God Is The Same

Let's turn to the book of Ezekiel. I was going to ask somebody to minister tonight, but I feel the Lord would have me to say something. In the 12th Chapter of the book of Ezekiel in the, 24th verse (Brother Pike reads Ezekiel 12:24-28). In the 13th chapter the 22nd verse (Brother Pike reads Ezekiel 13:22-23). Now then the word of the Lord coming to Ezekiel, he said, There shall none of my words be prolonged anymore, or that is he say's: It's not for a long time off. I am not speaking of something that is a long way off, but I'm speaking of right now. I guess the greatest dispute that I have with people as I travel and talk is along this one line and that is that most people look for something that happened in the days of Abraham or Elijah or Peter, James and John; or either people have a tendency to look for something that's going to happen just our here past this generation. You know, they don't ever look at the situation of today and say, God's Word is for this generation. God's Word is for this generation. The one thing I like about God's Word is — that it is the same to every generation. The Bible tells us; Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever; which means that God is the same to this generation that He was to the generation that's past. He is the same to this generation as He will be to the generation that comes. Therefore there is no changes with God. There is no alteration of God's Word. There is no prolonging of God's promise. The only change of God's Word is in our mind or thinking The only prolonging of God's Word is in out own human reasoning, and the only alterations or shortcoming of God's Word is within us when we doubt and disbelieve or fail to accept God's promises. See, God doesn't change. I like this. God doesn't change. The Bible said, Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever. He never changes at anytime. God said, Peace on earth, good will toward mankind. From that time God has never made a change. Did you know that? God has never changed His mind about that statement. God has never altered that statement. He has never at any time made andy changes in it whatsoever. He said, Peace on earth and good will toward man. When the blood of Jesus was to be applied to the heart, when the Son of God was to die at Calvary, God took one great look at it and said, this does away with sin and this pacifies the wrath of God, from now on there is peace on earth and good will toward mankind. Did you know that every time you go to pray you should go to God with this one thought in mind — peace on earth and good will toward me from God because of the blood of Jesus Christ. You should go boldly before the Throne of God asking God to help you, go boldly before the Throne of God that you might receive help in the time of your need. You should never go to God with the feeling that I can't get help or I'm not worthy of help or help isn't for me. You should say, God, what you say to one you said, you say to me, you say to all. Lord, what you have promised to one, you promised to all humanity because you tell me that you're no respect of person in the Word, and the Word cannot be altered or changed. Therefore I know that what you promise you promised to all. Therefore the only thing that can keep me from having the blessing of God and the peace of God and the benefits of God in my life is my unbelief. Therefore, God I'm not going to disbelieve. This is why God tells us that we need to condition our hearts. John said, Hereby we do the things that please God, then the assurance of the heart comes. When I do the things that please God, I assure my heart. Hereby my heart takes on confidence. I assure my heart before God. I have a confidence in the rewarding of God. I believe toward the blessings of God and as a consequence of that I get the benefits of God. For the Bible said, If our heart condemn us God is greater that our heart and God knoweth all things. If my heart condemns me, if I do something erroringly, things that I shouldn't do, if my heart condemns me, God is greater than my heart. God knoweth all things. That is God knoweth His word. God knoweth His promise. God knoweth that he let Jesus die for me. It doesn't matter how my heart condemns me, it doesn't matter what my thinking wants to do. It doesn't matter what I believe, it has nothing to do with God's Word or God's promise. Now all I do is just cut myself off by my unbelief and the Word of God remains just exactly the same. God bypasses me because of my unbelief. I fail to be partakers and my next door neighbor gets the benefits because he had confidence in what God said. So the Word wasn't changed at all, not one bit. When God said, Peace on earth and good will toward man, that was and eternal, everlasting statement. I will never leave thee nor forsake thee Jesus said. I will be with thee always, even until the end of the world. So then we should have is on our hearts and in our minds God loves us at all times; that God is with us at all times, and we should have an expectation of blessing from God at all times. But see the secret to it is keeping you heart clear before God. You know, I said this a lot of times you can't, you can't kill you neighbor's cat and shoot your neighbor's dog and slap your neighbor's children