. Do you understand that? You got a new walk. You walk in unison of life. That's in order. That's how you died to it. You walk in unison of life. Is that right? Okay. Now, verse 5. For if we have become united with him, is that what covenant is? When two become one? If we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we deny ourself and take up our cross and follow him. Is that right? He who wishes to save his carton is going to lose it. Whoever loses his carton, for my sake and the gospel's one, is going to save it. Amen? All right. When you become united with him in the likeness of his death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. Knowing this... Now, you're going to know something right here. Verse 6. That our old man has died. You know what they're saying? Look at me, folks. I see a couple of people not looking right now. See, when your heart goes to the lust of your flesh, you love this old man. That's where you're married. You're married to this. Corruption. You're married to corruption, but that's where your heart is. But then the opposite of that, your heart believing to righteousness. See, everything's a heart. Sinner man. It's all this outer man. All right. Now, knowing this, that our old man, our old self was crucified with Jesus, that our body of sin might be done away, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. If you died to sin, you're not a slave to sin, are you? Now, you understand why we possess the land? Now, see, it's many things of the flesh. Now, I'm not saying, folks, let me stop this because, see, some of you, there might be a few who never heard, never hear another word I say if I don't say it. I don't say everything is a demon. Just most everything. Let me just say it. I might forget it later on and no one else. I don't say that every sickness is caused by a demon. Just all of them I've dealt with. I can't say that. I don't know that. And I've never said it. But because he says that he acts like all that sickness is caused by demons, I'm not going to have nothing to do with any of it. In other words, if we see a Buddhist over here raising his hands up, we're not going to praise the Lord because we don't like, we don't want to, we're not going to come over here. Well, in other words, see, we watch people merchandise the things of God. And then we're going to be over here because we watch some devils merchandise the things of God. We're unwilling to come over here and line up with what the word said because we watch some devils working, right? Folks, that's what we want to avoid. You hear? Now, let's just stay with the word and its context and get in on it because obviously we're looking at some things here that's got us really messed up. I'll tell you what, this is not everything, but I'm going to tell you this is one of the most important things. This is what the Spirit of God is saying to the church today. Verse 7, For he who has died is freed from sin. Verse 10, For the death that he died, he died to sin once for all, but the life that he lives, he lives to God. Even so, consider yourself to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. We consider, we reckon ourselves dead. Isn't that right, to sin? Therefore, do not let sin reign. I heard someone say, Dominate, do not let sin dominate in your mortal body that you should obey the lust of the flesh. Do you see that? I don't want to go too fast. And do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin. That means the lust of the flesh. So let your body, members of your body be involved in the lust of the flesh as instruments of unrighteousness. Present yourself to God, there's a living sacrifice, as those who, what? Are alive. You were dead, now you're alive. Is that right? You're alive from the dead. Amen. That's what we saw in Ephesians 2. And your members as instruments of what? Righteousness to God. In other words, the members of your body now, the eyes, ears, throat, the whole members of your body is used as right in God's eyes. Not for the lust of the flesh. Now, for sin shall not be master over you, verse 14, for you're not under the law, but you're under grace. Amen. Mr. Sarah, he's under the law. And if you're led by the Spirit of God, you're not, you're freed from the law. Amen. Verse 15. What then shall we sin, because we're not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. May it never be. Folks, do we see these things over and over and over and over and over? May it never be. 16. Do you not know that when you present yourself to someone as slaves for obedience, now watch this. Now, you know God is talking to you and the Spirit of the devil is talking to you too. Is that correct? Now, I want you to keep that in mind when we read this verse. 