Participants: John Carter
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000024
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00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
00:15 live from the Community Adventist Fellowship Church. 00:18 Present Truth with John Carter. 00:22 Well, we're really having a wonderful time here 00:24 in Los Angeles and the suburb of Arcadia California. 00:29 Los Angeles is made up of many, many cities. 00:33 And this has to be the most beautiful one. 00:36 It really does. 00:37 It is one of the warmest, sweetest, prettiest cities, 00:42 with the mountains as a backdrop. 00:43 Of course, Danny doesn't like mountains. 00:44 He says they block the view. 00:45 Well now, don't get me in trouble while I'm out here. 00:48 You have to, Paul says, be content in all things. 00:51 And so when I go, I've been to places like Switzerland, 00:54 and people say, "Look at these mountains. 00:56 Why don't you live in a place like this 00:58 or Southern California?" 00:59 And I say, "Well you know, mountains are okay. 01:00 But they block my view. I can't see anything." 01:03 So that's just a way of living with it, you see. 01:06 Well I tell you, if you want to see some beautiful homes, 01:08 just drive down Santa Anita and look off to the side, 01:12 those different streets, and you will see some 01:15 very beautiful places. 01:17 None of which I could afford to live in, I guarantee you. 01:21 There's a lot of beautiful people right here in this church 01:23 and watching from around the world. 01:25 And thank you for joining us at 3ABN. 01:28 And this is live programming most of the day, right? 01:31 Yes it is. 01:32 And tonight, we're going to have a Pillars concert. 01:34 And so we've got lots of things happening; 01:36 two services this morning. 01:37 And we do thank you for your love and your prayers 01:40 and financial support of 3ABN as we endeavor to take this 01:43 gospel into all the world. 01:45 You know I said last night, I announced the wrong time. 01:48 The music program is at 6:30 Pacific Daylight Time tonight. 01:54 An hour and a half program. 01:55 And you will want to be here, because we are looking forward 02:01 to just really being blessed by the musicians that are 02:03 here that are part of our team. 02:06 All of which are musicians except for me. 02:10 And I will enjoy listening tonight. 02:15 Well listen, we have been so thrilled with Pastor Carter's 02:19 presentations on present truth. 02:22 And he's going to be speaking today on the 02:24 power of the Spirit. 02:26 And Danny Shelton will be introducing him 02:29 just a little bit later. 02:30 But just before we go to the rest of our program, 02:34 Pastor Murray, would you lead us in prayer. 02:36 I'd be glad to do so. 02:38 Gracious Father, we praise and thank You for the blessings 02:42 of this holy Sabbath day. 02:45 We thank You Lord, that You have erected this temple in time, 02:50 as it were, whereby we can cast off even for a little while 02:55 the cares of the world and its perplexities, 02:59 and sit in heavenly places. 03:02 We thank You for this church, we thank You for this message, 03:05 we thank You for this ministry, we thank You for this 03:08 opportunity to yet again lift up the mighty and matchless 03:13 name of Jesus. 03:14 We thank You for the power in that name. 03:17 And we thank You that You have promised to be the honored 03:21 guest in this place on this day when the people of God 03:25 assemble themselves together. 03:27 And so Father, come now and sup with us. 03:30 Teach us those things that You would have us to know. 03:33 Be the center and circumference of the preaching, the singing, 03:38 the worship, and the praise. 03:40 Accept, Lord, our worship and praise. 03:43 And in exchange for these, give us Your presence 03:47 and Your power. 03:48 And bless us as we take one more step this day 03:52 along the road that leads to glory. 03:55 Hold to us tightly and feed us from Your table. 03:59 We love You Lord, we praise You. 04:01 And we thank You for what You're going to do this day 04:04 in answer to the prayer of faith. 04:06 In Jesus' name, amen. 04:09 Well Danny, you are very well acquainted 04:12 with the one who will bring us music this morning. 04:14 Would you like to tell us a little bit about her? 04:17 I would, I going to invite my daughter, Melody. 04:18 This is my baby daughter, and a mother of eight. 04:23 And so Melody, it's good to have you here. 04:26 And Melody, this past year people see her and they say, 04:29 "Where's Melody?" 04:30 And 110 pounds of Melody is gone somewhere. 04:34 And so she's done so well and really been working hard 04:38 in the last, what's it been, over year or so. 04:41 And so I praise the Lord for Melody and for 04:44 her love for Jesus. 04:45 And when she was born, the doctors told us it 04:49 was going to be a boy. 04:50 They didn't do the ultrasounds back then. 04:52 Way back in 19... 04:54 She told me not to tell her age. 04:56 We both hit marks each time to get to 20, 30, 40, 50. 05:00 We each get these certain, and Melody and I both hit 05:04 one of those miles stones. 05:05 But she doesn't want me to tell you which one it is, 05:07 though mine is 60 and hers sure wasn't 50 or 30. 05:10 And so it's somewhere in between and I won't tell you 05:14 what it is because she never wants me to tell her age. 05:17 But if I were that young, I'd be proud of it, wouldn't you. 05:20 I'd be bragging about it. 05:22 But when she was born, the doctors thought she was 05:25 going to be a boy. 05:26 The doctor, I should say. 05:27 When we found out it was a girl, we didn't have a name. 05:30 So I asked her Mother Kay, "What are we going to name this baby?" 05:33 She said, "Let's think about it and pray about it." 05:35 So at that time, she and my brother Tommy and I, 05:37 we had a little trio and we travelled on a 05:39 diesel greyhound bus. 05:40 And we were traveling doing gospel music. 