Wednesday PM Nov 9, 2011

Introduction

Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Words have values. Words are very much like any kind of commodity. Certain words are more valuable than other words. Ands and it’s and those kinds of things are routine. But there are certain words that when they are said conjure up in our minds certain thoughts. And there’s some words that have come to my mind this period of time we’ve been together that I should like to share with you. There are words like reunion. That conjures up people that you’ve known in years past and you’ve loved and appreciated, worked with.

It is the word Christian. As I look over this audience tonight, it occurs to me that I’m looking into the faces of a lot of godly Christians. Christian, what a word it is. Christian. A follower of the Savior. One who has been forgiven. And one who is headed in the direction toward his own hope. That hope which reaches off into the future and attaches itself to eternity itself. Christian. Wonderful name. So I come before you tonight to thank you for conjuring up in my mind those very warm feelings of affection. And for every word of encouragement, for every approbation, for every civility that you have extended to my beloved Norman and me, I offer my thanksgiving. And I don’t say that as some kind of a trite expression.

I say that from a heart that has been impressed with reunion, Christian, family, this week. So thank you very much. It’s been a great time.

Tony is special to me. Sherry, I helped raise.

For them, but they’re very special. So thank you for everything this week. And thank you for what we will enjoy together in that great eventuality called heaven. I’m going to ask you to do something tonight that may sound a bit strange to you. I’m not necessarily interested in you getting your Bible out. You can get it out if you want to. But I want you to dismiss from your minds everything that would impede you from listening like you’ve never listened before. Get rid of all the externalities, get rid of all the things that have to do with job or family or whatever. And concentrate completely and totally on the reading of the Word of God. Because I’m going to do precisely that. I’m going to read the Word of God.

If you insist on reading from your Bible, I’ll start reading in the 35th verse of the tenth chapter of Hebrews. But otherwise, I’d just like you to listen very carefully. Cast not away, therefore, your confidence, which hath great recompensive reward. For you have need of a patience that after you have done the will of God you might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith. But if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we’re not of them who draw back unto perition, but of them that believe to the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report.

Through faith, we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts, and by it he being dead yet speaketh. By faith Enoch was translated, that he should not see death, and was not found because God had translated him. For before his translation he had this testimony that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him. For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house, by the which he condemned the world and became the heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed, and he went out not knowing whither he went. By faith he sojourned in a land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise, for he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful, who had promised. Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the seashore innumerable.

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country, and truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is in heavenly.

And he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said that in Isaac shall thy seed be called, accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead, from whence he also received him in a figure. By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. By faith, Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph and worshipped, leaning on top of his staff. By faith, Joseph, when he was died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel, and gave commandment concerning his bones.

By faith, Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child, and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment. By faith, Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, esteeming the reproach of Christ, better riches than the treasures in Egypt. For he had respect unto the recompense of reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king, for he endured as seeing him who is invisible. Through faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that had destroyed the firstborn should touch them, and by faith they passed through the Red Sea, as by dry land, which the Egyptians are saying to do were drowned.

By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about seven days. By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not when she had received the spies with peace. And what shall I more say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon and of Barak, and of Samson and of Jephthy and of David, and also of Samuel and of the prophets, who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness, were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again, and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection.

And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and in mountains and in dens and in caves of the earth. And these all died, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise. God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. Wherefore, seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Man says, seeing is believing. God says, believing is seeing. Faith is not some better felt than told sort of phenomenon that overtakes a person suddenly. It’s not just an emotional response, though it may produce an emotion. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. But faith is a natural part of who and what we are. Faith is not weird. Faith is not difficult to describe. Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Faith is merely the presentation of some sort of information coupled with enough evidence to support the fact that has been affirmed, which produces a settled conclusion in the mind of the hearer.

I don’t want that to be sounding too complicated, so let’s do this. How many of you have been to New York City? Raise your hand. How many have not been to New York City? About half and half. How many of you believe there is a new? I don’t even have to ask that, do I? Do you know why you believe there’s a New York City, if you’ve not been there? To the people that have been there, seeing is believing. To the people that have not been there, believing is seeing. There is enough evidence in their mind that New York City does actually exist that they come to the settled conclusion that it is a city in this country. We can go on and on with those kinds of illustrations.