16. Do you not know that when you present yourself to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey? Do you understand that? Now, here's your choice. Either of sin, if you're a slave of sin, this results in what? Death. Or if you're a slave of obedience, it results in what? If you're a slave of obedience of the Word, right? That results in right. Now, you've got two choices there. Is that right? All right. If you will, you're going to choose. Now, but thanks be to God that though you were a slave. Now, what does that say? You've become obedient from where? May I just tell you that a form of godliness is not godliness? You have become obedient from right here, your heart. Now, a lot of this obedience works up here. It doesn't work, folks. Right here is where the obedience comes from. But you have become obedient from your heart to that form of teaching, which is the Word and the gospel. Would you just underline the form of teaching right there? You've become obedient to the Word and the gospel. That's what he's talking about. To which you were what? You're committed there when you make Jesus Christ Lord. When you're Lord, you do what you say. You take every thought captive to the obedience of who? And it tells you over and over and over that we're not subject to not live for the lust of flesh, but for the what? The will of God, which is our commitment to the gospel. Amen. Now, there are a lot of gospels today. You understand that? I'm talking about this gospel right here. Now, verse 18. And having been freed from sin, you are now slaves of what? All right, if you're a slave of rights, you're a slave to the Word. You're a slave to walking right in God's eyes. You're taking every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus, and that's what God put it in his Bible for, so you can do it, right? Okay, now verse 22. But now, having been freed from sin, we're freed from sin, we're now enslaved to God, you derive your benefit. What is your benefit resulting in what? All right, now look here. When you walk in righteousness, folks, you are separated. You don't look, you don't walk, talk, or act like the world. You're sanctified. You're separated into God. You're lively stones that make up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifice, except for God in Christ Jesus. You're sanctified. That's what sanctify. But if you walk, talk, and act like the world, what sanctification is there in that? I couldn't tell you from the lion's club. Matter of fact, the lion's club, enjoy it a little more. Better fellowship than some of us have been in. Well, I thank the Lord he's changing that. All right, you've been freed from sin, enslaved to God, you derive your benefit resulting in sanctification, and the outcome of all of this is what? Now, that's pretty good, isn't it? Now, that's the result of eternal life. Let's just read it again. But now, having been freed from sin, enslaved to God, you're freed from sin, you're enslaved to God, you derive your benefit. Now, the resulting of that sanctification, you're separated from the world into righteousness. You don't look, and the outcome of all this is eternal life. Isn't that good? Now, in verse 23, For the wages of sin is death. Is that plain? In church, out of church, the wages of sin is death. Front row, platform, the wages of sin is death. But the free gift of God is eternal life in, in, in Christ Jesus our Lord. Now, that's a big verse there, in Christ Jesus our Lord. And we'll just see a little more about that in Christ Jesus our Lord later on in 1 John 2. Do you know in Romans 9, it was talking about a church who was pursuing righteousness as though but works. It's talking about the Gentiles. And this is part of your scripture. I'm not going to turn there now. But it says, Israel is not like the Gentiles. The Gentiles were pursuing righteousness as though by faith, they coming into the Lord. And by faith, they were pursuing righteousness. They're walking right in God's eyes by faith in this word. But Israel was pursuing righteousness by works. They were helping God out, a number of things. I want to tell you what Paul said about them. Paul said, in Romans 10, he says, I pray for the church, Israel. He says, I pray for their salvation. Are you hearing me? I pray for their salvation. They have a zeal for God. This church, Paul says, has a zeal for God, but it's not according to the word, knowledge. And being ignorant of what the righteousness of God really is right here, they establish their own righteousness, which is self-righteousness, or some other kind of righteousness. And they do not submit to the righteousness that comes from God. Is that person wrong? So, I pray for their salvation, Paul says. Maybe we ought to look at it. We're close to it. Turn over to Romans. I've told you about it now. Let's just look at it in Romans. Look at Romans 9 first. We're going to see it. We're going to see this pursuing. Let's start. I was going to be in 32, but I'm going to back up there to 30. 