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"For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound,who shall prepare himself to the battle?"

THE GOSPEL TRUMPETERUSPS #871620

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This periodical carries no subscription price; however, itis partially maintained through the gifts and offerings of itsreaders, with the balance of the expenses being paid bythe local congregation.

PRAYER: If you need p rayer, please phone or write:

Roger Decker, Pastor83 Decrow Ave.N ewark, OH 43055

Email: pastor@ church-of-god-online.comPhone: 740-344-2543 or 1-888-730-0461Fax: 740-344-4737Print Shop Phone: 740-345-1312

This monthly religious journal is published for the benefit of theChurch of God universally. It is our supreme purpose to reach theworld for Christ through the printed page. Our burden is to revealthe truth of God's Word to all mankind, to expose sin and error, waragainst apostasy, and to eradicate the longstanding traditions ofmen that have no biblical foundations.

Brother Roger L. Decker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . EditorWorkers Too Numerous to Mention

THE CHURCH OF GOD BELIEVES IN:

A personal God (John 4:24)A divine Christ (John 1:1, 14)An infallibly inspired Bible (2 Tim. 3:16-17)Salvation from sin (Matt. 1:21)The new birth (John 3:3, 5-7A holy life (Luke 1:73-75; Titus 2:12)Sanctification (1 Thess. 5:23)Unity of God's people (John 17:21, Eph. 4)Divine, physical healing (James 5:14-16)The ordinances (Matt. 28:19-20; John 13; 1 Cor. 11:23, 34)Eternal life (Matt. 25:46; Mark 9:43)The Trinity (1 John 5:7, 8)

SOME SPIRITUAL FACTSPERTAINING TO THE CHURCH

Jesus organized it (Matt. 16:18)On a good foundation (Eph. 2:20; I Cor. 3:11)Christ governs it (Eph. 1:22-23; Isa. 9:6)God admits members (I Cor. 12:13-18)Sin puts you out of it (Rom. 11:22; Ex. 32:33)The saved only are members (John 15:2-6)Membership is offered to all (Rev. 22:17)Final rewards (Rev. 20:12-15; 21:3-4; 22:14)Bible name of the Church (Acts 20:28; Gal. 1:13; John 17:11)

We reserve the right to edit and/or decline any material for anyreason. Not responsible for unsolicited articles or items.

CONTENTS

Are You a Gaius or a Diotrephes? . . . . . . . 3The Destructive Work of a Little Folly . . . . 8God's Very Best . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Forgiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Especially for Young People . . . . . . . . . . 14Our Great Need . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16This Thy Day . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Vol. 30 September 2000 No. 9

GuestEditorial

Cherubims and the Way ofthe Tree of Life

Part 3 of 4

Genesis 3:22-24 reads: "And theLORD God said, Behold, the man is be-come as one of us, to know good and evil;and now, lest he put forth his hand, andtake also of the tree of life, and eat, andlive for ever: Therefore the LORD God senthim forth from the garden of Eden, to tillthe ground from whence he was taken. Sohe drove out the man; and he placed at theeast of the garden of Eden Cherubims,and a flaming sword which turned everyway, to keep the way of the tree of life."

This passage of Scripture recordsthe famed account of man's expulsionfrom the garden. In this narrative weare introduced to terms and beingsthat God desires that we understand.In verse 24 the sacred writer spoke ofcherubims, a flaming sword, andkeeping the way of the tree of life. Byway of review, we find that Godplaced man in the garden in a state ofinnocence. We know that becauseActs 10:34 declares that God is no respecter of persons. The wise manpenned in Ecclesiastes 7:29, "Lo, . . .God hath made man upright." TheHebrew word for upright is yashar,which means "righteous." God mademan in a righteous state. Man wasinnocent, without any knowledge ofgood or evil, but the command camein Genesis 2:l7 when He said, "But ofthe tree of the knowledge of good andevil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in theday that thou eatest thereof thou shaltsurely die." Man came to a position ofaccountability when God gave him acommandment and he understood it.

When Adam was confronted witha choice, he violated that commandand died spiritually. Ezekiel 18:4 says," . . . the soul that sinneth, it shall die."The Lord must have been speaking ofspiritual death, because Genesis 5:5tells us Adam lived physically untilhe was "nine hundred and thirtyyears: and he died." Therefore, it wasnot physical death that occurred but

spiritual death; he died spiritallybecause of sin.

Once man partook of sin, he wasin no condition to partake of life.Since sin and life are incompatible, hehad to leave the presence of God andlife. However, before he left, Godgave him a bright prophecy in Gene-sis 3:15 when He said, "'And I will putenmity between thee and the woman,and between thy seed and her seed; itshall bruise thy head, and thou shaltbruise his heel." God became the firstMessianic Prophet and prophesied ofChrist's coming of the seed of awoman, which Galatians 4:4 tells uswas fulfilled in Jesus Christ. God gaveman a prophecy of a brighter day. Hedid not forever bar man from the treeof life, but He showed him the way tolife.

What is the way to life? First, weneed to understand that Christ is life.He is the tree of life; the life is vestedin Him. In 1 John 5:11-12 John said:"And this is the record, that God hathgiven to us eternal life, and this life isin his Son. He that hath the Son hathlife; and he that hath not the Son ofGod hath not life." That life is in JesusChrist. How can you get to Him? Theway is through the flaming sword.Ephesians 6:17 talks about "the swordof the Spirit, which is the word ofGod." The fact that it is flaming indi-cates the working of the Holy Spirit,the anointing and the unction. Thesword itself is the Word, teaching usthat man's access to Jesus Christ andlife comes through the Word and theSpirit, or the flaming sword .

In Genesis 3:24 we are introducedto a creature that was not previouslymentioned in the Scriptures. Peoplehave any false conceptions concerningwhat verse 24 denotes as cherubims.Some say they are angelic beings, andothers say they are a rank or an orderof angels.

Webster's New World Dictionarytells you that a cherub is "any one ofthe second order of angels, usuallyranked just below the seraphims." Dothe Scriptures teach such a thing?Where does the Bible teach ranks andclasses of angels? The truth of thematter is that the Scriptures teachneither.

[continued on page 26]

33 John 1 The elder unto thewellbeloved Gains, whom I love in thetruth.

2 Beloved, I wish above all thingsthat thou mayest prosper and be inhealth, even as thy soul prospereth.

3 For I rejoiced greatly, when thebrethren came and testified of the truththat is in thee, even as thou walkest in thetruth.

4 I have no greater joy than to hearthat my children walk in truth.

5 Beloved, thou doest faithfully what-soever thou doest to the brethren, and tostrangers;

6 Which have borne witness of thycharity before the church: whom if thou

bring forward on their journey after agodly sort, thou shalt do well:

7 Because that for his name's sakethey went forth, taking nothing of theGentiles.

8 We therefore ought to receive such,that we might be fellowhelpers to thetruth.

9 I wrote unto the church: butDiotrephes, who loveth to have the preem-inence among them, receiveth us not.

10 Wherefore, if I come, I will re-member his deeds which he doe doeth,prating against us with malicious words:and not content therewith, neither dothhe himself receive the brethren, andforbiddeth them that would, and casteth

them out of the church.11 Beloved, follow not that which is

evil, but that which is good. He that doethgood is of God: but he that doeth evil hathnot seen God.

12 Demetrius hath good report of allmen, and of the truth itself: yea, and wealso bear record; and ye know that ourrecord is true.

13 I had many things to write, but Iwill not with ink and pen write unto thee:

14 But I trust I shall shortly see thee,and we shall speak face to face. Peace be tothee. Our friends salute thee. Greet thefriends by name.

Brother Roger L. Decker

Honor Shall Uphold theHumble in Spirit

Third John and Philemon arethe only two epistles written aspersonal letters in the New Testa-ment, but they are precious. Theyportray the early Christian corre-spondence. Although John men-tioned three men in this letter, wewant to look especially at two ofthem. Most scholars ascribe theterm elder to John. It says, "Theelder unto the wellbeloved Gaius,

whom I love in the truth." Thereare reasons for this. John used thesame language throughout allthree epistles, and the term elderwould be a fitting name for Johnwriting in his elder years. Also,the epistle is similar to the lan-guage used in the Gospel of SaintJohn.

The one receiving the letterwas Gaius, who, no doubt, was adear friend of John's. Gaius' namewas derived from a Latin word,which means "I am glad; rejoice."

The elder John said he loved hisbrother in the truth, and he calledhim "beloved" three times: in vers-es 2, 5, and 11. John's love for himwas genuine and in accordancewith God's Word.

Commentators vary a littleconcerning when this epistle waswritten, but some place the writ-ing of the epistle in Ephesusaround A. D. 95. Ephesus was theplace where John abode in hislater years. In this epistle muchpraise was given to Gaius. Paul

4praised him for his reputation, forwalking in truth, for his faithful-ness, and for his hospitality. Johnprayed that Gaius would prosperspiritually as well as physically.Gaius was a real asset to thechurch.

John also had something towrite about Diotrephes. The nameDiotrephes means "love nourished(nourished means 'pampered') by apagan god Zeus." The Word ofGod says he wanted the preemi-nence, which means he was fondof being first. It also means "ambi-tion of distinction." Diotrepheswas one who wanted to be recog-nized by others. There is only Onewho ought to have the preemi-nence, and that is Christ.

The Bible says very clearly inColossians 1:18, "And he is thehead of the body, the church: whois the beginning, the firstbornfrom the dead; that in all things hemight have the preeminence." Alove of the sin of wanting the pre-eminence led Diotrephes intoother sins. This sin is terrible andcontrary to the Word of God, theSpirit of God, and the will of God.

