Parable One

The Teaching on the Seven Parables are excerpts from Brother Emerson A. Wilson teaching of the Seven Parable

THE HIDING PLACE

Open your heart's door. When God sows the seed, open the heart's door. Let Him sow the seed in your heart and close it up. As He says, a little later, hide it in the very center of your heart. That is the place where it cannot be taken away from you. He that receives the seed on the wayside ground is he that hears and has no understanding, and the fowls come and pick it up. This type of person gets no experience with God.

God made very plain concerning the kingdom, saying: "it is within you." It is a kingdom of life. Paul said: "For by one man's offence death reigned, much more they which receive abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Christ Jesus." We open our heart's door to God by old time repentance, confession of our sin, and turning from sin. I would like to deal with the thought of turning from sin.

Repentance changes the purpose of our lives. Repentance means to quit sinning. There is scripture telling us that God repented. Do you mean to tell me that He quit sinning? No. He changed His purpose. So repentance means to change purpose. Then we confess our sins unto God and He takes them away. When Christ finds us out in the world, the purpose of our lives is to satisfy ourselves. We live after the lust of the flesh. We seek after the natural things. When we hear of the goodness of God, it leads one to come to an altar of prayer, and that is when we change the purpose of our lives. We then tell God that the purpose of our lives will be different, we now purpose to do His will and not to satisfy ourselves as of yore. When we confess our sins He removes them as far as the east is from the west, never to be remembered against us again. I thank God for His wonderful goodness.

Suppertime is at the close of the day. The Revelation tells us there are two suppers going on. God has sent the word out to gather in the people. The enemy is using his unclean spirits to gather in the people also. We are either being gathered in to the supper of the Lamb or to the beast of the fowls of the air. Either we are gathering into the camp of the saints or the camp of their enemies.

Some people are afraid of the frogs, (the three mentioned In Revelation), but they need not be if they stay alive; if your experience gets stagnant then the enemy will see that a frog or two are there. But if you keep it flowing, well, frogs can't live in moving, gurgling water. Let the river of life flow right through you and there will be no frogs there. The devil is working on people to let their experience get stagnant. When your spiritual life begins to shrivel up, you are very liable to inherit one of these frog spirits. If you will keep your life open to God you don't need to worry about cleaning it out. The river of life will do that. If we will own ourselves as we really are, God will make a new creature out of us.

There are four kinds of ground which covers all mankind--they are the wayside, the stony ground, the thorny ground, and the good ground. We cannot mention much about the church until we come to the good ground. God can never bring forth a people or bring forth fruit unto Himself in stony and thorny ground. When we come to the good ground then we see the very body of Christ come into being.

Mystery is that which is beyond human comprehension. Christ is teaching us in these parables the mysteries of the kingdom. So every one of them (the parables) is beyond that which the human can lay hold on. We must be born again. One of the greatest reasons that we have so much confusion on the thought of the kingdom Is because men that have never been born again (who do not possess the spirit of God and so make light of the new birth), try to teach the kingdom and tell all about it. "Except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

There are multitudes that have never been born again, but they think they see it and try to teach it. The other reason is that some have been born again, but because of erroneous doctrine and false leadership they have lost sight of the kingdom and would get so bold as to teach from Daniel's prophecy that the 69 weeks have passed, but God stopped His clock. We want to be able to see through these parables that Christ set up a kingdom in His first advent, what kind of a kingdom it is, and if it will truly never be destroyed. It is an everlasting kingdom and will never be left to other people.

THE STONY PLACE

1. Let us turn to Daniel, the 2nd chapter. I would like to drop this thought: that little stone which was cut out of the mountain, which was Christ, was to become a mountain, a church which became a mountain on the Day of Pentecost, and it fills the whole earth. It crowded everything else out. There won't be room for anything else. That's what he is talking about. But that little stone was to smite the image.

Millennialists will agree about that image very well. But let us look and reason together. That image is past. All those kingdoms and powers, which were covered in that Image, are past, yet they tell about the coming kingdom. Let me show you by God's eternal Word that the stone was to smite the Image. It is claimed by some to have struck the feet. When you consider those ten toes, which represent the ten kingdoms, and they draw those toes out for many hundreds of years, and they say the Millennium is yet to come, and it Is going to strike in the toes. But let us study that image and the smiting of the stone. It smote the Image and it fell and was ground together. All of them were there when the stone hit it. It brings us up to the day Christ was born.

When the Roman Empire was reaching out and killed the Word of God, a decree went out from Caesar concerning the taxation of all the then known world. It was then the rock was cut out without hands, teaching us of Christ's Immaculate conception. Man had nothing to do with it. It smote the image and it fell. I pray God will help us to see these things are spiritual mysteries and one must have the Spirit of God to comprehend them.

Now, turn to the 13th chapter of Matthew. "The same day went Jesus out of the house, and sat by the seaside. And great multitudes were gathered unto Him, so that He went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. And he spake many things unto them In parables, saying, Behold, a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some an hundredfold, some sixty fold, some thirtyfold. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them In parables? He answered and said unto them, Because It Is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given."

The understanding of the mysteries of the kingdom is not attained by study of the subject a certain length of time, but is given as a gift. "It is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom." We studied the wayside earth (we've proven by the Word, the wayside earth never gets an experience with God)…those are Individuals,whose lives are taken with other things. The Word is sown on their hearts, but it never takes root because it has no place to take root. Some of the fowls of the air, (false prophets) the Revelation tells us, come and pick up the seed and carry it away.

Let us discuss the stony places by the Word of God. The sixth verse says some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth and forthwith they sprang up because they had no depth of earth. When the sun was up they were scorched because they had no root, they withered away.

We are living in an age where we see people withering and being scorched. That is why we must deal with this teaching of Christ, so men and women may be led to a deep experience with God. Jesus Christ came to bring everlasting life. He came to give men and women an experience they could live with on earth and die with peace in their souls and be ready to live with Him through the ceaseless ages of eternity.

Gaining the experience is far deeper than the average man realizes. Jesus said in the seventh chapter of Matthew: "Strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. Broad is the way that leadeth unto destruction." Some err in comprehension. They say, "Straight is the gate and narrow the way that leadeth unto life and few there be that find the way. This idea is incorrect. The antecedent of the word "it," is "Life." "Strait is the gate and narrow the way that leadeth unto life and few there be that find it." Find what? Find life -- Because they won't take the narrow way that leads to it. You will never convince me that we will never find the narrow way. He puts it before every man and woman. That 'thing' has been taught too long. People say they can't find the way. I'm not serving that kind of God, who has hidden the light. He said if it's hidden, it is hidden to those who are lost -- They know they are lost -- They refuse it. Few there be that find it. He means "life." Because there is a broad way 'here' that is so much easier to travel, people will choose 'that' way. I am speaking at this time about the light that lighteth every man that comes into the world. Don't tell me people cannot find this way. I mention also, a stumbling block. Everyone is going to stumble over this somewhere along his pathway, We receive wrong conceptions of the scriptures and become confused. The real meaning of this scripture is: that there be few that find "life." That is not the way to life, but life itself. I daresay that there is not a man or woman in the building, but knows the way to life.

We are living in a day and age when it is not a situation of people not knowing what to do. If I were to question people 'on a street corner,' I would find that ninety-five per cent know how a Christian should live. It is not that they don't know…only that they don't do.

Don't blame the Holy Spirit. He is doing the will of God. He said He would reprove the world of sin and He did it. Because servants of God have been faithless in their ministry -- if they fail, God is able to take any means at hand and get the truth to the people. Don't be deceived by thinking that if it is not preached, it won't be done. God will find a way.

The Bible message is a light which lights every man who cometh into the world. Jesus said, "You shall know the truth," and God is going to get that truth to you. The reason many people never find life is because of the way it's presented to them. But it is too narrow, too straight, too hard, and it costs too much. Because of that, they never find life. That is what Christ was dealing with in these parables. He dealt with the wayside here, the stony ground, the thorny and good ground. He took the whole world and divided it into four groups. They all heard the Word, but the first three groups rejected it. They preferred continuing their lives of folly to following the way of God. I thank God that this salvation is not hidden as some wish it were. All are going to hear it. It depends upon whether you are ready to resign to the will of God, as to whether you will find this life through Jesus Christ. You can't sow something besides God's Word to produce anything but the Kingdom of God. The Word of God is the Word of the Kingdom.

Leaving our cities, one sees plastered on bill boards: "Go to the church of your choice." One has said, "Why all these hundreds of different churches until man is so terribly deceived?" But that is just what people are doing. Perhaps down on the corner there is a big church building. The people that go there do so because it is the church of their choice. When they are ready for baptism, they will ask you, which you choose, sprinkled, poured, or immersed? Someone has said, "If your religion is spotted, you ought to be sprinkled, If it is striped you ought to be poured, and If you are, or have died out to sin and are ready to be buried, then you should be immersed."

The Gospel is very simple. Paul, in the book of Corinthians, says that just as Satan beguiled Eve he would lead us away from the simplicity that is in Christ. Jesus came down here and yielded up His own life on Calvary, that we might have life. In the 10th chapter of the book of John, He teaches us that He is the door to the sheepfold or to the church, saying that the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep and that is just what He did. If we will choose the Christ life, we can live just like He did and all be one people.

In the sixth verse of the chapter we see where some of the precious seed fell on stony places where they had not much earth. People get a little nervous about the symbols in the Revelation and some are actually afraid of It. And then again, there are some who are not afraid of the Revelation that ought to be. If you possess the Spirit of God, or rather, if He possesses you, and you are resigned to God's will, and your heart and mind are unbiased, You are in good shape to understand the Revelation. There is no need to be afraid of it. It is God's will to reveal it unto you.