930, what shall we say then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith. But Israel, now there's the church of that day, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by what? Faith. They didn't pursue it by faith. They don't have to trust God for anything. Probably like some of the things we do today. You don't have to trust God for too much when you go to the world and get everything you need, do you? Because they did not pursue it by faith, though it was what? Works. Boy, you saw how they're helping God out. You ever see that church over in Revelation 18, babbling, making a name for themselves? They stumble over the stumbling stone, that's Jesus. Now, in Romans 10, verse 1, look here, Paul says, Brethren, my heart's desire and my prayer to God is for who? For them is for their what? It's for their salvation. For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but it's not according to the Word. Is that what he says? It's not according to the Word. And not knowing about God's righteousness, they establish their own righteousness, which is self-righteous, some other righteousness, and do not subject themselves, they're not going to let them subject themselves to the righteousness of God. Folks, there's a whole lot of righteousness today. Do you know there are many kinds of righteousness? There's many kinds of Gospels. There's many kinds of Jesus. This Jesus can do this, this Jesus can do that, and this Jesus can't do anything. There's one righteousness. There's one Gospel, there's one Jesus. There's one church. And I want to tell you what, the Spirit of God is the one that takes the lead. We don't lead the Spirit of God. It's not, God, come on down here and cooperate with us, you see what we're trying to do for you. The righteousness of God is led by the Spirit of God. And I want to just ask you something. Does the church today, for the most part, pursue righteousness by dying to the flesh and practicing righteousness? That means walking and talking and acting like God? Does the church today walk like the world? Do they walk after the flesh? Do they pursue righteousness as though by works? Do they want to build temples and things that we can see with our eyes where God, instead of building up this inner man, this temple here. So I want to tell you something. People who are in works don't have to trust God for anything. They're not being led by the Spirit of God. They work it all out themselves. You know, I've already told you they're not a Baptist righteousness or a Methodist righteousness. I just want to mention that. There's only one righteousness. They're not a Pentecostal righteousness, they're a charismatic righteousness. There's not a Baptist gospel and a Methodist gospel and Pentecostal gospel and charismatic gospel. There's not a Baptist Jesus and a Methodist Jesus and a Pentecostal Jesus and a charismatic Jesus. There's only one Jesus. I suggest, and I don't know where you folks coming from, it doesn't matter. The only thing that matters is Jesus crucified. It doesn't matter who you are or what you are or what you've done or anything else. The only thing that matters is Jesus Christ as your Lord. So what I just want to encourage you to look at your Word and see if everything that we call church today is church. Since everything you call a Christian today is Christian, is there going to be a great fall in the way of the last days? What is the fall in the way of the last days? That's apostasy. That's departing from the Word of God. You start calling things of God, it's not God. Amen? I'm going to tell you something. The church in this Word makes disciples. They teach them a Word. You know, in the days of Charles Finney, he started, he had a morning's bench. And people would come to the morning's bench, and they would cry out the Lord. And later on the Salvation Army, and as I understand the Salvation Army is a lot different then than it is today, but would have some strong messages about the Lord. And they started giving invitations. Now, I want you to be aware of all these things as I share it with you. You've got an enemy that talks to you, and he can tell all the people the same thing to get them, you know, off. See, we have to line up here. The Lord leads us in all truth. But they would have invitations for sinners, and they would come to this morning's bench, which the Salvation Army started, and for days sometimes. So ours, people would stay there and just instruct them as they would get things right before God. Now, let me give you a little example of that. I've watched this over. You let me get around somebody that's just really broken. I don't mean self-pity. I mean, it's really broken and sorry about their sins of the Lord. I can't wait to pray for them. You let somebody just really get broken. Folks, do you ever see anybody just get down and just cry out to the Lord? Just cry out to the Lord, and so sorry, and just loving the Lord so much that they're just so sorry and sorry. Folks, do you ever notice what kind of people there are when you get up? Do you ever notice that something's come off of them, that they're different, they're broken? Now, these people that would be in these meetings, as the enemy is always there to pervert things, then someone would just say this, and possibly being led by sensuality in the flesh, then coming down the aisle, replaces repentance and a godly sorrow, and then start building a foundation of numbers instead of righteousness, a foundation. If part of this is going to affect the numbers, let's don't mess with it. Let's don't lose a big tither. Let's don't upset some folks' flesh. So we learn when we make a foundation of numbers and good reports, we start wanting to get decisions instead of disciples. And in some many times, too many times, and this is the kind of thing that Billy Graham and many of the particular people that go through the churches see the losses