Romans 12:10 tells us, "Bekindly affectioned one to anotherwith brotherly love; in honourpreferring one another." That isthe opposite of wanting the pre-eminence. Romans 12:3 states,"For I say, through the grace givenunto me, to every man that isamong you, not to think of him-self more highly than he ought tothink; but to think soberly, accord-ing as God hath dealt to everyman the measure of faith." TheseScriptures are an open rebuke tothe spirit of wanting the preemi-nence.

Jesus, speaking in Luke, Chap-ter 18, talked about two men whowent in the temple to pray. Oneprayed, and his prayer did noth-ing but exalt himself. The otherman prayed in humility, exaltingGod. Jesus let us know that howyou approach God makes a differ-ence. Luke 18:14 says, "I tell you,this man went down to his house

justified rather than the other: forevery one that exalteth himselfshall be abased; and he thathumbleth himself shall be ex-alted." Humility is the opposite ofwanting the preeminence, orwanting to be number one.

Solomon said it this way inProverbs 16:19: "Better it is to be ofan humble spirit with the lowly,than to divide the spoil with theproud." He said in Proverbs 29:23,"A man's pride shall bring himlow: but honour shall uphold thehumble in spirit." These Scripturesare the complete opposite of onewho wants the preeminence.

Except You Becomeas Little Children

Matthew 18:1-4 reads: "At thesame time came the disciples untoJesus, saying, Who is the greatestin the kingdom of heaven? AndJesus called a little child unto him,and set him in the midst of them,And said, Verily I say unto you,Except ye be converted, and be-come as little children, ye shall notenter into the kingdom of heaven.Whosoever therefore shall humblehimself as this little child, thesame is greatest in the kingdom ofheaven."

Notice how Jesus answeredthe mother of James and John inMatthew 20:20-28: "Then came tohim the mother of Zebedee's chil-dren with her sons, worshippinghim, and desiring a certain thingof him. And he said unto her,What wilt thou? She saith untohim, Grant that these my two sonsmay sit, the one on thy right hand,and the other on the left, in thykingdom. But Jesus answered andsaid, Ye know not what ye ask.Are ye able to drink of the cupthat I shall drink of, and to bebaptized with the baptism that Iam baptized with? They say untohim, We are able. And he saithunto them, Ye shall drink indeedof my cup, and be baptized withthe baptism that I am baptizedwith: but to sit on my right hand,

and on my left, is not mine togive, but it shall be given to themfor whom it is prepared of myFather.

"And when the ten heard it,they were moved with indigna-tion against the two brethren. ButJesus called them unto him, andsaid, Ye know that the princes ofthe Gentiles exercise dominionover them, and they that are greatexercise authority upon them. Butit shall not be so among you: butwhosoever will be great amongyou, let him be your minister;And whosoever will be chiefamong you, let him be your ser-vant: Even as the Son of mancame not to be ministered unto,but to minister, and to give his lifea ransom for many."

First, Second, and Third Johnwere written during an apostasy,or a falling away. What is one signof an apostasy? The lack of lovefor one's brother. "We know wehave passed from death unto lifebecause we love the brethren" (1John 3:14). During this time ofapostasy, according to Jude, mencrept in unawares, exalting them-selves in congregations. Majorproblems always arise where indi-viduals exalt themselves in a con-gregation. If you have been deliv-ered from sin, one thing that willhelp you to avoid this is to re-member what you were beforeChrist saved you. Remember, if itwere not for Christ, you would bein the pit of sin.

God Visits the Sin of Rebellion

In Numbers, Chapter 12, youcan read that Aaron and Miriamspoke out against Moses, and Mir-iam became leprous. The congre-gation was at a standstill for aweek. Moses, concerned over hissister, did his best to intercede forher, but to no avail. God hates thesin of wanting the preeminence.God does such a great work onpeople when He saves them, butsometimes after they have beensaved awhile, they forget what

5rascals they really were. WhenAaron and Miriam spoke outagainst Moses, their own brother,God did not wait for that tospread through the congregation.He paid them a visit. AlthoughMoses pleaded with God to healhis sister, the Lord said no. There-fore, the congregation stood stilland did not move until God saidit was time. God can still handleHis church just as He handledcongregations in the Old Testa-ment.

David would not touch theanointed of God even though hislife was in jeopardy. He behavedhimself wisely. He would not laya hand upon Saul, though Saulwas after his life. He knew that hedare not touch God's anointed.Saul was once little in his owneyes, but he got away from Godand became rebellious and stub-born. Even in that condition, Da-vid would not lay a hand uponhim.

Friend, you are very unwise tolay your hand upon God'sanointed. That is one of the mostfoolish things you can do. Oh, youmay not drop over dead, but Godwill visit that sin. We read inPsalm 105:15, "Touch not mineanointed, and do my prophets noharm."

First Samuel 24:1-13 reads:"And it came to pass, when Saulwas returned from following thePhilistines, that it was told him,saying, Behold, David is in thewilderness of Engedi. Then Saultook three thousand chosen menout of all Israel, and went to seekDavid and his men upon the rocksof the wild goats. And he came tothe sheepcotes by the way, wherewas a cave; and Saul went in tocover his feet: and David and hismen remained in the sides of thecave.

"And the men of David saidunto him, Behold the day ofwhich the LORD said unto thee,Behold, I will deliver thine enemyinto thine hand, that thou mayestdo to him as it shall seem good

unto thee. Then David arose, andcut off the skirt of Saul's robe priv-ily. And it came to pass afterward,that David's heart smote him [hefelt condemned and chastised],because he had cut off Saul's skirt.And he said unto his men, TheLord forbid that I should do thisthing unto my master, the LORD'Sanointed, to stretch forth minehand against him, seeing he is theanointed of the LORD. So Davidstayed his servants with thesewords, and suffered them not torise against Saul. But Saul rose upout of the cave, and went on hisway.

"David also arose afterward,and went out of the cave, andcried after Saul, saying, My lordthe king. And when Saul lookedbehind him, David stooped withhis face to the earth, and bowedhimself. [Why? In reverence to theking. This was a far cry from peo-ple's attitude today. He bowedhimself in reverence to a man whowas after his own life.] And Davidsaid to Saul, Wherefore hearestthou men's words, saying, Behold,David seeketh thy hurt? Behold,this day thine eyes have seen howthat the Lord had delivered theeto day into mine hand in the cave:and some bade me kill thee: butmine eye spared thee; and I said, Iwill not put forth mine handagainst my lord; for he is theLORD 'S anointed. [David's menurged him to take advantage ofthe opportunity and kill Saul, butDavid refused to do it.]

"Moreover, my father, see, yea,see the skirt of thy robe in myhand: for in that I cut off the skirtof thy robe, and killed thee not,know thou and see that there isneither evil nor transgression inmine hand, and I have not sinnedagainst thee; yet thou huntest mysoul to take it. The LORD judgebetween me and thee, and theLORD avenge me of thee: but minehand shall not be upon thee. Assaith the proverb of the ancients,Wickedness proceedeth from thewicked: but mine hand shall not

be upon thee."David let Saul know that the

opportunity to slay him was thereand that his men even urged himto do so, but David said he wouldnot do it. He said, "I will not putforth my hand against my lord:for he is the LORD 'S anointed."Saul was out to destroy David;still David refused to put forth hishand against him. Why? Davidknew that God would take care ofSaul, and He did.

Loving to Have the Preeminence

Do you want to know whypeople move against others to-day? They do not have powerwith God or the faith to let Godtake care of it. Therefore, theymake moves to gain carnal sup-port, because they dare not prayagainst them. The Scripture stillsays in Romans 12:19, "Dearlybeloved, avenge not yourselves,but rather give place unto wrath:for it is written, Vengeance ismine; I will repay, saith the Lord."What was the writer saying? TheLord will take care of situations;He will mete out vengeance. Justserve Him. Do not judge yourbrothers or your sisters; leavethem with God. This is "Thussaith the Lord."

Some people overstep theseScriptures and think nothing of it.Why? Because God did not strikethem dead; nothing has happenedto them. Everything may look as ifthings are going great, but it is notover yet. Vengeance belongs inthe hand of the Lord.

John said that Diotrephesloved to have the preeminence.He loved to be in the forefront,outshining everyone else. Heloved men's applause; he had acompetitive spirit: "Let me do it.After all, they would rather hearme. Those other brethren canpreach, but number one can reallypreach." Diotrephes loved to benoticed.

Whenever you get a competi-tive spirit, you have lost the Spirit

6of God. I would rather listen tosomeone sing in the Spirit whocan hardly carry a tune thansomeone who has the attitude,"Let me up there. I can sing. Youhave heard enough of these otherpeople. Just wait until I go outthere; the people love it!" Whenyou are fleshly instead of Spiritled, you may make a few bad mis-takes. God may allow that just toknock some of the hot air out ofyou. In your playing an instru-ment, in your preaching, in yourteaching, or in your singing, youshould not think you are thegreatest. You ought to give theglory and the praise to God. IfGod can use you, praise God. Youshould not praise this one or thatone. I repeat, when you get thespirit of competition, then youlose the Spirit of God.

If you have a good voice anddesire to sing, you should neverget up to sing just to entertain.You should only sing to please theLord. Whatever you do, do all tothe glory of God. I would rathernot preach at all than to get upand try to preach in my own flesh.Why? The flesh does not profit athing.

Filled With Pride

Diotrephes wanted the preem-inence, but there were otherthings wrong with him too. Whatelse went along with that spirit?He got so puffed up and filledwith pride that he rejected theApostle John; he was swelled upin his head. He was not even hos-pitable to the Apostles; he did notreach out at all to them.