around and really think in your heart that your neighbor thinks a lot of you. Though he might be the kind of neighbor that he might let you get by with every bit of that and still love you and still pray for you, yet down in your heart you couldn't really believe that. Because you would feel that if you done those evil, wretched things to you neighbor you would have that feeling that that he hated you, isn't that right? and it's the same way with God, you do all these evil things toward God, toward God's people and you get the feeling that I'm at enmity with God, that I'm at distance with God and that God doesn't have anything for me because I've been such a wretch, when really God still loves you through the blood of Jesus, He still loves you if you'll repent of your sins. Now the Bible teaches that God is angry with the wicked everyday and God will pursue the wicked until they perish from off of the earth, but that is based on the fact that you are in unbelief toward God. Your wickedness caused you to be a disbeliever. See really God's will toward you is peace on earth and good will toward man. Simply because the Bible says, that I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked. I would that the wicked would repent and come to repentance that the wicked should have everlasting life, which proves that God's attitude is not wrong toward the wicked, but the attitude of the wicked is wrong toward God. And because their attitude toward God is wrong then they make God their enemy by their believing or their thinking. So then the evil heart of unbelief that the Bible speaks of makes you wretched in the sight of God, but God is such a loving God, such a great, wonderful God that He has appropriated for you the benefits of heaven through Jesus Christ and He asks you to trust in His love, trust in in His blessings and do the things that please God so that your heart will have confidence toward God, so that your heart will believe in God. If your heart condemn you, God's greater than your heart, that is if you're doing you very best to please God and you know that you're doing you very best to please God, and you're not trying to be wretched and you're not trying to do evil, but you're doing your very best to please God, when you stumble and stagger, don't get under condemnation, don't be cast down, don't be afraid. Don't feel like the devil's going to pounce on you or God's going to kill you, but just repent in your heart and say, My God, I love you. I wouldn't have done that for nothing, Jesus. Lord, forgive me and help me and give me strength to never do that again. But Lord, I know that you still love me. I know that you still love me. Now does this mean that we will escape chastisement? Now. The Bible said that if you're without chastisement then are you bastards. For the Bible said, All children of God are partakers of chastisement. You're going to receive chastisement from God. It may be by the word of the minister that you're chastised. Paul said, Shall I come unto you with a rod or in the spirit of meekness? So whatever it might be it might be that God would chasten you with a rod through the ministry. On the other hand it might be that God deal's in another way with you. But whatever, God's definitely going to chasten you if you belong ot Him. You're going to get chastisement when you fail to go on with God and you fail to be diligent with God and you fail to get up and mean business with God, you're going to get a chastisement. You might as well get ready for that, because God loves you and you're going to be chastened for it. There is no way to get around it. See God loves you. But God's attitude is still the same toward you. What man is it that loves His son but what he chastens him because he does love him? The Bible said, If a man love his son he'll chasten him betimes. Or that is he'll chasten him often. He'll chasten him when he needs it. See, what man loves his son but what he'll chasten him. And so then if God loves us then He will chasten us. But even after the father chastens the son he still loves the son. He's not upset at the son. He doesn't hate the son. He doesn't want to harm the son. He gave the son chastisement because he cares for the son. And he's trying to program his mind to the better way of life and to bring him into a place to where he will be a great son, that he can be thankful for and a son that can reap the benefits of the right kind of tutoring. So then God loves you. God cares for you. God is not against you. You only put God against you when you get against God. Look at the laws of the land, Now I'm talking about good laws. The good laws of the land are not against you. They're for you; they protect you. A good law is in you behalf. Policemen are, for your benefit, if they are good laws. Now I know we got a lot of corrupt law today, and we've got a lot of additives to the law and to our government and everything that put's it into a state of corruption, but I'm talking about good law. It is for your benefit. But that law can become your enemy. Though the law doesn't change it's mind, though the law is the same, the law remains the same yesterday, today and forever to that extinct, that is if it's a good law it says to you today what is said to him yesterday, and it says to the man tomorrow what it says to you today. And if you don't transgress that law, that law is in your behalf, that law will protect you. It will protect you and your inheritance and your children and your properties and all that belongs to you. It'll protect you. But if you've crossed that law then you've made that law your enemy. That same policemen that might have been your friend in the community, that same policeman becomes your enemy because you cut across his authority. You got contrary to him and you done just exactly contrary to what the law says do. It's the same way with God. God has one great standard and that is love. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth in Him, whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life. That is God's one outlook. It's always God's one outlook. it has been God's outlook all down through the centuries. God loves you. Before Jesus ever died at Calvary, God had that same great outlook. That's why Jesus died at Calvary. If God had not been the God of love and if God had not had that kind of outlook, Jesus would have never died at Calvary to begin with. It was God's love that caused this thing to happen at Calvary. So then how much more does God love you in that God has already spilt the blood of His son in your behalf. If God loves you enough before He spilt the blood in your behalf, to spill that blood, how much does He love you now in that He has spilt the blood in your behalf and He sees the blood of His son in your behalf. So then God is a wonderful God. God is a loving God. God is a good God. God is a kind God. God is the God of gods. He's the only God. And He has one great attitude toward mankind and that's peace on earth and good will toward you human beings. That's his attitude toward you. Now, unless we can do something to upset God or cut across God's way of life, unless we get on the outside of God to where God cannot protect us in that God cannot be partakers of iniquity. Now if we get on the outside see, God cannot partake of our sins, God has to withdraw. And then God didn't withdraw, we withdrew from God. And if we do that God cannot get to us. But unless we do, God will walk right with us. God will be right beside us. I'll never leave you. I'll never leave you. I'll never leave you. And I'll never forsake you. I'll never forsake you. Now in your thinking you may forsake me by thinking that I've forsaken you. In you thinking you may pull away and get bitter at me because you think I've become your enemy, but I've never changed my feelings toward you, I've never changed my mind toward you. I've never left you. I'll never leave you. I'll never forsake you. I'll always be with you. Lo, even until the end of the world, I am with you. See like the angel of God told me when he comes to visit with me in Florida, the angel of the Lord said, I'll never leave you. It was Jesus. It wasn't the angel of the Lord, it was Jesus. The angel of the Lord appeared immediately afterwards. But Jesus, I heard Him say, I'll never leave you. I'll never forsake you. Lo, I shall be with thee in the time of trouble and in the time of need as he slipped a ring on my finger, so then God is the same. Yesterday, today and forever, He is always the same. He is with you. He is with me in the time of trouble and in the time of need, and the brethren here can bear record that we have not went through one problem not one trouble but what God has been with us and stood with us. Isn't that right? Not one time has he forsaken us. Now you say Brother Pike, you can feel like that because God told you that. But God told you that too. I accepted the same thing before He ever came to me and spoke to me personally. For years, I'd preached the gospel and went by faith across the nation. God had never personally come and told me that. He had told me that in the Bible. I had received it because I believed it. That's what He said in the Bible. The highest form of faith is God's Word. Did you know that? When the man came to Jesus and he said Come and heal my servant, or he said to the Lord, My servant needs healing. And the Lord said, I will come and heal the servant. And the man said, No, I'm not worthy for you to come under my roof. I just want you to speak te word, that's all I want. If you'll just say the word that'll be sufficient for me. He said, I'm a man, I'm of authority. I tell this man to fo and to another come. He said, And I'm not worthy for you to come under my roof. Jesus said, I say unto thee that I've not found so great faith, no not in Israel. Now. I've not even found that kind of faith in Jacob, he said. The great outstanding faith that you've got to stand there, though you be a man of authority, it hasn't hindered your faith one bit, for you to hear me speak a word and say, Lord, that settles it. I'm going home. My servant is fine. Thank you. Now isn't that faith? Now brother, that's faith. See, God and His word has spoken it and if you'll just take that attitude in your heart and say, Glory to God! What I say to one, I say to all. That means He spoke it to me. And God said, I've done it. That settles it. I'm going my way. And I'm going to rejoice and enjoy the wonderful promises of God. Now that's the way I look at it folks. Whatever I want, whatever I desire, whatever I looked for, that's the way I do