05:42 And so the next morning I went back, and she said, 05:45 "Let's name her Melody as in music, and Dawn as the 05:49 dawn of new music in the Shelton home." 05:51 So that's what we did and we dedicated her to the Lord. 05:55 We said, "Lord, we'll raise her in an atmosphere free of 05:57 any other type of music in our home if you'll give her 06:00 and bless her with musical gifts and abilities." 06:04 And God has done that. 06:05 So Melody, we give the honor and praise to God, 06:07 but thank you for being here. 06:08 And this is your first time away from the babies, 06:10 the littlest ones, right? 06:11 Yes, away from Faith. 06:14 How are you doing so far? 06:15 Baby Faith is three, right? Going on four. 06:17 So it's the first time you've been away from her. 06:19 Hi, baby Faith, if you're watching this morning. 06:21 Papa loves you. Remember, you're Papa girl. 06:25 You've got to get them while they're young, you know. 06:26 That's what I do. 06:27 Alright, thank you Melody. 06:45 They say what doesn't kill us makes us strong, 06:52 and I've heard it's always darkest before the dawn. 07:00 But all I know is that God's promises are true, 07:07 and He only wants what's best for you. 07:14 We have this hope that all hurting will be gone. 07:21 We have this hope that all tears will be left behind. 07:29 I know down here life is hard and the world is so unkind, 07:37 but hold on, because we have this hope. 07:47 Every one of us has heartaches and trials, 07:54 just remember we're only here for a short while. 08:02 Sometimes I feel I've had more than my share, 08:10 but He won't give us more than we can bear. 08:16 We have this hope that all hurting will be gone. 08:23 We have this hope that all tears will be left behind. 08:32 I know down here life is hard and the world is so unkind, 08:39 but hold on, because we have this hope. 08:46 And this hope for us is Jesus. 08:59 So hold on, because we have this hope. 09:25 Thank you Melody. That was beautiful. 09:27 It's my privilege now to introduce Pastor John Carter. 09:31 And Elder Carter is a long time friend 09:35 and I respect this man tremendously, in the Lord. 09:38 I have seen, I have travelled different places with him 09:40 around the world, particularly Russia, 09:42 and seen the gift that God has given him, 09:44 and literally the thousands and thousands of souls. 09:47 Only eternity will tell of the value of the ministry 09:52 of Elder John and Beverly Carter when we get to heaven. 09:56 Because I know that there are people that will come up, 09:58 we need heaven for an eternity because I think people will 10:01 be coming up to him for an eternity saying, 10:03 "I saw you on 3ABN," "I saw you in Africa," 10:06 "I saw you in Australia," "I saw you in Russia," 10:08 "and because of your ministry, I accepted Jesus Christ 10:12 as Lord and Savior." 10:13 Anchors Of Truth right here in The Carter Report church. 10:17 Elder Carter, thank you so much for allowing the 10:20 3ABN team to be here. 10:21 God bless you. 10:23 We are delighted that you're here. 10:25 At our stage in life, we should be delighted to be anywhere. 10:28 Anywhere, that's right. 10:30 As long as we're vertical and not horizontal, right? 10:32 Absolutely, yea not lying down. 10:35 You were talking about Russia. Remember '92? 10:39 I do remember '92. 10:40 We saw the glory of God. 10:41 We did. 10:42 We saw the outpouring of the Spirit of God. 10:44 We saw people literally busting down doorways 10:48 to get in to meetings. 10:49 7,000 at a time. 10:51 We had to get, you remember, police with German Shepherd dogs 10:56 to keep people out of the facilities. 10:58 That was the KGB guys in their black suits. 11:01 Imagine, the KGB were our deacons. 11:04 Yeah. Yeah well, it's true. 11:06 Glory be to God. 11:07 And they also brought out trucks and tents for the baptism. 11:09 Yes I know. That's amazing. 11:10 The army set up for the baptism. 11:12 They served as the deacons. 11:13 And you spoke to groups of hundreds, almost a thousand KGB. 11:17 You actually went to their headquarters and spoke, 11:20 and saw hundreds of them accepting Christ. 11:22 And yet, you know Danny, the greatest days are still to come. 11:26 Amen, that's wonderful. 11:28 And by the grace of God, you with your team 11:31 and The Carter Report team are going to go back 11:34 for the twentieth year celebration next year. 11:38 I'm all for it, I'm all for it. That's wonderful. 11:40 And we'll look for some great and mightily things to happen. 11:42 Praise God. God bless you today. 11:44 Great to see you, my brother. God bless you. 11:46 Aren't you glad the 3ABN folks are with us today? 11:52 I just really love these folks. 11:58 Today, I'm going to talk for a little while about the 12:00 power of the Holy Spirit. 12:03 I want to say to the television audience watching around 12:06 the world, we have a vast and wonderful audience, 12:09 I want to give you the warmest welcome from my heart to yours. 12:13 How do you explain please, the following, please explain this. 12:19 Ten thousand Russians at 5 o'clock, 12:22 sullen, morose, and lost, so angry they would not 12:26 lift up their eyes so I could look into their eyes 12:29 and talk to them. 12:31 And an hour later, ten thousand Russians raising their 12:35 hands and praising God, filled with the Spirit of God. 12:38 How do you explain that except for the Spirit of God. 12:42 I believe with all my heart in the ministry of the Holy Spirit. 12:47 I believe He is alive and well on planet earth. 12:51 How do you explain this? 12:54 30,000 Hindu's and Muslim's coming forward in an altar call. 13:02 Now people tell us it can't happen. 13:05 It does happen. 13:06 30,000 Muslim's, the untouchables, 13:10 Hindu's coming forward in an altar call. 13:13 I saw something there, Elder Gilley, 13:16 that I'd never seen before. 