Third John 9 states, "I wroteunto the church: but Diotrephes[no doubt, he had a position inthat congregation], who loveth tohave the preeminence amongthem, receiveth us not."Diotrephes was not going to re-ceive anything that John had tosay. That spirit is very bold. Hewould not even allow John's letterto go through. John said the rea-

son was that "he loveth to havethe preeminence." He would notsubmit to God-ordained author-ity. There is designated authoritygiven in the Kingdom of God. AsCreator, God is supreme and hasall authority. We read in John13:3, "Jesus knowing that the Fa-ther had given all things into hishands, and that he was come fromGod, and went to God." All thingsare in His hands, and He is incontrol. We read in Matthew28:18, "And Jesus came and spakeunto them, saying, All power isgiven unto me in heaven and inearth." The Father delegated au-thority to His Son, and Jesus dele-gated authority to His Apostles.

Matthew 10:1 states, "Andwhen he had called unto him histwelve disciples, he gave thempower against unclean spirits, tocast them out, and to heal all man-ner of sickness and all manner ofdisease." Jesus, speaking to Hisdisciples, said in Matthew28:19-20: "Go ye therefore, andteach all nations, baptizing themin the name of the Father, and ofthe Son, and of the Holy Ghost:Teaching them to observe allthings whatsoever I have com-manded you: and, lo, I am withyou alway, even unto the end ofthe world. Amen." Jesus delegatedauthority through the office of theHoly Spirit.

Notice what John said aboutDiotrephes in 3 John 10: "Where-fore, if I come, I will remember hisdeeds which he doeth, pratingagainst us with malicious words:and not content therewith, neitherdoth he himself receive the breth-ren, and forbiddeth them thatwould, and casteth them out ofthe church." In other words, ifanyone showed hospitality to-ward John, Diotrephes blastedthem and cast them out.

Slanderous Talk

Diotrephes loved the preemi-nence, and he also had the sin ofprating laid to his charge. What

does "prating" mean? It means"gossiping, babbling, and trifling."Diotrephes was a gossiper andspoke malicious (or hurtful)words about John. He slanderedJohn. Malicious means "vicious,with malice."

I have never seen such a daywhen people use such malicious,fierce words, calling people liars,thieves, and backsliders. If you areguilty of letting such words flyout your mouth, you are aDiotrephes. When people getcrossways, they often speak hurt-ful, vicious words; that is thewrong spirit. Some could care lesswhat flies out their mouths. LikeDiotrephes, they love the preemi-nence.

Diotrephes would not receiveJohn or the brethren, and he wasnot hospitable. In those days theykept the brethren in their homesand took care of them. However,if someone did, Diotrephes ver-bally attacked them. Gaius mighthave been one who received suchan attack, because John had goodthings to say about him.

Diotrephes was a real trouble-maker in the congregation. Hecontinually spoke evil against theministry and those who receivedthe ministry. He ran them downand put them out. He had self-claimed authority. God was not inthat at all. Diotrephes was an evilman, and John named him out ina personal letter to Gaius. Johnencouraged Gaius and let himknow the good things he haddone and how he really appreci-ated him. He also let him knowthat he was going to deal withDiotrephes when he came. Thatspirit so had hold of Diotrephesthat he withstood John, one of thelast of the twelve Apostles.Brother, sister, that spirit is boldand strong, and you should notfool around with it. You shouldavoid it. Why? Because the nextthing you know, you will startrunning your mouth, putting outmalicious words, or prating, asthe Scripture says.

7Nothing lies beyond the reachof prayer except that whichlies beyond the will of God.

No doubt, Diotrephes justdrove a spear right through John'sheart with his prating. It so trou-bled John that he wrote to Gaiusabout it and encouraged him.Diotrephes attacked John andwent after him with false charges.Running John down was notenough. Diotrephes brought falsecharges against him. Why? Peoplewould not listen to slanderoustalk against John, so he had tosound convincing.

Again, the name Diotrephesmeans "love nourished (or pam-pered) by a pagan god Zeus." Hehad the spirit of paganism and ofwanting the preeminence. Just asthe Caesars and the emperor Nerowanted the preeminence, so didDiotrephes. Diotrephes did notwant John to receive any attentionin that congregation. That is thereason he stood against him. Nodoubt, he held a position in thatcongregation, but he had self-claimed authority.

Are you a Gaius or aDiotrephes? Which of the two is apattern for your life? Gaius had agood name among the church, butDiotrephes was named out by thegreat Apostle John. Diotrepheshad to have been in bad shape forJohn to have named him out in apersonal letter to Gaius.

John also mentioned anotherman, Demetrius, in his letter. Hewrote in verse 12, "Demetrius hathgood report of all men, and of thetruth itself." As John wrote thatletter, no doubt he would liked tohave given praise to everyone, butDiotrephes' words were affectingother people. Diotrephes stoodagainst a man who was called ofJesus Christ Himself. That is howstrong that spirit can get to causeyou to verbally lay someone out.Demetrius had a good report. Nodoubt, John would have loved tohave said good things even aboutDiotrephes, but he could not be-cause he had an evil spirit. AsGod looks down upon your heart,are you a Gaius or a Diotrephes?

(Cassette C-4200E)

8Ecclesiastes 10:1 Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly himthat is in reputation for wisdom and honour.

Brother Allen Polston

Has Your Vision BecomeClouded?

God views things as they re-ally are. Often I have taken conso-lation in that fact. When the devilbrings accusations, it is comfort-ing to know that God has the truerecord and views it as it is. In thisScripture text God has given acomparison through the wisestman who ever lived. We want tostudy and help you to see thingsas God sees them.

We are living in a time whenthere is a real danger of lettingthis old world influence us in anegative way and cause our visionto become clouded. God has givenus His precious Word so that wecan get a vision of ourselves andof what He wants us to be. Whenwe see ourselves in the mirror ofHis Word, we can see what weneed to do. I am thankful thatGod had mercy and showed mytrue condition to me one day. Heshowed me that I was a sinner on

my way to a lost eternity. Also,He let me know that if I did notrepent, I was going to be lost for-ever; then He gave me the grace todo something about it. He is justthe same today. God still gives usthe grace to do whatsoever Hebids us to do.

Sin has become exceedinglysinful, and because sin is allaround us, it can affect our spiri-tual vision. The Bible tells us in 2Peter 2:8 that a man named Lotbecame vexed by the things hesaw and heard among unrigh-teous people. This lets us knowthat if it happened to Lot, it canhappen to us if we are not careful.Everything that was going on inLot's day is happening today. Oursouls can become vexed by thethings we see and hear. We areliving in a lukewarm age. Revela-tion 3:18 says, "I counsel thee tobuy of me gold tried in the fire,that thou mayest be rich; andwhite raiment, that thou mayestbe clothed, and that the shame of

thy nakedness do not appear; andanoint thine eyes with eyesalve,that thou mayest see."

Our Scripture text can helpyou to see the destructive workthat a little folly can do. Not manywho claim to be children of Godwould consider going to a bar-room. Also, most Christianswould be quick to stand againstadultery, fornication, drunken-ness, cheating, and lying. Yet,some allow little things to affectthem. Therefore, God wants us toknow that a little folly is unac-ceptable in His eyes. His view of alittle folly is not a pleasant picture.You may be convinced not to goagainst the standard but fail to putyour whole heart into His serviceand merely go through a religiousform. God wants you to standfirm and to be true on every line.

Being a Vessel Unto Honor

In our Scripture text Solomonmentioned "him that is in reputa-

9tion for wisdom and honour." Thepeople of God are the ones whoare in reputation for wisdom andhonor. I am not talking aboutwhat the world thinks, but aboutwhat God terms a wise and hon-orable man. Sometimes we see abillboard that says, "Wise menstill follow Him," referring towhen the wise men came from theEast and followed the star to Beth-lehem when Jesus was born. Ifyou have a determination downdeep in your heart to live for Goduntil He calls you home, you are awise individual. Wise young peo-ple decide to follow God andstand by that decision despitepeer pressure.

Job went through many trials.In Job 28:28 he said, "Behold, thefear of the Lord, that is wisdom."James 3:13 asks the question,"Who is a wise man and enduedwith knowledge among you? lethim show out of a good conversa-tion his works with meekness ofwisdom."Verse 17 says, "But the wisdomthat is from above is first pure,then peaceable, gentle, and easy tobe entreated, full of mercy andgood fruits, without partiality,and without hypocrisy." God islooking down upon His followers,the Church of the Living God, as awise people. In the eyes of theworld, to be wise you have to beone of them, but that is not so inthe sight of God. Do not let any-one fool you. If you are servingGod, do not let anyone changeyour mind or cause you to alteryour course.

One song says, "Walk on infaith." The devil is doing all hecan to try to destroy your faithand cause you to no longer trustin God for your salvation. I wantto encourage you not to let any-one or anything steal your faith.You need to walk in faith andbelieve in Christ, and then youwill be a wise individual.

Along with being wise in thesight of God, honor is bestowedupon those who have chosen to

serve Him with all their hearts.That is an honorable position tobe in. In 2 Timothy 2:21 Paulwrote to young Timothy, "If aman therefore purge himself fromthese, he shall be a vessel untohonour, sanctified, and meet forthe master's use, and preparedunto every good work." Paultalked about a vessel unto honor.If a person purges himself fromthe things of the world, sin, andungodliness, he becomes an hon-orable vessel filled with wisdom.

Examine Your Heart

Now, I said all of that to helpyou to understand somethingabout our Scripture text in Ecclesi-astes 10:1. Solomon was dealingwith a comparison. In the secondpart of this comparison in Ecclesi-astes 10:1 he said "so doth a littlefolly him that is in reputation forwisdom and honor." Solomon wastalking about when a child of Godallows a little folly in his life. It isa serious matter when a saint ofGod begins to allow a little some-thing that is not right in his life. Alittle folly, or a little sin, is notsomething that can be swept un-der the rug because you think it isinsignificant. In the sight of God,it must be dealt with or it willresult in a destructive work.