it. The other night when the fierce winds came up and the people raced for the cover and the safety. When we walked outside I told Brother Chris, I looked up and the Lightning was flashing and the winds were terrible, I said, Let's pray Chris, We prayed. I said, That settles it. It's all right. I started back to the house and the lightning kept flashing and the wind kept rolling as I started to walking back to the house and I looked up and I heard a voice speak to me to tell me the power and the authority I had as the son of God. I looked up and I said, I've got power over the wind and I said, Lord, I've got power over the lightning and I've got power over this turmoil. I want it to stop now, right now God. And I said, I command you to stop in the name of Jesus Christ right now. And I turned and walked in the house and it stopped like that. And you say, Why did it do that? Because I believe that. God promised that. And I started toward the house, the Lord spoke to me and said, What about Jesus on the boat? Oh ye of little faith. I said, No, no Lord. Glory to God! We got power to stop this thing and we're going to stop it right now. See, it proves one thing and that is that God doesn't like for you to be an unbeliever. God doesn't want you to disbelieve. Satan is the prince of the powers of the air that causes the tornadoes and the turmoils and causes all of these bad diseases and causes the discomforts and poverties of life. It is satan that brings death to mankind. The Bible said, Death is the enemy of God. God doesn't have any pleasure in death, not even the death of the wicked. So it is God's will that you live and God's will that you be healthy and God's will that you prosper and it is God's will that you be a light and have good works that men may see God in your life and glorify your Father which is in heaven. It's God's will that you take His Word just the way that God gives it to you through the ministry. Somebody would say, Brother Pike, if God had spoke face to face with me the way He did that man, I could have believed it too. He did speak face to face with many people and they didn't believe it. Somebody would say, Well, if it was somebody that come back from the dead that had a real experience I could believe it. But Jesus said, Though one rose from the dead you wouldn't believe him. Lazarus came back from the dead, they didn't believe him. You say, But if I could just hear God, The Bible said, It's not the minister speaking, but it is God speaking from within His temple. It is God saying to you, If thou canst believe all things are possible to them that believe. It is God saying to you that I will supply all of your needs according to my riches in glory. It is God saying unto you, I will make you to ride upon the high places of the earth. That, it is God saying to you that the blessing of the Lord maketh rich and addeth no sorrow. It is God that says to you, I will make all of your beds in the time of your sickness. It is God that says to you that you shall be like a tree that's planted by the water. Bring forth your fruit in your season and your leaves shall not wither and whatsoever you do shall prosper. It is God that says, He gives you the power to get wealth. If God has promised all these things, then why is it that we can't believe it? You say, if God would say it, it is not the minister speaking but it is God. Somebody would say, Brother Pike, Do you mean to tell me that that's God up there speaking through you? I mean to tell you that if you'd knew me when I was about seventeen years old, you'd know the difference between me and God. And I dare say if I'd known some of you a few years ago, I could tell the difference between you and God too. So then it is God, I wouldn't be here tonight telling you this if it wasn't God. It is God that speaks to you. It is God that is concerned about you. It is not me as an individual or minister. It is not you as an individual that's concerned about people. It is God in your life. Hallelujah! So then if God takes the time to come down in the form of humanity and say to you and I, Be of good cheer. I've overcome the world. Don't be afraid, God said, Let not your heart be troubled. If God will take time to come down and tell you and I that. Why shouldn't we rejoice? Why shouldn't we rejoice? Glory to God! If God cares enough to do that then brothers, I believe it. I trust in it. I believe it. Because it's so I believe it. I trust in that kind of God. I trust in that wonderful Word of God. So then the Lord says here to Ezekiel, Ezekiel say, Thus saith the Lord. My words shall not be prolonged any longer, but in your day I will perform it. He prophesies for a far time away. Ezekiel, is saying something that's way for the future. The preacher is saying something that's way for the past, but tell them Ezekiel, I'm not the God of the past. I'm not the God of the future. I'm the God of today. With God there is no past and with God there is no future. God is today, forever, God is today. Moses, go down there and tell them: I Am sent you. I Am what? I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life. I am God. Besides me there is no other. Tell them Moses, I Am the God of today because there is no yesterday with God. Now then as I said so many times with man there is a yesterday