Symbols are used all through the Word of God. The prophets used them in olden time, yet when we begin to preaoh In Revelation, people begin to get a bit hysterical if we mention symbols. The parables under consideration are somewhat symbolical. He speaks of stony places and on doing so takes the natural things to reveal the spiritual. There were five prophets that He called 'wolves In sheep's clothing.' All you have to do is watch those fellows a bit. Just start them out and they will make a wolf track or a sheep track. People can be fooled on their clothing, but they will not on their tracks. God does not want us to be deceived.

The Scripture says that Some of this seed fell on stony places where they had not much earth, taking again, the natural things to explain the spiritual, Remember that this kingdom is that which we receive into our heart and life through a born again experience.

Paul said, speaking of the kingdom, "We have this treasure in earthen vessels." Jesus taught us to pray, "Thy kingdom come" (not, on earth), in earth, Thy will be done in earth. So what is the kingdom? God's will being done in our--hearts and lives. That is the kingdom 'from one end to the other.' Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Whenever we find people who will do God's will here on earth, even as the angels do in heaven, we have a heavenly Jerusalem right here on the earth. It is not hard to see the church. It is not hard to see the kingdom. It is made up of people who do God's will here, and when we do God's will here on earth even as it Is done in heaven, we have a heavenly atmosphere right here, It is no wonder the Revelation calls us angels. It is no wonder Paul said in the 12th chapter of Hebrews, "You come unto the general assembly and church of the first born, and to an innumerable company of angels". What is he talking about? God's will done here, just like the angels are doing it in heaven. He writes to the angel of the church at Ephesus. Who was he talking about? He was talking about a faithful man who was doing God's will down here in the earth, just like the angels do it in heaven.

This seed fell on stony places--and It had not much earth. Right away we begin to know there is a type of individual that does not give the Word any root. Remember, we receive it in earthen vessels. When He speaks of having not much earth, He speaks of the person not giving it much room. For they had not much earth and forthwith, or because of It, they sprung up, because they had no depth of earth. When the sun was up they were scorched and they had no roots and because they had not roots they withered away. In the 20th verse He gives us this explanation: "He that receives the seed in stony places is the same that heareth the word and with joy receiveth it, yet hath he not rooted himself. He endureth for awhile." He did not say beareth. He just said endures it. And when tribulations arise he is offended because of the Word. There is a symbol that many people cannot understand, the symbol of the woman clothed in the sun. Jesus said, (In the parable) "When the sun was up they were scorched." What did Jesus mean when He gave the explanation, "when the Word comes?" This type of individual never gets a real experience with God. Those that really are saved, bear fruit.

But the one spoken of, was an enduring fellow and that only for a while. Then, when tribulation and persecution arise, (not because of the devil, but because of the Word) he is offended.

Ministers serving in the time of the sixth seal period, thought that one had to have a great deal of historical knowledge to be able to preach Revelation, also that it was necessary to have some understanding of certain Individuals to understand the symbols. Let me say, that the answer to every symbol is in the book. The Sun is a symbol of the Word. Jesus said so. "When the sun is up it scorches them."

"When He, the Spirit of truth is come He will" do the whole work. People say, 'If we could just get an educated ministry.' But this is fallacy. A man who had been preaching for 25 years claimed to see real unity for the first time. If that was true, then something was certainly wrong with his education. I was in a certain state holding a camp meeting where the college dominates the ministers, runs the state, runs the camp meetings, and all the works there run just like oiled machinery. But I can't find scripture that tells me that all must be sent to the same school to have true unity. But, all must have the same Holy Spirit to have unity. "When He the Spirit of truth is come" He will show you all things. If we have the same Holy Teacher we will have the same lessons and see eye to eye.

Now, notice that the Individual received the seed, "and the same heareth the Word with joy and receiveth it." He just 'took it down' quickly and failed to swallow It. God does not ask us just to 'get' the Word and say, "that is it". God says, "Let us reason." We are told that the sport of fishing is to wrestle with the fish for a long time and finally bring him In. Just so, we need to take time with the Word of God. It will make room for itself and we must make sure that we are truly born again.

It is dangerous to claim salvation in a life that has never been regenerated. Jesus himself said it was dangerous. "Don't put new wine in old bottles." Why? Because there will be an explosion. Now you know why we have so many blow-ups or explosions in the church. Another mystery of the kingdom is that some people think the Word sounds good and they try to take some of it, putting new wine in old bottles. But the Word begins to grow. If any room is given for the Word It will grow. If you have not been rejuvenated by the new birth and have a new flexible soul that will expand with the Word, there will surely be a bursting open -- an explosion sooner or later.

Now what is meant by all this? Simply that to accept the Word without a real change of heart and a real experience of old fashioned bed rook salvation and try to go on living as a Christian will only last so long. For the Word will find out the lack, as it from day to day works in the heart and if you are not able to grow thereby, it is not long until a day of reckoning comes and you must either get down to bed rook, or be sure, you will fall by the wayside.

Such an Individual will move at the time, but have no depth of experience and Jesus told us why. There are too many stones in the soil and it sprang up before it reached down and took root. No plant will ever bear fruit until it first takes root. One sees a lot of things in the fields that have just sprung up. Many plants spring up after a warm rain.

What is meant (in the spiritual life) by a warm rain?

The warmth and refreshment of the Holy Spirit and old time powerful preaching of the Gospel, will sometimes warm the hearts of people and they are actually warmed by it to the extent that they think they have an experience with God. But it was something that just sprung up, if they did not really repent and go to the bed rock and have a change of heart. And if it didn't take root, there will be no fruit in that life. It will only be a 'matter of time' until it withers away. What a great need there is for the Church to get back to some 'old solid truths' and lead the people, in their search for eternal life -- to 'more solid ground.'

A HEART OF FLESH GIVEN

Let's take a look at 'these stones.' It would be foolish for a farmer to try to work the areas, which were very stony. A farmer knows better than to sow in a 'stone patch,' so he picks up the stones and clears them off before he begins anything else. The stones are impediments, which would hinder the growth of the plant. They would take the moisture, which belonged to the plant. Because of this, Christ said, these individuals never get an experience. These stones lay on the surface of the ground as a sign the earth is thin and that solid rook Is underneath and there is not much earth to work with.

In this way, Christ pictures a hard-hearted individual. He is utterly selfish and has no capacity for self-denial. Let us mentally picture this type of individual. He has a quickness of perception. He quickly takes hold of the Word. This type of individual is often heard 'shouting' in the service on Sunday, but we seldom see him in prayer meeting. Why? He has no depth, true root, or love of God in his heart. His is just a light, 'emotional case.' Beneath the surface the heart is still hard and 'cold as a rock.'

In the 11th chapter of Ezekial and the 19th verse, God says, of the people in the time of Christ's coming, that He will give them one heart and a new spirit. "I'll take, the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh." Proverbs, the 4th chapter, 23rd verse: "Out of the heart are the Issues of life." The heart, is the 'core of the whole.' If we have people with a new heart, we won't have so many old issues…(smile). When we have a new heart, we will receive a 'new issue.' Paul says this, when he explained that, "if any man be in Christ Jesus he Is a new creature." Old things are passed away and behold all have become new. When He gives us 'one heart,' we will 'act alike' -- we'll be 'one.' "…I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes…" This new heart will help them to walk in His statutes and keep his ordinances and to do them. People who have a new heart will walk in His statutes and keep His ordinances. He will be their God.

There are some other stones. In the 63rd chapter of Isaiah, God gave a commission to the ministry. It takes the love of God in man to pour out the wrath of God on a false spirit and a false system and yet have enough love of God so that the man you are preaching to will know you love him as you are preaching to him.

One of the dangers of today Is that the enemy will strive to get people to compromise, apostacize, and turn from truth, and then, he'll get other people to dislike them and look down on them. You must love them. If a brother errs in the truth, God orders us to work to convert him, not to brush him off and say we are no longer a brother of his. This 'groupitis' is the worst affliction that ever hit God's people. They sometimes come up and say, "what group are you with?' I am a member of that group in the 14th and 15th chapters of Revelation; it is the one that follows the Lamb withersoever He goeth. It is the one standing on the sea of glass mingled with fire with victory over the beast and his image and his mark, and the number of his name. That takes care of any of the devils work that he has come up with or that he can come up with.

The devil works today (if we're not careful), in a way that will do a destructive and terrible thing to the Body of Christ. We do not need to put any feeling in this. God put enough in it. If you pour this Word on a man, if he is guilty, he is hurt badly enough, without us giving him a cold shoulder. Some people are withering. And it is clear what kind of an experience they have.

The divine ploughman, or the ministry, has a big job. In Isaiah the 62nd chapter, the 10th verse, he said to the ministers, Here is your commission - "…go through the gates, prepare ye the way of the people;…" Now, why can't the people get along without the ministry preparing the way? Why do we get all of these sects and divisions? False ministers prepared a way. The prophet said, "Woe be unto the pastors who have scattered my flock. Christ said, "There Is one way," and prepared a ministry to tell of that one way. Any man who is saved is in the palm of God's hand and is put in Christ's fold, and unless a false preacher lets the fence down some place, the people will never get out. "Prepare a way for the people." Cast up the highway. If you ever get on 'the highway of holiness,' you are as sure of Zion as if you were there already because that is where it ends. The highway of Holiness goes to Zion. If you get on Route 40 and go west, you will end up in San Francisco.

God said there would be a highway and 'a way' to get on it. It's like the turnpike. Anyone can get on it, but not just any place. Jesus said, "I am the way." There is only one way to get on 'the highway of holiness.' That is through Jesus Christ, the Lord. Isaiah said there will be a highway above the ground, above the old way you have traveled. A highway and a way to get on it. The unclean shall not pass on it. There will be no lion, no ravenous beast. These are symbols. The different animals are to show the different dispositions of man. Every animal is different and has a different disposition. Men are all made the same, but have different dispositions. So God went back to the animals to show us the different dispositions of men. No lion will be there. He's that old individual that has that bold and evil spirit. The devil is like a roaring lion. That fellow has a hateful disposition, and an old hard heart, always growling.