of the people in the church today. They go through there, and these people in too many cases, that's not to say that everybody that walks down the aisle is not saved. I'm not saying that. Listen, hear what I'm saying. Don't try to add something I'm not saying. There are too many people that come down the aisle, and a man is led by his thoughts and things, and we start exalting ministries. You know, my ministry has got to look good. I'm not going to deal with that part of the Lord. Lord, I can't deal with that part of the Lord. It's going to make my ministry look good, and I've got to help you out. Now, that's what Satan tried to do to Jesus when he got him to jump off the temple in the courtyard there, and he could lead all the people to God. We're not going to lead the people to God. God's going to get in on it. So, I just want to ask you, and I just want to ask you to just examine these things, because when we're not taking thoughts carefully, we're not aware of all these things. Deceitful, deceitful, very deceptive thoughts come in here that cause us to start drifting, and we start getting a foundation of good reports and looking good and making an eye and a heart on our works and what we're doing, and just forget about the works of God, see. And then we get busy making a name for ourselves. Well, listen, if you're making a name for yourself and your ministry, and your ministry, you're not making a name for the Lord Jesus Christ. If you've got some kind of image you've got to protect, then you haven't taken on the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. The only name you make a name for is Jesus. Now, that is what the Bible says. Babylon, the world in a church who acts like the world and walks and talks like that world, makes a name for herself. Now, see, these traditions and things that many of them have been handed down to folks, I'm going to tell you, and the Lord can easily show you, as you get in the Word, I'm going to tell you what the Lord expects you to get the Word. He wants to lead you in all truth. And so you can raise up in things, they look good. They look good when we compare ourself among ourselves and measure ourselves by ourselves. But does it measure up to this yardstick right here? That's where the Pharisees missed it. A few of them got saved, but they all went to hell too, you know, that didn't get saved. So it's a serious thing, but what I'm trying to point out to you, that my part, part of my part, is exposing the powers of darkness as we go through the Word. I want you to be conscious, and pastors, I want you to think about this as we go through, because if the powers of darkness, if they're there, like I've said at the very beginning of the testimony, we've got a very serious problem. If they're not there, then you have a nut here that you come three days to hear. Now if they are there, what are they doing there? They've been perverting the things of the Lord. They've been deceiving us. And so in you and me, brother and sister, we all come back to the Word of God. We start all over again. We say something like this, Lord, you know what I know that's wrong. I'm teachable. I love you more than I do my tradition. You know, somebody loves their traditions more than they do the Word, is not teachable. If someone is intimidated by men, and fearful of men, they'll not come to the Word of God. See, that's what scares people off the Word, because they want approval of men, folks. They're not teachable. God's not going to lead them in all truth, because their heart is somewhere else. They've got idols in their heart. But if we truly love the Lord and we love His Word, we can come to the Lord something like this and say, Lord, I believe the Lord will take you up on it, too. Lord, I've let my heart go toward things that I shouldn't have let it go to. And when you just go ahead and name off the things you've let your heart be authority in your life besides the order of God, that's not to say there's not spiritual authority. There are spiritual authority. But everything that goes by title, I don't subject myself to. You understand that? I subject myself to the Jesus in authority, not by somebody that just goes by titles and things like that, because I don't think there's ever been a time of false teaching and false prophets as there are today. Never, ever. I don't think Satan has never been more successful than he is right now at this moment. Why not? That's exactly the way it's supposed to be. That's what Satan said it would be in the last days. But say, Lord, if I held... Now, I think this would be fair for each one of us here. Do you want to be honest with the Lord? Your Word says that you will lead me in all truth. In the traditions and things that I've learned, Lord, you know what I've learned wrong. I'm teachable, Lord. Now, right now, I fix my heart on you. You are the teacher. Unless I hear you speak through anyone, I'm not going to receive anything. I'm not going to receive anything in Milt Green or a seminar or James Robinson or no one else until it's confirmed in my heart, until I know it from God. Is anything wrong with that? And now, Lord, my eyes are fixed on you. My heart is seeking truth. Now, I'm seeking you. I