The Bible Truth about Repentance | Senior Pastor Kenneth Carpenter by Kenneth Carpenter First Apostolic Church of Maryville (Maryville, TN) Kind: teaching Scripture: Matthew 24:3-14, Matthew 4:17, Luke 24:46-49, Psalm 119:105, Psalm 119:130, James 1:21, 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, John 3:16, Romans 10:5-15, John 17:20, John 3:17-21, Luke 15:17-19, Revelation 2:5, Revelation 2:16, Revelation 2:21, Revelation 2:22, Revelation 3:3, Revelation 3:19, Revelation 9:20, Revelation 9:21, Revelation 16:9, Revelation 16:11 Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/kenneth-carpenter--the-bible-truth-about-repentance Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page. Free to copy and share with attribution. ------------------------------------------------------------ Um I to to u the media department that I gave my my notes to tonight. I I don't want you to get nervous. I am going to to go to the scripture that I gave you. But the the Lord quickened something to my heart and just for a a moment I'm going to deviate from my scripture. I'll come back. You do have the right scripture on the screen but I I'll come back. I I hope that we realize the value of the word of God. The value of the word of God. Um the word of God is the only thing the only not one of the no it is the only thing that can change our lives. The word of God. The word of God. The preached the preached word of God is the only thing that can truly bring change. You know, we're headed to this time that is found in Matthew chap 24 and verse number three. We're we're headed to this time. It says, "And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be, and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" Jesus answered and said unto them, "Take he that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many. You shall hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you be not troubled, for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. That doesn't sound real promising, does it? But the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, kingdom against kingdom. There shall be famines and pestilence and earthquakes in diverse places. All these are the beginning of sorrow. Once again, chaotic, is it not trouble? He said, this is just the it's just the beginning. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, shall kill you, and shall and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. And then shall many be offended, shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. Many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that endureth But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. It's chaotic times, would you not say? It's it's chaotic times now, but this is speaking of of of a time that's going to be extremely chaotic. He said, "This is just the beginning. I don't don't find a lot of comfort in that." You know, just this is just just the beginning. But here's what I want you to see. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all the nations, and then shall the end come. Can I tell you, I don't care how crazy it gets out there. In the midst of a crazy world is the preached word of God. In the midst of wars and rumors of war and hated and false prophets and all of that, can somebody rise up and lift up this word and begin to preach this word because it's the only thing that can bring peace in the time of turmoil. It's the only thing that can bring healing in the time of sickness. It's the only It's the only thing that can bring sanity when your mind is all tore up. Thank God for his word. Before I read my text tonight, I want us to just take a moment and truly just thank God. If you have your Bibles, hold them. But let's just thank God for his word right now. Lord, I thank you, God, for your word. Lord, I thank you, God. Your word's the only thing that can change my life, God. Lord, you're the your word's the only thing that can lead us. And your word's the only thing that can guide us. Oh God, your word, Lord, is the only thing, God. Lord, we need your word, Lord. God, we value your word, Lord. Oh God, we value your word, God. Lord, we value, God, your word. Oh yes, Lord, we value your word, God. Oh, thank you, Lord. Come on, just just another moment. Say it with your lips. I I I value your word, God. Oh, God. I value your word, Lord. Lord, let me God. I don't want to take, God, your word for granted, Lord. I want to read your word. I want to listen to your word. I want to apply your word, God. Lord Jesus, I need your word. I need your word. you remain standing with me. My text tonight is found in Matthew chapter 4 verse number 17. Simply says, "From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Luke 24:46, Matthew 4:17, he is starting his ministry. Luke 24:46, he is ending his earthly ministry. He's about to ascend into heaven. And he said unto them, "Thus it is written, and thus it behoo Christ to suffer, to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sin should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem, and ye are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the promise of my father upon you, but carry ye in the city of Jerusalem until you be endued with power from on high. Could everybody say amen to the word of God? You may be seated tonight. I want to continue to minister tonight the Bible truth. The Bible truth about repentance. The Bible truth about repentance. You see we have uh last week we studied the Bible truth about God or the one God. The reason this series is called the Bible truth is because whatever subject there is we seek and hunger and desire to know what the Bible says about this. We understand that in Psalms 119 119 