and tomorrow. The sun comes up and the sun goes down. But with God, folks, the sun don't come up and the sun don't go down, The God that keeps Jacob, He doesn't sleep. Just today, Just today, Just today, He's the God that is of today. I want to meet your needs right now. I want to bless you right now. I want to strengthen you right now. I want to forgive your sins right now. Today is the day of salvation, no tomorrow. Now is the accepted time. I want to save you right now. Somebody said, Well, it's just not my time. That's not right. Today is the day of salvation. It's always time for you to give your heart to God, always time for you to serve God. You're running late already if you haven't given your heart to God. If you're not serving God, if you've not fully surrendered to God you're running behind time already. The harvest is ripe. The labors are few. God wants you to go out to the harvest. He wants to bless you. He wants to reward you. You say, But Brother Pike, I'm too young. What's that got to do with it? I'm too old. What's that got to do with it? there is no such thing as yesterday, and tomorrow with God. There is no such thing as youth and age with God. The Bible said, The man child born, the minute it was born God put a rod in his hand and said, Go to ruling. Isn't that right? Moses at eighty years old, God said, It don't matter; I'm fixing to start you in your ministry. You've had enough experience now. Isn't that right? Praise God! You Know what? This is a feeble generation. Have you ever thought about that? They are a feeble, mumbling, fault-finding, weak-kneed generation. They fumble and falter and stay in the hospitals all the time leaning on the arm of flesh, and the doctors give them so many sugar pills and they've taken so much money from them until even the doctors don't know what to do no more. Did you know that? This is a bad generation. They have lost all of their confidence, all of their faith, all of their womanhood, all of their manhood and they feel like they can't do nothing. (Tape side number 2.)... One time, I've said this a number of times, they said you say: Well, Lord, I'm just a little old worm. And the brother said, Yes, and the devil's going to find it out and put you on his fishing hook and go fishing with you. But did you know God said to that little old worm, He said, Thou worm Jacob, I will help thee. And you know you can change a worm into a butterfly. And did you know you can't go fishing very good with a butterfly? He can fly off and leave you. Isn't that right? That's right. A lot of times you can reach out and grab that little old worm. He can't move fast, but if you'll give that butterfly just a few minutes, he'll be away from you. You won't get ahold of him. Now so then it is a true fact that we do come into the world as a worm and God said, You're no more than a worm. But through that stages of metamorphosis we change over from that thing and coming out of that cocoon, we come out as that beautiful, radiant, glorified creature, the butterfly, and then we are a heavenly creature. What beauty! What radiance! See God doesn't want you to remain a worm. He said, I'll help you, thou worm. He said: But now if you won't listen to me, you'll go into the fire where the worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched. But if you'll listen to me, I'll help you. I'll bring you out of that. I'll put you into those heavenlies to where you can be a glorious creature and you can ride upon the high places of the earth. Did you know a butterfly can get upon the high places. You know that, he just flaps his little old wings, gets way up into the tree tops. So then God wants to do something for you. Don't tell them Ezekiel, that my Word is for yesterday or tomorrow. Don't let them think that my word is a prolonged thing. Say, Thus saith the Lord. My Word is for today! I will perform my Word today! Let's believe God for today. I want to believe God for today, don't you? There's a lot of things that need to be done folks. How many of you agree to that? There is a lot of things that need to be done and God wants some of us to do them. And I'm going to do some of them if He'll help me to do them and I believe He will. Now you say, How are you going to do it Brother Pike? I'm going to do it by the Word of God. that's the way I'm going to do it. I'm going to take the Word of God and I'm going to go forth with the Word of God and I'm going to declare the Word of God and stand on the word of God and I'm going to do God's will and I'm going to see it come to pass. He said, Wherever you set your foot, I'll give it to you. And whatever I see of God, whatever I understand of the heavenly Father I'm ready to do it. This is the way that I believe that it should be done, and this is what God is wanting you and I to do. He's wanting us to rise up and be about our Father's business. Now just like the boat, we need to get that thing together, get things straightened out, put it on the water for God. The tent, we need to get the tent up. We need to have revival. People are pleading for revival. We need to stimulate our radio programs, stimulate our tv programs, stimulate our printing program, whatever we're doing for God, we need to stimulate ourselves for a new testimony for God. We need to stimulate our