just turned my heart. I'm going to get in your Word, Lord, because I just found out I don't have to speak Hebrew to learn what's in there, that you'll teach me. And you said you're no respecter of any people, so it doesn't matter, Lord, if I just got past the first grade, you'd teach me to read, too. That sound like God? Well, that's the way it is. Can't you just see God coming over here to me and say, Milt, boy, I sure do need you. You've got that big organization. You know so many people. I need somebody like you to come and teach a seminar. You see, folks, I say these things simply because. I don't have anything. I don't have to be anything. There's a lot of freedom not having to be nothing. Do you know that? I say this to encourage you, because I have been discouraged a lot. We've all been in the war and things like that. But I tell you, the Lord has special things for each one of you. I want to tell you something. I don't think no one has a harder time in the traditions we brought in than shepherds. They kind of get in it by their selves. That's the way tradition is. They've got to know everything. Do they have to be the whole loaf and impale a sow? And then get them out there serving flesh, waiting tables. Pitiful. Break your heart. Go to bed and kind of see what sin we've got in our heart and kind of see some other people that we can help and be a blessing to. Let's let our light shine and love one another, right? If there's anything wrong, you don't have to compromise, do you? Let the Spirit of God say, I don't have advice for people. People come up and say, I've got this situation, I've got this situation, I've got this, and I say, I want to tell you something. My friend, I can be very presumptuous if I go past the Word of God. I can know a part and you can come and hear my part, and we're used to somebody having a part and knowing everything. Well, I don't know everything. And I'm not going to tell anybody any more than what, if consciously, than what the Word teaches me. But I'm going to tell you something. There's a mighty move of God today, folks. And I'm going to tell you what this move of God is going to be. You're going to be persecuted, folks. Let me tell you something. So what? So what? Let me ask you something. If you know what you know, what you know, if you know that you've got annoying, you're watching people's lives change, you know that you're learning and you know that you're pleasing the Lord. Now, who do you really want to please in your heart? Do you want to please God or do you want to please folks? Well, I'm going to tell you some things, talk to you, and come and talk to you to get your heart to go to please other things besides God. I'm going to tell you, God is the number one person you want to please. Now, these are some, I'm just kind of mentioning some of these things as we're going along talking about the power of the Lord, because I'm going to tell you, as I mention, the Lord's going to quicken some of these things. He's going to show you if you'll let Him. I mention so He can just talk to you about them. Now, you don't let your heart go to folks. You don't let your heart go to organization, go to denomination. Let me tell you where headquarters is. It's in heaven. I'm not saying that unkindly. I just know it's a curse. It's not Jesus plus the sign in the yard. It's not Jesus plus anything. It's all Jesus. It's all grace. It's all Him. If there was a man as zero, he would be a sinner, except for Jesus working through him, everything else burns up. That doesn't set you free. Does that get you a little freer? Get free from folks. Demons and folks have been around this long enough. Now, Mark 7. Mark 7. Now, what about a person who loves his traditions? Folks, do you ever understand why there are always so many labels? You know if he can get conservative and this over here, liberal, and this over here, and here, a demon behind every bush, he's gone charismatic, he's all these things. Now, you see, if the enemy can get these labels going back and forth, then, see, you get programmed to reject truth before you examine it. What is it that causes you to reject people you've only heard of? You don't know anything about them. You've just heard about them. Where's that come from? You reject truth before you've even examined it. Where's that come from? See, you know how you reject it? Because you are made fearful. So you reject the truth and you reject the spirit of fear, because the devil, he gives you all kinds of fearful things. And this is what the shepherds, the shepherds are going, Boy, I'm telling you, what? Boy, I'm telling you, it's a new day, as the Lord is opening up this thing and showing shepherds, and shepherds that just had their ears beat off of them, who just love the Lord with all their heart. And God, in His grace, is showing them how the enemy that demons are attacking them. I'm going to share a few things here before this is over with. I'm going to show them how you attack shepherds. Shepherds are leaving churches today. Pastors are leaving churches like never before. You shepherds don't usually stay in a church over three years. You get run off. You usually get run off by lost folks, church bosses that