We are commanded to 'cast up' the highway. People are trying to pull It down. They would level it to where anyone can get on. But God called a ministry to 'cast it up.' You cannot lift it any higher than it is, but just raise it before the people. Preach the gospel, and cast it up before the minds of men. My, what beauty -- this 'highway of holiness!'

Get out the stones. Lift up the standard for the people. We see people come and 'sit under the Word,' and God reveals things in their lives that will be a hindrance to them. That is what the stones are. The 'ministry' is putting on a sham. They are trying to find false hiding places. Too many, even In the 'so-called' Church of God, are hiding behind the idea -- it Is not my duty to execute the Church of God, just to preach It. I ask them, "What do your people pay a good salary for?" God's people love that kind of man, because they know that kind of man, is being true to their souls. The true saints love straight preaching, on the other hand, mere professors will put up with anyone that preaches to please the people.

Back to the parable, the 6th verse, "And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away." We have already learned the sun is the Word of God. The sun is the symbol of God's eternal Word. Let us refresh our minds with the thought that God takes natural things to teach the spiritual.

The Psalmist meant this when he said the sinner cannot stand in the congregation of the righteous. We need sinners to attend the services or we'll never win any to be saints. When the Word of God goes forth, it lets every man know where he stands. The sinner may know, even though you love him, that the Word of God comes so close he will be able to see himself, where he Is. A sinner can't stand. He'll wither under the preaching of God's Word. God doesn't want people to think they are right, when they are wrong.

The sower is the Son of Man. He sowed seeds. That is where the harvest comes from. He said the fields are white unto harvest, A harvest does not just come. Someone has to sow it first. Where was His field? He walked up and down the shores of Galilee, and over the mountains and sowed the precious seed in the hearts and lives of mankind. And while He was sowing the poor Gentile was pushed back and could not come into the midst, being counted only as a dog by the Jews.

It was as though He said: "When the Holy Ghost comes He will give you the sickle, for you must have a sickle to reap. When He comes, He will take the things of mine and give them unto you, and you can go out and start reaping." Multitudes followed after Him and He fed them. Once a group of people followed Him for three days. There's something about the Word of God that gets hold of men. They followed Him from the city, out into the country where there were no grocery stores for miles around. They pressed so close about Him, that He was compelled to get in a boat and push out a little that all might be able to hear His message. God stands ready to anoint His followers today and send the Holy Spirit upon them and cause men to hunger and to do the same today, when there is real consecration and dying out to the world.

But, reading further, we find, that when the sun began to rise and He began to lay down the facts of discipleship and what it entailed they turned away and left Him. Then He turned to His disciples asking them if they too were going to leave. But they only answered, "To whom shall we go?"

Today we see many people getting offended by the Word that they claim, was the means of their salvation. What causes men to become offended at the Word of God? They become offended because they don't understand it. And because they don't understand it, they get offended. It is necessary to understand it, or some false prophet will take it away from us. We, too, if we do not understand it, may become offended. In the 11th chapter of Matthew, we read that John, the forerunner of Christ, was greater than all the other prophets. Why? John came preaching repentance; he was a good preacher and executed the will of God and preached the Word. He advised people to confess their sin; and when those 'old birds' (Scribes and Pharisees) got in line, He was frank with them and the true condition of their hearts. He called out to them, "Who hath warned you of the wrath to come?" This He said because being filled with the Spirit He could discern what was In their hearts. Also He bade them to show forth fruit worthy of repentance.

Once when He was baptizing, Christ appeared and John said, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. I am not that Christ but am sent before Him. He that hath the bride, is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth Him rejoiceth greatly because of the Bridegroom's voice. This my joy is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease. He that cometh from above is above all. He that is of the earth is earthly and speaketh of the earth; he that cometh from heaven is above all, and what He hath seen and heard that He testifieth and no man receiveth His testimony. He that hath received His testimony hath set to his seal that God Is true."

There are people who want to build a church and name it after John. A Baptist minister once said that Christ did not call him John the Methodist, or John the Lutheran, but John, the Baptist. But Jesus said, He that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than John. John was just an advocate or advertiser for Christ. When a circus comes to town, people are sent ahead to post bills and advertise it. John was the forerunner for Christ. Now we know that any member of the circus is more Important than the advertiser of it. He stood and declared the truth to men.

John preached in the sunrise of the Gospel. He did not have the light that we have today. For four hundred years there had been darkness in Israel. Since the last prophecy of the prophet Malachi, no one had brought a message from above. If we do not hear from God, we go into darkness. It was not like turning on the electric. But In that darkened sky there appeared a star over the Judean hills that led men who were wise to the Christ.

John stood in partial darkness just as the light was breaking. He knew it was coming and he stood in the light he had and preached the Gospel. But the day never broke until Jesus appeared, preaching the Gospel, coming as the Lamb of God. Then when John was put in prison and ready to be beheaded, he began to have some doubts. Perhaps if you or I were in his position we too would begin to doubt. When he had his freedom, eating locust and wild honey, and preaching the gospel freely, it seemed real and he entertained no doubts, but down there in prison, with all hope of opportunity gone to do the beloved work, he became uncertain and sent some of his disciples to question the Master, yet this same man had said of Him, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world."

The disciples went to Jesus and said, "Art thou He, or do we look for another?" To this inquiry Jesus answered and said, "Go and tell John the works ye do hear and see. The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, people are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them." Tell him also, Blessed is He that is not offended with me, I am too busy healing the sick and preaching the gospel to visit him, Tell him to remember his own words that he must decrease and I must increase. And things are going along just as prophesied by him. It is his time to decrease as I must push forward on the increase.

Why did John get confused and apparently even a bit offended? The program was not going as he thought it should. Men and women today get offended, because the fulfillment of scripture and especially prophecy, does not turn out as they had it all settled in their own biased minds. Then someone comes preaching and throwing light on some particular part of the Word and when it does not just exactly dovetail with their own interpretation; instead of receiving some enlightenment on the Word, they become offended. Many are still holding on to what little light they received long ago, and expect to go to judgment leaning on that little bit. Their spirit is that of the Pharisee refusing to accept any new message from Christ.

God does not want people to get saved in a 'Cloudy way.' We are living today in the 'evening light.' Zechariah said there would come a time when it would be neither dark nor light, but in the evening it would be light. God wants people saved in the light so they will know what is expected of them. If you do not lift up the standard, the people will fall short of it and the whole churoh will be just like that in about ten years.

We read in the 21st chapter of Revelation and the 27th verse, "And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination or maketh a lie, but they which are written in the Lamb*s Book of Life." But what happened to that young man who came to the altar? Well, the Sun came up that Sunday morning (that is, the truth was preached as to the true conditions that must be met to receive salvation) and that fellow withered and has never been seen since. He was shown by the Word just what it would cost to be a child of God, a complete turn around and a different purpose in our lives. One of the tricks of Satan is to get people of the world to come among the saints and try to make saints (seemingly) of them. It can't be done. Let the Sun shine on them at the very beginning and let them know what kind of heat they are going to have to take If they make a decision to serve God. Now, we are getting out the stones when we tell people what it will cost to really be a child of God.

THE WAY TO TRUE PEACE

1. In Luke, the 19th chapter and verse 41, we read about Christ entering into Jerusalem. We live in a day when we need to go back to the truth, that is, to get back to the Word of God. Too many people in the world and alas, in the religious realm today, are like Pilate, who said, "What is truth?" Many know that we need the truth to set us free. Well, we need to get that truth out to the people. When Christ came near and beheld the city of Jerusalem, He wept over it. If Christ would come and behold us as a church today in our city, would He not weep over us also?

Why did He weep? They were crying, "Hosanna, Peace on Earth." But they did not know anything about peace. There are some things that go with peace and you cannot get peace without them. Let us consider another thing about Christ's entry into Jerusalem. Christ told them to get a mule, the foal of an ass. That did away with Christ coming In a triumphant way. That put an end to all the splendor and Christ setting up a literal kingdom. No, He came meekly and sitting on the foal of an ass.

He told them where they could find a mule, the foal of an ass. There is a significance here, that may be passed up -- a colt that no man had ever sat on. Just any colt would not do. Down through the history of Israel, the king rode on a mule. He rode that mule until it died and nobody ever sat on that mule, but the king. The mule was white. When that king died and they were ready to crown another, the mule was passed on. Whenever anyone saw someone riding that mule, they knew that He was a king.

In first Kings, we read, "The King, David, said: Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoida. And they came before the King. The King also said unto them, Take with you the servants of your Lord, and cause Solomon to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon." It was in this way, that he let all Israel know that Solomon was his successor. "But when Christ entered Jerusalem, he sat on a mule that no man had ever sat on before Him. This is a kingdom to be set up, not one that is being handed down. This is the kingdom of God and not one of man. So, no man had ever sat before on this mule. Men who handle the mule, know that you do not stay on a mule's colt the first time you try to ride on it. Moreover, the crowd was crying out, throwing their hands in the air, and there was much excitement. In the midst of it all, Christ rode that mule straight into Jerusalem. The mule acknowledged his Master, even If man did not. Why was it--that Jesus wept? Because; they did not know the things that belonged to peace. We are living in that kind of a day and age.

People come to an altar when they have a need, but they need too get on a foundation where they can stand, no matter what comes. God wants His people to get to a place of good solid ground and get an experience that, whether it rains or shines, they can go right on through, any way. We will 'look at these stones.' It would be foolish for a farmer to try to work the areas, which are very stony. A farmer knows better than to sow in a stone patch. So, he picks up the stones and clears the ground, before he begins to do anything else. May God help the ministry to realize that.