13:19 As I started to pray... 13:22 You've seen the wind blow through the wheat fields. 13:25 I've seen this in Australia. 13:27 The wind, not in the willows, but the wind in the wheat. 13:31 And I noticed way up on the right hand side, 13:34 so far I could hardly see, people broke out 13:38 spontaneously in prayer. 13:40 And then the prayer and the praise swept around 13:45 the audience like this. 13:47 It just moved through the audience. 13:49 You could actually see the people moving with the 13:52 Spirit of God, and then came right down the front 13:54 where I was standing. 13:56 And people in the front were praising God; 13:59 Hindu's and Muslim's. 14:01 How do you explain that? 14:03 It's not a preacher, my friend. 14:07 It's not a person who's got great psychological talent, no. 14:11 It is the power of the Spirit of God. 14:15 I think of the assassin in Manila who followed a victim 14:19 all day long with a knife and a gun. 14:23 And he was going to do him in at the meetings. 14:29 Later, he wrote me a letter. 14:30 He said, "I came to kill a man tonight." 14:33 But he said, "As I heard the word of God, 14:36 something spoke to my heart and I could not kill the man. 14:43 Instead, I came forward in the altar call." 14:46 And we baptized him. 14:48 How do you explain that? 14:49 How do you explain people on death row; 14:52 assassins and murderers? 14:56 And when I'm preaching to them, I'm asked to preach to them, 15:00 and I'm preaching no better or worse than what I'm doing now. 15:04 So it is not something marvelous in itself. 15:08 But there was something marvelous there; 15:10 the Spirit of God. 15:12 And as I spoke to those men who were on death row 15:15 and made an appeal, every hand was raised. 15:19 And then the prisoners gazing in through the bars 15:23 broke down and cried and raised their hands. 15:26 And Pastor Graeme Bradford, my buddy from Australia, 15:30 and I led them into an adjoining room and we baptized them 15:35 in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 15:39 How do you explain this? 15:41 I want you to know today on the authority of scripture 15:45 and from what my eyes have seen, the Holy Spirit is alive 15:51 and well on planet earth. 15:54 I want you to take the Bible. 15:55 And as you folks know, I'm just a plain 15:58 old fashioned Bible preacher. 16:01 I want you to come over here to John chapter 16. 16:05 John chapter 16 verse 5 and onwards. 16:08 I want you to know today... 16:10 Would you look at me for a moment. 16:13 I want, please hold up your Bibles. 16:16 Hold them up high and say this: 16:17 This is my Bible. 16:20 This is God's word. 16:23 God has a message for me today. 16:28 This message will make me a better person, 16:34 and give me everlasting life. 16:38 I now open my heart to receive God's word. 16:44 In Jesus' name, amen and amen. 16:48 Say amen again. 16:50 And praise the Lord. 16:53 And it's 9 o'clock in the morning in Los Angeles, 16:56 and this is a miracle in itself. 16:59 It's a miracle I'm here, folks. 17:01 John 16 verse 5 and onwards. 17:04 After we've driven the freeways in this city of the angels... 17:08 Nobody ever tells you which angels they're talking about. 17:11 But after you've driven the freeways in the city 17:13 of the angels, you like to sleep in a little bit 17:17 on Sabbath mornings. 17:19 Don't you? 17:20 Yea, of course you do. Of course you do. 17:26 "Now I am going to Him who sent Me, yet none of you asks Me, 17:31 'Where are you going?' 17:33 Because I have said these things, 17:35 you are filled with grief." 17:36 Or KJV, "Sorrow hath filled your hearts." 17:40 "But I tell you the truth; it is for your good 17:43 that I am going away. 17:45 Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; 17:49 but if I go, I will send Him to you." 17:52 Jesus didn't say, "I will send it to you." 17:55 "I will send Him to you." 17:57 "When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt 18:01 in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 18:06 in regard to sin, because men do not believe in Me; 18:10 in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father 18:15 where you can see Me no longer; 18:18 and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this 18:22 world now stands condemned." 18:24 Another three verses. 18:27 "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 18:32 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will 18:35 guide you into all truth. 18:37 He will not speak on His own; He will speak only what He hears 18:41 and He will tell you what is yet to come. 18:44 He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine 18:48 and making it known to you." 18:53 We are talking here, my friend, about a tremendous personality, 18:59 and a person. 19:01 Many, many years ago, before they thought about 19:05 thermal power or wind power or any of those other powers, 19:10 there were two business men standing at Niagara Falls. 19:14 One man said to the other, "This is the greatest untapped 19:18 source of power in the whole of the United States." 19:23 The other business man said, "It is a great source 19:26 of power, it is true. 19:27 But the greatest untapped source of power 19:31 in the United States and in the world 19:33 is the power of the Holy Spirit." 19:37 And the greatest need of the church and the greatest need 19:42 of the world is for the coming of the Spirit of God. 19:49 The Holy Spirit, I would have you note today, 19:54 is much more than energy. 19:57 There was a time when people thought the Holy Spirit 20:00 was an energy sent from God. 20:02 He is more than a power and more than an influence. 20:06 I want you to come over now to the book of Romans 20:10 that Tyndale called, "Good, glad, and merry tidings." 20:14 Romans 8, "Good, glad, and merry tidings that makes 20:18 a man's heart to sing for joy and his feet to dance." 20:24 Or as the British say, "his feet to dance." 