demons have raised up. You know what you do, Pastor, when you leave? You run off and leave a sheep. It's a little system of powers of darkness that work down. Let me just go ahead and talk about it a little bit. Since I mentioned it, I might as well talk about it a little bit. You're a determined shepherd. The next church I go to is not going to be like this one. Traditions and things kind of beat you down where you really have a shepherd's heart, where you can't really do the things that you know in your heart you want to do. And it's a very defeating, frustrating thing for a precious shepherd and its traditions today. So the powers of darkness who have been ignored, what do you think they've been doing? They've been setting up a system. And then you go into this church situation and you are determined. You've learned some things. Things are going to be different. We're going to do some things in this world that's next. And you go in there and you get up and you know this verse right here is just going to smack against little traditions. You know when you get to a place and right there as you do it, let me show you what happens to you. The demons know the one they've got set up that can intimidate you and make you the most fearful. Now let me tell you what happens to you, Pastor, and you're just going to shake your head because you're going to remember it over and over. You can stand there and you can be looking in that direction right over there. And as you come to this place and you say that word right there, as you start to do it, as you're fixing to read that verse right there, there are thoughts coming to your mind. You're not even looking right over there at this loud-mouthed boss deacon, but you know right there in your mind as you're looking right over here and you do this, you're being brought to mind thoughts are there and you're just getting a picture of him just looking at you. It's like a water hose coming at you. You hear me, aren't you, Shepherds? It's like a water hose of intimidation coming at you. And this thoughts right there just add a little water to it here. You know, you don't have to be too hard on it. But then you go ahead and you proclaim the word. And while you're doing it, you're being attacked by fear right in the pulpit. You're being attacked by fear and intimidation. You're being attacked by demons. And it gets pretty quiet in there while you're preaching. But you know, you've decided that that congregation is going to be the Lord's glory and you want to please the Lord. And here he comes. He comes up, either that loud-mouthed woman or that loud-mouthed man that that demon's manifested in right there, controlling him. They come right up to you and get right in your face. Pastor, I know him. It's just like you moved in his bedroom or something. You know, he owns a place. See, he's big time. He's given so much money for God. He's helped God out so much. It's just like you moved in his house, Shepherd. He's got a lot of confidence. He's a church boss. The demons have told him what a wonderful job he does helping God out in that social work. Pastor, these people are not going to stand still for that. I know them. Pastor, what you better do is you better back off a little on that. We'll have to get a new leader. We're going back to Egypt. Now, Shepherd, this is going to set you free. When he comes up to you, you see him coming, and immediately when you make eye contact with him, the power of any word in this Bible right here, that's the same thing. They attack you with lust thoughts. It's the same. You make eye contact. When you make eye contact with that man right there, they began. See, I've already put the intimidating thoughts. I've already set the stage for you. So here comes the manifestations of demons to a man, and as he's talking to you, he really thinks in his heart he's helping God out. He deceived. As he is attacking you there, you're being attacked by whatever demon of fear in the house. They're all over you right in here. They're all outside just attacking you. You know, that same ones attack you when you don't want to give up and give the testimony or start getting a little free, something like that. They keep you under bondage. You know, you start getting free, you get dangerous. And they attack you with fear. Freedom spreads. So while you're there, Pastor, and you're talking about to this man right here, this church boss, all these demons of fear are attacking you. And here's the kind of thoughts they're putting in your mind. One thought, just bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. There goes the parsonage. Seriously. There it goes. I can't get a job anywhere. They'll be mad at me at headquarters. I'll have to take the children out of college. And they're just bombarding your mind. Just bang, bang, bang, bang. And you're just beaten, you know, just. And you're moving out of grace and getting out of the law. You've been listening to the From the Pulpit in Classic Sermons series. This week, you heard Milton Green with part two of his message, The Flesh and the Power of Darkness. Tune in next week to hear Ralph Barnard talk about the great revival that is coming on From the Pulpit in Classic Sermons.