The stones are impediments that would hinder the growth of the plant, as they would absorb the moisture that belonged to It. Because of this, Jesus said, they never get a real experience of salvation. The stones lay on the surface of the ground as a sign to all, that the earth is thin and there is solid rock underneath, and not too much soil to work with. This is a picture of a hard hearted individual, who is utterly selfish and has no capacity for self-denial. Let us get a true picture of this type of individual. There is a quickness of comprehension, for he is able to take hold of the Word quickly. This type of Christian is often heard shouting in the services on Sunday but we seldom see him in a prayer meeting. And, why not?

There is no depth, or true root, or love of God or appreciation of God in his heart. His is just a light emotional case--just beneath the surface. Christ would have us know, in a case like this, the heart is still cold as a rock. In the 11th chapter and verse 19, we are told concerning the people of today (the time of Christ's coming) "I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh." In Proverbs 4:23 we read: "Out of the heart are the issues of life." The heart is the center of all. If we can get a people with a new heart, we won't have to deal with so many old issues.

When we get a new heart within us, we will get a new Issue. Paul picked up that very fact when he said, "If any man be in Christ he is a new creature. Old things are passed away and behold all things have become new." When he gives us one heart we will act alike and we will 'walk the same walk.' Listen to this: "I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh that they may walk in my statutes and keep my ordinances to do them." They shall be my people. Who? The people that really get a new heart and walk in His statutes and keep His ordinances to do them.

But there are some other stones. In Isaiah 6:3, God gave a commission to the ministry. It takes the love of God to pour out the 'wrath of God' upon a false spirit or system and yet have enough of the 'love of God' that the man you are preaching to will know that you love him even as you are preaching and pouring out the truth upon him. It is one of the dangers of this age that the enemy strives to get a group of people to compromise or apostatize and turn from the truth and then he strives to get others to despise them. But you have to love them and if a brother errs from the truth, God bids us to convert him and not 'brush him off' and say we are none of his any more. This "groupitis" is one of the worst things that ever hit God's people, and the first thing I am confronted with is, "What group are you with?" I just answer, "I am a member of the group in the 14th chapter of Revelation and the 15th verse; the one that 'follows the Lamb whithersoever He goeth,' also, those 'standing on the sea of glass, mingled with fire,' the one that 'has victory over the beast and over his image and his mark and the number of his name.' I believe 'that answer,' takes care of any of the devil's work that he has come up with or that he can come up with. If we are not careful, the enemy will do a destructive and terrible thing to the Body of Christ. You don't need to put any emotion in 'this.' God's already put enough in it. If you pour this Word of God out on any man, and he is guilty, he is hurt bad enough without you giving him a 'cold shoulder.' Some people 'wither under it.' It let's us know what kind of an experience they have.

I don't think we've preached anything yet, that's not Bible -- just 'raised the sun' a little. The divine ploughman or minister has a big Job. In Isaiah 62:10,God says to the ministers: "Here is your commission: Go through the gates, prepare the way of the people. Cast up the highway." Now, why can't the people 'get along' with the ministry preparing the way? Why do we get all these sects and divisions? Because. 'False ministers' have also prepared a way. But the prophet said: "Woe be unto the pastors who have scattered my flock." Christ said: "There is one way." And He prepared a ministry to tell of that one way that He prepared. Any man that is saved is in the 'hollow of God's hand' and is in God's fold, and unless a false preacher 'let's the fence down' some place, the sheep will not get out. "Prepare a way for the people. Cast up the highway." If you ever get on the 'highway of holiness' you are as sure of Zion as If you were there already -- because that is where it ends. The 'way of holiness' leads to Zion. The way is so simple, that a wayfaring man, though a fool need not err therein, and again, it is only understood by those who pass on it.

When the Word of God goes forth, it reveals to every man, 'where he stands' before God. A sinner can't stand, because he withers under the preaching of God's Word. God does not want people deceived as to 'where they stand' in His sight. He does not want them to think they are alright, when they are not 'where they should be.' Thank God, through the name of Jesus there is an ointment, that contains an oil, to heal every sinful condition -- whatever It may be. If ever you have real peace in your heart, you will have to have the wounds of sin completely healed.

People today are in the "sin more or less" business; crying peace when there is no peace. The 'sin business' must be completely stopped. The seeming healing is like the cancer or some other terrible sore which has part healing over the outside and it leads one to believe that it is healed, when it has only 'crusted over.' And If 'that place' remains healed, it will 'come out' some other place. Why? Because. It is in the blood stream. Christ does not heal from the outside. He goes to the seat of it. God covers it with His own precious blood and purifies the very seat of infection in our lives. He puts a new heart within us. Again, I say, we cannot have peace without righteousness.

"Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other." Psalm 85:10. "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Mercy and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. John 1:17. If you want righteousness, peace will come right along. Do you want peace? You will have to take righteousness too. They are living together in Jesus Christ. "And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever." Isaiah 32:17.

"The work of righteousness shall be peace." "Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom." James 3:13. Verse 14, "But If ye have bitter envying and strife In your hearts, glory not and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish." Verse 15,"For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." Verse 16, "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy." Verse 17, "And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace." Righteousness and peace go together. You will never know an ounce of peace until you become a righteous Individual.

That is why Christ wrote to the church of Laodicea (the day and age in which we are living) "You are wretched, you are miserable." God's people who have apostatized and compromised are miserable. They have forgotten their resting place. They have gone too far back into the world and are reaching out into It. Why? They are not getting any satisfaction out of their experience.

Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him show out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. Christians biting one another? Christian cannabalism? (Backbiting) If you bite one another you are consuming one another, and where there is strife there is confusion. The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable. You have to be righteous, you have to be pure to know an ounce of peace, also gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality. (There is a lot of earthly and devilish wisdom going around) Also, we must be without hypocrisy; the fruit of wisdom is sown in peace.

Do you want peace? Then sow righteousness and bring forth a crop of peace. You just cry "peace" where there is no peace, If you are not living right. Peace is the result of righteousness.

'Light' evangelism is a curse to our land -- 'this business' of 'raising hands' and making 'mass decisions' for Christ without the bed rock repentance required in the Word of God. Some people who do not look deeply into the results declare that they are doing good. They (the evangelists who do this) are sowing seed in stony places and so erecting a wall about them, making it all the harder to reach them with the real Gospel message of truth. It is not making a decision for Christ under the influence of the service, but the singing of touching Invitation songs and the melting death bed stories that cause them to decide for Christ and then when they leave the service are soon led away. One cannot make a real decision for Christ merely under the singing of songs and death bed stories; also, the telling about heaven and not explaining that they will have to remain a few years and fight the devil.

In Revelation 14:8, we read about the pouring out of the vial. The opening of the sixth seal happened about 1880. God gave a commission to His ministers to leave Babylon and pour out the truth upon her and avoid the plagues that were to come upon her. So, the 6th seal ministers put up their Revelation charts and poured out the truth on Babylon. People 'came out of her' and stood for truth against ridicule and persecution. But the Word of God says to give her a second cup. Now who is going to give her a second cup?

In these last days and right here on earth it must be done. We have a generation of young people who have never heard such men preach as F.G. Smith or C. E. Byers and other of the older brethren who were true to the call. The cup must be poured out on them also. The fourth seal was poured out on the sun, the very New Testament. What for? To revive the people and put them in a position to pour out the last three, which are no more or less (but just expanded a little) a repetition of the first three of the same message, "Come out of her my people." Roman Catholicism would tell you that they are not what they used to be, but there is the same spirit, backed by the same evil power that has always backed up this great false system and God wills to have the truth poured out on them.

We are living in a day and age of which Paul wrote to Timothy that perilous times would come in the Church. The world has always been in a perilous condition. But in these times people will profess to love God and love the world and worldly pleasures more. Ministers say that they cannot get people to attend services on Sunday nights. Why? They want to go boating, or driving, or watch television. These are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God, having a form of Godliness, but denying the power thereof. The ministers of these people say: "We are still preaching the Word." Maybe so, but where Is your power? Old fashioned Holy Ghost power still makes the sinner tremble. If you give them a vision of hell under the power of the Holy Spirit it won't run off them like water off a duck's back. I saw a man standing in the back of the building, shaking under conviction and I went back and laid my hands on him and said, "Brother, God loves you." That man went to the altar. He said afterward, "Brother, when you laid your hands on me, God put me in the furnace." He had never sweat as hard, unloading coal, as he did under conviction for his sins; the power of God was working on his soul, and that power is just the same today. Do not believe 'that business' of 'no conviction' in these days, for sin. God fashioned the hearts of men alike. If mankind is changed, then Christ would have to change, but He is the same today and forever; He will never change. His power is as great as it ever was. And be sure my friends, that power from on high will be given to the ministry of today -- that is willing to pay the price. Thank God, I know when it came. I know when God led me forth from the sixth seal, and gave me a glimpse into the seventh seal age and touched my soul with power that I might know, and sent me forth again with something that gave me the greatest boost I have had in a long time

Power has been given to the ministry of today, who will walk humbly and not be ashamed to be led of God, in this dark hour, to scorch men with the truth of the Word of God. But why must men be scorched? Too much man. "And men were scorched with a great heat." Men are the only 'thing' that ever gets scorched. This very movement that calls itself the Church of God is becoming an organization of men with its committees and societies and men, men, men. The ministers are preaching men's thoughts, and reading men's books, and repeating men's exerts. They think that people won't receive a message any more unless Matthew Henry or Adam Clarke, said so. These writers have given some good words along the lines of history, but we are living in a day and age when we can't afford to look back, but must get our message fresh from God and march on from there.

