Eight O Five, please.
Eight O Five.
Brightly beams our Father's mercy from his lighthouse
evermore, but to us he gives the keeping
of the lights along the shore.
Eight O Five, please.
We're back to reading and reaping in Revelation,
and we're going through from verse 8 to
the end of verse 11.
Just four verses this evening, but four very
wonderful verses.
Verse 8, 9, 10, 11.
I think we need to recapture that our
Lord is walking here in the midst of
the seven churches, seven actual, literal churches in
Asia.
And our Lord is walking and watching as
he walks in the midst of the churches.
He's lovingly looking at all the laborers and
at all the neighbors.
He's seeing all the saints and all their
sufferings.
And as the Master walks in the midst,
he penned these letters to these churches.
And the one we're thinking about tonight is
our Lord's last letter, last word to the
church at Smyrna.
That's a very interesting word, the word Smyrna,
because it comes from the word myrrh.
Smyrna comes from the word myrrh.
And the word myrrh refers to a gum
that's squeezed out of a tree.
It's a sort of rosin, and it's squeezed
out at certain seasons and comes out through
the bark.
You remember when our Lord hung upon the
cross, you remember they gave him vinegar to
drink mingled with gall.
And the word gall is actually the old
word myrrh.
It was something that was put in wine
or put in the vinegar to drink to
stupefy the senses when someone was suffering.
And there's a great example laid down for
us here, that our Lord refused to be
stupefied when he was suffering in our room
instead, because when he had tasted it, he
would not drink it.
And this word myrrh, it's a word that
appears both at Christ's birth and Christ's death.
You remember when the wise men came, they
brought gold, frankincense and myrrh, and presented it
to the young child.
Of course, gold is something that's everlasting and
unchanging.
It's like deity itself.
Frankincense is something that's pleasant, something that's lovely,
something that's fragrant, and it's like many of
the graces of our Lord Jesus.
Of course, myrrh, coming from being squeezed out
through the bark, it always refers to suffering.
And indeed this church at Smyrna was a
suffering church.
And so that's the one that went up
this evening.
I think that we should establish again that
this was a natural, literal church.
Don't let's forget.
Here's an interesting little link that you should
always keep in your mind when you're reading
the first three chapters of the book of
the Revelation.
Remember, the book is the revelation of Jesus
Christ, which God gave of him.
That's the very first verse in the first
chapter.
It is not the revelation of Saint John
the Divine, as was in your Bible.
Actually, it's the revelation of Jesus Christ.
It's God's revelation of Christ.
It's God giving a revelation of Christ to
Christ.
And then Christ gave it by his Spirit
to John.
Because the last verse in this chapter says,
verse 29, He that hath a ear, let
him hear what the Spirit says.
Capital S.
It's very true that it's God's revelation.
It's very true that it's Christ's.
It's very true that it's the Spirit's.
I think we should keep that in mind.
And God is giving it to Christ, and
Christ is giving it to John by his
Spirit.
And then John gave it to the angel
of the church at Ephesus, the angel of
the church at Smyrna, the angel of the
church of Pergamos.
And we found that there were seven churches,
and we found there were seven angels.
And the word angel, of course, is not
referring to one of these glorified beings in
heaven.
It's an old Greek word that refers to
the messenger of God.
And in each of those churches, there was
a recognized messenger, the pastor.
Whether you like it or not, if you
try to work it out any other way,
you'll be in a fix.
I know the type of brethren who don't
like it.
Let me tell you, sir, there were seven
churches.
There are seven messengers, and there is one
for each church.
And he is responsible to receive, responsible to
receive the message from God, responsible to put
it into order, responsible to prophet unto the
congregation.
This is God's order, you know.
When Christ went back to heaven and the
church was formed, he gave, first of all,
in the early days before there was any
New Testament at all, he gave apostles and
prophets.
And then he gave evangelists to evangelize.
And then he gave pastors and teachers.
And the greatest gift we have today is
teacher.
And so, we've got to see just this
very clearly, that this was a literal, literal
church.
Well, I think we must go deeper into
the Scriptures than this, because it's very true
that while we have the seven churches, that
they may well be bringing before us seven
prophetical, historical periods, all belonging to each of
us.