20:28 Romans 8 and verse 15. 20:34 "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave 20:37 again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. 20:42 And by Him we cry, 'Abba, Father.' 20:46 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit 20:51 that we are children of God." 20:53 Did you know, as John Wesley said, "The highest proof of 20:58 Christianity is the inner witness." 21:02 "The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit 21:05 that we are children of God." 21:07 If you are a child of God, you will know that 21:10 you have passed from death unto life. 21:12 Because the Spirit of God will testify with your spirit. 21:16 Do He so testify with you today, I ask you? 21:19 Now come down a little further and notice please 21:24 verses 26 and 27. 21:25 Notice He is called a person. 21:28 "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. 21:32 We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself 21:37 intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. 21:43 And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, 21:49 because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance 21:53 with the will of God." 21:57 He has the characteristics of a person. 22:10 And Jesus, our blessed Lord, distinctly, a score of times 22:16 calls the Holy Spirit, Him or Whom. 22:21 He calls Him a person. 22:24 Notice John chapter 14 verses 16-18 in the word of God. 22:30 Jesus said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, 22:33 but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'" 22:44 "And I will ask the Father," now He's a person, 22:47 "and He will give you another Counselor to be with you 22:51 forever; the Spirit of truth. 22:53 The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him 22:57 nor knows Him. 22:59 But you know Him, for He lives with you and will be in you." 23:04 He is a person. 23:07 And then Jesus our Lord said, "I will not leave you as orphans; 23:11 I will come to you. " 23:13 And if you come now to verses 26 and 27 23:17 of the same chapter, dear hearts and gentle people. 23:21 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father 23:25 will send in My name." 23:27 There you have the blessed Trinity. 23:29 I'm a Trinitarian. 23:31 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father 23:35 will send in My name, will teach you all things 23:40 and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 23:43 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. 23:46 I do not give to you as the world gives. 23:49 Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." 23:54 The Holy Spirit is the Comforter and He is the Counselor. 24:01 The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. 24:06 The Holy Spirit is equal to God. 24:10 He is, as the theologians say, of the same nature 24:15 and the same essence as God is. 24:20 Would you come over here to the book of 24:21 Acts chapter 5 verses 3 and 4. 24:26 Acts chapter 5 verses 3 and 4. 24:33 Sometimes, you see, because we think the Holy Spirit 24:36 is a person, we are anxious to get the Holy Spirit 24:40 and to use this power. 24:42 We should not try to get the Holy Spirit to use this power, 24:46 we should seek to be used by God, the Holy Spirit. 24:51 That's the difference. 24:53 Look at Acts chapter 5 verses 3 and 4. 24:56 Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has 25:00 so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit." 25:05 You don't lie to a thing, you lie to a person. 25:10 And then the next verse says, "And have kept for yourself 25:14 some of the money you received for the land? 25:16 Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? 25:19 And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? 25:23 What made you think of doing such a thing? 25:25 You have not lied to men, but to..." Whom? 25:28 So you've lied to the Holy Spirit and you have lied to God. 25:34 And so I believe in the doctrine of the Trinity. 25:37 I believe in God the Father, 25:41 and God the Son, 25:43 and God the Holy Spirit. 25:46 And Jesus, of course, taught this. 25:48 If you come over here to Matthew chapter 28 25:51 and verse 19 in the word of God. 25:53 Matthew 28 and verse 19. 25:59 I want you to see this text in the word of the living God. 26:05 Isn't it great here in Los Angeles at 20 past 9 26:10 on Sabbath morning when most people in Los Angeles 26:14 are not even aware what day it is because they're sound asleep. 26:21 Jesus said, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, 26:26 baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son 26:31 and of the Holy Spirit." 26:33 Jesus did not say, "Baptize them in the names." 26:38 He didn't say plural. 26:40 We do not worship three Gods. 26:43 We worship one great God. 26:45 And this great God is manifested in the Father and of the Son 26:52 and of the Holy Spirit. 26:54 They are equal, but they are distinct. 26:58 Now people have said this to me everywhere, 27:01 "I cannot understand the Trinity and I will not believe in 27:06 something I cannot understand." 27:10 I want you to know, there are many things 27:13 that I do not understand. 27:16 But I still believe in them. 27:18 I don't understand what electricity is, 27:22 but I believe in it and I use it. 27:25 I don't understand the theory of relativity, 27:28 E=mc2, but I believe it. 27:34 And of course, Einstein was the person who gave us 27:38 the theory of relativity that, of course, we all have 27:43 some knowledge of today. 27:46 Einstein, when he discovered the theory of relativity, 27:50 travelled around the United States of America 27:53 going from university to university and giving the most 27:59 amazing, the most complicated, the most profound talk. 28:06 And he would talk before these scientists, great scholars, 28:09 some of the worlds greatest minds. 28:12 And he had a chauffeur who use to drive him 28:16 from one university after another. 