Participants:
Series Code: CR
Program Code: CR001523A
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00:04 The Carter Report presents Plain Talk with John Carter.
00:16 Hello, friend. I'm John Carter. 00:19 Welcome today to the Carter Report. 00:21 Today's program is entitled "Plain Talk." 00:26 You know why we're calling it Plain Talk? 00:28 Because that's what people tell us they want. 00:31 They want some plain talk. 00:33 You're going to get it today. 00:35 People have sent us questions 00:37 from right around the circle of the globe. 00:39 Your question could be answered today in Plain Talk. 00:47 Hello, friend. 00:48 I'm John Carter in Havana, Cuba. 00:52 I'm standing here in Revolutionary Square. 00:56 This great Square is dedicated 00:58 to the great Communist Revolution under Fidel 01:01 that came to this country back 50, 60 years ago. 01:06 This place is still undergoing a revolution. 01:10 We've come to check out the reality of this situation. 01:14 Freedom of speech is not allowed here still, 01:18 preaching the gospel out of doors 01:20 is not allowed here still, 01:22 whatever, you hear about reconciliation, 01:25 nothing has really changed. 01:28 We've been told we cannot run public campaigns in Cuba, 01:34 in any part of this world. 01:37 We can run meetings in churches. 01:39 That's allowed. 01:40 So what are we gonna do? 01:42 We're going to support 01:43 the people of God in this part of the world. 01:45 We're going to step through those doors 01:47 as God opens those doors. 01:50 We're not going to come and cause a commotion 01:54 and cause trouble to the people of God. 01:57 We will work diligently and "as wise as serpents 02:03 and as harmless as doves." 02:06 Stand with us, in the preaching of the gospel 02:09 wherever it is, stand with us. 02:12 Write to me, Post Office Box, 1900 Thousand Oaks, 02:15 California, 91358. 02:16 In Australia, write to me at the address 02:19 which is now appearing on the screen at Terrigal. 02:23 And let us go forward 02:24 for a mighty spiritual revolution 02:27 as we take the gospel of Christ to the lost around the world 02:33 as God opens the doors. 02:35 This is John Carter 02:37 in Revolutionary Square in Havana, Cuba, 02:41 saying to you, God bless you and thank you for your support. 02:48 What is Speciesism? 02:51 Well, that's an interesting concept. 02:54 It comes from our friends, the evolutionists. 02:58 And the evolutionists tell us that all the species, 03:01 including the human race, go back to some little blob 03:05 in a primordial mess in the ocean. 03:08 And therefore, because we didn't come 03:11 from the hand of God, 03:12 man is no longer distinct and glorious. 03:16 He's only one of so many species. 03:20 Therefore, you are no better than a frog 03:23 or a toad or an ant. 03:26 I'm not buying it, friend. 03:28 I don't believe in speciesism. 03:30 I believe that we came from the hand of God 03:34 and that man is made in the image of God. 03:39 Is it ever permissible as a Christian 03:41 to disobey the government? 03:44 Yes, it is. 03:46 When the government disobeys God. 03:49 The Bible tells us, it's more important to obey God 03:55 than it is to obey man. 03:57 Now we believe the governments are ordained of God 04:01 to bring about law and order. 04:03 But the Bible says that in the last days, 04:06 the governments of this world are going to become 04:10 dictatorial, totalitarian systems. 04:15 And they're going to enforce the mark of the beast. 04:20 Let me read this to you, out of the apocalypse, 04:23 Revelation 13, it says, 04:29 "He was given power to give breath 04:32 to the image of the beast, 04:35 so that it could speak 04:38 and cause all who refused to worship the image 04:41 to be killed. 04:44 It also forced everyone, small and great, 04:47 rich and poor, free and slave, 04:51 to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 04:55 so that no one could buy or sell 04:59 unless he had the mark, 05:01 which is the name of the beast or the number of its name." 05:07 In the last days, 05:09 the governments of this world are going to unite 05:12 with apostate churches, religious powers 05:18 and they're going to enforce religious laws 05:21 that are an anathematic to God. 05:25 When that happens, my friend, 05:27 it'll be time to stand up and say, 05:30 I am going to follow Christ. 05:32 I'm going to follow the Word of God 05:35 even if it means disobeying the government. 05:39 Now when the government is in harmony with God's Word, 05:43 we need to obey the government. 05:46 But when the government enforces laws 05:49 that are in violation of the Word of God, 05:52 we need to follow God. 05:55 Many people believe that we are living in the end-times. 