You see, for the first hundred years after
the church was formed, the church was like
the church at Ephesus.
It had great activities and great qualities, and
yet it was getting so taken up with
itself that it was beginning to lose its
first love, which was Christ.
And that was taking place in the first
hundred years of church history.
Now, for the next two hundred years, the
church passed through times of persecution and suffering
and tribulation, and this may be well what
the church at Smyrna is bringing forward in
a prophetical, historical sense.
And then, not only do we look at
an actual, literal church, and not only may
there be a prophetical, historical period here, but
we must remember that the word that goes
forth, though it's by the Spirit through the
churches, there's a word for individuals.
You know, again and again we find this
word, and we'll find it again in this
church this evening, at verse 11.
At the last phrase, he that overcometh shall
not be hurt of the second death.
And that's the promise to the individual who
will overcome all the suffering that's going to
come before us in the paragraphs this evening.
So, having done that, we'll start this letter
to this church properly.
There are two things stressed here as our
Lord writes this letter.
Verse 8.
Our Lord is speaking now unto John, and
saying to him, and unto the messenger of
the church in Smyrna writes.
And you can see that our translators have
got this right this time, because in chapter
2, verse 1, they put it like this.
Our Lord said, unto the messenger of the
church of Ephesus writes.
And I corrected that last week, and pointed
out it's the church in Ephesus.
There's no title, no ecclesiastical title for this
church.
Verse 8.
Unto the angel of the messenger of the
church in Smyrna.
It was written to all the believers there.
Right.
And our Lord puts his name on these
letters.
These things saith the first and the last,
which are dead and is alive.
And you remember when we were in the
first chapter, let's go back to refresh our
minds again.
Verse 8.
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and
the ending, saith the Lord, which is, which
was, which is to come, the Almighty.
And it's quite clear for anyone to see
that the one who is Alpha and Omega
is the Almighty.
This is Jehovah.
And then in verse 10, John said, I
was in the spirit on the Lord's day,
and heard behind me a voice as if
a trumpet saying, I am Alpha and Omega.
This is Jehovah.
Now the wording is added, the first and
the last.
So there's no trouble about this.
And when John saw our Lord Jesus Christ,
it's said in verse 17, and when I
saw him, I fell at his feet as
dead, and he laid his right hand upon
me, saying unto me, Fear not.
I am the first and the last, and
I challenge the Jehovah's Witnesses to wake it
up, and you can't.
Jesus Christ is God.
There is no problem in my mind with
that.
And if you youngsters get the three verses
together, you can handle all the Jehovah's Witnesses
in the country.
He is the first and the last.
You see, this is what he's saying in
this church here.
He's saying right unto the angel or the
messenger of the church in Smyrna, these things
saith the first and the last.
You know, this is something that all the
saints should get a hold of, especially in
times when the church is suffering.
We should see the great head of our
church, that he's on the throne of the
universe, that he's God.
Don't let there be any hesitations about this.
I can bow any hour of the day
or night at Jesus Christ's feet and say,
my Lord and my God, and I don't
blush when I do it.
Because he was God, manifest in flesh.
You see, he's the first in the sense
that all things were made by him.
He was before all things, that's what the
bible says, therefore he must be the first.
And actually there is nothing else to him.
Because not only were all things made for
him, all things made by him, but all
things were made for him.
Yes, he's the first and he's the last.
And it's a wonderful name that he puts
on this letter, because when saints are going
through a time of suffering, it's then they
need to know that Jesus Christ is really
God.
You know, I'm preparing a sermon, in fact
I might have pitched it on Sunday morning
if the colonel had not been coming.
I'm preparing a message at this moment on
the super sayings of Christ.
I know that everything he said is wonderful,
I'm sure of that.
I'm sure it's perfectly true that never man
speak like this man.
But then he said things that no other
man would ever attempt to say.
We had one of them the other week.
He said, I have the keys of hell
and of death.
If you find anybody in the British Isles
who would like to come and say this,
nobody that I ever knew would ever like
to say, I have the keys of hell,
I have the keys of death.
The pilot asked me yesterday, are you frightened?
I said, I'm not a bit frightened.