The two witnesses lay dead for 350 years or three and a half centuries. The people gave gifts to one another, or gave degrees of honor for learning and higher education. If you see this happening around 'the Church of God,' then you may know that this place is one, where the witnesses are dead. When someone studies for a number of years, he of course, is in a more 'elevated position' than his fellows, and he gets to wear a black hat with tassels on it, and gets a DD or something a little lower, for a present bestowed upon him. But Jesus said we were all brethren, so, if we are all on the same level, why bestow gifts of honor and acknowledgement upon each other? When the two witnesses are alive, God will give us all gifts. When honor began to be shown one another, that is when all 'this kind of thing' got started in the church, and it happened right among the saints in the church.

When the saints get inflated ideas about being so big in their own eyes, that they can learn nothing from the older brethren, who have suffered, and sacrificed to carry this message through the years, and we seek out a minister that, although he has no vision of the true Body of Christ, the Church, however, has won a degree in higher education

- and that degree Is supposed to qualify him to preach his Ideas to the church. Well, we are just bringing in 'stones' from Babylon. Now, 'there' is where the trouble started. Do not bring them, for we don't need them. We have 'a foundation' and it does not include 'stones' from old Babylon.

"Wilt thou not revive us again that thy people may rejoice in thee?" Psalm 85:6. I am a firm believer that we have reached the time when this gospel is making it's 'last round.'

With plain and true preaching of the precious Word, we will see old time rejoicing, see crutches laid aside, see everything that the gospel brought with it in the apostolic days. What are people rejoicing over today? They are rejoicing over love instead of 'the lover,' and over the blessing Instead of 'the blesser,' and over the gift instead of 'the giver.' God wants the Church to rejoice in Him even if He has done nothing outstanding at the particular time. Do lovers wait to show their love after some special attention? No. They love to be even in the very presence of each other and it is not necessary to perform some special deed of merit to praise and appreciate one another. So our love for God must reach the place where we can worship and adore him for himself.

SOME FELL AMONG THORNS

There are seven parables in the 13th chapter of Matthew that coincide with the seven letters to the seven Churches in Asia. One of these will help to clear up the other and we will get into the parables after a while. We have been dealing with the four kinds of ground on which the Word of God falls. I made a statement before, and I want to make it again, that the four kinds of ground cover all humanity. Wayside ground (hearers), stony ground (hearers), thorny ground (hearers) and good ground (hearers).

We are one kind or the other, every one of us and God would have us deal with His Word that we might get located. He wants us to be good ground. And we are going to prove by God's Word that all of God's children must bring forth one hundred fold. God won't put up with anything less than that anymore. The false hiding places are not only in denominationalism, but there are a lot of false hiding places around that which calls itself the Church of God. This business of bearing some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred fold is nothing more than a false hiding place that people get in and try to excuse themselves for only bringing forth thirty, and sixty fold. There is no excuse. The Word of God will shake up all the bushes they are hiding behind and put them out In the open.

We dealt with the wayside hearers in the preceding lecture and in the stony places we found that neither one of these Individuals had a solid experience with God. The one in the stony place sprung up, but it had no root and you cannot bear fruit If you have no roots. There is nothing that bears fruit that does not first have roots. Just as soon as the sun came up (and the Sun, we have proved by the Bible, is the Word of God) the plant was scorched, and withered away, and died. And many people get that kind of an experience.

We want to look at that which fell among thorns. In the 13th chapter of Matthew and the 7th verse, we read that: "Some fell among thorns and the thorns sprung up and choked them." Now, turn to the 22nd verse where He gives the explanation of it and we find that: "he also that receiveth the seed among thorns is he that heareth the Word and received the seed among the thorns and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choked God's eternal Word. It is the work of Satan. Jesus' teachings seemed simple, but the parables are as deep as the Revelation and hid in the same shell. The seed took root in this Individual. It had to bear fruit and we will see it 'just ahead.' Some fell among thorns -- though they had not sprung up yet. In other words, there was some 'thorn seed' lying under the earth that had not sprouted yet. The seed of the Word of God, took root and sprung up, then the thorns grew up too and choked the plant out.

Now, the seed did not choke out the thorns, but the thorns choked out the 'seed of the Word.' The Word of God says, that the thorns sprung up and choked them and they became unfruitful. That is an 'awful blow' to the popular eternal security teaching.

It is possible to become unfruitful after you have been fruitful once. We are facing today a multitude of people who are looking back to a day when their experience was a glorious pledge for God, bearing beautiful fruit of an experience of righteousness and true holiness, but today they are unfruitful. The stones spoiled the roots. The root experience of stony ground was, that the root could not 'take hold.'

In the parable of the thorny ground the individual actually was born again and justified before God. He had to be in order to bear fruit. He said: "He that abideth in me and I in Him the same bringeth forth much fruit. And every branch that beareth fruit He purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit. The stony ground kept the root from working and now we see the thorns working on the fruit. We can also see the works of Satan. Some brethren are preaching how the devil works through false religious systems, but I say he works on individuals too. The thing that keeps men from getting a 'root experience with God, will keep them from getting saved in the first place. Even after you get saved, he's not done. He has another tool he uses on you to choke out your fruit after you begin to bear. But I thank God there is an easy way to put him out of business. By the Word of God, you can destroy the very works of the devil. Jesus himself was made manifest that He might destroy the works of the devil. In Eph. 4:8. We read, that He led captivity captive.

There is an experience you can get with God, where you can do as Isaiah said: shout 'glory be to God,' right on a nest of devils. And if he carries on too much God also has the power to let you cast him out. I Peter 5:8 tells us that the devil goes about as a roaring lion. He is not a lion; he is an actor. There is only one lion in the Word of God, and that is the lion of the tribe of Judah. And the devil goes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. There was a day, before Jesus came with this great salvation, when it was easier for him. We are told in the book of Job that he was walking up and down in the earth, having a good time, and when the sons of God came to present themselves, the devil came too. Everywhere the 'sons of God' present themselves he comes along too. He cannot stop the Gospel, but he wants to hinder it. When he begins to spread himself, God puts the truth on him. Jesus said he was a liar. In fact, he was a liar from the beginning.

The devil took Jesus up there on the mountain and told Him that he would give Him all the kingdoms of the world -- and Jesus did not pay a bit of attention, because He knew the devil did not have anything to give. Why? God said: That the world and all in it was His. It did not belong to the devil. I would not like to believe, that God did anything for Job that He would not do for me. Remember, He delivered him and rewarded him for resisting evil. Be sure, that when you are tempted and tried, that God sees it is good for you. You need to get shook around and cultivated a little. If You don't get tempted and tried once in a while, you won't know what you have. If we don't go through some persecution, there will be no real shouting or rejoicing. I don't like this 'light business' of shouting or rejoicing at the 'drop of your hat.' If there is any real shouting or rejoicing in the camp of the saints, there has been a battle won. No battle won - no real 'shout.' Since Jesus Christ came, the devil is the 'prince of this old world,' the 'prince of the power of the air,' as scripture calls him. Now, in any country that still has a king instead of a democracy (as we have), the prince is next in command when the king is not there, But when the king comes riding on a mule, then, the prince has to step down.

I Peter 5:8 says he goes around as a roaring lion. He is not devouring whosoever he will, or whosoever he wants to, for there are some he can't devour. "Seeking whom he may devour". When he 'knocks at the door,' just send Jesus. He'll remember how Jesus won the battle with him and walk away. The devil has no kingdoms to give. Maybe you are saying, How do you know? In the Scripture, there was a man on an island with legions of devils and bound by Satan and when Jesus was here he made a trip across that lake, and the only work He did there was to free that man, and then, got in the boat and went back.

The man came running trembling. He had jumped on people and tore their clothes off, but when he saw the Son of God, he trembled. This devil in this man, who had offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world, is begging Jesus that he might go into the pigs down the mountain. The fact is, that he did not even own a pig, and had to ask permission to get one. He had lied to man, and done a work in them and held them 'under sway,' but Jesus Christ came that we might know the truth about him and the truth will make you free.

God said to the devil, "Have you considered my servant Job?" The devil said yes, but he has a wall or fence about him. Don't you know the devil cannot even tempt you, unless he gets 'a pass' from God? It would be sad to believe that God did something for Job, that He wouldn't do for us. Why, He led captivity captive. Yes, there is grace and victory for those who will be fruitful and stay fruitful for God.

Christ specified It the 2nd verse what He calls thorns: "He also that receiveth the seed among thorns is he that heareth the Word and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choked the Word and he became unfruitful.' In I John 2:15, He said: "Love not the world, neither the things that are In the world, if any man love the world the love of the'Father Is not in him.'' In Mark 4:19, He said: The cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things enterlng In, choked the Word and It became unfruitful. Christ mentions the care or love of this world and John, In the second chapter tells us what It Is, and the next thing He mentioned was the deceitfulness of riches, We want to get to the root of this thing.

Jesus called them thorns. The cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches and the lust of other things are symbolized by Christ as thorns. Why? They are entangling, aggravating, agitating, Irritating. What? The cares of this world. To those still hanging on to cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches and the lust of other things…they are truly thorns in our experience. Luke, 8th chapter, and that which fell among thorns are they, which hear and go forth and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life and bring no fruit to perfection. There is deceitfulness in riches.

I have spoken to more than one individual, before 'this,' when situations came up. There was a chance of working out a business…everything on the level; one brother with oil wells and another brother in another situation said: pray that God will help them to prosper and God knows He will get His share. I said, "Brother, you had better pray to God and ask Him if it's His will for You to have this; for with the money, comes a spirit. I am a firm believer in the fact that if we are wholeheartedly 'sold out to God' and consecrated to Him, He will let us handle all the money we are able. If we get any more, it will 'handle us.' There is deceitfulness in riches. Men get drunk on alcohol. There is a spirit that goes with it, that will capsize you and make you come to the place where you can not make a proper estimate of things, as you once did.