The comparison that Solomonused is not pleasant to consider,but you need to consider it be-cause it will help you to under-stand what it is like for a littlefolly to be present in the life ofone who claims to be a Christian.I want to clarify that so the devildoes not falsely accuse anyone.He was not speaking of having agood time with people. The saintsof God can have good, clean fun.To have a little folly is to play therole of the fool in a small way.Psalm 53:1 says, "The fool bathsaid in his heart, There is no God."You can know what a person issaying in his heart by his actions.When a person says in his heartthere is no God, it will show by

the way he livesby the things hedoes, by the things he becomesinvolved in, by the way he dressesand talks, and by the places hegoes. What is down in the heartwill come out. When you reallybelieve that God is looking downupon your heart and life this verymoment, it will alter the way youlive today.

You need to be careful thatyou do not start thinking, "Godlooks on the heart, so it doesn'tmatter what I do." That kind ofthinking will cause you to letdown on things you once upheld.If you really believe somethingdown in your heart, it will showon the outside. If you begin to loseyour desire to do what the Wordof God tells you to do, you need toexamine your heart. You shouldask God to search your heart andshow you what is wrong. Thedevil will try to convince you thata little folly is acceptable becauseyou are still attending the churchservices and reading your Bible. Ifyou have a little folly in your life,it needs to be dealt with, becauseeven a little folly is unacceptableto God.The world around you can vexyou, especially since morality isthe lowest it has ever been. Thedevil will try to convince you thatlittle things do not really matteranymore. On the contrary, in thesight of God, a little folly is a terri-ble thing; it is destructive anddamaging to your soul.

Consecrate Your Heart to God

Again, our Scripture textstates, "Dead flies cause the oint-ment of the apothecary to sendforth a stinking savour: so doth alittle folly him that is in reputationfor wisdom and honor." Solomonwas comparing the ointment ofthe apothecary to the child ofGod. To understand this fully,you need to know the purpose ofthat ointment. Exodus 30:25-29says: "And thou shalt make it anoil of holy ointment, an ointment

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compound after the art of theapothecary: it shall be an holyanointing oil. And thou shaltanoint the tabernacle of the con-gregation therewith, and the arkof the testimony, And the tableand all his vessels, and the candle-stick and his vessels, and the altarof incense, And the altar of burntoffering with all his vessels, andthe laver and his foot. And thoushalt sanctify them, that they maybe most holy: whatsoever touch-eth them shall be holy."

The ointment of the apothe-cary was intended to take some-thing that was common and makeit holy. The tabernacle, the cloth,and the other common vesselsbecame holy when the priestanointed them with that specialointment.

Solomon compared that oint-ment to one who is in reputationfor wisdom and honor. What doesthat tell you? As saints of God, weeach have a purpose in this life.We are to take that which is com-mon and bring it in and make itholy. Our responsibility is to bringin the sinful and the ungodly sothey can become holy. We do thisby living the life before them, byspreading the Gospel, and bysharing the love of God that isworking in our hearts. We need toinfluence others so that it compelsthose people who are drunkards,murderers, thieves, adulterers,and fornicators to become holy.

God did not create us to live insin or to go to hell. He created usto serve Him. Salvation brings anew reason to live and a new de-termination to the soul of man.Without Christ all you had to livefor was to try to accomplish somefleshly task, but when you getsaved and start living for God, itbrings new meaning to life.

Every day should be spent forJesus. You should live so that youinfluence those who are sinful tobecome Christians. That is yourpurpose in this lie. God is callingfor young people, middle-agedpeople, and older people to conse-

crate their hearts to Him. Hewants you to say, "Lord, here amI; send me. Give me a work to do."

The anointing ointment of theapothecary was used in the OldTestament tabernacle to makeholy that which was unholy.There were other uses, but thatwas one use. I want you to seewhat He had to say about theointment when dead flies got in it.The Scripture says the dead fliescaused the ointment to send fortha stinking savor. God wants youto realize that a little folly willcause your life to be unpleasantrather than being the drawingpower that God wants you to be.Your life will no longer attractothers to Christ.

God wants His people to besweet so that others will be drawnto Christ. They may be in thedepths of sin, yet when they be-hold such a sweet spirit and sucha godly representation, it will be-gin to draw them to Christ. Theywill want to know how they canlive in such a way.

When I was living in sin, Idrank liquor and did other un-godly things, and I was unhappy.I got to the place where I was mis-erable. Down deep in my heart, Iwas crying out for something. Iwanted what the saints had. Godwas drawing me, saying, "You canhave something better." I did nothave to choose to serve God, butthank God I did. I found what Ihad been looking for so long.

Saint, God wants you to be adrawing power for this lost anddying world. He wants you to livethe kind of life that your neigh-bors can look upon and be drawnto a place of salvation. That re-quires you to have the sweetnessof God in your soul.

If the flies were allowed toland upon the ointment of theapothecary and die, the result ofthat would be a stinking savor, oran unpleasant aroma. No onewants to stay around somethingunpleasant. That is what Solomonwas saying about the apothecary

ointment when it sent forth astinking savor. The same is true ofthe Christian who allows a littlefolly to come into his life.

God wants you to understandthat just a little wrongdoing, just alittle sidestepping of His Word,sends forth a stinking savor. Thedevil would like for you to getinvolved in just a little wrongdo-ing. Young person, the devil willcome at you with statements suchas, "Mom and Dad have taughtagainst this, but just a little won'thurt." The Bible has something tosay about that. Also, you will notbe a productive Christian and winsouls.

Power to Overcome Temptation

I want to mention anotherpoint concerning this Scripture.Solomon used the example ofdead flies to relate the awfulnessof just a little folly. Dead flies inthe apothecary ointment causedan unpleasant aroma. That is thecomparison he gave of those whopartake of a little folly. Now, Iwant you to realize that those fliesdid not have to end up there.They were not created to be there,and that ointment was not createdto attract flies. Likewise, the pur-pose of the Christian is not to beengaged in folly.

Had something been doneabout those flies before they hadgotten in the ointment, theywould not have caused the dam-age. Folly is not something thatyou have to allow. You do notwake up one morning and sud-denly realize that wrongdoing hasovertaken you because you didnot have any choice in the matter.The devil works on a saint like afly. He buzzes around a little hereand there, and whispers, "Goahead and do it; it's not that bad.It won't hurt anything." Then hemay not bother you for a while. Awhile later he will come aroundagain and say, "You know youwould like to do that. It reallywon't hurt anything. Look,

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So-and-So is doing it." He willkeep coming at you and, finally, ifyou are not careful, you will givein to that temptation and folly willbegin to work in your life. Thenrather than having a drawingpower and being a sweet,soul-saving station for God, yourlife will become something thatothers do not want anything to dowith. It will send forth an un-pleasant aroma.

Child of God, you do not haveto give in to folly. God has givenyou power to overcome tempta-tion. In His Word, Jesus told thedisciples before He left them (inthe Book of Acts) that they wouldreceive power from on high to bewitnesses for Him. The samepower that enables you to be awitness can enable you to say noto the devil. You can have thepower you need to keep you frombecoming engaged in sin.

If I had to come up with thispower on my own, I could neverlive this Christian life, but thankGod, He gives me power! I neverunderstood it until God saved me.He gave me power to lay downthose things to which I used tohold tightly. I began to throw outthe ungodly habits and bring innew things through the power ofthe Spirit of God working in mylife.

When the devil begins to workon you, God wants you to standagainst him with the power Hehas given you. Do not give in towhat the devil is trying to do.Jesus is our example, and He usedthe Word of God when the deviltempted Him. He destroyed whatthe devil was trying to do in thebeginning. He did not discuss itwith him. The devil is a goodtalker, but he does not tell thetruth. When he combines thesetwo factors, he could convinceyou that what he is saying is trueif you start discussing things withhim; so you must stand againsthim. As soon as you recognizethat sinful temptation, you needto rebuke it.

The devil can make thingslook good to you. You have todestroy what he is trying to do inthe very beginning. The dead fliesin the apothecary ointment shouldhave been done away with so theycould not have done a destructivework.

Turn From the Pathof Destruction

God wants you to put all follyout of your life, no matter howlittle it may be. Even a little follywill cause an unpleasant aroma tocome forth from your life. A littlefolly can relax your defense andeventually make way for morefolly. Sin will take you furtherthan you want to go, it will keepyou longer than you want to stay,and it will cost you more than youwant to pay. Young person, thelittle folly that you may be gettinginvolved with now will take youmuch further than you ever in-tend to go, and it will cost you somuch more than you want to pay.It may be something that youthink does not seem to hurt much.The devil might even put thequestion in your mind, "If I didthis little thing, how is that goingto hurt me as a Christian?" Friend,if God, is against it, you can be-lieve that it will do a destructivework in your life if you take holdof it. Jusf a little folly will causeyou to start the downward de-scent toward a lost eternity, neverto return, unless God has abun-dant mercy upon you.

When people allow just a littlecompromise, inevitably they willcompromise more down the road.I have seen individuals let downon little things that seemed insig-nificant, and then, little by little,they became just like the world.Now, there is nothing godly aboutthem at all. They have broughtthings into the home that theyonce stood against, and they dressand adorn themselves in waysthey used to stand against. Just alittle folly became a very destruc-

tive work. It will only be theabundant mercy of God that theyever recover from their apostatecondition.

Saint, the devil would like tomake you think that a little follydoes not mean anything, but justa little folly will do a destructivework in your life if you do not dosomething about it right away. Ifthe Lord has spoken to you abouta little something in your life, thebest thing you can do is go to Godimmediately and get it straight-ened out before it goes any fur-ther.