He said, this thing never worries me, not
because I'm a brave man, just because I
know that the keys of death hang at
the girdle of the Lord Jesus.
You see, as I see life, you go
on down the sands of time and the
door of death for you is the way
down there, maybe not so far down for
some of us, but there's a lock on
the door and there's a key for the
lock, and the key for the lock hangs
at the girdle of my Lord, and not
until he puts the key in the lock
and opens the door will I die as
a super saint.
And have you got the truth of the
super saint?
My dear friends, there are a lot of
super saints, I'll not tell you any more
of them now, but I have quite a
number of them under my belt.
Yes, you know, he's God, he's the first,
he's the last.
But he said something more to them when
he was writing this letter.
He said, I'm to the messenger of the
church in Smyrna write these things as the
first and the last, which was dead and
is alive.
Not only do you see the deity of
Christ here, but you see the victory of
Christ, or the victory of Calvary.
You know, it's a thing to see Christ
on death, face to face.
Very wonderful, you know.
Do you remember that Epaphroditus, a servant who
went round with Paul, was nigh unto death,
very nigh unto death.
But you know, the Lord didn't let him
die.
Oh, no, the Lord just raised him up,
you know, because he is far to take
us away from the gates of death.
He is far.
Do you remember that Jairus came and said,
my daughter is even now dead.
I believe you can deal with this.
What a character he was.
And the Lord walked in and lifted the
little girl by the hand.
You remember we were looking at this, the
tiny, white, lifeless, cold hand in the hand
of the master.
And he just squeezed it there, and he
kissed death away.
You know, he himself became dead.
He was dead.
And how cold, and still, and dark, and
hopeless the tombs seem to be.
They have ruled the stone, they have sealed
the stone.
There's a body inside, it's dark, it's cold.
And yet he moved, and he came out
through the stone.
Yes, he's mastered death.
He abolished death.
This is the one that's writing the letter.
He wants these suffering saints to know this.
And in days of suffering, in days when
death is nearby, it's good to know his
deity, and it's good to know his victory.
That's what he's writing the letter all about.
And I think we need to get the
hold of that.
And so now we've got really started.
Verse 8.
Unto the messenger of the church, in Smyrna,
write, These things, death the first and the
last, which was dead.
And if anybody ever challenges you about Calvary,
one fellow said to me, I think he
only went into his fullness.
Not on your life he didn't.
He himself said, I am he that liveth
and was dead.
He was dead.
But he's alive, and alive forevermore, and death
hath no more dominion.
He lives in the power of an endless
life.
And so that's the signature on the letter.
Now he's talking to the church.
He says, I know thy works.
You see, he had watched this little suffering
church down at Smyrna, and he knew all
the activity that was going on there.
He knew about the different preachers that were
there.
He knew about the different meetings.
He knew about the prayer meetings.
He knew all the activity of the church.
I know thy works.
He's just saying, I know the works of
the church.
And then he went on to say this,
I know thy works on tribulation.
You see, he didn't only know the activity
of the church, he knew the severity of
the hour.
He knew they were passing through these times
of suffering.
He knew they were being squeezed, just like
the gum in the tree is squeezed by
the strength of the tree out through the
box.
He knew all about the severity of the
tribulation.
He says, I know the activity of the
church.
I know the severity of the hour.
And poverty, I know the poverty of the
day.
This church was in poverty.
It had no money.
You see, immediately he said this, parenthetical little
bit put in, for thou art rich.
You see, it is possible for a church
to be materially poor, and yet be spiritually
rich.
Don't let's make any mistakes about that.
Sometimes we're up to measure the spirituality of
the church by the materials that it has.
Well, you'd be very wrong when you go
to the church of the Naodecians, because they
were increased with goods, and they had need
of nothing.
Actually, it's the other way around when we
get there.
They were materially rich, ah, but spiritually poor,
poor, blind, miserable, wretched, naked.
Don't let's measure things wrongly.
This was a little church.
It had no money.
It was in poverty.
And the Lord knew the activity of the
church, and the severity of the hour, and
the poverty of the day.
But it was spiritually rich.
And I think, you know, no matter what
our situation in life is, that we should
always count our blessings, or at least try
to count them.