105 here's the value of the word. He said thy word is a lamp unto my feet and it is a light unto my path. Notice that the lamp the word is a light to the feet or a lamp to the feet. That word will will show you where you're at currently. That word has the ability. Look at that. It's the it's the lamp to our feet. The word will tell you where you're at right now. You know, you you know if if you call someone, you're out of town and you're trying to find your way to their house or their church and you call them and you say, "Hey, I need directions to your to your church. I'm preaching for you in a few moments and I need directions to your church." One of the first things they're going to ask you, the first thing is, "Where you at?" And if you don't know where you're at, they don't know how to start giving you directions. So, I'm glad that the word of God can find us where we're at. It is a lamp to our feet. But it's not only a lamp to our feet, it is a light to our pathway. The word of God not only shows us where we're at, but the word of God also shows us where we're going. Amen. It's the value of the word. Psalms 119 verse 130 says, "The entrance of thy word, words give light. It gives understanding unto the simple." So when we receive the word of God, when we receive it, when we're listening intently and we're listening to the word of God, number one, God sees that. God honors that. And when you're receiving God's word, does it matter your educational level? Does it matter? Does it matter how if you graduated from high school or if you went to school? If you can receive God's word, he gives understanding. He gives understanding to the simple. And it it goes on and on and it talks about it talks about the word of God. The value of the word of God. the book of James, chapter number one and verse number 21. Uh, and again to our to our media that you're looking you're looking all over my notes saying these are not on there. These came to me in the prayer room tonight. So, uh, I'll get to the ones that came to me and studied today, but this came to me in the prayer room. James 1 and 21. James says, "Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness." In other words, the overabundance of the flesh and receive with meekness the engrafted word which is able to save your souls. Look how he says it. He says, "Receive it in meekness." In other words, when the word of God is being preached or the word of God is being taught and uh it it's kind of like I'm giving it or the minister is giving it and you've got to be receiving it. It's like a football game. The quarterback is throwing it and you got to have a receiver to receive it. And doesn't matter what kind of quarterback you've got if you don't have good receivers. You can have you can have the greatest quarterback of all, but if he doesn't have any receivers out there, they're not going to win any championships, but give me a good quarterback and good receivers. And uh you you you'll win you'll win games. So tonight, when we're receiving the word of God, we've got to receive the word of God with meekness. With meekness. And notice how it says that to receive the word of God with meekness. that that word meekness there, it's a it's kind of a a confusing word. Uh because we think of we think about weakness, meekness, uh we think about meekness, we think about weakness. And it couldn't be further, you know, that guy's meek. And we might think, well, he's a little weak. It's not that at all. Do you know the word meek? The word meek comes from the word when they would take a wild stallion. when they would take a wild horse that they caught out in the wild. Never been saddled. It never been ridden. It's a wild stallion. It's a wild strong animal. When they would break that animal, when they would finally get it saddle broke, when they would finally get it to where it would let a man ride it or it would be yolked up to something to pull. When it finally went from that state of just being wild to the state of being productive, it would take someone to town. It would pull a wagon. They would say the the the the horse is meek. And it simply means strength under control. And so we're going to receive the word of God tonight. We're going to receive the engrafted, notice that the engrafted word of God. In other words, I'm not just going to come and hear a sermon tonight. I'm going to come and let the word be engrafted into my life. I'm going to let it I'm going to let it be engrafted. So, we're talking about in the value of the Bible. We're talking about the Bible truth about repentance. Repentance is simply this. It is a change of mind. It is a change of mind as it appears to one who repents. It is a change of mind that you might have had a purpose. It it is a change of mind of how you would see something. You have a total change of mind. Now we understand what repentance is connected to. Repentance is connected to sin. It is connected to sin. you repent of your sins. And the only way that you can repent is to have a change is to have a change of mind. You will never you will never repent, change your mind of sin until you're able by the word of God that will illuminate that and truly show you the true deadly poisonous bondage that sin brings. You'll never you'll never repent of it. You'll never change your mind. You'll never repent of it until the light comes on, until you can truly, you can truly see this as it is. Just a few of the men in the Bible that preached repentance and they got some good results. There was an entire city, a large city. Some say maybe it had a million people population. They believe that the city of Nineveh had over a million Ninevites that lived there. But yet