lives to live holy before God. You know a lot of people get to dragging and they don't live holy, we need to stimulate out lives with the spirit of God and live holy, live a good overcoming life for God. Isn't that right? I want to live an overcoming life, a holy life. I want to do something for God. And this is what God's wanting you to do. It's what He's wanting me to do. Let's shake ourselves. Let's just don't set down. dry up and die and not do nothing for God. But let's do something for God. How many of you believe we ought to do something for God? Let's do something for God. Folks, you're young, you're healthy, you're strong. You've got plenty of ego, plenty of strength, plenty of life in your body. You need to do something for God. You say, Well I feel kind of tired and weary and worn out. Well give God a chance. Let God come in there and stimulate you and you won't feel that way. God doesn't want you to feel that way. He wants you to do something. If you want to lay back, relax, go to your room and kind of fall into a trance or fast, get weak that way by seeking God, that's all right. But if you're just going to be a drag out, half-hearted, can't do nothing, you need to get born again. You need to get stimulated. You need God to get ahold of you. Somebody said But Brother Pike, you just don't know. I'm glad I don't if it makes you act like that. Say; Well, you don't know my problems. I got a feeling if you knew some of mine you might have a harder time than you're having. But I don't see where problems has got nothing to do with it. What's problems got to do with it? There's always been problems. That ain't got nothing to do with it. The thing is, have we got faith in God? That's the answer to the problem. Taking the shield of faith, the Bible said, That way you can quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. That's the way to do it, is take faith in God. What we need to do is have faith in God, that settles the problem. Is that right? So then, God's promises are to you. Brother, sister when you go to pray don't get down on your knees and say, Oh Lord, oh Lord, oh Lord, and get back up. Don't do that. Some people get a zeal to go pray, I've seen this happen. They get a zeal to go pray, you know they say a few words and then they get slower and slower and I've seen them get up and I say, Well what did you do? I couldn't get Him to hear a word I was saying. I know I ain't getting nowhere, somebody said. You know praying like that you couldn't be getting nowhere. The Bible said, He that cometh to god he must believe there is a God. He must believe that god is. First you got to believe there's a God. And what's the need of believing that there is a god if you can't believe what He says? What kind of God would that be? If there is a God and what he says ain't worth a dime, what's the need of us looking to a god like that? He may tell us today that we're saint's and he may want you to know, there's no telling what he'll want to do with us tomorrow. You know if God can just change His mind around any old way and do any old thing, well what difference does it make if there is a god? But folks if there is a god, then that means that He is a God of His Word. And if He is a God of His Word then that means that we need to trust in His Word. And if we trust in His Word that means that we've got to get the benefits of God's Word. Somebody said, Well, Brother Pike, I've been believing all these years and I never got anything. Your very testimony proves you to be a liar, The way you're testifying proves you don't believe. Anybody that would stand up and say, I've been believing and ain't got nothing, well, They are a liar to start with because it's unbelief in testimony. The fact that they're saying, I haven't got anything proves that they don't believe. You say, Well, what do you want me to do? Stand up and say, Well Brother Pike, I've been serving God all these years and I got something, then wouldn't I be a liar if I hadn't? No. Because can't nobody testify like that you know and really mean it without having something from God. Brother, if you've got something from God, you can't help but testify like that. If you've been with the Lord Jesus Christ, you can't testify no other way. The Bible said, They took notice that them men had been with God, Did you know that? You can't be with God and be an old drug out, cast down unbeliever that ain't got no joy, ain't got no nothing, ain't getting nowhere. Ain't never been nobody that served God like that. Somebody said, Well I just never struck it lucky. I never have either cause I never have looked for luck. I don't believe in luck. I believe in God. Somebody said, Well, you're just lucky and I was unlucky. But now, did you know that Elijah, he never had a grocery store to go to, nor no money if he had a grocery store. But did you know when the mealtime come, and angel dropped down out of heaven and cooked him a cake? Did you know that? See, so why do you feel like you've had such great misfortune because you didn't make a million dollars last year? Why do you feel so bad because you hadn't got a pocket full of money? Somebody said, Well, I can't drive a nice car. I haven't got, I haven't got any money. Elijah didn't need it. God furnished him a fiery chariot when he got ready