You'll never be able to do it properly.
You know, every believer should have a sort
of jewel case in his heart, just the
way some of the rich have a jewel
case in the house.
I was at the very rich home once,
when they opened this jewel case, and they
let me see rings that cost about ten
thousand pounds.
And then they went into all kinds of
jewellery.
And of course, while I looked at this,
I was spiritualizing away.
I wonder how you jewels in your heart
tonight.
You rich.
You know, if you're really saved, if you're
born again, if you're washed in the blood
of the Lamb, you know, you have eternal
things tonight that belong to you.
First of all, you have eternal life.
And you didn't work for it.
It was the gift of God.
Sometimes I like to open this sort of
jewel case and say, look, I've got eternal
life.
And then what's more, I have got eternal
redemption.
And there is no last again about that.
Because I am eternally redeemed tonight, whether you
like it or not.
When my Lord went back to heaven, this
is what Hebrews 9 says, he went back
to heaven by his own blood, by the
power of his own shed blood, having obtained
eternal redemption for us believers.
I'm eternally redeemed.
I've got eternal life.
And I can't have eternal life for six
months, you know.
It must be eternal life.
And I have eternal redemption.
And I'll tell you what's more, I have
eternal salvation.
They're all in this jewel case that I
keep.
And I have a joy that's in there,
just like a ring.
It's joy unspeakable.
And it's full of glory.
And I have a peace in there.
It's a peace that passes all understanding.
And I have a hope that anticipates the
glory of God.
One day I shall be glorified.
I've got justification.
I've got reconciliation.
Friends, I'm really rich, you know.
I may not have much of this world's
goods, but I'm rich just the same.
And so, you know, he's talking to this
church, and he's saying, I know the activity
of the church, and I know the severity
of the hour, and I know the poverty
of the day.
Now we get down to the bit that
means a lot.
Verse 9, I know thy works, and tribulation,
and poverty, but thou art rich.
I know the blasphemy of them which say
they are Jews, and are not, but are
the synagogue of Satan.
You see, some of this squeezing, and some
of this crushing, and some of this persecution,
and some of this tribulation, that was really
hurting these saints of Smyrna, and made them
the suffering church, this came from Jews.
Let's get the hold of it.
They're not hardly worthy to be called Jews,
which say they are Jews.
Yes, you know, they were in a synagogue
down the road, as far as the world.
In this city of Smyrna, there were many
Jews, and there were many synagogues.
But, you know, a synagogue can be taken
over by the devil.
Well, that's a very dangerous point we're on
just now.
You see, you can become so bigoted, and
so embittered, that you can be bluffed by
the devil into thinking that you're doing something
for God, when you're doing nothing of the
kind.
The Lord said to his disciples, the time
will come when they that tell you will
think that they do God's service.
It is how warped a man's mind can
be.
He can break the sixth commandment, he can
break thou shalt not kill, and at the
same time, he can be so bluffed that
he thinks he's working for God.
Now, be very careful.
Be very careful that the devil doesn't take
you over.
You know, so sometimes, I think that some
of the saints become so bigoted.
In fact, I find bitterness, and I think
the devil has taken them over.
I think it's terrible.
A man came to me on this platform,
sat beside me here.
He's a gunsmith, owns a gun shop.
He said, there was a believer in my
house last night with 300 pounds, wanting to
buy guns to shoot Roman Catholics.
What should I do?
I said, you know what to do.
How dare you?
How dare you, believer, murder anybody?
I think you don't get the text right
sometimes.
Thou shalt not kill.
No believer should ever be found guilty of
murder.
I don't know what we're getting about this
book, plainly says that we should be blameless
and harmless as the sons of God.
What do you mean?
The devil has taken you over with your
Protestant bigotry.
Yeah, you can soon be taken over, you
know.
And the wee synagogue becomes the house of
the devil.
Then are you stuck?
Yeah, we're talking to you now.
If you're going to be a Christian, then
follow Christ.
There, this little church at Smyrna, it was
the Jews down the road in the synagogue.
They were giving them what for?
Arnold of Brass, who may.
They were saying things against the truth that
was being taught by the little church.
But they were only the synagogue of Satan
now.