05:58 Haven't people always believed that? 06:01 Well, some have. It's true. 06:03 In 1,000 A.D., theologians in the Roman Catholic Church 06:09 thought that the end of the world 06:11 would probably come in the year, 1,000 A.D. 06:14 But the Bible gives some rather specific signs. 06:20 I'm gonna come over here to the apocalypse, 06:23 Revelation 11:18. 06:28 It says, "The nations were angry," 06:32 well, they're angry now. 06:33 Are they not? 06:34 "The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. 06:37 The time has come for judging the dead, 06:40 and for rewarding your servants the prophets 06:44 and your saints those who reverence your name, 06:48 both small and great- 06:50 and for destroying those 06:55 who destroy the earth." 06:58 The Bible tells us 07:00 that Jesus Christ is going to intervene 07:04 in the history of humanity, 07:07 when men have the awesome ability to destroy the earth. 07:13 It didn't have that in 1,000 A.D. 07:16 They didn't have that in the days of Jesus. 07:20 But there are certain specific signs 07:23 and one of the most amazing signs 07:25 is the awful capacity to wipe out humanity, 07:29 we've come to that time. 07:31 And there's another sign too, of course, 07:33 which is Matthew 24:14 which says, 07:37 "This gospel of the kingdom 07:40 will be preached in the whole world 07:42 as a witness to all nations, then the end will come." 07:47 Jesus said, that the gospel that He taught, 07:50 the people despised. 07:51 They thought it was going to fizz out but Jesus said, 07:55 the gospel would be taught in the whole wide world 07:57 and the end would come. 08:00 Today, we are seeing this prophecy 08:03 being fulfilled around the world, 08:06 the gospel, the good news of Christ 08:09 is being taken everywhere around the world 08:12 by television also. 08:15 Therefore, we do believe with a passion 08:19 that the Lord is coming soon. 08:22 Do you believe in heaven? 08:24 And if so, what will it be like? 08:27 You better believe it 08:28 and you better believe in it too, 08:31 because the death of hope 08:35 always leads to the hope of the death. 08:38 If you've got no hope in your soul, sooner or later, 08:43 you're going to want to die. 08:45 You want to know why so many people 08:46 commit suicide today, 08:48 why suicide has become the badge of our despair? 08:53 It's because people have lost hope. 08:55 And people today think that they are no better than ants 08:59 or dogs or cats or something else. 09:02 And therefore, 09:03 they don't believe in heaven anymore. 09:05 I believe in the reality of heaven. 09:09 I believe it. 09:10 Now I'm going to take a text here 09:12 and come over here to let me see 09:16 John 14:1-3. 09:23 Jesus said, "Do not let your heart be troubled." 09:26 He said, "Don't worry." 09:28 Do you worry? Jesus said, "Quit it." 09:31 "Trusting God, trust also in me. 09:33 In my Father's house are many rooms, 09:35 if it were not so, I would have told you. 09:37 I'm going there to prepare a place for you." 09:40 So it's a place. 09:41 "And if I go and prepare a place for you, 09:44 I will come back, I will come again 09:47 and take you to be with me 09:48 that you also may be where I am." 09:50 So heaven is going to be a place 09:54 in the Father's house where Jesus is. 09:58 Wouldn't you like to meet Jesus, 10:01 the Son of God? 10:02 Wouldn't you like to go to the Father's house? 10:05 I believe the Father's house is outside, out time, 10:09 outside, outplace, outside our universe. 10:13 I believe this is a place that is called 10:15 as the Bible says, the Father's house. 10:19 The Bible tells us what it's like in the Father's house. 10:22 There's no death. There's no pain. 10:25 There's no sorrow, no cancer, 10:27 no heartache, none of those things. 10:30 No bereavement, none of those terrible things. 10:33 The Father's house is going to be where Jesus is, 10:36 where the Father is. 10:39 And we're going to live forever. 10:40 And the Bible tells me that if you believe this, 10:43 you don't need to worry. 10:45 Are you a person who worries? 10:48 My friend, that's because you don't really have 10:50 faith in God. 10:51 Jesus said, "Don't worry." Have faith in Me. 10:54 I'm going to my Father's house. 10:56 And I'm going to prepare a place for you, 11:00 it's going to be heaven 11:01 and it's going to be wonderful. 11:04 And the good news is you can be there. 11:09 I'm a Seventh-day Adventist 11:10 whose daughter just had an abortion, 11:12 something that I disapproved of. 11:15 So what should I do? 11:17 Well, I think the first thing you ought to do is 11:19 just give your daughter a hug. 11:23 I think you need to love her with an unconditional love 11:30 like God loves you. 11:31 Because you've messed up also, we've all messed up. 11:36 The Bible says, "All have sinned" Romans 3. 