28:19 And the chauffeur was just a very humble man, 28:23 hardly been to school at all. 28:24 But he could talk alright. 28:26 He probably made it through primary school, 28:28 maybe even high school. 28:30 And one night, Dr. Einstein was really worn out. 28:34 Do you know the feeling? 28:36 Another meeting. 28:38 So he was absolutely dragging it. 28:41 Now the chauffeur had heard the talk a hundred times 28:44 and he memorized it. 28:48 And he said, "Look, you're really looking 28:51 bad tonight, Dr. Einstein." 28:53 He said, "I know the talk, why don't you go and sit down 28:56 in the back as the chauffeur. 29:00 Why don't you sit down in the back." 29:02 Because the chauffeur always use to sit there in the back. 29:04 And he said, "I'll go up to the front and I'll give the talk." 29:07 So he came up to the front and he gave the talk. 29:11 Just like a parrot. 29:13 He got everything right. 29:15 He spoke about the theory of relativity and he 29:18 got through perfectly. 29:19 And when he was through, nobody knew any different. 29:23 Because nobody in those days knew Dr. Einstein. 29:25 They didn't know how he looked. 29:27 And so when the chauffeur got through the talk on relativity, 29:34 Dr. Einstein was sitting down in the back, 29:37 everything was fine until a famous professor got up. 29:42 He said, "I'd like to ask the learned 29:44 Dr. Einstein a question." 29:50 And then he asked the question. 29:52 You know, this equals this and all these 29:54 mathematical equations. 29:57 And the chauffeur stood there for a bit. 30:00 And then a light went on in his mind. 30:03 And he said, looking this famous scientist in the eye, 30:07 he said, "That's a very good question." 30:10 "But," he said, "it is really so simple, I'm going to ask my 30:15 chauffeur sitting down in the back to come up here 30:17 and answer it for you." 30:23 Now listen folks, there may be a lot of things that 30:27 you and I don't understand. 30:32 They're too big for us to understand. 30:35 But we believe them because these things 30:39 are the truths of God. 30:42 So I believe in the Trinity and I believe in the 30:45 work of the Holy Spirit. 30:48 Let's talk now about the work of the Holy Spirit. 30:52 During my first year at Avondale College, 30:54 I was a boy who had just turned 16 years of age. 30:57 I was a very restless teenager. 31:00 And then an English preacher came to Avondale College 31:03 and we had a week of prayer. 31:05 And this preacher, Pastor Ron Vince, preached on the topic 31:09 that is seared into my mind; The God Filled Blank. 31:14 He said in every person, there is a blank, 31:17 there's an emptiness. 31:19 And only God can fill it. 31:21 And he quoted St. Augustine, "Our souls are made for God. 31:25 They cannot rest until they rest in Him." 31:28 And he read from the Bible, and I followed the text. 31:31 And I thought to myself, when he says, "There's a boy or girl 31:36 here today, and you feel empty inside," 31:38 I thought he was talking to me. 31:41 I felt on that occasion the power of the Holy Spirit 31:48 speaking to my heart. 31:51 I felt my need of a Savior. 31:55 And then as he preached on, Tom Ludowici, a buddy of mine 31:59 at the college, explained to me the love of God. 32:04 It seemed as though I was transfixed by the power of God. 32:09 I want to tell you something. 32:10 I would walk around the campus as in a daze. 32:14 I would set out to go there and I'd end up going here. 32:18 Everybody seemed sweeter and nicer. 32:23 And the sky was bluer. 32:25 And I felt that God knew me and God loved me, 32:29 and Christ had died for me, and I owned Him. 32:34 That was the power of the Holy Spirit; 32:38 the third person of the Godhead talking to my heart. 32:41 Do you know this? I'm asking you today. 32:43 A lot of people say, "Well I can tell you 32:45 all about the doctrines." 32:46 That doesn't save you. 32:49 I've met so many people that can just rattle off 32:52 the doctrines, and they want to argue with you. 32:55 That doesn't save you. 32:57 I want to ask every person watching the telecast today, 33:00 do you know that the Holy Spirit has spoken to your heart 33:05 and led you to Christ? 33:07 And do you know in your own soul that you are a child of God? 33:12 The Spirit Himself testifies with my spirit 33:16 that I am a child of God. 33:18 I know it because the Spirit of God testifies within me. 33:23 Wesley said, "The highest proof of Christianity." 33:27 Have you got it today? 33:29 I want to say to all the folks in churches, 33:32 you know, we've got so much religion in the world, 33:35 but we've got too much religion. 33:37 What we need more is the Holy Spirit working through people. 33:44 I want you to come over here to John chapter 16 33:47 and verses 8-10. 33:50 John chapter 16 and verses 8-10. 33:57 Jesus says, "When He comes, He will convict the world of guilt 34:04 in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 34:07 in regard to sin, because men do not believe in Me; 34:11 in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the 34:14 Father, where you can see Me no longer; 34:17 and in regard to judgment, because the prince 34:22 of this world now stands condemned." 34:25 I just want to come over to the super hi-tech blackboards. 34:30 They get more hi-tech as we get more inventions, you know, 34:34 as Steve Jobs and these guys are turning out new inventions. 34:38 But we put new coats of paint on this over here. 34:41 The Bible says that the Holy Spirit convicts. 34:46 He convicts of sin. 34:51 He convicts of righteousness. 34:55 And when He convicts us of righteousness, 35:00 we feel ourselves to be sinners. 35:05 Do you want to know how you can tell when you're 35:07 a long way from God? 35:09 When you feel righteous and that you're a goody-goody. 