Nineveh got on God's judgment target and God was going to destroy the entire city and all the inhabitants of Nineveh. But God decided to give Nineveh an opportunity. What was that opportunity? He was going to send Nineveh a preacher by the name of Jonah. And of course we know Jonah had a little a little detour. He had some pride in his heart. you you know uh uh preaching and pride just don't go together. They're not effective. And so uh uh you've heard of some men that have went to Yale University. Uh Jonah went to Whale University. He God took him to Bible school and and uh when God took him to Bible school and uh Jonah in the belly of the whale made a made a vow to God that he would preach to the Nvites. And he went into Nineveh and he preached into Nineveh and he told them what they should do. He told them that they should repent. That meant you got to change your mind, Ninevites. You got to change your mind about how you're living. You got to change your mind about how you're living. Why? Because there's judgment that's coming in 40 days. You're either going to change your mind or judgment's coming. And thank God the Ninevites proclaimed a fast, but they would have never proclaimed a fast if they didn't see sin for what it was. And I mean, it was a radical fast. They they not only wore sackcloth, a very uncomfortable garment on themselves, they put it on the backs of their animals. They not only they not only fasted food and water, they wouldn't let their animals even eat food or water. And they got radical about that. And you know what happened? God saw their repentance and God spared the entire city of the Ninevites. John the Baptist came. What was John's message when he came? John the Baptist message was repent. It was it was repent. And then I read my text tonight. Jesus Christ before he performed any miracles, before he walked on the water performed any miracles. Jesus Christ began his ministry by simply telling everyone that they were to repent because the kingdom of heaven the change was at hand. uh three and a half years later when he was ending his earthly ministry as standing on the earth when he was about to ascend into heaven, he ended his ministry with a message. And guess what that message was? Continue on and preach repentance and that repentance and remission of sins would be preached in all nations beginning at Jerusalem. So, so, so he he was asking it, he was telling them to continue on repentance. And now here we stand, First Apostolic Church, you wonderful people that have come out on a Bible study night. And may God richly bless you for coming out tonight. And may God give you a double blessing for enduring the scratchy voice of your pastor tonight. But here we are 2,000 years later, and can we preach anything less than It's the only thing that'll help people. It's the only thing that'll change people is to get them to repent. It's interesting to get them to repent because we are dealing with people who are spiritually blind. They're spiritually blind. We're trying to tell them that they need to change their mind, change their views, change their direction about something they can't even see. They can't even see. We'll hear people today say such things as, "Well, I just believe if it's not sin to me, then it's not sin at all. I I I I believe if if I don't believe it's sin that I don't believe it's sin. And and the reason they say things like that is they are spiritually blind. They're spiritually blind. Well, let's find a scripture to back up the blindness. It's found in second Corinthians 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse number three. And this ought to really, brother Ericson, this ought to really um inspire us uh to be a witness. to be a witness. So really inspire us to be a witness of 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse number three. Listen to Paul. But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are who is it hid to? It's hid to the lost. If we if we hide our gospel, if we keep our witness under a bushel, if we light a bill carpet, I've got a burning testimony. That's wonderful. I hope you've not put a bushel on top of it. Or I hope you you know, there's two things there. There's two things. Jesus said, "You light a candle and put it under a bushel, or you light a candle and put it under your bed." Well, you may have a candle that's lit, but it's not really serving a purpose if it's put under a bushel. Matter of fact, a bushel was intended to carry a harvest. You weren't to you were not to put the bushel over the candle. You were to hold the light and take the bushel and go out and get your harvest. But he said, if you covered it, if you covered your light up or he said, you put your light under the bed. I'm glad that God has given us rest. The Holy Ghost talks about a rest that he gives us. But when God gives us a rest, it's not a rest to do nothing. It's a rest to be a witness. Because once again, church, if our gospel is hid, who's it hid to? Those that are lost. But it doesn't stop there. Look at verse four. In whom the God, and you'll notice that's a little G, in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not. How are these people blinded? The God of this world has blindfolded. We were We were blinded. We were blinded when Satan when Satan uh the Bible uses the analogy of light as information as as information. When Satan entered the Garden of Eden and gave Eve what kind of information? False information. You eat of this tree, you'll be like God. you eat of this tree. Even though God's word, who's the true light, God said the day you eat of it, you'll die. Satan comes as an angel of light. Paul says, as an angel of information and he comes