Let me explain. Here's a man, who is working and not making very big wages, and when a need comes up, he will give one hundred dollars of his hard earned wages quicker than the rich man. Why? They are not looking out of the same pair of eyes, and a ten dollar bill looks bigger to the rich man than a hundred dollars does to the poor man, consecrated to God. Someone says, "Bro. Wilson, money talks." Yes, but it never tells the truth. Proverbs 23:5 "Riches certainly make themselves wings, they fly away as an eagle toward Heaven."

I have seen people that did not have a thing when God got hold of them. They were in such a situation that the Church helped them to get a little furniture and keep food on the table. We finally got the truth across to them of God's plan of financing and they began to square up their business with God, and after a time, God, true to His Word, put them on their feet. They finally got everything paid up, fixed up and a little in reserve. What happened then? They got a different spirit. With a little money they had, they made themselves wings. They 'no longer needed the Church as bad as they once did.' They became more and more independent of the 'moving of God.'

This is happening all over our land, because God has blessed our land with prosperity, and men are resting on the prosperity of the land, instead of the blessing of God. They become more and more independent of God and feel that they can 'get along by themselves.' Prosperity is deceitful and can get into our systems like alcohol and craves more and more riches. It can be a dangerous thing to have great possessions.

Cannot God use a man with money? You may say, that He needs the man with money because he has wherewith to do things. No, he does not. Why not? Because God can get all the money He needs without him, and in the end it will all be God's anyhow. Someone may say, Well, He is not going to get any of mine. I will leave it to my children, and they to theirs etc., etc. Well, in the end it is still in the possession of God. Let us seek first, the kingdom of God and He will add these things unto us. It can be dangerous, I repeat, to have great possessions.

THORNS CAUSE WASTE

1. And what are great possessions? Anything that is too much to give up to follow Christ. In their deceit they will rob us of the 'pearl of great price,' as we will see a little farther on. It was demonstrated before you through Ananias and Sapphira. They held back part of the price and missed the whole bargain. This will let you end up trying to feed your soul on that which the flesh feeds on. Now, I want you to get 'these two,' 'fresh in your minds,' before we 'go into this.' It will let you end up trying to feed your soul on that which the flesh feeds on, and brother, you are really deceived then. In fact, I don't believe there's much hope for you. Somebody said, "What makes you think so?" As soon as the rich man got 'in that kind of shape,' God just required his soul. Why? Whenever a person gets 'that far gone' there is no way of reaching them.

The whole trouble then, is in these things that Christ mentioned here, the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the lust of other things. Someone says, "How can it be stopped?"

The flesh needs to be crucified, with the affections and it's lusts. You can 'stop it all at once.' You don't have to nip one thorn off at a time, but you can get rid of the whole thorn bush. That is the work of the flesh. It's just an 'old thorn bush' and if you will give me time, I'll prove it to you by the scripture. It is an old thorn bush, that will grow in the human heart. Too many are trying to trim it. God's different than that. He doesn't trim it -- He burns it. Flesh, the Word of God would teach us is carnal. God said in His Word when Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, thorns would come forth on the earth. It came, in the curse back there, (speaking of literal things) and just as the thorns came forth on the earth, because of the curse put on mankind, even so, there was a spiritual curse that does the same thing within man that the literal thorns do upon the earth. Let's turn to the 32nd chapter of Isaiah and 'bring him to the witness stand.'

Let's begin reading in the 13th verse as he tells us of the pitiful condition of mankind. He uses symbols and metaphors in his poetic language to teach us the pitiful condition of mankind before Christ came, or before the Spirit of God was given. Listen to him. "Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briars." Now we know he is speaking of spiritual things. Somebody said, "How do you know?" Read on, "Yea upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city, because the palaces shall be forsaken." "The multitude of the city shall be left. The forts and the towers shall be dens forever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks; UNTIL the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field."

Now we know he is not talking about the earth and terra firma because pouring the Holy Ghost out upon the earth does not kill the thorns and clean the briars out-that is, the natural ones. But friends, these thorns and briars are the working of 'the flesh' (humanity without Devine strength). That is what our lives were when Christ found us -- 'a briar patch' and 'a thorn patch.' We never brought forth the first fruit of righteousness. You see a field covered with thorns and briars; You say it Is wasted. But if you let them start, my friend, they will take the whole thing. It is something like, the man that bought a farm and there were berry bushes around the fence-row and every year he let them grow. And after a while they got 'such a hold on him,' he just gave up. The briars just took the whole place, and the berries would come and fall off, and they would get thicker. One day, some people went out there to pick berries and he 'ran them off.' He said, "Get out of here! If you weren't so lazy, you could grow some of your own." 'This work' has a little beginning. All you need to do is, just let it be. Every time you pet it, you cultivate it, and give it more room -- until it will spread out in your life and you'll just be wasted too; just as wasted as a briar patch is 'out there' in a good field that could be used to produce something. He shows us man's pitiful or wasted condition; until the Spirit is poured out upon him from on high. Well, what will happen then? "The wilderness will be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field will be counted for a forest." Thank God for His Eternal Word.

THORNS THAT CHOKE

Thorns have always been used to choke out the Word of Life. Why did they crown Christ's head with thorns? What was that a symbol of? They thought they were choking out the Word of Life that Jesus Christ was scattering around over the country. They thought they were choking it out, or putting an end to it. Little did they know, they were just spreading it out.

All through the Word of God, the thorns are a type of the works of the flesh. In Songs of Solomon the 2nd chapter, Christ is talking to the church. Christ gives us a picture of the Church. What did He call her? "As a lily among thorns, so Is my love among the daughters." Do you think you could find a lily in a thorn patch? Well, you can find the church among 'this confusion.' Why did He liken her to a lily among thorns? These churches and man made organizations are works of the flesh. Any church you can join, was started by some man or group of men. It is an earthly thing. That second beast (of the Revelation) came up out of the earth, or out of the minds of men.

The Church came down out of heaven. She Is the only one that did come down from heaven, and Christ likened her to a 'lily among thorns.' I believe there are many people who see her, but are not willing to take the scratching to get to her. She is like a lily among thorns -- and they will scratch you, and 'work on you.' You will get 'scratched up.' It will take some persecution to get there. But if you are willing to pay the price and take the trip through the briar patch, you can get to (and in) the Church.

Let's go to the 55th chapter of Isaiah. I believe you see -- thorns are a work of the flesh, but Isaiah will help us a little farther. "Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts and let him return unto the Lord and He will have mercy unto our God and He will abundantly pardon. For your thoughts are not my thoughts and your ways are not my ways." If we will throw away our thoughts and throw away our ways and take God's thoughts and ways, we can all go together. The thing that divides God's people is 'their' thoughts. We had better cast 'our thoughts' aside and find out what God thinks about it. The Word of God is the mind of God. Only an old deceitful spirit and false doctrine would tell people that we don't know what God's mind is in the matter. Go to the Word, if you please. If He never spoke any later than that, it will be just like He Said, and if we will believe 'that way' we can have it 'that way.' The Word of God is the mind of God, searching our thoughts, searching our ways. If we both take it Gods way, we can go together. He said: "As the heavens are higher than the earth so are my thoughts higher then your thoughts and my ways higher than your ways."

There is a 'heavenly place' that we 'set together' right here on earth. When we get lifted to the place that we take it Gods way, when we get a revelation of God's truths -- while men 'down here' are operating something in what they think about it, Gods people are 'up here' in a 'heavenly atmosphere' walking in what God thinks about it. Praise the Lord! "As the rain cometh down and the snow so shall my Word be that goeth forth. It will prosper in the thing whereunto I sent It." Glory be to God!

What will happen to you when the Word hits you? You will go out with joy, led forth with peace, the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. Those 'trees' are righteous Individuals. In the 61st chapter of Isaiah, he said we are the Lord's planting that we might be called trees of righteousness. Isaiah is trying to show us here that when we get back to God and get right with God -- and back 'in tune' with nature, it will even 'cheer us on.' He takes nature here, to show us that when we are out of harmony with God, we are out of harmony with nature. His world doesn't look as beautiful as it ought to, and we begin to be sick with the whole thing.

If we will begin to see 'this thing' as God wants us to see it, nature will 'move us on and praise us.' When the people turn you down -- and won't take the message -- and persecute you; shut your eyes and as the psalmist of old, "look unto the hills from whence cometh your strength." Get out

- alone with God. He will use nature to 'cheer you on.' Sure, the birds will sing, all the trees of the field shall clap their hands and instead of the thorns shall come up the fir tree, Glory be to God, and instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle tree. What will it be? It will be to the Lord for a name.

What will be for a name? A people, or a congregation of fir trees and myrtle trees -- with no briar and no thorns. They are God's people, but have too many thorns and briar patches in among the fir trees. God says He won't put His name on it. But I declare unto you, that when we get far enough into the Church in Asia (in the Revelation), that there is just a 'certain condition' that must exist before God says, "I will write my name on it." Isaiah tells us what It Is. When we get rid of 'the works of the flesh' (stop being carnal), and become a sanctified people, baptized by one Spirit into One Body -- a grove of fir trees and myrtle trees, then, my friend, God says, "That will be for me a name; there is my people." And it will be an everlasting sign. Yes, a sign that will work everywhere God's people are.

How are we going to find the Church? You find a place where there are fir trees and myrtle trees and no thorns and Briar -- that's God's people, "that will be to Me for a name." In the first chapter of the Songs of Solomon the 17th verse, the church said "the beams of our house are cedar and our rafters are fir." The Church of God cannot be built out of thorns and briar. It is built out of fir trees and myrtle trees. We have got a bunch of people building today, everything into what is called the church -- and what a monstrosity. It is no wonder it does not stand. God builds solid things into the church. It takes the best lumber there is (to signify it that way). But men and women today are determined to build briars and thorns in. May God help us to see it.