And so, you can see the discernment of
Christ.
He's discerning our sufferings.
I know the activity of the church.
I know the severity of the hour.
I know the poverty of the day.
I know the blasphemy of the Jews.
I know the subtlety of the devil.
This is pretty good shooting, isn't it?
It's the master that's preaching.
That's why it's good preaching.
Because never anybody spoke like him.
And then he comes to encourage them now
in verse 10.
He says, Fear none of those things which
thou shalt suffer.
You know how often in this book, from
Genesis right through to the page where we
are, does the Lord come to his believers,
his followers, his saints, his suffering ones?
How often has he come and said, Fear
not.
He always says this.
You remember when Abraham went out against the
four kings and overthrew them.
And the five kings that had already been
defeated by them, came round to the Lord
and blessed Abraham and he wanted nothing to
do with them.
He says, the way I broke your business,
I don't want anything to do with you
boys.
And so he's not only against four, but
against four plus five.
And God came in and said, Look, Abraham,
fear not.
I am thy shield.
How often God has to come to quieten
our fears.
You remember he came to Joshua, said, Fear
not, Joshua.
You remember when we were going through the
book of Daniel, he came to Daniel, Fear
not, Daniel, thou art a man greatly beloved.
You remember that he took the little flock
in his arms when he was with them
in the upper room and said, Fear not,
little flock.
It is your father's good pleasure to give
you the kingdom.
In the first chapter of Revelation, John is
in the isle of Patmos.
He touched him and said, Fear not.
I am he that liveth and was dead.
Behold, I am alive.
And here he's talking to the little church.
He says, Don't be afraid.
Oh, the devil's against you.
Don't be afraid.
My dear friends, what a consolation these fear
not's are right throughout the book.
But we have not only consolation here from
him, we have revelation.
Verse 10, Fear none of those things which
thou shalt suffer.
Behold, the devil shall cast some of you
into prison, thus ye may be tried.
Now, they were not cast into prison yet.
Behold, the devil shall cast some of you.
You know, the wonder of Christ continually strikes
me as I read these things, because he
knew every move of the devil.
The chessboard of life was open to our
Lord.
He knew the move he would make.
You know, I think that you can see
the divine knowledge of Christ here.
Of course, he knew all things.
He was never limited in his knowledge at
any time.
But certainly now, as the glorified Lord, he
knew everything.
Yes, you can see the knowledge of God
here.
He knew exactly what the devil would do.
But I think you must go deeper into
that.
You must see the permissive will of God.
He is going to allow the devil to
do it.
You see, we must get this corrected tonight.
The devil can't do his election.
What a wonderful thing that is.
You know, we had a man in this
meeting some years ago.
He wasn't saved.
He just came around here and he was
a commercial traveler.
He was earning three or four thousand pounds
a year at times.
But he hated the sight of me, and
I wasn't too charmed about him either, so
it was all right.
But he sent for me on one occasion,
and I very gladly went to see him.
He wasn't too well then.
And he was crying when I was in.
He says, Pastor, I've got a confession to
make to you.
I say, you're making no confession to me.
I'm not a popist priest.
Any confession you want to make, you make
it to God.
I don't want to hear your confession.
He says, but it concerns you.
I want to tell you this.
If I don't get telling you this, I'll
be distressed.
All right, I said, trot it out till
we hear it.
He says, you know, for six months I've
been getting up at four o'clock every
morning to pray to the devil to destroy
you.
I said, I
thought you had a wee bit of brains,
but now I know you have none.
Look, if the devil could destroy me, he
wouldn't wait on a lazy character like you
getting out of bed.
He'd do it before you get out.
My fancy among being so daft is all
that.
If the devil could destroy a whole bunch
of us now, you would never have another
second.
Ah, but he can't do it.
He couldn't even touch Job until God said,
you touch him.
And when God allows him to touch Job's
farm, he could only touch the farm and
the leaves all belong.
And not until God said, you can touch
his body, but you can't kill him.
Then he touched his body.
He must get permission from God.
He's not the boss, you know.
Surely not like me talking to you like
this, but he is not the boss.
So that the Lord foresaw this.
It's the foreknowledge of God that's here.