11:39 "And continue to fall short of the glory of God." 11:44 So we've all messed up 11:46 and we continue to stumble and fall. 11:48 Your daughter has done something 11:50 that you disapprove of. 11:52 I can sense the pain in the letter 11:55 that you sent to me, my friend. 11:59 But you can't change the past but you can do something 12:03 about today and the future. 12:06 I would love her. I would be kind to her. 12:09 She needs your support. 12:12 Put your arms around her 12:14 and show her the unconditional love 12:17 that God shows you. 12:21 Why are there so many atheists? 12:24 I think one of the reasons is because 12:27 many atheists have seen bad things 12:30 that the church is done. 12:32 That's why communism arose in Russia. 12:35 I've been to Russia 42 times. 12:38 I know a bit about communism and atheism. 12:41 Atheism is often a reaction against apostate Christianity. 12:48 But also, atheism is often a cop out. 12:53 There is no scientific evidence for atheism. 12:57 There's a tremendous amount of scientific evidence 13:00 for the Creator God. 13:02 But remember what Huxley said. 13:05 He said, "I love this idea 13:07 because I can do anything I want to do, 13:10 especially, with women." 13:13 I didn't say it, Huxley said it. 13:16 Darwin's man. 13:18 Huxley even said, I don't even know 13:19 what Darwin's told him-- 13:21 I don't really believe the theory. 13:23 But he said, "I love this idea 13:25 that releases me from all responsibility." 13:30 Now listen to me. 13:33 There is a God. 13:35 Heard of the anthropic principle? 13:36 Have you? 13:38 Well, the anthropic principle tells me that 13:40 everything in nature, everything exists 13:45 so that human beings can live and love and laugh. 13:51 The anthropic principle discovered relatively recently, 13:54 is tremendous evidence for God. 13:57 And when you go on and read the Bible, 14:00 they told about this God, he is a good person. 14:03 He loves you with a tremendous love. 14:07 My friend, that's just plain talk. 14:14 Hi, I'm John Carter. 14:16 My wife, Beverley and I 14:18 were watching television the other night, 14:19 watching the news, American News. 14:22 They told us that the church in North America 14:24 is actually shrinking. 14:26 They said that atheism is the fastest growing 14:29 religious movement today in North America. 14:32 And people are saying, 14:33 "What on earth can we do to save the church?" 14:35 Well, of course, Christ died for the church, 14:37 He saved the church. 14:39 But what they mean is, how can we keep the church 14:41 as a vibrant force in the world today 14:43 in Australia, in America, and in Europe 14:46 and in the rest of the world. 14:47 Let me tell you a little story. 14:49 John Wesley was one of the greatest preachers 14:51 that the English speaking world has ever heard. 14:55 John Wesley came upon the scene of the, 14:57 of the church in England a few hundred years ago, 15:00 when the church was dying. 15:01 Like the church today, it was a shrinking church. 15:05 But the people in the church were in the state of denial. 15:08 They refused to accept the reality 15:10 that the church was dying. 15:12 John Wesley did something 15:13 that other people said couldn't be done. 15:16 He revived the church through public evangelism. 15:19 Did you hear that? 15:20 He started to preach Christ. 15:22 He preached the Bible and he preached out of doors 15:25 and indoors and the church was saved. 15:29 Not only did he save a lot of souls, 15:31 the souls of sinners, he saved the souls of the saints. 15:37 Please join me, my friend, in evangelism, 15:42 it's what Jesus did. 15:44 Write to me John Cater, Post Office Box 1900, 15:48 Thousand Oaks, California. 15:50 In Australia, write to me at the address on the screen 15:53 at Terrigal, in New South Wales. 15:57 Join me, my friend, in preaching Christ. 16:00 Join me in public evangelism around the world. 16:06 Thank you, in Jesus' name. 16:15 Do you have any secrets for health and happiness? 16:19 Well, they're not secrets 16:20 because I share them with anybody who listen to me. 16:24 All right. 16:25 No, I don't have any secrets but I have some good news. 16:31 Let me tell you. I'm no longer just a boy. 16:36 I've seen a lot of summers but by the grace of God 16:40 and I said by the grace of God, 16:42 I'm still going strong. 16:45 I've got some energy 16:47 and I've got some hope in my soul. 16:49 And I've got a vision and I don't believe 16:52 that God is finished with me quite yet. 16:56 Secrets, no secrets but let me tell you some truths 17:01 that I've come to believe in. 17:05 Here's the first one. 17:07 If you believe in God and trust in Christ 17:12 and read the Bible, you'll have peace of mind. 17:17 A lot of people are worried to death, 17:20 how am I going to do this, how am I gonna-- 17:22 You talk to them and just talking them 17:24 and makes you depressed. 