The devil can take a little follyin the life of a beautiful youngperson and make that person's lifevery unpleasant and miserable injust a few short years. Christianyoung person, you have a promis-ing future of getting a good com-panion and a good job and beinga real light in the community; butif you allow a little folly in yourlife, the devil will cause a destruc-tive work. He will destroy yourmind, your health, and your repu-tation.

Just a little folly will keep youout of Heaven. It does not have tobe a bottle of whiskey or a mari-juana joint; it can be smaller thanthat. If you have a little folly inyour life, a little something thatyou know is not right, why don'tyou come to God and get it takencare of? He will abundantly par-don those who will humble them-selves before Him. If you will re-pent and turn from it, God willforgive you and you can be inperfect harmony with Him. If youdo not do anything about it, thatis the same as asking for destruc-tion to take place in your life. Doyou have something in your lifethat you know God is displeasedwith? Do not allow it to lead youto destruction. Do not let it takeyou down that long, winding roadfilled with heartache. It leads to alost eternity. Won't you ask Godto help you?

(Cassette C-4195M)

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My life was a most unhappyone. I was miserable because Ibecame aware that the life I wasliving was sinfulthat I was notpleasing to the God of Heaven. Iwas twenty-eight years old, I hadfour children, and their father andI were living together unmarried.My religion just did not satisfy myheart. I had gone to all the church-es I knew but went awayempty-hearted. At my place ofemployment at a textile factory, aChristian young man witnessed tome about Jesus Christ, and theLord began speaking to my heart.

During my fifth pregnancy, Igrew despondent and tried todestroy my unborn baby. Theunsuccessful attempt hospitalizedme, and there I began to feel theneed to raise this child for God;but because of my unbelief, I didnot know how. Three monthsafter my child was born, I soughthelp for my burden from theyoung man who had witnessed tome. He made an appointment forme with his pastor. Although Iwas not at all well and in constantpain, I visited the pastor seekinghelp in how to give my boy toGod.

The pastor did not waste anytime but told me that I was a sin-ner and needed Christ. The Lordshowed me my need, and I askedJesus to come into my heart andsave me from sin. And He did justthat! Yes, it was a miracle! When

the pastor invited me to thechurch services the next day, Iremembered my constant painand how ill I recently had been. Inmy heart I said to the Lord, "OLord, how will I attend the ser-vices when I can hardly movearound?" But the next day I was inall the services, On Wednesdaynight I was in the mid-week ser-vice. On Sunday I was back again!My children and their fatherthought it strange that I did notcry out in pain anymore, and Itold them that I believed the Lordnot only had saved my soul buthealed my legs as well.

The old nature within mestruggled against the new one thatGod had given me. My pastorpleaded with my children's fatherfor us to get married. He did notsay, "No," but kept putting me off.I told him that if he would notmarry me, he would have to leaveme, but he would not believe meand only laughed. When I real-ized what God wanted me to do,I told my children that we weregoing away to my mother's hometo live.

On my payday, we packed ourclothes and moved in with Moth-er in her tiny house. It was crowd-ed, and we had to sleep on thefloor. Living that way was hard,but we proved the power of God,and He gave me the strength Inever thought I was capable of!There wasn't much money, for

after I paid my tithe, I had only afew dollars left for food eachweek. But we never went hun-gryour God is faithful!

Since that time, my two oldersons, my daughter, and I havebeen baptized. My two youngersons have received Jesus as theirSavior and are awaiting baptism.I am, at the present time, teachinga Sunday school class in ourchurch and am finding real joy inserving our Lord in this manner.To me, these are real miracles!

During one of the strongtemptations which came to me,the Lord gave me these lineswhich I share with you:

We must seek God's very best, No matter what may be the test. Be satisfied with nothing lessHe will take care of all the rest.

If we in Him our hearts confide,He will be ever at our side.No matter where life's rough roads

lead,Let Christ the Savior be Lord

indeed.

Think nought of works that youhave done,

The many souls that you havewon,

The work is Christ's-may glory beHis throughout eternity.

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People fear

others so much

because they fear

God so lit t le.

In Matthew, Chapter 6, we findthat Jesus gave to His disciples whatis popularly called "The Lord'sPrayer." Though this is only a veryshort prayer, it contains much alongthe line of doctrine and time. WhenJesus gave this prayer to His disci-ples, He commented on only oneverse in it. This prayer is complete inverses 9-13.

In verses 14-15 we find that Je-sus gave a commentary on verse 12.Evidently, there is something in thisverse which is of vital importance tothe followers of Jesus Christ. Thisverse is dealing with the matter offorgiveness. It reads, "And forgiveus our debts, as we forgive our debt-ors."

Jesus' comments on this verseread as follows: "For if ye forgivemen their trespasses, your heavenlyFather will also forgive you: But ifye forgive not men their trespasses,neither will your Father forgive yourtrespasses" (verses 14-15).

In the prayer, Jesus used theword debt, thus showing that it issomething we owe. In the comment,Jesus used that same thought byusing the word trespass to show thatit was a transgression of some sort.No doubt everyone has had some-one at some time trespass againsthim in some form, by doing them aninjury or harm of some kind. Jesuswas pointing out that, when thishappens, the attitude we take to-ward the one who has done uswrong is extremely important.

It is a Christian act to forgiveone another. This will not save aperson by merely having a forgivingspirit toward one who has done him

wrong; but it will, according to ourScripture, remove a block out of ourway so that God can forgive uswhen we come to Him for forgive-ness.

We note in our Scripture thatthere are two ifs. One is the if offorgiveness; the other is the if of notforgiving.

There are two kinds of tres-passes. One may be called uninten-tional trespasses; the other, inten-tional trespasses. There are peoplewho infringe on our rights and priv-ileges without any willful intentionto do so. For this reason we shouldalways put the best possible con-struction on the intention of anyperson who appears to intend totrespass against us; for he may beinnocent of any intention to harmus. This is a prime reason why weshould forgive men their trespasses.

Then there are intentional tres-passes. These are, unfortunately,people who do intend to do usharm. This, of course, is very griev-ous to the one harmed; and yet theprecept to forgive seems to be espe-cially concerning intentional tres-passing.

A great reward awaits one whohas a forgiving spirit toward hisfellowman. God will forgive such aone. If God is willing to forgive usour great transgressions so willingly,why should we hesitate to forgiveour fellowman of his trivial indigni-ties? Every one of us has trespassedagainst God in such major ways,surely we can forgive others. This isa way of saying that we will reapwhat we sow. Sometimes we hearpeople make the remark, "I will for-

give if he will ask me to forgivehim." The transgressor may neverask you to forgive him. He maynever have the grace to do so, butthe spirit of forgiveness may be exer-cised on the part of the injured one.

Jesus had many injustices doneto Him. Did any come around toJesus to ask forgiveness for theircruelty? No, not one! But what atti-tude did Jesus take toward them all?He said, "Father, forgive them; forthey know not what they do." Un-doubtedly, God exercises a forgivingspirit toward every sinner, onlywaiting for him to ask forgiveness torealize God's forgiving smile.

There are others who take theattitude, "I will forgive him if hemakes things right." One shouldmake amends for all wrongs, but itis not always possible to do so. Noris it always possible to do so imme-diately. Where a trespass in moneymatters is involved, it may take along time for a trespasser to makethings right; in fact, he may die be-fore he gets it all righted. So, for-giveness must be immediate, even ifrestitution is slow in its process.

Sometimes we hear a person say,"I will forgive, but I will never for-get." This is often said in a bad spirit,intending to keep the trespasserunder suspicion. It is true that wemay not be able entirely to forgettheir actions, but we do not need toremember them against the tres-passer. David said in Psalms 79:8, "Oremember not against us formeriniquities."

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Spirituality is going with thewind of worldliness. Most of thetrouble in this world can be attrib-uted to the sin of worldlinessamong so-called people of God.

Worldliness is enmity towardGod, and spiritual adultery (James4:4). It is disobedience (1 John2:15). Christians are called to sepa-ration (2 Corinthians 6:17). Theyare to be insulated but not isolated;in the world but not of the world.

Worldliness is deadening andretards Christian growth and ef-fectual services for Him. WhenLazarus was called forth out of thetomb, he was wrapped in graveclothes. He may just as well havebeen in the tomb, as far as serviceis concerned. Many Christianshave been raised out of death intolife, but like Lazarus of old, theyare bound with the grave clothesof worldliness and carnality. TheLord said, "Loose him and let himgo." There can be no going forthfor God until God's people havebeen loosened.

Worldliness in the Home

When one of the widows ofthe prophets came to Elisha, say-ing, "Thy servant, my husband, isdead, and thou knowest that thyservant did fear the Lord; and thecreditor is come to take unto himmy two sons to be bond men,"Elisha said unto her, "What shall Ido for thee? Tell me, what hastthou in the house?" What couldyou say in answer to this ques-

tion? Some professing Christianshave a radio blaring away non-sense, and sometimes filthy, sug-gestive sayings, or a magazinerack filled with sensual literature,a pack of devil's cards, a lot ofworldly conversation, or somedisobedient and worldly children.God takes inventory, not accord-ing to the fine furniture, but ac-cording to the behavior of thosewho profess to know Him.

This preacher's widow was indire poverty. She had a little oil,and oil throughout the Scripturesis a type of the Holy Spirit. Manyhomes today are like the foolishvirgins; there is a profession, aname to live, but they are deadnolife, no oil.

Elisha , said unto this woman,"Shut the door on thyself." Today,God is saying to those who knowHim, "Shut the door on thyself; setup a standard against worldlinessand its deadening influences."Elisha also said, "Shut the door onthy sons." Some parents expecttheir children to be separatedfrom the world and to grow upreverencing the things of Godwhen they themselves allowworldliness in their own lives.