And then the permissive will of God is
here, because God is going to allow the
devil to cast some of them into prison.
But then there's not only the knowledge of
God there, and the permissive will of God
there, there is the providence of God there,
because he was only going to cast some
of them.
God was going to, in his providential dealings
with the church, allow some of them.
Probably he could have written out the list
of names.
Ah, just the providence of God, he allowed
that.
What a wonderful thing it is to see
this.
The knowledge of God, the permissive will of
God, the providence of God, only some of
them would be cast in.
Now, here's the bit we must get the
hold of.
He says, behold, the devil shall cast some
of you into prison, that ye may be
tried.
Oh, that was the plan of God.
God was only using the old devil to
try the faith of the believer.
You know, God will try your faith.
The trial of your faith is very precious
to God, I assure you.
He may even use the devil to try
it.
He may.
Yes, that's a revelation of prayer, you know.
That's a revelation.
You see, as he encourages them, he brings
the consolation, fear not.
And then he brings this revelation.
You know, he knows all that's going to
happen, and the reason why.
And then he said this to them, and
ye shall have tribulation ten days.
And I believe at this place, the days
are like the days in Daniel.
They are periods.
For ten periods, this church was going to
have tribulation.
This is very interesting when you swing round
to think that these churches, while they were
literal, intellectual, they might also be bringing us
a prophetical, historical period.
Because from Nero, that great Roman emperor, right
down to Diocletian, of the boys that know
Roman history better than I do, and they're
all around me here, they know that from
Nero, Cretan, there were ten emperors.
Nero first, Diocletian last, the others that I
can name in between.
And for those whole ten periods, the church
went through time of suffering.
They were squeezed.
Now, can you see this?
They were squeezed on the one side by
the Jews.
They were squeezed on the other by the
Gentiles, the Roman empire, and they're bigger than
Jews.
Squeezing the weak church.
Yes.
Sometimes I wonder, is God allowing the devil
to do things in Ulster?
Sometimes I wonder, is our faith being tried?
Sometimes I wonder how long the squeeze will
go on.
I don't know the answers.
I don't see anybody who does.
But I know that my Lord is on
the throne, and I know he's still the
first and the last, and I know he
can conquer death.
Yes, I think this is great encouragement.
She said this, Fear none of those things
which thou shalt suffer.
Behold, the devil shall cast some of you
into prison, that ye might be tried, and
ye shall have tribulation ten days.
As I say, they were squeezed on one
hand by the Jews, and on the other
hand by the Gentiles, and on both hands
by the devil.
You'll notice that it was the synagogue of
Satan.
It was the devil that was using the
Jews.
You'll know it's the devil that's using the
Roman empire and the emperors to squeeze the
little church.
But here's an expectation that comes to them.
Be thou faithful unto death, and I will
give thee a crown of life.
Now the Lord is promising them something, but
it's in the next life he's promising it.
It's not in this one, because when we
meet at the judgment seat, I'll give you
a crown of life.
There was just one word that he said
to them, Be thou faithful, but we could
get the hold of that tonight.
I'm sure that this is what he wants
of us.
I need to be faithful to this book,
don't I?
I made up my mind a long time
ago, no matter who upset I would be
faithful to the book.
Sometimes I upset the Brethren, the Tate ones.
Sometimes I upset the old dead Baptists that
are around me.
Sometimes I upset the Presbyterians and the Methodists.
Sometimes I upset the Orange Men, because if
you're depending on a sash to get you
to heaven, you'll go to hell.
Sometimes I upset the Romans.
I need to be faithful to this book,
and by God's grace I shall be faithful
to that book.
I'll teach what it says, whether you like
it or lump it.
And 20 years has proved that there are
a lot of people who love the truth.
I'm here 20 years behind this book now,
and look at this tonight in the bomb
town, and it's not my face that attracts
you here.
Helena was listening to a meeting the other
night, and she says it was lovely to
listen the tape and not have to look
at your old face.
That was really wonderful, wasn't it?
Oh well, she takes it out on me,
and sometimes I take it out on her.
Bless her.
Yes, here it is, you know.
You need to be faithful.
Man came to me in London just yesterday.
That's not long ago.