35:14 Because when the Holy Spirit comes and convicts us of sin, 35:19 we cry out and we say, in the words of the great writer 35:26 who wrote Amazing Grace, John Newton, 35:33 we cry out, "I can remember only two things; 35:37 I am a great sinner and Christ is a great Savior." 35:43 And this is brought about when the Holy Spirit convicts us 35:46 of sin and righteousness, and reveals Christ, the Lamb of God. 35:54 Later on, I became a preacher of the gospel of Jesus. 36:00 I thank God today I've been preaching the gospel 36:03 of Jesus for 50 years. 36:07 I've witnessed the Holy Spirit speaking to lost men and women. 36:13 I've seen the work of the Holy Spirit in India. 36:17 Such a tough place. 36:19 A Hindu country. 36:21 Such a tough place. 36:22 How can you explain large crowds of people 36:27 being moved by the Spirit of God and crying to God for mercy. 36:33 It is the Spirit of God and because they're 36:35 opening up their hearts. 36:37 My friend, never close your heart to the Spirit of God. 36:41 Did you know, the most dangerous place you can be, 36:45 as far as your spirituality is concerned, is in a church. 36:51 Especially if you've got a Holy Spirit anointed preacher. 36:56 Because if you say "yes" to God, you're going to be saved. 37:00 But if you say "no" to God, you are going to harden your heart. 37:05 Good preaching is either going to make the congregation 37:08 a lot better or a lot worse. 37:11 Did you know that? 37:14 And I've seen the Spirit of God work around the world. 37:18 In Russia, as Danny was telling you, 37:22 where we saw thousands come to Christ, 37:25 ten thousand at an altar call, the KGB coming forward. 37:28 In the Ukraine, in Africa, in Manila, on death row. 37:34 What can we say but, glory be to God. 37:39 I want to tell you today... 37:42 You've got to get this into your minds. 37:44 This is important. 37:46 I'm going to whisper something to you. 37:48 I don't want you to be offended. 37:51 But the hardest people to reach 37:55 are self-righteous religionists. 38:01 Almost impossible. You know why? 38:03 They say, "Oh, we know it all." 38:06 "You don't bring your Bible to church?" 38:08 "No, I don't need my Bible, don't need that anymore." 38:12 "But I can tell you about this and I can tell you about this." 38:20 The Bible says, Jesus says, He convicts of sin 38:25 and of righteousness. 38:26 And when He whispers or thunders to our hearts, 38:31 we need to follow His voice. 38:34 And if He's talking to you today in this beautiful church, 38:37 or somewhere out there in television land, 38:40 listen to the voice of the Spirit of God 38:44 and don't harden your heart. 38:47 I want you to come over here to Ephesians chapter 4. 38:51 Ephesians chapter 4, over here in the New Testament, 38:57 to the words of the great apostle Paul. 39:02 Ephesians chapter 4 and verses 30-31. 39:06 Paul says, you got it, "And do not grieve the 39:10 Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed 39:13 for the day of redemption." 39:15 Don't' grieve Him. 39:17 It's impossible to insult Him. 39:19 "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, 39:22 brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." 39:26 Because those sins can lead us to commit the unpardonable sin. 39:32 Did you know that? 39:35 You know the old story, the boy who was playing 39:38 with the pet dove. 39:40 And he put out his hand and put out a little bit of 39:43 food for the dove. 39:45 And when the dove would come to get the little bit of food, 39:48 he'd pull his hand away. 39:50 And each time he did it, the dove was more hesitant to come. 39:55 The time came when he put out his hand and the dove came, 39:59 and he snatched his hand away. 40:01 And the dove flew away. 40:03 The Bible says, "Don't grieve the Spirit of God." 40:07 If the Spirit of God comes into this meeting today 40:10 in such a way, and if He talks to your heart, 40:14 the Bible says, don't grieve Him. 40:18 And don't hide behind a heap of religiosity. 40:23 Open up your heart to God. 40:26 I want you to come over here to Matthew chapter 12. 40:30 Matthew chapter 12, to the words of our blessed Lord. 40:34 Matthew chapter 12 and verses 30-32. 40:41 Jesus says, "He who is not with Me is against Me, 40:46 he who does not gather with Me scatters. 40:50 And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men." 40:55 Thank God. 40:57 Did you hear that? 40:59 "Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men." 41:02 Murder, lying, cheating, adultery. 41:05 Every sin if it's confessed. 41:08 "But the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. 41:12 Anyone who speaks a word against the 41:15 Son of Man will be forgiven." 41:16 If he confesses it. 41:17 "But anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not 41:21 be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come." 41:25 What does it mean? 41:29 When we were fresh out of college... 41:31 In those days, of course, when you're fresh out of college, 41:34 you know everything. 41:38 Beverly and I worked in a town in Australia 41:42 by the name of Wagga Wagga. 41:45 Now don't you folks laugh about that. 41:48 Because there are some towns here, 41:50 there's a town here in California called, 41:52 there's one of our great supporters in the 41:54 town of Rough and Ready. 41:56 Rough and Ready. 41:58 Yeah, and there's other towns. 41:59 But this place is called Wagga Wagga. 42:03 People, when they are unkind, would say Waga Waga. 42:06 But it was Wagga Wagga. 42:09 We lived beside a railway track. 42:12 And every night at midnight, the Southern Aurora came. 42:18 In those days, it was a great engine. 42:22 Huge engine, a big steamer. 42:26 And that great steamer, we use to think they were just 42:29 little old Puffing Billy's, but that steamer would 42:32 come through at 80 miles an hour and blast the whistle. 42:37 The first night, we thought it was coming through the bedroom. 42:41 You know, living next to the railway track. 