When Noah entered the ark,the door was shut behind his en-tire family. The great need todayis for separated, consecrated, anddedicated families.

After this, Elisha said, "Pourout the oil"; in other words, conse-crate your means to God. We maynot have much, like this widow,

but God can do much with little ifit is consecrated to Him. He usedthe little maid's testimony forNaaman's cleansing. He used thelittle lad's lunch to feed the multi-tude in the wilderness. He used alittle child to teach a lesson; Heused the little gift of the widow'smites as an example.

Are you willing to pour out ofthat which you haveyour means,your time, your talent, and yes,your sons and daughtersfor theservices of the Lord? Some Chris-tian parents are fundamental, be-lieve the Bible from cover to cover,and are separated from the thingsof the worldexcept in worldlyambitions for their children. Theycovet for them just exactly whatunsaved parent desire for theirchildren. They would like to havetheir children it business or pro-fessions such as doctors or law-yers, and to marry into prominentfamilies; yet they have no thoughtin mind of giving their childrenfor the services of the King.

A minister's wife, who is nowa very spiritual and consecratedchild of God, said to an evangelistsome time ago, "If my ambitionfor my children in the past hadbeen spiritual instead of secular,would not have the heartachetoday that I have because of themone sings in night clubs and theother is in business, and it seemsas if they have lost their faith inGod. If I had only known, I wouldhave planned their lives for theservices of God."

Worldliness

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Worldliness in the Pew

Many well-planned, scriptural,spiritual sermons are killed beforethe service is closed by the world-liness and carnality of the mem-bers. Their prayerless lives,back-biting, and fault-findinggrieves the Holy Spirit, resultingin the lack of conviction for theunsaved hearers, the lack of bless-ing for the children of God, androbs the preacher of liberty in themessage.

Many church members are likethe farmer's well. It had only twofaults. It froze up in the winterand dried up in the summer. Thechurch should be a spiritual ma-ternity ward. The new birth canonly be brought about through aspiritual, warm atmosphere, andthe travail of the Christians. Tohatch eggs we place them underthe warm wings of the hen, or inan even-temperature incubator.We plant seed in the hot house.The Word of God, in order to ger-minate, must have the right atmo-sphere. The Christians in the pew,by their warm hearts and prayer-ful attitudes, can create the rightconditions for the incorruptibleWord of God (1 Peter 1:23).

The great need today is a re-vival that will convert the wreck-ing crew of some churches to aconstruction gang, like those wholabored with Nehemiah in build-ing the walls of Jerusalem.

Worldliness in the Pulpit

Water cannot rise higher thanits source. It will not do for thepreacher to say, "Live as I preachand not as I live." Like the peoplein the pew, the preacher live aseparated life so that the HolySpirit may speak through him.The pew sometimes may ask formixing preachers, but God still isusing separators (2 Corinthians6:17). While speaking to a manabout his soul, he said to an evan-gelist, "You should know ourpreacher. He is a regular fellow,

just like one of us." By that fiemeant that his pastor, like himself,smoked, went to the movies, andwas worldlyminded. God deliverour pulpits from such "regularfellows," and give us righteouspreachers like Noah, prayingpreachers like Elijah, bold preach-ers like Peter, and fearless preach-ers like John the Baptist-men who,through their consecration, havepower from God and power withmen.

We need stirred preachers likePaul, Holy Ghost preachers likeStephen, heart preachers-Godsays, "Give me thine heart," (Prov-erbs 23:26). People today are say-ing, "Give me thine heart." Weneed to reach men's hearts. Thiscold, lifeless, powerless preachingwill not do. Henry Ward Beechersaid, "The business of a preacheris not just to make sermons andpreach them, but to save men."

"Your only business," saidJohn Wesley to a group of preach-ers, "is to save souls." Hopacher,the powerful German preacher,used to say, "I have only one ser-mon. It is 'Come to Jesus.' It is theonly sermon I have, but brothers,it draws hearts."Souls are going to hell. This is notime for flowery sermons. Everymessage should be a fire alarm toawaken people out of their leth-argy. Like the sirens that send thepeople scurrying for bomb shel-ters, the message should sendpeople seeking for the shelter ofthe ark of safety. Sermons that donot alarm the sinner are dead.

When Peter preached at Pente-cost, they were pricked in theirheart (Acts 2:37). When Stephenpreached, they were cut to theirheart (Acts 7:54). When John theBaptist preached, people from allwalks of life said, "What must wedo?" The Philippian jailer said,"What must I do to be saved?"

Some ministers say that reviv-als are a thing of the past. How-ever, souls are not being born intheir churches, and their lives arenot fruitful of spiritual results.

They might as well confess theirspiritual sterility. They give noplace to revivals, notwithstandingthe large place given to revivalsby the great Head of the church.

I believe that these ministersare as sincere in their oppositionto revivals as was Lyman Beecher,who on hearing that Finney wasplanning to go to New England,challenged him not to put his footon New England soil else hewould meet him at the borderwith all the gunnery possible; butFinney went. Lyman Beecher sur-rendered and became one of thestalwarts of the revival. Moreevangelism is the best answer toall opposition. The revival must berevived. Evangelism must beevangelized. The history of salva-tion is the history of revivals.

Charles G. Finney swept amillion souls into the kingdom, 85percent of whom never backslidand fifty years after their conver-sion were as charged with spiri-tual power as they were the hourthey arose from the altar.

Of Dwight L. Moody it may besaid that few men have been moreused of God, and many years afterhis death nations vie with eachother in honoring his name. R. A.Torrey, whose invitation to sin-ners God honored, had crowdedaltars in nine nations of the earth."Billy" Sunday was used of God inthe conversion of a million souls.

The church has largely aban-doned its policy of evangelism. Itseems concerned with everythingbut the saving of lost souls. Itsponsors plays, movie pictures,bazaars, rummage sales, and din-ners. It is desperately concernedwith ways and means of raisingmoney, forgetting that the com-mand, "Bring ye all the tithes intothe storehouse, that there may bemeat in thine house," carries withit the attendant promise, "Proveme now herewith, said the Lord ofhosts, if I will not open you thewindows of heaven, and pour youout a blessing, that there shall notbe room enough to receive it"

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LOCATION STATION DAY TIME

Newark, Ohio WCLT-AM 1430 Sunday 7:15 a.m.-8:00 a.m.Anderson, Indiana WQME-FM 98.7 Sunday 8:00 a.m.-8:30 a.m.Gaffney, South Carolina WAGI-FM 105.3 Monday 8:30 p.m.-10:00 p.m.

Tune in to the radio station nearest you to hear an inspiring message fromthe Word of God. If you enjoy the broadcast, let us hear from you!

(Malachi 3:10).In Luke, Chapter 15, we find

that a man is interested in thesheep, a woman is interested inthe coin, but who is interested inthe lost son?

When Charles Lindbergh's sonwas lost, no money, time, or effortwas spared in the search. Whenseven year old Bruce Crozier ofWinslow, Arizona, was lost, busi-ness was suspended, work wasstopped, and thousands searched

for the missing lad. It cost thestate department four thousanddollars alone for feeding the possewhile searching for him.

When Amelia Earhart was lostsomewhere in the vast PacificOcean, Uncle Sam did not spareships or money in searching forher. When a vessel is lost at sea,every ship within miles dashes toits rescue. But how few are inter-ested in those who are lost spiritu-ally!

Millions now in sin andshame are dying;

Listen to their sad and bittercry;

Hasten, brother, hasten to therescue;

Quickly answer, "Master, here am I."

Selected

You can't "wait on theLord" and run with thedevil at the same time.

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Revelation 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not thatthou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.

Brother Daniel Webster

Our Dependency Must Be on Him

Our greatest need is God. Weneed Him more than anything elsein the entire world. When I firstrealized that, it blessed my soul in awonderful way. I went to God whenI finally came to myself one day andrealized, "I need God." I was abouttwenty-four years old at the timeand thought I was doing a good jobof running my life. Finally, I came tothe place where I realized that I hadmade a total wreck of it.

We need God more today thanwe have ever needed Him. We mustdepend on Him, rest on Him, andcount on Him to help us. It is notthrough feelings, but through simplefaith that God will help us in thetime of need. The word need means,"an obligation." It also means, "a lackof something requisite, desirable, or

useful." Another meaning is, "a con-dition requiring supply or relief orpoverty." God's Word likens Chris-tians to sheep, and sheep need aleader. Without a leader they willwander about and eventually perish.We need God more than anythingelse to direct and guide us in everydecision we make in life. The Bibletells us we need Him for our breath.

The definitions of the verb formof need mean, "to be in want ofsomething; to have a cause or anoccasion for; to require." We are ingreat need of God. He is the greatsupplier and life giver, yet manyturn Him down and refuse Him. Ina sense people are spitting in Hisface, saying, "I can get along withoutYou." Through the Word of God wecan find the instructions we need.

The verb form of the word needalso means, "to be under an obliga-

tion or a necessity, such as, We needto know the truth." If you were to askmany people, "What do you need?"they would have a long list ofthings. Some young people may say,"I need a boyfriend" or "I need agirlfriend." Others may say, "I justneed to get out of school. Once I getout of high school [or college], ev-erything will be great" or "I need toget away from my parents and be onmy own, and then everything willbe all right" or "I need a differentjob." The sad thing is, these are alltemporal. In the light of eternity,they are not the most importantthings that people need to consider.

We are living in an age whenpeople feel that they have need ofnothing, spiritually speaking. Reve-lation 3:17 says, "Because thousayest, I am rich, and increased withgoods, and have need of nothing;

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and knowest not that thou artwretched, and miserable, and poor,and blind, and naked." You maythink you do not need anything, butin reality, you are in great need.