The fact of the matter is that all faith is brought about when somebody affirms that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and then offers a refutable testimony in support of that fact to make it a believable fact. And there is ample testimony for that. Many signs truly did Jesus in the midst of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written that you might believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and that believing you might have life through his name, John 20, 30 and 31. That says these signs and wonders which Jesus and his chosen apostles and prophets did were put there in order that they might produce faith in the hearers. We have that faith, not because we talked with somebody who was there on the spot.

Oh, wait a minute. It is because we talked with somebody who’s there on the spot. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which you received, wherein you stand, and by which you’re saved, if you keep in memory the things that I have commanded you. For I delivered unto you that which I first of all received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried and that he was resurrected again the third day according to the scriptures, that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve, then he was seen of me as of one born out of due season. 1 Corinthians the 15th chapter, the first few verses. The Apostle Paul was there. He saw the Lord on the road to Damascus.

John, who wrote the saying that we just read from John 20 a while ago, was there. Paul said, the things that he wrote, he said, I have written. He said, I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles. If you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, what is dispensation? Well, we usually think of it as a period of time. It’s a period of law. It’s a period of dispensing. That’s where we get the word. The dispensation of Moses is the mosaical dispensation. And so these informations were dispensed. Paul said, I dispensed unto you. I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ. If you’ve heard of my dispensing of this grace toward you, how that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery, as I wrote afore in a few words, whereby when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge and the mystery of Christ Jesus.

Same apostle said, Brethren, when I came to you, I came not with excellency of speech nor of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. Now, why, Paul, that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. How be it we speak the wisdom of God among them that are the princes of this world or the princes of this world that come to naught? And he said, I have not seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things that God hath prepared for them that love him.

But God hath declared those things unto us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what things knoweth the mind of a man save the spirit of the man that’s in him. Even so the things of God knoweth no man but the Spirit of God that is in him. So may I say to you that we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God because we believe the testimony presented by those who were there. Above five hundred brethren, saw him. He appeared to those two little men on the road to Emmaus. He appeared to some ladies. He appeared to his disciples. They saw him ascend into heaven. That is our testimony. And that’s why we believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

This marvelous passage that I have read in your hearing.

Because it tells us about people of faith. It tells us why they believed what they did and why they did what they did, and why they reacted to the affirmations of other people like they did. It’s a marvelous attestation to how God has handled things for us. He begins by saying, Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. That word substance is an exact equivalent to the Greek term there. It is sub under stance. What stands under. It’s what stands under our hope. Our hope, as I pointed out a while ago, is that human apparatus that reaches off like a huge anchor that you throw and you and it lands at the very throne of God. And it gives you a rope to pull on.

And when you need something, your hope is there. Your faith is embodied in that. The predicate of that hope is your faith. And so it’s the foundation for everything. It’s the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. I said to you a while ago, when somebody presents information and gives evidence in support of it produces faith. He said faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. And then he takes us on a marvelous journey. A wonderful journey through what I’ve chosen to call God’s Hall of Faith. God’s Hall of Faith. I want you to just imagine walking into this wonderful museum of faith. It’s God’s Hall. You know, there’s a hall of fame for everything.

There’s a Hall of Fame for football at Akron, Ohio, a Hall of Fame for Baseball at Cooperstown, New York. There’s a Hall of Fame for this group and that group. There’s a cowboy hall of fame in Oklahoma City. There’s a hall of fame for bowling and tennis and golf and all kinds. And there’s a hall of faith for God. His ancient noteworthies are shown in beautiful color and technicolor in my mind, in this little passage that we have read in your hearing today. And I want you to take a journey through there. Maybe the first thing you see is Cain here doing things that are not in accordance with the will of God that he’s going to offer for God. And you see him there.

But in the distance, you see Abel offering up a spiritual sacrifice to God, which is acceptable to him. You move on down a little bit further, and you see maybe Ezra, or rather not Ezra, Enoch. You see Enoch, but you don’t see Enoch. You see a hole in the cloud where Enoch went. And you say, What a beautiful depiction of Enoch having been here and having been translated by God. You move down a little further, and maybe you see a picture of Noah. And Noah is standing on the stump of an old sycobore tree, and he’s trying to talk to people. And you can see the scowl on their faces. They’re not listening, they don’t care to hear. And they’re walking past him. You can see that they’re going their own way.