to take a trip. You just have to have faith in God that's all. When Ezekiel needed to take a trip, God just took him up and set him in the valley of dry bones. He didn't need a car. You love the Lord? Who furnished Israel all them things out there in the wilderness? Didn't God take care of them? God took care of them. Folks, what we need to do is believe. I tell you what, I challenge any of you from this very day to start using your faith and see if it don't happen too you. I tell you what, if it don't happen to you, I hope you'll have the backbone to come back and tell me that I am a liar. And I say that because won't nobody be coming back. You say, Well, you got that thing figured out. If anybody comes back and calls you a liar, then you'll just say, That they wasn't one of them. If they come back and call me a liar, they're not one of them. You love Jesus? You can't lose at what I'm doing. You know you go to them gambling rings out yonder in Nevada. They got them things fixed up. they can't loose. God's got his thing fixed up folks, you can't loose on His side. You love Jesus? All right, so then I challenge you tonight to believe God. Believe God. Start tonight believing God. Decree a thing in your heart and it'll come to pass. Ask what you will in my name, I'll do it. Do the things that please Him. Convince your heart. Ask God for anything. He hears you. You got it. Put it to the test and see if it works. A lot of folks say, Well, Brother Pike, It's just so simple. It's so simple I can't believe it. But try to believe it. Make an effort to believe it. Now, I told a man one time we was having a prayer meeting, Betty probably remembers this, he was a blind man. I said, Look! I felt good! I felt good! I said, Don't you believe God Will open your blinded eyes? He Said, No. You know it looked like everything just wanted to go out of me. I said, Well, Mister, can't you at least try to believe? I believe. And it really upset me. I said, Let's believe God. I said, You blind. You need to see. I said, I believe God will do something. And did you know that that man tried to believe with me and I prayed with him and that his eyes come open enough that he said that he could see the lines in the highways as he crossed the street. What if he had really got in there and believed? No telling what God would have done for him. Isn't that right? We prayed for another person. They couldn't get their sight. One day me and Betty went over their house. We just happen to pull up about the right time. And boy, I tell you that blind woman she was letting it roll. I mean she had a temper. But I'd been praying and asking God to do something for her. And one night we got her and we prayed for her and she made the statement that after that that her eyes come open enough that she could read in the Big Apple as that they use to put in the paper. See, if we believe. A woman wrote a letter the other day and said that we'd prayed for her and I mentioned it here, they had diagnosed her case as cancer. But we prayed for her, she went on through her operation, when they operated it come up negative and there was no cancer. Jesus will do it if we believe. You say, but he didn't do it for me so I don't believe it. But see, just because he didn't do it for you, that don't mean that it don't work. It just means that you don't believe. Because look at the hundreds and thousands he did do it for. I want him to do it for me. So I'm going to believe. I'm going to believe. If I pray for a dozen people and if not one of them gets healed. I'm still going to believe because out of the next dozen, I might get the one that believes. I'm still going to believe. Now, I'm not going to do like Oral Roberts, Oral Roberts said, Well, I believe in the law of average You know, if I pray for enough, I'm going to strike somebody that got faith. I don't exactly look at it like that but that's one way to think of it. He said, He was under the tent one night and said, he prayed and prayed and prayed. He couldn't find nobody that seemed to have faith. Said, He just kept on putting them through and praying. Said, He knew after a while he'd strike one and said, After a while he struck one that had faith it happened and that brought the revival.But you know what I believe in my heart in the reality of God. And I've experienced His blessings and I've been down low, and I've been sick and I've been through the fire and I've had all kind of problems from physical to mental to financial every kind of problem that you can cope with, I've just about had it. But did you know not one time has God failed me? Not one time. And folks tonight I challenge your faith. I'm not going to hold you no longer. But I challenge your faith tonight, if you've never used your faith in God, give God a chance. I'm talking to everyone of you. Give God a chance. Don't think about somebody else over there. You say, Well, I hope them People will use their faith. I'm talking to you. You say, Now wait a minute. Brother Pike's speaking to me. I'm going to start using my faith. And I'll tell you what the very minute you quit using it you'll see a change. And I'm going to say this in closing and I want you to listen real good now. Faith is a subconscious expectation of God's reward toward humanity. Now if you'll just catalog that