He said, you know, I don't see any
harm in going in with a Roman Catholic
priest and sitting down and having fellowship.
I said, I'm sure you wouldn't see any
harm because you're sort of half blind according
to the truth.
Because I'm just not putting up with people
talking, oh he was a very nice gentleman.
I just can't afford to let nice gentlemen
off with it.
I said, I'll tell you what this book
says, never mind what you think.
This book says that I am to have
no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather reprove them.
Now what have you got to say to
that?
He's just got nothing to say to that.
He was just going to be his imagination
before that.
He couldn't see normally.
He couldn't see anything.
He could hardly see his nose going up.
You see, I can't do fellowship.
You don't mean to tell me that I
can have fellowship with a man who says
he can turn away from Him to Christ,
do you?
Not for a moment.
I can't have fellowship with men and women
who think that Mary is God.
No.
And you'll need to think she's God of
everybody, and Lurgan, and Portadown, and Bangor, and
Euthanas, and Donatee.
Praise to her.
At the same moment every day she'll need
to be God to hear them.
I can't go in with baloney like that.
He says, where do you stand by the
book?
If the Lord says I'm to have no
fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but
rather reprove them, then that is what I
must do.
I must be faithful to the book.
It is all the difference, you know, between
friendship and fellowship.
I want to be friends with all the
Roman Catholics, and I am.
I can walk down in there anywhere, any
day, and talk to anyone I like.
I'm friends, and I know I am.
But I can't have fellowship.
That's different.
Be long faithful.
Don't be compromising this thing.
Some of you could swing in for a
Sunday with the devil rightly.
You're not faithful.
You're not right.
That's your trouble.
You're not just standing up for the Lord.
You're just playing at match.
The word for you is, be thou faithful.
It costs you your head to be faithful.
What about it?
Not until he turns the key.
Yes, that's an expectation.
Then we come to this individual part.
He's not half a mere what the Spirit
saith unto the churches.
You see, while this was for Smyrna, while
this was for the pastor, while this was
for some who were going to be cast
into prison, yet it comes down the years
to us, and we need to hear what
the Spirit saith unto the churches.
And here's the personal promise.
He that overcomes, he that overcomes the poverty,
he that overcomes the severity of the tribulation,
he that overcomes the subtlety of Satan, he
that overcometh the crushing, both from the Jew
and the Gentile, he that overcometh it says
here, shall not be hurt of the second
death.
You know what the second death is, don't
you?
You know what the first death is anyway,
don't you?
Yes, it's the separation of body and soul
and spirit, and the body dies.
Well, the second death is body and soul
and spirit coming together and being cast into
the lake of fire to be damned for
all eternity.
You know, we don't want to get this
wrong.
This book is not teaching that if you
endure suffering here, that you'll be saved in
eternity.
No, what he's just saying is this, that
if you're really saved, then you'll take your
stand, and then you'll be blessed.
You know, you don't stand to be saved.
You stand because you are saved.
On forgetting the cost before the horse now,
and saved men ought to take their stand,
and you're trying to.
How many of you took your stand?
You're stuck in old dead churches.
Where are you getting out?
Oh, you're left over this, and you're still
stuck there after years.
Yes, you want to be for Christ.
Some of you just want to be for
the Methodist, don't you?
Oh, yes, go ahead, stick up for them.
They have lost the Lord now, but rather
a scooper.
Yeah, I need to talk to you, sir.
Get out!
Stand up for Christ.
Yes, he that overcometh.
My dear friend, it'll prove you've got life.
That's what proves you've got life.
You get saved, then you stand.
You don't stand to be saved.
You stand because you are saved.
It's a great message.
It's just one word for us tonight.
Lord, you've said that you're alive.
I think it is that you're alive.
He says, be thou saved.
God bless you.
We're going to take time to sing that
old-fashioned hymn tonight.
Lost the number, Nora.
672.
Am I a soldier of the cross, a
follower of the Lamb, and shall I fear
to own his cause, or blush to speak
his name?
672, please.
Amen.
Dear Lord, we hear thee saying again, be
thou faithful unto death.
Lord, give us grace.
Part us in thy fear, and with thy
blessing, for thy holy name's sake.
Amen.