42:44 The next night, it scared us also. 42:46 The next night, not quite so much. 42:50 Within a week, the Southern Aurora would come 42:53 pounding and roaring through, and we slept like babies. 43:00 Had the train changed? 43:04 No, we had adapted. 43:07 We'd closed our ears. 43:10 We had hardened our hearing. 43:13 That's the unpardonable sin. 43:15 When a person keeps hardening and hardening and hardening 43:19 his heart, until he comes to the place where the Spirit of God 43:23 is talking to him, and he doesn't hear anymore. 43:29 That's dangerous. 43:31 So the Bible tells us, today if you will hear His voice, 43:36 don't harden your hearts. 43:39 Now, if somebody is sitting here in our beautiful church in 43:43 beautiful southern California, or you're sitting out there 43:46 watching this telecast on 3ABN, and the Spirit of God 43:50 is talking to you, 43:57 stop now and say, "God, I'm going to open my heart 44:02 and I'm going to be obedient to your voice. 44:05 I'm going to do what You tell me to do." 44:11 The work of the Holy Spirit is to magnify the name of Jesus 44:18 and empower the church to proclaim the blessed gospel. 44:22 Now I want you to come over here to John 14 and verse 26, 44:27 because this text says something that sometimes 44:31 we don't take any notice of. 44:33 John chapter 14 and verse 26, dear hearts and gentle people. 44:40 John 14:26 44:43 "But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father 44:48 will send in My name, will teach you all things 44:52 and will remind you of everything I have said to you." 45:00 Look at me. 45:02 The Holy Spirit doesn't talk about Himself. 45:07 The Holy Spirit talks about Jesus. 45:10 Have you met people who say, "I'm filled with 45:13 the Holy Ghost," and then all they do is 45:15 talk about themselves? 45:19 They have the wrong spirit. 45:24 If you want to find a church where you're going to be 45:27 blessed by God, go into a church that is filled with 45:31 the Holy Spirit that magnifies the name of Jesus, 45:35 that doesn't magnify itself. 45:39 You want to know the difference between the 45:41 true church and a cult? 45:43 The true church is all about Jesus 45:46 and a cult is all about itself. 45:52 But the Holy Spirit, the Bible tells me, 45:55 magnifies the name of Jesus. 45:59 I want you to notice some superlative texts now 46:04 in the Old Testament book of Joel; 46:07 which means, Jehovah is God. 46:10 So please turn to the Bible the book of Joel. 46:14 Daniel, Hosea, Joel. Chapter 2. 46:20 Now this is a Bible reading church, 46:22 this is a Bible believing church. 46:24 When we come to this church, we don't come here 46:26 to be entertained. 46:28 We come here to be saved. 46:30 And we bring our Bibles. 46:31 We're in earnest in this church. 46:33 Joel chapter 2 verse 23. 46:40 Daniel, Hosea, Joel. 46:44 That's a minor prophet with a major message. 46:46 It's over towards the close of the Old Testament. 46:49 I can see some of you folks have never turned to it before. 46:52 Joel chapter 2 verse 23. 46:55 "Be glad, O people of Zion, rejoice in the Lord your God, 46:59 for He has given you the autumn rains in righteousness. 47:03 He sends you abundant showers, both autumn 47:06 and spring rains, as before. 47:08 The threshing floors will be filled with grain." 47:12 Because the Spirit is coming. 47:14 "The vats will overflow with new wine and oil. 47:17 'I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten.'" 47:21 God is going to restore. 47:23 "The great locust and the young locust, 47:26 the other locusts and the locust swarm, 47:29 My great army that I sent among you. 47:31 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, 47:34 and you will praise the name of the Lord your God," 47:37 Yahweh Elohim. 47:38 "who has worked wonders for you; 47:40 never again will My people be shamed." 47:43 God is going to redeem the past and the failures of the past. 47:49 "Then you will know that I am in Israel, 47:52 that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other; 47:55 never again will My people be shamed. 47:58 And afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all people. 48:03 Your sons and daughters will prophesy, 48:05 your old men will dream dreams, 48:08 your young men will see visions." 48:10 Can you say amen? 48:11 "Even on my servants, both men and women." 48:14 Women too, folks. 48:16 You see? 48:18 God is no respecter of persons. 48:20 You go into some countries and women are second class citizens. 48:24 That's because they don't understand the 48:26 gospel of the Bible. 48:28 You see? 48:29 We won't get onto that subject. 48:31 But at least I've got the ladies on my side. 48:33 Verse 29, "Even on My servants, both men and women, 48:37 I will pour out My Spirit in those days. 48:39 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, 48:43 blood and fire and billows of smoke. 48:46 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood 48:50 before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." 48:54 This is talking about the end. 48:55 "And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; 48:59 for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem 49:02 there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, 49:05 among the survivors whom the Lord calls." 49:08 So the Bible says, listen to me, the Bible says... 49:13 I'm going to put it up here on the hi-tech. 49:18 And if any of you folks watching out in television land 49:21 want to get some of these hi-tech blackboards, 49:26 write to me with an offering for 3ABN 49:29 and I'll tell you the secret. 49:32 The Bible tells me, the rain, the rain is coming. 49:42 God is going to do a work of glory and a work of wonder, 49:48 and He's going to pour out the Holy Spirit. 49:50 I want you to know it, folks. 49:52 And I have seen it. 49:54 Look at Joel chapter 3 verse 12 and onwards. 49:56 "Let the nations be roused." 