in your mind, Keep it right there, do it like that. You'll see it work. But if you don't do it like that you won't see it work. All right let's stand together. We're not suppose to try to understand some way that God's going to do it. The way is for God. Jesus said, I am the way. You just accept it one the basis of the shed blood of the Son of God in your behalf because Jesus shed His blood, that takes care of it. He that knew no sin became my sin, our sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in Christ. Brother that takes care of the part of your righteousness. So far as righteousness is concerned that takes care of that part. What we got to do it do the believing. Jesus took care of the works. that takes care of it. What we got to do it do the believing. Now you say, You mean I don't have to live right? How can an apple have anything but an apple nature that would bear fruits that an apple nature produces. If you got the nature of Christ folks, you're going to live good and do good. You're going to live clean and you're going to live holy. That ain't got nothing to do with your salvation. You don't live holy to get salvation. It's because you got salvation and you got the spirit of Christ in your heart that you live holy. It's because God has come into your heart and salvation has come into your heart and the Holy Spirit lives in you, that's the thing that makes you live right. If that isn't true, then why is it that the devil don't live right? And why is that drunkards and murderers and liars and all the rest of them don't live right? If it's just a matter of living right, why don't they live right? Say, Well, they don't want to. No. that's not true. I've talked to men, people that were murderers that wanted to live right, but they couldn't. See, so you don't live right. God within you when you're born again, he conquers your nature. the love of God constrains you and you blossom with the fruits of righteousness and the fruits of holiness, because your innermost life and nature is of God. You can't do nothing but live right. You take my word for it. If you ever come across an apple tree and you say, I know this is an apple tree and you look and you can't find one apple on it, all it has on it is oranges. Take my word for it, you made a mistake. It's and orange tree. You just got mixed up on the seed or the nature. All right, let's sing a chorus together. A good fountain can't bring forth bitter water and the wrong kind of fountain can't bring forth sweet water. They that are accustomed to do evil cannot do good, and they that are accustomed to do good cannot do evil because he that is born of God can't sin, They bear fruits according to their nature. If they're planted as a seed to bring forth brambles and briars, so they'll do that. If they are planted as a seed to produce fruits of that that's tasty to the appetite, they'll do that. Let's sing the chorus, I love Him. Can we sing that little chorus together? (They sing song.) Do you really love Him? (They sing song.) Jesus said, If you love me, you'll keep my commandments. (They sing song.) Can you lift you hands to the Lord? (They sing.) Hallelujah! Don't you feel the Holy Ghost? Hallelujah! Lord, I feel your presence I feel the glory of God. (He speaks in tongues.) I feel your wonderful presence my Father. Be with us tonight. Heal tonight, Jesus. Stretch out your hand of healing. I feel faith in the congregation, Father. I feel you presence in the congregation. Dear God, If there's a sick person here tonight. I want you to heal them. I believe that you are going to heal them, and I believe that you're healing them right now. In the name of the Son of God. Heal oh God. With that some wonderful virtue that the little woman felt go into her body that made her whole, Lord, as they feel this virtue, let them accept the fact in full confidence God, without doubting or wavering that you have healed their body, that you've forgiven their sins. As they feel your presence and believe in your wonderful promises Jesus, let this be so tonight. Father to heal and forgive tonight in your wonderful name Jesus, move by your spirit tonight. (He speaks in tongues.) Grant it in Jesus name Father. Move by your power. Move by your glory in Jesus name tonight. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Have your way tonight. Father, bless us tonight. Unite us together in the wonderful world outreach for souls with a testimony for our fellow man to bring glad tidings of great joy of this Jesus who hath forgiven sins and of this Jesus that has healed the sick and this Jesus that makes people well and happy and whole, not only in the world to come but in this life Jesus. Grant your blessings in Jesus name. Let's sing this chorus, I'll enter His gates with thanksgiving. (They sing song.) One more time. (They sing.) Let's sing it just one more time (They sing.) Can you say: Hallelujah! I can tell the way you said that, Jesus has made you glad. I can, let's just give the Lord a hand, can we? We're going to sing it this time and we're gong to close. (They sing.) Praise God! Say, Hallelujah! I'm going to ask Brother Richard to dismiss us tonight.

By Rev. George Leon Pike Sr.

Founder and first President of Jesus Christ’s Eternal Kingdom of Abundant Life, Inc.

Holiness Unto The Lord