Off in the distance, though, you see a big old black box and some people putting bitumen on it. And you see the story of Noah in your mind. A man who did what God wanted him to do, not understanding where he was going to go, but doing what he was told to do because he believed in God. So then you move on down a little bit further and you see Abraham as he begins his Bedouin, his life with as a Bedouin prince, having left all of the grandeur and your wonderfulness of a city, perhaps the most elegant city and opulent city of his day. And he left it all because he was going to a place that God told him to go. And he went out not knowing whither he went.

How many of us would have had that kind of faith? That’s faith that caused him to do that. Faith without works, don’t talk to me about that. The Bible, nowhere anywhere contemplates an idea of faith without works. Faith works, and that’s that’s the point of Hebrews 11. So we move on down a little bit further, and maybe we see Moses. Norma says that her favorite old time, old Testament character is Moses because he looks so much like Charlton Heste.

You see Moses. You see Moses perched on the precipice of a rock, and the wind is blowing his hoary head, and you see that he’s got a long crook in his hand, shepherd’s crook. And you can almost see him as the blaze of glory is in his eyes, and he reaches that big shepherd’s crook out there and says, Stand back and see the glory of God. And the sea congeals on each side so that the children of Israel can walk by on dry foot. Moses, a man of immense faith. And then finally you come down to the end. You see a faceless, nameless picture. No names on it. Sat on my deck one day, and I watched a big bluebird come in. Norma had left a little popcorn out for them last night.

And he came in and got this piece of popcorn, went back up on the fence and began to peck on it. All of a sudden I saw a beautiful cardinal coming. It was a female. Kind of grayish, but has a little red. I thought, well, he’s around here somewhere because they’re always together, you know. And all of a sudden she left the feeder, and the red bird came to the feeder, and she watched what he ate. And I thought to myself, how beautiful that is. And I saw we’ve had a phenomenon happen at my house. We’ve had a couple of parrots just come in. I don’t know where they come from or where they go, but they just come in and they’re absolutely elegant looking. They’re green, beautiful, gold beaks.

And I thought to myself, God doesn’t say much about parrots. God doesn’t speak about bluebirds or cardinals. He talked about sparrows. And I thought to myself, aren’t I glad that God doesn’t leave the little people out because I’m a sparrow? But not one sparrow falls to the earth without God’s knowledge. And God never leaves out the little people. Look at your book. Look at what he says about these people. He said they did all kinds of things. They quenched the violence of the fire. Who was it? There are no names given. They escaped the edge of the sword out of weakness, were made strong, waxed valiant and fight, turned to flight the armies of the enemy. Women, which women? You know their names? Which women received their dead raised to life again?

Which others were tortured? And still others, he said, had trials of cruel mockings and scourgings, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned and stoned and so in a certain way. Which ones? We don’t know. You know what that says? You can take great joy in the fact that God knows your name. That’s what that says. And he cares what happens to you. You are his and he is yours. And as long as you stay faithful to him, he is yours and you’re his.

Wonderful thought. And then two people on the I finished the introduction. Two people fainted on the back seat back there. I’ve said all that to say this to you. Wherefore, seeing that we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us and run with patience the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of God on high. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. That’s said to me.

1. Draw Strength From Those Who Witness Our Struggle

That’s said to you. That’s his message to us. And I want you to look at it carefully. I want you to look first of all at the fact that we are compassed about with a great cloud of witnesses. I don’t know exactly how that works. I’m not saying that there’s another dimension where they can stand and watch us, but somehow or another we are compassed about. That means compassed, surrounded with a great cloud of witnesses. That’s a lot of witnesses. And I don’t know exactly how that works, but we are surrounded by them. And so I say to you, ladies and gentlemen, tonight, hear me carefully. Let us draw energy from those who witness our struggle. Let us draw strength from them. Let us understand where it is that we’re going, and others have trod the path before us and have more difficulties perhaps than we have had.