The Scripture shows us that it is 'the work of the flesh' that choked out the Word and caused us to become unfruitful. We are made to realize again that there is a need of 'progressive work of grace' upon the souls of men if they remain fruitful. Jesus said, "I tell you these things (when He taught 'the purging of the branches' in the 15th chapter of John) that your fruit may remain." That you may remain fruitful.

SOME FELL ON GOOD GROUND...

We've found out that the seed is the Word of God, or the Word of the Kingdom, and we have already covered three kinds of hearers. Why should we deal with these simple parables? Because Christ chose that means to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and we find that there are deep truths hidden within them.

We find in them four kinds of soil that cover the four classes or practically cover all humanity.

We all fall in one of these four classes; wayside hearers, thorny ground, stony ground, or good ground hearers. We have already covered three of these classes and will get Into good ground. Let us start at the first verse.

"The same day went Jesus out of the house." He went back into the house before He preached the rest of the sermon, and a great many people are going to be left outside because they will not come in 'by the door.' That door is Christ and for that reason they will not be able to find out what is 'going on' in the house. Nobody knows what is going on 'in the house.' Jesus came to bring us a knowledge of salvation and every thing He came to do for us will be made known. Many people theorize and surmise, but theory is only good until you get knowledge, then you can throw all theory away.

Let me Illustrate. If your car breaks down on the way home and you get out and see what's the matter with it. You don't know what the trouble is, so you shake a few wires and punch this and turn that and about that time your wife gets out and says, "Maybe it is this and maybe that." You are liable to tell her that she doesn't really know a thing about it and is Just theorizing, when that is just what you have been doing all the time yourself. About that time, a mechanic comes along and discovers the trouble and tells what is wrong with it and fixes it. You get in and drive off and throw your own theories 'out the window.'

Now the same thing is true about the Word of God. He came to bring us a knowledge of truth, not just a theory. If we are only willing to wait, God will make it plain. Now, Christ went out of the house and sat by the seaside and great multitudes were gathered unto Him. He went in a ship and sat, and the multitude sat on the shore. He spoke many parables unto them and among them, this one. "Behold, a sower went out to sow. And some seed fell by the wayside, and the fowls came and devoured them; some fell in stony places where they had not much earth and forthwith they sprang up because there was no depth of earth. When the sun was up they were scorched and withered away because they had no root. Some fell among thorns and the thorns sprang up and choked them. And others fell into good ground and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. Who hath ears to hear let him hear." We have found thus far, that those who received the seed in the wayside experience went no deeper with God. Those that received it in the stony ground went no further in the Christian life and bore no fruit. Those that received it among thorns bore fruit for a while, but because of 'living after the flesh'…that should have been crucified, they became unfruitful.

But, the Word tells us that some fell on good ground, and brought forth fruit, a hundred fold, some sixty, and some thirty, I will refresh your minds with old truths, but I am a firm believer in the fact that if the 'old truths' brought the people out of confusion and kept them together, it will do it today. True, God has a prophecy for today, but we do not want to forget the old foundation of truths that brought us out in 'this glorious way' and set our feet on the solid rock.

We can gather a people together with just a head knowledge, but it takes the genuine message of truth to cause the love Of God to be shed abroad and for all to be baptized into one Body by one Spirit.

The same seed was sown on all kinds of ground. The same Word of God was sown In the stony places, and also in thorny places, and in the good ground, Someone may say, that as long as we have good seed, we may not have to worry. But we need good ground too. Satan works on individual lives. We not only need good seed, but we need good ground. The Church cannot be built on wayside, stony, or thorny soil. She cannot be built in a straw pile, or in a thorn bush, or among stones, but it takes good ground to produce the results we must have to produce the Church.

There is just one word that distinguishes good ground from all the rest, namely, the word, fruitful. Jesus mentioned in the 7th chapter of Matthew, a very familiar test that we enjoy using. Matt. 7:20, "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." Men hang things on the 'so called' Christmas trees. But whoever saw a fir tree bear balls and lights and icicles and stars, etc.? You can hang anything on a tree, but for that tree to bear fruit of its own, is another thing. If I should go to an orchard in winter, it would be very easy to deceive me as to what kind of a fruit tree was there. You might tell me that a peach tree was a plum and be able to 'get by,' but when the fruit comes on the tree in summer and the peaches and plums are there; you can deceive me no longer, for by the fruit I will surely know those trees, The false ministry of today that are trying to preach to God's people are putting on sheep's clothing, but if you will look, you will see a wolf in sheep's clothing and a wolf's tracks under it. A wolf does not make sheep's tracks.

The 'heat of the truth' poured out in the 'fourth vial' of the Revelation Gospel, is revealing what is in people. God would have His Word preached under the power of the Holy Spirit and then, it brings out what is in people. If you have the love of God shed abroad in your heart, the hearing of the Gospel warms the heart and inspires the saint to leave that place a better man or woman. Moreover, as the Gospel goes forth from day to day, the divine love and fellowship among the people of God will grow more precious, but if there is bitterness in their hearts, the Gospel will reveal and bring conviction of the same to the hearers and bring out the hatred and bitterness. John said that there were many spirits out in the world and that we were to try the spirits. But how shall we try them? By the preaching of the true Word of God, the spirits are tried; both good and bad. May God help us, as never before, to declare His Eternal Truth.

The wayside hearers wanted the truth and took it and hid it in their hearts, but they failed to get an experience of salvation. We must get down to business with God if we are to have such an experience. God has ways of moving on people and changing them from wayside hearers to the other kind. I shall give you an illustration.

Recently, I preached the funeral of an elderly woman who had died of cancer. A large family had gathered in the funeral parlor. My heart was touched as I looked upon them, for I was quite certain that most of them were ignorant of the things pertaining to Eternal Life. It just seemed that day, that practically all of them would be wayside hearers, for they were not paying one bit of attention to the message.

I was again called to the same place and found that a young man of 35 years (a member of the family) had suddenly 'dropped dead.' This time, they all sat still and listened. They could 'lay away' an aged mother who was of the age to die and not think too much about it…they were so surrounded by the things of the world they could not forget them long enough to let me deal a little with their souls, but when God reached down and took a young athlete, 35 years old, and seemingly in health, out of their midst, they were shaken up a bit and ready to hear the Word. God blessed in a wonderful way and the seed was sown in hearts. God has a way of changing attitudes toward His Holy Word and causing people to 'hear and understand' and decide for or against the Word…somewhere along the pathway of life.

These 'hearers' were not those in stony places either. The stones were quickly removed by obedience, making root for the Word. The thorns were plucked up by the roots. In Luke 8:15 "The good ground are they who in an honest and good heart…" Let us stop here a moment and say that the first thing necessary is, that we have to be honest with ourselves and God. "The good ground are they who with a honest and good heart, having heard the Word, receive it and keep it and bring forth fruit with patience."

In the morning dispensation or Gospel Day, we have Christ giving a picture of the hundred fold Christian or the Morning Church, or the Bride in her pristine glory… fully yielding her increase to God and to Christ. Scripture says that some seed fell in good ground and brought forth fruit, some a hundred fold, some sixty fold, and some thirty fold. What is the meaning of hundred fold, sixty fold and thirty fold? Recently, a man expressed an opinion that because of the different situations of life some people could bear no more than thirty fold and some could (maybe) bear sixty fold, but he doubted if anybody was bearing a hundredfold any more. But the Bible tells us that they bore a hundred fold first in spite of the fact that there are some who use this portion of scripture to prove their theory of growing In grace. Saying, that we begin with thirty, then on to sixty and finally develop to where we can bring forth one hundred fold.

When we get to the teaching of the evening light, we will see that the Church started out on a hundred fold basis and when they came down to thirty and sixty fold, you could not even see the church and moreover the Church has never run on less than a hundred fold basis. She was in her thirty fold basis it Luthernism which is so aptly illustrated in the words "First the blade, (thirty fold) then the ear (sixty fold) and then the full corn in the ear, (a hundred fold).

The Church did not start out in 'cloudiness' and come later into the 'full light,' but she started out in the 'full light' and bore a hundred fold. She later fell to sixty fold and then to thirty fold and so out of sight. God will not put the Church out for the world to look upon in any less than a hundred fold stage. The sixty and thirty fold set in when she was falling away from the truth and light of the Gospel as given her. In the 8th verse of the 8th chapter of Luke He does not even mention the thirty and the sixty fold. He simply said that the good ground brought forth a hundred fold and it will bring it forth today.

How many sins can you have in your heart and still be holy? Holiness is one hundred per cent. They bore a hundred fold for God and because of it the Church was plainly visible and had power.

Now, let us go back to some types in the Word of God. Turn with me to the chapter in Genesis, Chapter 26. Was Abraham a type of God? Was Isaac a type of Christ? Was not Abraham's servant a type of the Holy Spirit who he sent after Rebecca, or the bride of Christ?

Let us do away with excuses, for some will say, "I'll never get over sixty fold." Be sure, my friend, that you have scripture for that. What does the Bible say about it?

Genesis 26:1, "And there was a famine in the land that was in the day of Abraham and Isaac...." There was a famine 'on' in Canaan. What was it 'on' for. Read the rest of the Word. That was God's way of running the Canaanites out. Isaac didn't have to fight… God just starved them out. They ran down there for food and Isaac took the whole land. But if Isaac hadn't listened to God, he would have run down to Egypt too.

We need to know we are doing the will of God and stand pat. It might be God is just trying to run off a few hypocrites through the troubles to give us more liberty.