17:26 You met people like that. 17:28 But if you have got faith in God, 17:30 you'll have peace. 17:32 That's a great reason why you ought to go to church. 17:35 That's a great reason 17:36 why you ought to be reading your Bible every day. 17:38 The reason we don't read our Bibles 17:40 is because by nature, we're lazy. 17:43 But if we can overcome our laziness 17:46 and become disciples and read scripture, 17:49 we'll get peace in our souls. 17:52 That helps us to live long. 17:54 People who go to church, people who read their Bibles, 17:57 people who've got faith in God 17:59 live longer than the average person. 18:05 Here's another truth, eat well. 18:10 I try to follow the diet 18:12 that is prescribed in the Book of Genesis. 18:15 Fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, all that sort of stuff. 18:22 Do I eat meat? 18:25 No, I don't criticize anybody who eats that red stuff. 18:29 I don't eat it because I think 18:31 it is a formidable cause of cancer. 18:35 And I would say to you, if you want to be healthy, 18:38 don't eat the MAD, don't eat MAD. 18:45 You know what MAD is? 18:47 That's the Modern American Diet. 18:49 It's bad. 18:51 All those refined pastas, that'll kill you, 18:55 all those refined foods. 18:57 Some people say, look I'm a vegetarian 19:00 and they just fill up on sugar. 19:04 They just fill up on sugar. 19:07 You can be a vegetarian and be as sick as sickened bee 19:12 because you're eating refined carbohydrates. 19:16 Cut them out, friend, eat-- 19:18 try to eat unrefined food and something else. 19:23 Do some exercise. 19:25 People in Bible days used to walk for miles. 19:29 I've got an elliptical. 19:30 I do it religiously for 30 minutes every day 19:34 and then every evening I go for a couple of miles walk. 19:36 But I try to exercise hard for 60 minutes a day. 19:41 And there are some days I don't make it 19:42 but if I miss out one day I'll double it up the next day. 19:47 Jesus said, and this was so important 19:50 and I think it's John 10, He said, 19:52 "I've come that they may have life 19:55 and have it more abundantly." 19:58 Jesus wants you to be healthy 20:01 and He wants you to be happy. 20:06 Is it wrong to practice cremation 20:08 that is sometimes associated with pagan religions? 20:12 I don't think so. 20:14 You see, as my wife said to my dear old dad, 20:19 a few years before he passed away, 20:22 we were visiting the little town of Esk 20:24 in South Queensland 20:26 sort of on the outback where the preachers are few 20:31 and men of religion is scanty. 20:32 Well, in the little town of Esk there's a cemetery. 20:36 And we went to my grandfather's tomb. 20:41 And my father was there with Beverley and me. 20:44 And my dear old dad knowing that he couldn't live forever, 20:49 he said, I guess we've all got to come to that place. 20:53 You do friend, you are going to die, 20:55 I'm going to die, we're all going to die 20:57 unless Jesus comes soon. 20:59 It's appointed unto men once to die 21:01 and after this the judgment. 21:03 So there's death and there's judgment. 21:06 So he said, I guess we're all going to come to this place. 21:09 And Beverley said to him, "It's true, Dad. 21:14 We've all got to come to this place, 21:16 we've all got to go down." 21:19 But she said, "It doesn't matter 21:21 how we go down. 21:24 It matters how we come up." 21:27 So it doesn't matter whether you are buried 21:30 or whether you are cremated. 21:33 That doesn't make any difference to God. 21:35 Goodness me. 21:37 We don't have a petty little God, you know, 21:39 He is a big God. 21:40 Look at this text here in Revelation 20. 21:43 "The sea gave up the dead that were in it." 21:45 How many people are left 21:47 after the fishes have eaten them? 21:50 Now that much left. 21:52 "And death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, 21:55 and each person was judged according to what He had done." 22:00 So the Bible tells me in the last day, 22:03 even the sea is going to give back the dead. 22:08 People have been buried in the tomb, 22:10 the mossy old tombs where the pilgrims sleep, 22:15 shall we opened as wide as before. 22:17 And the millions asleep in the mighty deep, 22:20 shall leave on this earth once more 22:23 and people who were cremated, they're going to come back too. 22:26 Cremation simply speeds up the process. 22:30 It doesn't matter how you go down, 22:32 it matters how you come up. 22:34 Because you are immortalized 22:39 in the mind of God. 22:42 So, my friend, you and I better believe in Jesus 22:46 because without Jesus, we're finished. 