Let us not count our difficulties. Let us look forward and draw strength from those that went before us. Look at Enoch. Look at where he went. And he went because he had this testimony that he pleased God. Look at these people who went off places they didn’t know, who took great stands in the face of great adversity, who were hurt and spit on and spitefully entreated as we talk about the Lord. All of those things happen to all of these people. They are our witnesses. We draw strength from that. And so when you get discouraged, you pick up your Bible and you read Romans 12, or Hebrews 12 and verse 1. You read it carefully and hear what he says when he says, wherefore seeing.

What? Seeing. That’s faith here. Seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses. We lay aside every way. The witnesses are ours. Somebody walked like you walk. Somebody had the problems that you have. Somebody did something to do something about it. They went to the Word of God. They put their faith completely and totally in that, and even sometimes died for the fact of having done so. But they had rec a strong vision of the recompense of reward. They could see in the future what they needed to see. As I’ve gotten older, I think a lot about when I was a kid growing up. I grew up with Tim Finley’s daddy. One of the most godly men I’ve ever known. A great fellow.

2. Rid Ourselves From All Encumbrances and Run With Endurance

And we all saw visions sometimes of what we thought we’d be. And we had friends that went and did what they wanted to do. And we did not because somebody said, I wonder what the Lord thinks about this. You can’t just do what you want to and go to heaven. You have to do what’s good for yourself. And that is put your confidence in God. Look at the people that have gone before us. Look at Paul, look at Peter, look at James and John. Read them. Look at them. See what they did, see what they said, see where they went, see how they did it and why they did it. We draw strength from those who witness our struggle. Secondly, let us rid ourselves from all encumbrances and run with endurance.

He says, Wherefore, seeing also we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us. Lay aside every weight. When I was in broadcasting, I used to be out at Texas Tech, and Ralph Carpenter, who was the sports information director, was a personal friend of mine. And I was at his office quite frequently. And there was a fellow that came in quite frequently also, who was a former coach at Texas Tech. And his name was Elmer Tarbox. He had invented Elmer’s weights.

And the trainees would put the weights on around their buckle them around their legs or around their midsection or around their arms, and they would do their workouts with those weights on them. And when they got ready to run the battle, they took the weights off. Now I don’t know that’s what he’s talking about here. We certainly have some references here to the Olympic Games. I don’t know that’s what he’s saying here, but I know one thing. The people that ran in the Olympics ran some of them naked. Because they did not want anything to get in the way of the goal that they had set to achieve. They wanted nothing to keep and keep him from getting there. They would take off everything that they needed to take off if it got in the way of.

They didn’t want anything flapping in the wind. They wanted to get there and they went to pressing on to get to do so. And so they took off everything that would beset them. And beset is an interesting word. It just means to wear off course, see. It just means to fall in the ditch a little bit. He said, lay aside every weight, every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us and run with patience the race that is set before us. We have to have an endurance.

A lot of Christians that just can’t endure any kind of difficulty. They want to wear the name, they want to sing the hymns, they want to take the Lord’s Supper. They want to say, I’m a Christian, but they won’t ensure endure any hardship. If anything comes along that’s difficult for them to endure, they just fall into it and let it have sway in their lives. He says, get rid of that. Run with endurance. Sometimes it’s going to hurt to be a Christian. I’m not going to lie to you. I am so tired. I am so sick and tired of hearing these televangelists get up with big smiles on their faces and tell you how easy Christianity is if you just put a little money in a pot.

I am tired of that. I’m saying to you, ladies and gentlemen, that what Christianity is all about is a rough course to pursue. I count not myself to have apprehended, but this one thing I do, forgetting the things which are past and reaching forth to the things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. You’ve got to press. It’s going to hurt sometimes. And sometimes you’re going to cry. And sometimes you’re going to get so you’re just almost despondent. But you turn to God. You turn to Him in prayer. And you say, Lord, lift me up. I’m going to press on. Give me the strength to do what I need to do. Lay aside every weight and run with endurance, the race that is set before you.

3. Looking to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of Our Faith

That’s hard. It’s not always a positive endeavor. Sometimes it’s really difficult. But we must maintain the course. I can’t all of it but dumb that I may win Christ, said the Apostle Paul. Then let us lay aside every weight and the sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Looking to Jesus. I enjoyed watching the last Olympics. You enjoy it in China. I enjoyed what they said about the runners that did the marathon. They were in little groups, you know, they kind of separated all along the way. And every group, when they came and made the turn and saw the view of the birdcage.