In the 12th verse of the 26th chapter of Genesis, you will see…in the same year Isaac sowed the land and brought forth an hundredfold. After the Canaanites were all run out, Isaac sowed the land right in a famine and brought forth an hundredfold. Now what is that a type of? Old Israel wouldn't listen to God. The prophets pled with him, Jeremiah worked with him, but he (they) wouldn't listen to God. God moved on Amos in the 8th chapter of Amos, the 11th verse and said, "Tell them there is going to be a famine in the land, not of meat, nor of bread to eat, not of water, but a famine of hearing the Word of the Lord. From Malachi until John the Baptist or Christ, there was darkness over the earth. There was a famine 'on' of hearing the Word of God. Why did the famine come? Man brought it on himself. Why is there a famine on the Word of God today? Man brought it upon himself.

So, we need to learn a little lesson. All we need do is go up against God a little bit, or the saints to whine around a little, and say, "we don't want that preaching." Well, God can give it to us cold, and give us plenty of it. Where do we get Bible for that? Israel did not want the manna, they wanted to eat flesh. God gave it to them until it ran out of their nostrils. There were people who wanted to modernize 'this thing' a few years ago and there are some now 'so full of It' they don't know what to do. Well, just remember, it was asked for (frown).

There was a famine of the Word of God when Christ came. Isaac, the Word of God says, in the 26th chapter of Genesis, the 12th verse, Isaac and Rebecca sowed the land right in the midst of the famine and brought forth an hundredfold. What was that a type of? There was a famine on the land when Christ came, He took His bride and sowed the land and brought forth an hundredfold right in the midst of the famine. The morning church in her 'pristine glory' brought forth an hundredfold for God. It was not until the 'falling away' started that the sixty fold and thirty fold came into view. Now, someone would say, Brother Wilson, that is Old Testament. Give us something in the New Testament that will prove we have to bring an hundredfold.

Matthew 19:29, "And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters or father, or mother or wife or children or lands, for my names sake, shall receive an hundredfold and shall inherit everlasting life," "And every one" (not every one that Is willing to forsake all, but every one) "that hath forsaken all, houses (that may be church houses) land, brother, sister, children, or wife for my name's sake shall receive an hundredfold" plus eternal life. So, it is not Bro. Wilson's saying, but the Lord's saying. That is, if you cannot get an hundredfold out of your experience you are still holding on to one of those idols He listed there. Your wife might be hindering you. Some one says, "Are you supposed to leave her?" No, but put her in secondary place. Put God first. Land, children, father, mother…those are the things, if you please, that are keeping people from serving God in the right way. It gets right back to that old consecration of putting everything on the altar for God. If you will put it there, and leave it there, you can bear an hundredfold, for the Word of God says so, and you know it is so.

Up through this thirty and sixty fold age, we are going to get to the 'fireworks.' You will find out that the reason they didn't get into an hundredfold and the reason they don't today; they are holding on to things that God said, "Let loose of." Someone says, "Bro. Wilson, how are you going to 'hook' this first parable with this first letter (in the Revelation)to get started. I won't have to. It is already 'hooked.' Everybody knows that Ephesus was a 'sowing age.' Now, there is just one thing we need to consider, to help us understand. When the letter was written to Ephesus that was about AD 96, the work of apostasy or compromising, or losing their first love, or leaving it, I should say, had already been done. There was a time that Ephesus had a 'first love' she couldn't have left it if she had not had it. It might be Interesting to know, just how short lived, the morning glory of the Church really was. It might help us, because people will say, "Well, my, this reformation is so young, how could it 'go to pieces' so early?"

Do you know, the morning church began to lose some of her glory within 25 years after Pentecost? The Church was started AD 33 and AD 66 Jude said 'men had already crept in unawares.' That was 30 years after it started. Back at AD 62, Paul wrote that the 'mystery of iniquity' had already worked. You come up to 1880 when the glory of the evening light came back, Jude said within 30 years after the church was built, men had already 'let the standard down,' and men can't 'creep In unaware,' if we don't 'let the standard down.' That is the way for them to get in. You add thirty years on to 1880 and that will put you up to about 1913 and 1915. At that time -- I got a book of camp meeting sermons when Bro. Riggle and others were 'crying out' saying, "they are 'creeping in' already, we've got to war against them"… and they preached Jude's message over again.

We want you to see this, that this period that we are dealing with was in the early stage of the Church, when she was sold out to God and brought forth an hundredfold, before the falling away ever started. Paul declared that the day of the Lord would not come, except there be a falling away first and 'there is' your falling away from a hundredfold to sixty and thirty, etc., before it ever began. Paul wrote to the churches and warned them what was going to happen. He wrote to Ephesus -- back In the 5th chapter of Ephesians. He wrote to her about two years after the Church was started and said, "Awake, thou that sleepest, arise from the dead and Christ will give you life." Who was It addressed to? Not to the world. Not to sinners; but to the Church of God at Ephesus. They had gone to sleep on the job. In the beginning, she was an hundredfold, and now we see the pitiful condition she has fallen to. We see that something happened -- that moved her from the state she was in.

In the 2nd chapter of the Revelation, "Unto the angel of the church at Ephesus, write: These things saith He that holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks" (the stars represent the ministry -- the Candlestick, the church; now, think on this), I am going to give a name to everyone of these churches.

Ephesus -- the 'serving church;' within the heading of every letter contains the condition the church is In. Someone says, How do you get that? Christ presented Himself to the Church here, in seven different ways. Here He holds the seven stars and walketh in the midst of the Church. Later, we will see Him with His eyes of fire etc., so within the heading of that letter, you can see the condition the church is in. Christ presents Himself as needed. To the sinner, He presents Himself as a Saviour. To the sick, He presents Himself as a Healer, To the growing or maturing believer, He presents Himself as a Comforter… as a Sustainer.

That is why He is the same Christ, and has presented Himself in seven different ways. Why? There were seven different needs, and He came as that, which was needed. So here He is…as He that holdeth the seven stars in His Right Hand and walketh in the midst of the candlesticks. Why would He present Himself to Ephesus that way?

Walk in their midst means: His complete government. He once had complete rule and He was Head of the Church in every way. He had walked in the midst, led them and enriched them in power. He was not permitted to do that anymore. Follow through these letters, and you will see how He presents Himself -- to each of the congregations according to their need.

Repeating…the ministry had 'gotten out of hand' and because of this, Christ was not walking in the midst of the Church as He once had. We see it, as he describes the situation in verses 2 and 3. He tells us that they did have good ground. Read it…"I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them, which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles and are not, and hast found them liars." All right, let's back up and see if there was good ground in the beginning. They had the Word. "I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them, which are evil." They had the Word. It brought a change in them. They couldn't bear them, which were evil, anymore. They had been made into 'new creatures' through Jesus Christ and they hated the things they once loved and loved the things they once hated.

The next thing we know is that they understood the Word. The fowls couldn't pick it up. Somebody said, "How do you know?" They 'tried' them that were apostles. How do you 'try' them? They tried to pick up the word and take it away and Jesus told them of the fowls, but they couldn't do it. They tried them, which said they were apostles and found them to be liars. That is the way God wants the saints to be yet today. We are living in a day and age when people get 'scared to death' when somebody comes to their door, that hasn't got an ounce of doctrine straight and cannot 'hook two scriptures together to save them,' but the saints get seared to death and all nervous. God wants to 'try' people. We need to get an understanding of the Word until we can try false spirits and deceivers and prove them to be liars. When that church was on an hundredfold 'stage,' she had enough power with God and understanding of His Word, that she could try them, which said they were apostles -- and found them to be liars -- so, the fowls were not able to pick up the seed. Now, sad to say, there are a whole lot more 'today' -- claiming to be apostles…and are not. And we need to be 'finding them liars too!'

In the next verse -- third verse, "Thou hast borne." What kept the tree from bearing? What caused people to become unfruitful? The thorns grew up and choked out the Word. "Thou hast borne," shows us a falling away. "Thou hast been fruitful." How do you know it is a hundredfold? Well, let's read it. "And has borne, and hast patience." I believe there was a time when the thorns were all gone, because if there are any thorns in your life, you cannot have patience. You will get aggravated, agitated, irritated. "Hath patience, and for My Name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted."

So, how do we know they bore an hundredfold? He said, "Everyone that forsakes father and mother, houses and land, etc., for My Name's sake," (that's the reason of it), "shall receive a hundredfold." And these people had laboured for His Name's sake, so we know they bore an hundredfold. We see all this goodness that He shows forth, my friend, and tells of the goodness and how they bore an hundredfold, and I say again today to the church, let us labour for His Name's sake. When we do what we do for His Name's sake, or God's name...I might stop just a moment on that. God's name is a holy name. It is the only 'character Name' there is. You can be 'any kind of a rascal' and have a name Wilson or Luther or Wesley. Men of all kinds of characters have got 'that' name, But God is a 'character name' and none can bear the name of God except they possess the character and nature of God. That is why there were none. Read in Luke and you will find none were called the Sons of God from Adam down to Christ. Adam was the Son of God, and from there on down he was the son of man…and the son of man…until Christ came, who was the Son of God again, and thank God, to as many as received Him, to them, everyone of them, He gives them power to become the Sons of God; and when we become the Sons of God and have the nature of God, then we can bear the name of God and be the Church of God. I pray to God, to help us see that there is something in this name. After while, we will see that He does not write it on everyone.

Paul said He was the first born among many brethren. People like to quote John 3:16, and it is good, but it is outdated =). Something greater has happened. God so loved the world, He gave His only begotten Son, but He is not His only begotten Son any more. Paul said He was the firstborn among many brethren. Peter said He begot us. Who? With His own Word of truth. So Christ is just one of many begotten sons now. We are all begotten of God. Thank God, when we are begotten of God (born of God), we can bear the name of God and be the sons of God, and heirs together with Christ of everything that God has laid up 'in store' for us. So, we see that, when we begin to 'do this thing' for His Name's sake -- that shows you what David had in mind in the 23rd Psalm, when he spoke about the goodness of God. "The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want." Amen! Thank God, I believe it just that way.