22:49 But with Jesus, we've got everlasting life. 22:55 Who was Jesus? 22:57 Well, I guess you better ask Richard Dawkins, 23:00 the famous professor from Oxford University 23:05 who delights in making fun of Christians. 23:09 You know, he's a great atheist. 23:11 But he said the other day on a television show 23:14 when he was debating the great Christian Professor, 23:17 John Lennox of Oxford University. 23:21 He said, "I said Jesus didn't exist. 23:24 I was wrong. Jesus did live." 23:27 Who was Jesus? 23:30 He was a Jewish man, carpenter. 23:34 He was born in 4 or 5 or 7 or 7 B.C. 23:38 The Bible says, he was more than a Jewish man. 23:44 I'm going to come to a text here, 23:46 my mind is trying to remember where the text is. 23:49 Here it is, it's Isaiah 23:52 and I believe it is Chapter 9 here. 23:56 The old memory is still working, folks. 23:58 Isaiah 9:6, 7. 24:01 "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, 24:05 and the government will be on his shoulders. 24:07 And he will be called 24:09 Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, 24:11 Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 24:16 Who was Jesus? 24:19 Mighty God, the everlasting Father, 24:23 the Prince of Peace, the savior of the world. 24:29 What has been your most dangerous experience? 24:33 Well, Beverley and I've had a few dangerous experiences. 24:36 We've had a few. 24:40 I remember when Beverley and I were in Siberia, 24:43 in the city of Irkutsk. 24:45 A man came to the meeting with the gun to shoot me. 24:49 He got drunk and he belongs to their security forces, 24:53 like one of their top soldiers. 24:55 And Beverley was giving a talk 24:58 and he tried to get on the stage 25:01 because I was sitting behind her, 25:02 he was coming after me. 25:05 But my friends got around him, pulled him down. 25:08 The police came to see me the next day. 25:10 They we're going to put him in prison 25:12 for the rest of his life. 25:13 I said, "Forgive him, just forgive him." 25:17 I said, when he told him, I said forgive him because 25:20 Jesus has forgiven us. 25:23 And they said, "What message will we give him?" 25:26 Have him come to the meetings. 25:27 He came to the meetings, gave his life to Christ. 25:30 That could have been a very dangerous meeting. 25:34 And a very dangerous... could have ended my life 25:37 and Beverley's life. 25:39 Perhaps another very dangerous situation 25:42 was when we were in Africa 25:45 and one night I was taken by some people 25:49 and marched down a jungle road 25:53 with guns at my back. 25:57 And a man followed along in a car cursing me 26:01 because I wouldn't do what he wanted me to do. 26:03 He wanted me to engage in activities 26:09 in that country in Africa that I felt I could not do. 26:13 And so he told the soldiers, "Get rid of this fellow." 26:17 And they march me down this jungle path. 26:20 And I can feel the guns in my back. 26:23 That was quite a story. 26:25 But when this man had gone, 26:28 these soldiers got around me and they said, 26:30 "Pastor Carter, don't worry. 26:31 We know you. 26:33 We've been coming to your meetings." 26:36 But for the grace of God though, 26:39 I could have been killed in that African jungle. 26:42 But I want you folks to know something today. 26:45 Listen to me. 26:48 The will of God will never take you 26:52 where the grace of God cannot keep you. 26:55 And if God sends you to Africa 26:57 or to Siberia or to Los Angeles, 27:01 God will take care of you. 27:04 I want you please to write to me, 27:05 you can send your questions to me 27:07 and I will try to get to your question. 27:09 Write to me John Carter, Post Office Box 1900, 27:13 Thousand Oaks, California, 91358. 27:16 Write for a Ebenezer Magazine 27:21 while we've still got a few left. 27:23 So write to me, Post Office Box 1900. 27:27 In Australia, write to me at Terrigal, 27:30 that's in New South Wales. 27:32 And ask for the Ebenezer Magazine, 27:34 send me your question, but do something else. 27:38 Support the sacred course of evangelism. 27:42 Send an offering. 27:44 It goes to preach the gospel and to save souls 27:49 and that's why Jesus came. 27:52 Jesus didn't come as a tourist. 27:56 Jesus came to save our souls. 28:00 And I want you to know this, God loves you. 28:04 I love you too. 28:06 And until next time, God bless you, my dear friend. 28:10 Bye. 28:23 For a copy of today's program, please contact us 28:26 at P.O. Box 1900, Thousand Oaks, 28:29 California, 91358. 28:33 Or in Australia, 28:34 contact us at P.O. Box 861, Terrigal, 28:38 New South Wales, 2260. 28:42 This program is made possible 28:44 through the generous support of viewers like you. 28:47 We thank you for your continued support. 28:50 May God richly bless you. |
Revised 2016-02-04