and he says, "Well, if you'll eat of this fruit of this tree, you'll be like God and you will not surely die." And when Eve received the false information, when she received the lie, man became blinded, the God of this world had blinded the minds of them which believe not. But the scriptur is not not finished because the world may be blind, but the world is not without hope. This world may be blind. Your family may be blinded. You may have family members that are blinded in sin. They may be blinded, but they're not without hope. Because here's the only hope they have. The Bible said he has blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ who is the image of God should shine upon them. That's why we need to value the word. That's why we need to be able to witness the word because this world is in darkness and the only true light is when you and I begin to take the word of God into a blind world and we begin to shine that light. Can you say amen? Oh, there's the value. There's the value of the preached word. The value of the preached of the preached word. The Bible says in John chapter 3 verse number 16, John chapter 3 verse number 16. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. I've showed you man is born blind. The god of this world is blinded their minds. Man is born blind. How can man receive his sight? He has got to receive the word of God. And what happens when we receive the word of God? We begin to believe. We begin to believe on him. We begin to believe on him once again. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. How does a person believe on Jesus Christ? How does a person believe upon him? Now just hold your place there in John, but flip over to the book of Romans. Romans chapter 10. Romans chapter 10 and verse number five. Romans chapter 10 and verse number five. And while I'm at it, while I'm while while I'm at this, I told you that during the chaotic times, wars, rumors of wars, nation hating one another, on and on. Terrible times. But the gospel of the kingdom is being preached. The gospel of the kingdom is being preached. Do you know that there was a church in Rome? And history by the day, archaeologists, historians are revealing to us just how wicked and vile Rome was at the time of Jesus Christ and at the time of the apostolic church. Historians have have have have researched and they have found that Caesar Augustus, one of the Caesars during the time of the apostolic church in Rome, his favorite pastime, he was a man, but he loved to dress up like a woman. You might find him in a ballroom one night dressed like a man that he was. or he had this strange perverted way of wanting to appear in public as a woman. I'm here to tell you, it doesn't matter how perverted the culture is, nothing can stamp out the word of the living God. Feed it to lions, persecute it, do everything. It's how valuable the word is tonight. And I hope every one of us go home tonight and I hope every one of us know the power that we have that may be lying right there on the nightstand beside our bed. This book is full of power. It's a hammer. It's a sword. It's a light. It's everything that we It's everything that we need. Paul Romans chapter 10 verse number five trying to get the people to see that the law the Old Testament law was not effective to bring people out of sin. Paul says in Romans 10 and5 look at this closely. Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law that the man which doeth those things shall live by them. That was the problem. Man could not live up to the law. He could not live up to the law. He would break the law. And I'm going to tell you, it was if you break one law, you broke all the laws. The only way you could be perfect was to obey all the law. And no man could obey all the law until God became a man. And so Paul says this, that the man which doeth those things shall live by them. Verse six, but the righteousness or the right standing with God, which is of faith speaketh on this wise, say not in thine heart, who shall ascend into heaven, that is to bring Christ down from above? Or who shall descend into the deep, that is to bring up Christ again from the dead? But what saith it, the word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth and in thine heart. That is what what's in my what's in my what is in my mouth and in my heart. What is in my mouth and my heart? That is the word of faith which we preach. Paul said the law was ineffective because you couldn't live up to the law. But God had a new standard of righteousness and it was the preached word of God. And when you would hear the preached word of God and the light of the Holy Ghost would illuminate your heart, if you would allow that word to get in your heart and you would allow that word to get in your mouth, that was the way that man was justified with God. You think about it right now. how much better our minds could be if we would meditate on God's word. You you think about how much better our lives would be. You know, so some people, and I'm just going to be your pastor tonight, but if you're playing Fox News or whatever news all day long in your home, you're going to probably come in looking like you've been baptized in pickled juice and born on the dark side of the moon. Now, I'm not telling you not to I'm not telling you not to watch the news. All right? I'm I'm not telling you to do that. But when you just feed your mind this and conspiracy and conspiracy and not trusting and this and that and that all gets in your mind, you can't be happy. But what about if we get up in the morning and we begin to read God's word? No weapon formed against me will prosper. I love you with an everlasting love. If I be for you, who can be against you? Training your children to honor their father and their mother. Come on, church. What a what a wonder if we would get it in our heart and then get it in our get it in our mouths. Get it in our mouths. This is the word of faith which we preach. Look at verse nine. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in thine heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto the right unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed, for there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek, for the same Lord for for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Now this is where I I read all that to get to this part question. How shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? How you going to call on someone that you have not believed? How you going to call on some call upon someone that you have not believed? Good question. How shall they believe in him in whom they have not heard? Good question. How shall they hear without a preacher? Now, don't get the emphasis on the man because the man is not the word. The man is the one carrying the word. How can they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach except they be sent? As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things. Now notice this, and this is one reason, one of the many reasons I embrace the apostolic doctrine. This is one of the many reasons I embrace brother slack the apostolic doctrine is because we only for 100% proof know of a certain group of men that Jesus Christ sent. As a lot of people can say I've been sent. I've been sent. God called me. God sent me. And you get them all in a room and it's a bunch of confusion. But 100% we know because Jesus prayed in John chapter 17 and he said, "Father, I send them into the world that they may believe that the world may believe on me through their word." That's why as a church, we're going to embrace the apostolic, the apostles doctrine and teaching because they're the only ones we know for sure that God sent in the world. And we know that. And God is still sending us into the world with the message that can change. There's listen, there is nothing. We don't preach make a decision for Christ. We preach repentance to Christ. We we don't preach some make a decision. We preach re we preach repentance under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. And the Holy Ghost, boy, I feel my helper coming on. The Holy Ghost is the light. and people are sitting in darkness. But if we can get around them and bring the light, they'll begin to see that they need to change. And when we preach repentance, it'll change their mind. They'll get water baptized in Jesus' name. They'll receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. And they'll begin to see. Feel my helper coming on. How could they preach except they be sent? How can they hear without a preacher? How can they believe except they've heard? And how can they call unless they believe? Let's go back to John chapter 3:1 17 now. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world. Excuse me for taking a drink of water in front of you. They say they say in Bible cemetery I mean seminary they say that they say that when the minister takes a drink of water that by pull pit adequate is to turn around and um I'm so good-looking I look as good from one side as they do the other. For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world. See, Jesus didn't come to condemn the world. Why is that? But that the world through him might be saved. Now, why didn't he come to condemn the world? I'm gonna go ahead and give you the answer. You want to see it in scripture. Because the world's already condemned. It was already condemned. Um it it was already under under condemnation. Was already condemned. He didn't have to come and condemn the world. It was already It had already been condemned. It says, "For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved." He that believeth on him is not condemned because be but but he but he that believeth not, you get this correct. But he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten son of God. And this is condemnation. What is condemnation? How can I know condemnation? And this is condemnation. That light is come into the world and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth, no, no, it didn't say believeth in truth. It says doeth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be manifest, that they are wrought in God. I'm going to tell you, blessed be the person that is full of sin and falls under the light of God's word and sees his deeds as evil. and repents of the way that he sees them. Oh God, I never knew that you viewed this this way. That's right. You never knew because you didn't have the word preached. But now that the word comes with the illumination of the Holy Ghost, we begin to say, "Oh, God, it doesn't matter if I feel like it's sin. It doesn't matter if I see it this way or not. Doesn't matter, God. If you say it's sin, that settles it. God, it is sin. And I change my mind. I change my mind about how that I view that. But oh, pray for the person that comes under the preaching of God's word. The light illuminates and they turn from that light because they would rather have their deeds done in darkness. I want the word to change me. I want the word. I want the word to change me. The only way to come out of the darkness of condemnation is by the preaching of the word of God. The only way to come out of darkness. Thank God for our singing. We have We I was going to say we have some of the best. We don't have some of the best singing. We have the best singing around here. We We have the best singing. Talented