Remember the birdcage, the big stadium? The announcer said that without fail, without fail, every group that turned around that last mile or so and saw that goal sped up. Every one of them. Is that not astounding? You know what? They saw the finish line. Looking to Jesus. The author and finisher of our faith. It’s our faith. And he’s the author of it. And he is the finisher of it. He is the author of it by giving us all the information that we need to get to identify who God is, why I’m here, what I’m to do while I’m here, and where I’m going when this is over. He gives us all of that in this wonderful book that we call The Faith. Faith cometh by hearing the word of God, we say.

And that is entirely correct. And so here is God. He has given us all of these things. And he’s the author of our faith. And he’s the finisher of our faith. Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep. But we shall all be raised.

In the twinkling of an eye at the last trunk. For this corruption must put on end corruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have been put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying, death is swallowed up in victory. Oh death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God which giveth us the victory through Jesus Christ our Lord. And here’s a passage we’ve taken all out of context so long we’ve lost it. Wherefore? Seeing we are compassed about says the same thing. Therefore, he says, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.

Now, why, Paul? Inasmuch as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. We’re going somewhere, folks. We’re going somewhere. This world is not our home. We’re just passing through here. The Philippians to the Philippians, the apostle Paul said, our citizenship is in heaven, from whence we look for a Savior, who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body. For the which cause we faint not. Though our outward man perish, yet is our inward man renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far greater and eternal weight of glory, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.

For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God. An house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan earnestly, desiring to be clothed upon with our house, which is from heaven, if so be, that being clothed we will not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened, not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon that mortality might be swallowed up in life. The finisher of our faith. We are. If in this world we have hope, we’re of all men most miserable. What is hope? Oh, that’s what radiates out of your faith.

Keeps you connected to God Almighty. And so we have that hope of an eternal resurrection. Jesus is what it’s all about. He says, looking to Jesus. If I could just get the power of my communicative skills to get you to see that the author and finisher of our faith is Jesus Christ our Lord. He is everything. He came to the little people. He came to the hosts. He came to everybody that would listen. He had a message of salvation, a message of redemption, a message that made it possible for man to have resurrection. He came with a message of love. He came with a message of forgiveness. And yet men spurned him. But now Paul says, looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.

Why do we look to him? Who, for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross? Wait a minute. What kind of joy could it have been to go to the cross? I’ll tell you why. Because of you. And you over there, and you back there. And you over here, you.

Conclusion

That’s why he did it. Look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Who for the joy that was set before him the death of the cross. And please notice the last verse that we looked at. It is the first verse that we looked at. These are the book ends. Ye have not resisted, for consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. And listen how we started. Cast not away your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. What a wonderful message.

Boy, I’m glad I am. Because I can say things to people like you and know that you go away with a heart full of enthusiasm and a heart with a new love, and I can think to myself, I got a heart full of enthusiasm and a heart full of new love. It’s what we’re all about. And listen to me. There aren’t any big people and little people in the kingdom. We’re just folks trying to do what we can do to get to heaven. Preachers are not any different than anybody else. Elders are not any different. It’s just that we have a job to do. We’re looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, all of us, every one of us, each of us individually.

I’ll tell you what we are.

We’re a bunch of sparrows that got cleaned up.

And now we look pretty good. And then we’re gonna look plum good. So let us not grow weary and well doing for in due season we shall reap if we thank God. If you’re not a Christian tonight, we want to offer you that opportunity. If you believe because of the evidence that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and you’re willing to do what He says, repent of your sins and be baptized, you can walk away from this place a new person tonight. You can be a new soul, one without any sin on your being, whatever. Or if you’ve been unfaithful to the Lord and you need to come back and make a rededicated life, you don’t need to put that off. You need to come and give your life to Him again and get yourself back in the kingdom and work steadily there so that you can get that reward when it’s all over.

If you’re here and you owe a duty to God, we want to try to help you. We’re not going to look down on you, we’re going to look up to you. Would you come to him while we stand and say?