Get Your Heart Fixedon Spiritual Things

Jesus warned people, from thevery beginning of His ministry, toget their hearts and minds off thisworld and the cares of life and to getthem fixed on spiritual things. Hesaid in Matthew 6:25, "Therefore Isay unto you, Take no thought foryour life, what ye shall eat, or whatye shall drink; nor yet for yourbody, what ye shall put on. Is notthe life more than meat, and thebody than raiment?" Somethingmuch more important than thephysical life is the soul. One songsays, "His eye is on the sparrow."God knows what we really stand inneed of today, and He can supplyevery need. He is not just a god thatsomeone has stashed in a cornersomewhere that is, as the Bible says,a "dumb idol." He is a living God,One who can meet every need. Godcan do all things.

Jesus said in verses 26-27: "Be-hold the fowls of the air: for theysow not, neither do they reap, norgather into barns; yet your heavenlyFather feedeth them. Are ye notmuch better than they? Which ofyou by taking thought can add onecubit unto his stature?" No matterhow hard you think about it, youcannot add to or take away fromyour stature. As saints of God, weare the happiest people in the world,because God cares for us. God cer-tainly would not do anything tocause us harm. We might have to gothrough some grief now and then,but it is not for our hurt but for ourbetterment. God has a better planand a better way. The earthly caresare not the needs that we should beprimarily concerned about.

Jesus said in verses 31-33 of thesame chapter: "Therefore take nothought, saying, What shall we eat?or, What shall we drink? or, Where-

withal shall we be clothed? (Forafter all these things do the Gentilesseek:) for your heavenly Fatherknoweth that ye have need of allthese things. But seek ye first thekingdom of God, and his righteous-ness; and all these things shall beadded unto you." He can meet everyneed in your life!

The sad thing is that today manyportray God as one who hands youeverything you want as soon as youask Him. Friend, that is not the Godof the Bible! He is not a god who justhands you everything, as one woulda spoiled child. Many people are toowrapped up in the affairs of thisworld.

God Will Supply All Your Need

False prophets tell people, "Ifyou live for God, He will make youa millionaire. Give Him five hun-dred dollars, and He will give you athousand back." That is the storythey tell people so they can reallyfleece them for everything they canget out of them.

Jesus spoke about a certain richman in Luke 16:19-22: "There was acertain rich man, which was clothedin purple and fine linen, and faredsumptuously every day: And therewas a certain beggar named Laza-rus, which was laid at his gate, fullof sores, And desiring to be fed withthe crumbs which fell from the richman's table: moreover the dogscame and licked his sores. And itcame to pass, that the beggar died,and was carried by the angels into,Abraham's bosom: the rich man alsodied, and was buried."

This lets you know that to be aChristian does not necessarily meanthat you are going to be wealthy oreven have an abundance of anythingin this world. This poor beggar wentto Heaven, because Jesus said hewas carried into Abraham's bosom.On the other hand, the rich man nodoubt had a large, fancy funeral andwas buried, but he opened his eyesin hell. Jesus was teaching that noteveryone is going to have all theearthly goods he wants; but though

you are a beggar when it comes toearthly goods, you can be as thesongwriter penned, "a happy mil-lionaire," spiritually speaking. WhenI was first saved and my wife and Iwere trying to raise our first baby,we had hardly enough money to liveon, yet I was happy in my soul. NowGod has taken me from that positionto where I successfully run my ownbusiness. However, if it were to failtomorrow, I would still be happy. Ihave learned, as Paul learned, to becontent in the good times and in thetimes of poverty, in sickness and inhealth, when things go well andwhen things do not go as well. Noteverything will always go the wayyou want just because you are aChristian. You need to keep yourheart fixed beyond the things of thisearth if you intend to do the workthat God would have you to do.

Philippians 4:19 says, "But myGod shall supply all your need ac-cording to his riches in glory byChrist Jesus." God will supply allyour need. It does not say, "all yourneeds," but "all your need." Ourgreatest need is to have the Spirit ofGod living in us and the Word ofGod. How does He supply all ofthat? Through Christ Jesus. All theworld's problems today could befixed if every soul were saved. Thisworld would become a paradise ifevery living soul in this world weretruly saved and moved by the HolySpirit. The Bible says God will sup-ply all your need according to Hisriches in glory. He owns the cattleon a thousand hills; He owns every-thing. He made this world and ev-erything in it. He made the universe,the stars, and everything that we cansee from nothing. He just spokethem into existence. Since He can dothat, surely He can take care of youand me. He will not forget you orleave you; He will take care of you.

Wait on the Lord

Too many times people thinkthat God will just give them every-thing instantly, but God does notalways work that way. Sometimes

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you have to learn to wait on theLord. At other times God may sayyou have to do something beforeyou will receive this or that. Some-times before Jesus healed people, Hehad to do a part before the personwas healed. Occasionally Jesusspoke and people were healed in-stantly. Once He made mud and putit on a blind man's eyes, and he re-ceived his sight. Another time Hetold some lepers to go and tell thepriests before the healings weredone. Not always does God moveinstantly in our behalf.

If you are willing to wait onHim by faith, He promised that Hewould take care of all your need, nomatter what comes your way. Some-times the help that He sends youmay be in the form of grace to en-dure that hard time. Oftentimes youmay want to get out of the trial in ahurry, but God may see fit to leaveyou in that fiery trial for a while.Sometimes you might have to cryand weep and seek God in a greaterway, but He will always be there inthe shadows to comfort your souland to cheer you. When God's gracemoves in upon your soul, you willfind yourself singing when youshould not be. How can you dothat? The Spirit of God will cheeryour soul along. When your heart isfilled with sorrow, God is right thereto cheer you. You need Him morethan anything else in this life.

Many people have their heartsfixed on their companions, butsomeday God may see fit for one ofthe two to leave this world first.Therefore, your heart needs to befixed on God. He is the One youneed more than your companion,your children, your job, or anythingelse in life.

Your hope cannot be in yourpastor. You must have your hopeand your trust in God. When thetime comes for God to call yourpastor home, He can raise up an-other man to fill his shoes. WhenSamuel went to anoint a man toreplace Saul, man looked on andsaid, "Well, this brother ought to bethe one," but God said no. Samuel

inquired of Jesse, "Do you have an-other son?"

"Yes, we have little David. He isout taking care of the sheep."

"Bring him in."God said, "He is the one whom

I have chosen." The point is that ifman gets in the way, he will makethe wrong decision every time. LetGod have His way. At the righttime, the revelation will come; so beencouraged.

God is the One on whom youmust rely. You must rest in Himmore than anything else. Psalm 37:7says, "Rest in the LORD, and waitpatiently for him: fret not thyselfbecause of him who prospereth inhis way, because of the man whobringeth wicked devices to pass."Rest in the LORD and be patient.Sometimes you will become impa-tient and want God to hurry and dosomething, but the Psalmist said to"Rest in the Lord, and wait patientlyfor him." Often that is difficult to do.The Bible says you get patiencethrough tribulation. Wait on theLord and be patient, and God willbless you for it.

Psalm 37:11 says, "But the meekshall inherit the earth; and shalldelight themselves in the abundanceof peace." You cannot have thatpeace unless you rest in the Lordand patiently wait upon Him.

Lay Up Treasures in Heaven.

Psalm 37:16 says, "A little that arighteous man hath is better than theriches of many wicked." Again, donot get your heart fixed on thisearth. Having little of this world'sgoods does not have anything to dowith how happy you can be. Youcan be happier than the richest manin this world if you have JesusChrist in your life. He is the Onewho brings joy. He brings eternalriches and all the blessings into yourlife. He is the One who makes youhappy.

Before I was saved, I soughtmany things to find happiness, andthey all came to dead ends, one afterthe other; they always let me down.

Thank God, once I found Jesus, thatwas the end of my searching. Ifound what I was really looking for.I found the happiness that I thoughtI would never find.

Jesus said in Luke 12:25, "Andwhich of you with taking thoughtcan add to his stature one cubit?" Hewas letting us know that we shouldnot worry about things. God haseverything under control. From timeto time, it may not look that way toyou, but He knows what is going on,and He knows just what we need. Iam thankful for that.

You may ask, "Well, why is it soimportant that I should keep myeyes off this world and keep themfixed on Jesus?" One reason is thatother people are looking upon yourlife, and if they see you worryingand fretting about things that youshould be letting God take care of,what kind of witness is that to them?They need to see that you have con-fidence in God and that you believethat He will do what He has prom-ised to do. Your responsibility is tolet others, through your actions, seethat your faith is fixed in Him. Youcan tell them all you want, but thatwill not convince them of anythinguntil they see your faith in action.True faith is witnessed in your ac-tions and in your confidence in theliving God.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-25:"Lay not up for yourselves treasuresupon earth, where moth and rustdoth corrupt, and where thievesbreak through and steal: But lay upfor yourselves treasures in heaven,where neither moth nor rust dothcorrupt, and where thieves do notbreak through nor steal: For whereyour treasure is, there will yourheart be also. The light of the body isthe eye: if therefore thine eye besingle, thy whole body shall be fullof light. But if thine eye be evil, thywhole body shall be full of darkness.If therefore the light that is in thee bedarkness, how great is that dark-ness!

"No man can serve two masters:for either he will hate the one, andlove the other; or else he will hold to

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the one, and despise the other. Yecannot serve God and mammon.Therefore I say unto you, Take nothought for your life, what ye shalleat, or what ye shall drink; nor yetfor your body, what ye shall put on.Is not the life more than meat, andthe body than raiment?"

God has ordained that men inthis world look on the Church ofGod. Jesus said in Matthew 5:14, "Yeare the light of the world. A city thatis set on an hill cannot be hid." Youcannot overlook a city set on a hill.Likewise, the Church of God cannotbe hid.