people. Oh, precious God. Thank you for the talent that's in this church. But can I tell you as talented as the singers are as as talented and as as wonderful as the the the the graphic designers and all of this that that that that do such a wonderful job. It will never bring a person out of sin. The only way you can come out of sin is to develop a hunger and a thirst to want to hear the word of God. At first, you won't like it. At first it'll offend you. At first you you'll tell everybody, "No, I'm coming back. The preacher's preaching right at me. I just feel so judged when I go to that church. I I just feel so jud you're not you're not feeling judged. You're feeling condemned." But that's another sermon for another time. But if you can just sit still, if you can just sit still and say, "This is good for me. This is good for me. This is good for me. This is good for me." You know, I I I don't I don't like I don't, Sister Selena, I don't like asparagus. I I don't like asparagus. I have acquired a taste for asparagus. Why? Because I read in a medical journal just how good asparagus is for you. Now, I I I would have no problem with chocolate covered asparagus. I would I would I would have no I would have no problem with fried uh with fried uh asparagus wrapped in 14 pounds of bacon. I I would have I would have no problem with that. But I have to understand that's not good for me. But if you'll keep eating what you know, oh, y'all know I'm preaching tonight. If you'll keep eating what you know, even though even though your flesh, it just ruffles your feathers and all that. If you just keep on saying, "Spoon it to me, pastor. Spoon it to me, pastor." Sooner or see, sooner or later, the Bible said, "Oh, taste and see that the Lord is not good." You You may not, oh, it's so sour. Oh, I'm listening to that again. It's another Bible study on being faithful. It's another Bible study on keep your kids in church. It's another Bible study on don't miss a church service. But after a while, you begin to look around and you see the goodness of God. And you see just how good that God has been. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good. Could you help me? Could you help me? What was the first message when Peter preached on the day of Pentecost? Peter preached under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost. And the same men, the same people that 50 days prior said, "Crucify him. Crucify him." Peter gets up and says, "This Jesus whom you have crucified, God made him both Lord and Christ. Then he began to preach and the Bible said, "And when they heard this, they were pricricked in their heart. They were stabbed in their heart." Don't say it. Hey, didn't say he didn't say they were massaged in their heart. Too many churches are nothing more that than glorified massage parlors. They Oh, I want to go there. He makes me feel so good. You You don't need to have that kind of thinking. You you don't need to have the kind of thinking, oh, I just feel so good. He just he listen, you can take a corpse to a massage parlor and oil its feet and rub its shoulders, but it's still dead. So, we don't want a massage parlor around here. We We don't want a place Oh, put your feet right here, honey. We're going to soak these feet. We're going to We're going to trim the We're going to get a chainsaw out and trim Brother Ericson's toenails. I mean, we're going to we're going we're going to do what we're going to do, man. We're going to rub your shoulders. Oh, oh, your hair going to make you feel good. No, no, no. You listen, that might have its place. Not for me, but that might have it that might that might have its place. But when you come to church, preach to me, preacher. Preach to me tonight. I'm I need to be preached to. I'm living in a body of flesh and I've been fighting the flesh and I need somebody to preach to me. I need some help. I I need somebody to preach to my flesh. Come on. Could you give him some praise right now? You know why? Men and brethren, pricked in the heart. Men and brethren, what shall we do? Peter said, "We've got a class starting next week on how to feel good about yourself." We've got a class next week starting on building your self-esteem, believing the champion that is within you. Can I tell you? Come on. Without God, we're all rotten. You're talking to me tonight. I'm talking to you. I'm talking to me. Without God, we're right. Without God, we've got an Adamic, sinful nature inside of us. Without God, we've got that inside of us. But oh, when God comes into our life, God conquers. There's two men mentioned in the New Testament. Old man, new man. Old man was full of death. New man is full of life. But just because I repent, no Peter didn't say we got a self-esteem class coming up. He didn't say we've got 10 ways to develop the giant the the champion within you. Peter, when they said, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Then Peter said, "Oh my good." Then Peter said unto them, "What? Repent and be baptized, every one of you, for what? For the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. And when that born again experience happens, I got to sound an alarm tonight. Your Holy Ghost baptism is not your graduation certificate. It is your birth certificate. The war has just started. People say, "Well, the carpenter, I didn't feel like this, man. When I was a sinner, I didn't have these kind of problems I'm having now. Welcome to the battlefield." Because the enemy wasn't fighting you when he had you on a trot line leading you to hell and you were going along blindly. But now you got your eyes open and you say, "I I don't want to do that anymore. I I I don't want to go that way