49:59 They're getting roused today. 50:01 "Let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat, 50:04 for there I will sit to judge all the nations on every side. 50:08 Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. 50:12 Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full 50:16 and the vats overflow, so great is their wickedness! 50:20 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! 50:27 For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision." 50:33 In the last great day when the nations are angry, 50:37 I want you to know this, the rain is coming. 50:41 The greatest need, let me talk to you about it. 50:44 It's not more money. 50:46 We need money. 50:47 3ABN needs money. 50:49 Those of you who believe in the preaching of the gospel, 50:53 put your dollars into God's work before the 50:56 dollar is worth nothing. 50:58 I'm telling you that. 50:59 Don't hold onto it. 51:01 The way it's going at present, it's going to be too late soon. 51:06 Our greatest need is for this rain; the coming of the Spirit. 51:12 In the world, sin is barefaced today. 51:18 On television, sin is barefaced. 51:21 In the church, sin is two-faced. 51:28 And the greatest need of the church, 51:31 the greatest of the world, 51:34 is for the coming of the Spirit of God. 51:37 As the world hurdles to destruction, 51:40 the church is asleep. 51:45 We should never have to beg for money. 51:51 It is the responsibility of the church to aggressively 51:56 take the gospel of Christ to every nation, 52:00 kindred, tongue, and people. 52:01 And to preach the Word with power. 52:04 We do not want preachers who are whispering hopes. 52:12 We don't need a whispering hope. 52:15 We need the voice of the prophets of God. 52:18 Because the rain is coming. 52:22 Our watchword has been for too long, "Business as usual." 52:26 "I just want to hold on until retirement." 52:28 I want to tell you folks something; that's over. 52:32 The rain is coming. 52:35 I want you to come over here to Revelation 18:1. 52:38 Aren't you glad you got up early this morning? 52:42 I've got another meeting coming on at 11 o'clock. 52:46 This is my quiet meeting. 52:51 The fireworks are at 11 o'clock. 52:56 As I said, we don't need a whispering hope. 52:58 You know that song, Whispering Hope? 53:00 Well, we don't want to be singing that. 53:02 We need the voice of God. 53:05 "After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. 53:08 He had great authority, and the earth was 53:11 illuminated by his splendor." 53:14 From sea to shining sea. 53:17 The rain is coming. 53:20 Now I'm here today to testify. 53:23 I'm not an armchair theologian. 53:26 I testify I've seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. 53:30 You can't come and tell me that what I'm saying today 53:32 is not true, because I have seen it, I testify. 53:36 I testify. 53:38 And people have come with me, like Danny Shelton; 53:40 they testify. 53:42 It'll happen again on a world wide scale with wonders, 53:46 signs, miracles, and the powerful preaching 53:48 of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 53:51 Because the rain is coming. 53:55 How can we ever forget what happened in '92, 53:59 as Danny referred to it, in Nizhny Novgorod. 54:02 Everybody told us, "It can't happen, it won't happen." 54:07 That is because they had no faith. 54:11 When people stormed the Palace of Sports, broke down the doors. 54:16 In those days, we gauged the success of a meeting 54:20 by the number of doors that were shattered. 54:23 And in a good meeting, we would have at least 54:25 a dozen or 20 doors smashed. 54:28 We prayed for the smashing of the doors. 54:34 How can you explain Ukraine? 54:37 100,000 people turned away from the meeting. 54:42 30,000 inside in two sessions, 54:45 100,000 outside in one session turned away. 54:49 And people running down in front raising their hands, common. 54:54 Look at this. 54:55 100,000 people, they went as far as the streets would carry them. 55:00 The Ukrainian government called a national emergency 55:04 and closed down the railway system. 55:07 You know why? 55:08 Because the rain is coming. 55:11 That's why. 55:13 Don't talk to me about little things and small things, 55:17 and say, "Oh, God just wants us to be quiet." 55:20 Hey, the rain is coming. 55:24 And don't stand and try to stop it, my friend, 55:27 or else you may be like the prelate who said, 55:30 "John Carter will preach in the Palace of Sports in Kiev 55:34 over my dead body." 55:38 He said that eight days before the campaign. 55:40 He said they would stop it. 55:45 He dropped dead. Young, healthy, strong. 55:49 We saw the mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 55:54 We did not wish to see him die. 55:56 But don't fight the Spirit of God. 55:59 Because the rain is coming. 56:02 And what we need to be doing in the church today, 56:04 we need to be praying for the Holy Spirit 56:07 to reveal our sins. 56:10 And we need to pray that God is going to raise up preachers 56:14 of the gospel filled with the Holy Ghost. 56:19 We need to pray for the anointing of the Spirit of God. 56:27 We need to pray that we might be filled with the Spirit of God. 56:34 He convicts of sin, righteousness, 56:36 judgment to come. 56:39 But my message to you is this. 56:41 Never forget it. 56:44 The rain is coming. 56:46 And I stand here today and I testify that Jesus is alive. 56:52 I testify that I believe in the blessed Trinity. 56:56 I testify that I have seen the latter rain. 57:03 Let me pray with you. 57:04 Dear Father, we praise You, we bless You. 57:09 Thank You for what You are doing, that You are so great. 57:13 Speak to our hearts. 57:15 Bless the great congregation, the vast crowds watching now. 57:20 We open our hearts to You. 57:22 We pray, our Father, fill us with the Holy Spirit. 57:25 In Jesus' name, amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17