When Jesus said, "Lay not up foryourselves treasures upon earth," Hewas saying, "Do not get so wrappedup in earthly things." People arelooking on and wanting to know,"What should I do with my life?" Ifyou are showing the example ofpursuing all these earthly things,then that is all they are going topursue. When you show them abetter way by pursuing heavenlythings and letting God take care ofall the earthly problems, then youare showing the world what Godreally intends them to see. You canhave confidence in God that He willtake care of you. If you show theworld by your actions that God is inthe background somewhere, thenyou are sending the wrong messageto this lost and dying world. Godwants you to seek Him first andcause others to hunger and thirstafter the living God.

Seek the Lord With All Your Heart

David said in Psalm 42:1, "Asthe hart panteth after the waterbrooks, so panteth my soul afterthee, O God." Men long for a satis-faction in their souls that is notfound in earthly things, so we haveto show them that there is a betterway. We can do that by having con-fidence, faith, and trust in God.Jesus said in Matthew 5:3, "Blessedare the poor in spirit [the needy oneswho realize how much they needGod]: for theirs is the kingdom ofheaven." One cannot get saved if he

does not feel his need of God. Inother words, you must realize"Without God I can't make it. I needHim." That is the only way you canenter the Kingdom of Heaven.

Verse 6 says, "Blessed are theywhich do hunger and thirst afterrighteousness: for they shall befilled." Unless you want this experi-ence and are willing to die out to selffor it, you are not going to get it.You must be willing to lay asidemany things to follow Jesus. If youare not, no matter what you profess,sooner or later, the little thing youare holding on to will take youdown. I have seen people measureto everything except one little thingthat they wanted to hold on to, andit was just a matter of time until theywent down because they were notwilling to completely die out to selfand recognize that, "God, I need Youmore than this one little thing that Iwant to hold on to." You need tosurrender all.

In 2 Chronicles, Chapter 15,when the people sought the Lordwith all their hearts, God blessedthem richly, and they lived in peace.Verses 12-15 read: "And they en-tered into a covenant to seek theLORD God of their fathers with alltheir heart and with all their soul;That whosoever would not seek theLORD God of Israel should be put todeath, whether small or great,whether man or woman. And theysware unto the LORD with a loudvoice, and with shouting, and withtrumpets, and with cornets. And allJudah rejoiced at the oath: for theyhad sworn with all their heart, andsought him with their whole desire;and he was found of them: and theLORD gave them rest round about."Psalm 27:4 states, "One thing have Idesired of the LORD, that will I seekafter; that I may dwell in the houseof the LORD all the days of my life, tobehold the beauty of the LORD, andto inquire in his temple." Psalm84:10 says, "For a day in thy courts isbetter than a thousand. I had ratherbe a doorkeeper in the house of myGod, than to dwell in the tents ofwickedness."

Abide in Christ

We need God, because He is ourpower. Paul wrote in Romans,Chapter 1, that it is the Gospel thatgives us the power to live holy. Youcannot separate God from His Wordor the Word from God, and youcannot separate either of them fromthe Spirit of God; they are One. Weneed God, we need His Word, andwe need His Gospel preached to us.Also, we need to read and study itso that we can gain all that He cangive us from it.

Paul said in Romans 1:16, "For Iam not ashamed of the gospel ofChrist: for it is the power of Godunto salvation to every one thatbelieveth; to the Jew first, and also tothe Greek." Those who do not be-lieve the Gospel cannot tap into thispower. If you do not believe it, itcannot help you. For everyone whobelieves, it is the power of God untosalvation. I have found it so. There isno other God, no other salvation,and no other way to be saved exceptthrough Jesus Christ.

Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 45:5, "I amthe LORD, and there is none else,there is no God beside me: I girdedthee, though thou hast not knownme." There are lots of little gods thatmen make, but there is only oneCreator, and that is the God weserve.

David wrote in Psalm 18:2, "TheLORD is my rock, and my fortress,and my deliverer; my God, mystrength, in whom I will trust; mybuckler, and the horn of my salva-tion, and my high tower." Davidwas a warrior, so he knew all thethings he needed for defense, forpower, and for victory, and he listedthem there. All the things that Davidmentioned are symbols of refuge,strength, power, and protection. Inother words, David said, "He is ev-erything I need as a warrior; He ismy all in all." We are warriors in theLord's army, and we need God. Heis your defense and your strength. IfHe is not, you need to get hold ofHim in a greater way. There is noother salvation. In Noah's day the

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only ones who were saved werethose who believed God; only eightsouls believed God.

Young person, you need tomake sure that you are not servingGod just because your parents say soor because the preacher says so. Youmust serve God because He is GodAlmighty. He is the One beforewhom you must stand one day andgive an account for your life.

In the Book of Exodus you canread about the plagues of Egypt andhow only those who had the bloodof the lamb on the doorposts weresaved from the last plague. Anyonewho did not observe the Passoverlost their firstborn. This shows usthat there is only salvation in God'sway.

In the Book of Acts you can readthat Paul told the people on board aship during a storm that unless theywould abide in the ship, they wouldperish (Acts 27:31). Though Paulwas going through a hard time, Godwitnessed to him that He was goingto take him through. Likewise, weeach have to abide in Christ andtrust in God.

When it comes time to leave thisworld, no matter how many earthlycares you have, they will not mean athing to you. The only thing thatwill really be important then will be,"Do I have hold of God? Do I haveconfidence in God that He will takeme across death's river?" If you donot have that confidence, then youneed to get hold of God in a greaterway.

If you are saved and you havenot sinned, then you are God's child.The enemy will try to make youdoubt, but you need to rebuke that.You need to stand on that no matterwhat kind of doubt the enemywants to put in your way. If you arenot saved, now is a good time to getsaved. The Lord wants you to real-ize that you need Him more thananything else. It is God who givesyou the breath of life. If God wouldnot let you inhale one more time,that would be the end.

I pray that you will obey theLord. If God has witnessed to you

that you need Him in a greater way,perhaps you have drifted a little,then you need to get hold of Him.Let God have His way. Look up to

God, where your help comes from.He is the One who can help you.

(Cassette C-4048M)

Light Ahead

I once heard a story of how Satan hunts fo r the sou ls of m an . W iththe story w as a p icture o f a m an go ing dow n a long , d ism al street. O nhis righ t shoulder sa t an im p, apparen tly speak ing in to h is ea r. Thestreet represen ted life. Just w here the m an w as seem ed the darkest spo tin all the street, bu t fa r ahead of h im ligh t seem ed spring ing up .H ow ever, it w as no t seen by h im a t the tim e , fo r he w as look ing dow n.O ften if w e w ould look up , w e should d iscover that just w here w e areis the darkest spo t, and ahead the light of hope beam s brigh tly , inv itingus on to trium ph and v icto ry . The sto ry ran as fo llow s:

Sa tan has m any im p s w ith w hich he hunts the sou ls o f m an . Them ost successfu l one of them he calls D iscouragem ent. O nce u p o n atim e Satan saw a m an passing dow n the w ay of life , and he sa id to h islittle im p, "D iscouragem ent, ca tch h im ." S ta rting off w ith a bound , theim p soon overtook the m an , and spring ing upon h is shoulder,w hispered in h is ear, "Y ou are d iscouraged ."

"N o," replied the m an , "I do no t th ink so .""Y es," sa id the im p, "I te ll you , you are d iscouraged ."F ina lly , the m an sa id , "Y es, I am d iscouraged ." The im p then w ent

fly ing back to h is m aster and said trium phantly , "I caught h im ."A no ther m an cam e a long, and S atan again sa id to the im p, "C atch

him ." Leap ing upon the second m an 's shoulder, he began as before bysay ing , "Y ou are d iscouraged ."

This m an answ ered firm ly , "N o, I am not d iscouraged ."B ut the im p repeated , "S ir, you are d iscouraged ."This tim e the m an answ ered , "I te ll you positive ly , I am not

d iscouraged ." B ut again the im p said , "S urely you are d iscouraged ."O n th is the m an becam e vehem ent and sa id , "Y ou a re a lia r; I am no td iscouraged ." A t th is the im p left h im , slow ly retu rned to h is m aster,and re luc tantly sa id , "I couldn 't ge t h im . I to ld h im tw ice th a t he w asd iscouraged , and he answ ered m e prom ptly , 'N o!' I to ld h im the th irdtim e tha t he w as sure ly discouraged. A t th is he called m e a lia r and tha td iscouraged m e.

F irm resistance to the accusa tions, d iscouragem ents, and attacks o fSatan w ill pu t h im to fligh t. In stead of being d iscouraged , dow ncast,and despondent, w e can be v ic to rs in the nam e of C hrist. Theinstrum ents o f Sa tan sen t to cast dow n our sou ls w ill them se lves g iveaw ay under the pressure of firm resistance and fa ith in G od . D earreader, le t m e rem ind you tha t Jesus sa id o f Sa tan , "H e is a lia r and thefa ther o f it." Th o u g h m an y traps are se t a long the w ay to ensnare thefeet o f m en and m any im ps a re sen t ou t to hunt the sou ls o f those w how ould do righ t, no pow er o r im p of Sa tan can stand before the sou l o fthe least of G od 's redeem ed. A ll you m ust do is resist Satan steadfastlyin th e fa ith and trust firm ly in the w ritten W ord of the A lm ighty , thepow er o f the true an d l iv ing G od. "B e of good courage, and he shallstreng then your heart, a ll ye that hope in the Lord ."

D . O . Teasley

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Luke 19:37 And when he was comenigh, even now at the descent of themount of Olives, the whole multitude ofthe disciples began to rejoice and praiseGod with a loud voice for all the mightyworks that they had seen;

38 Saying, Blessed be the King thatcometh in the name of the Lord: peace inheaven, and