anymore." Friends, so-called friends will leave you. Problems will break out. But hold on to God because he came to give us life and to give us life more abundantly. The old man, the new man, the old man must be crucified. The old man must be kept crucified. The old man must die daily. The old man will try to make contact with the new man. And the old man will try to tell you, you don't really need to pray. You don't really need to go to church. And if you go to church, you don't really you don't really need, you know, you're there. Just just accept it that you're there. Can I tell you that's the old man talking? You need to put the old man in his place. and you say, "Oh, no, no, no, no. I'm not just going to go to church. I'm going to worship the Lord." And and in the morning when you wake up and the old man says, "You you don't really need to pray, you you need to say, oh no, I need strength for right now today. I need strength for today." You know, repentance, anytime you can repent, and repentance is not a one time thing that you do. It's not a onetime thing that you do. Repentance is a attitude. Save yourselves from this untored generation. Repentance is not some, well, I repented 50 years ago. No, repentance is a direction. Repentance is a view. And unless you keep the lights burning in the atmosphere, right, that darkness will creep back in. But repentance, repentance helps you to see things. Don't don't you want to see things for that how they truly are? You want to see things for how they truly are? Let me let me kind of end with this tonight. The story of the prodical son, Luke 15 verse 17, or excuse me, not Luke 15:17. It would be u um well it would be on a it would be give me Luke 15:15 if you can do that. Luke 15:15. Can you put it on the screen? Um go go back up a few more verses. U maybe 13. All right. Uh how about one more verse? One more verse. There's there's a phrase I'm looking for. That's it. And the younger said to his father, "Father," everybody say, "give me." That was his attitude. That was his view. Something is owed me. I'm owed something. Give me. Everybody say those two words with me again. Give me. So, just to for time's sake, the father gave him inheritance. He went down to far country, ran with the wrong crowd, drank up his inheritance, lived with harlots, got broke, had to get a job feeding swine, the Bible says in verse 17, "When he came to himself, he said, how many hired servants of my father's house have bread enough and to spare, I perish with hunger. I will arise and go to my father and say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and I'm no more worthy to be called thy son, make me. What's the difference between a young man saying, "Give me," and a young man saying, "Make me." He now has the right view of his father's house. In an unrepentant spirit, he was in the father's house believing, "You owe me something. You owe me something." Can Can we just Can we just just be the church for a moment tonight? Nobody owes me a handshake, a pat on the back. Nobody owes you that either. All right. That's nice to get that. But anytime I get to thinking I'm owed that, I start seeing things totally different. Because none of us would be here tonight if it wasn't for the mercy. To dare say I belong here. To dare say I deserve to be here. To dare say, well, I I deserve to have this done. You're seeing things different than what you ought to see them. But when you get out there, you see the father's house totally different. You're reaching down in the midst of hog food and you remember your father's servants have bread enough to spare. Then you just simply say, "I see the father's house for what it is. Father, make me. Don't you want God to make you tonight? Well, if you know, if God doesn't give me this or if God doesn't come through for that, I just don't know if God doesn't come through. If God doesn't give me this, you you got to realize you may be servants go God's hand and ignoring God's face because the most important thing in our walk with God is not what God will give us, but what God thinks about us and what God see. I want him to smile on us tonight. He can have an empty hand, but if he's got a smiling face, that's what I want tonight. I want to hear him say, "One day, well done, good and faithful servant." Young man repented. Young man repented. How about the story of the rich man in hell? Who is that at the gate again? Who do I hear at the gate? It's the beggar. What's he want now? bread. He says, "Just sweep up crumbs from the table and he'll take those. Would you send the dogs back after him?" And the dogs came. But let the man wind up in hell. Things change, don't they? He sees the same Lazarus that he sent the dogs to and he makes one request would just let him dip his finger in some water and touch my tongue. What's the difference? A change of mind, a change of repentance. I don't want to repent. I know this is really not, you know, this is not the massage parlor tonight making you feel good, but I don't want to repent in hell. I don't want to be. Listen, hell will be the hell will have the greatest prayer meeting going on. There'll be more people talking about the work of God in hell. I should have done this. I should have gave that. I should have did this. I should have stayed in church. I should have did this. I should have been that. I don't want to wait until hell to start saying, "I wish I had done this. I wish I had done that. I want to see it for what it is right now. God, make me. God, just simply, Lord, just simply make me. Let me carry on tonight. I'll tell you how serious God is. They brought a blind man to him in the city of Bayada. It's an interesting read. I'll just quickly go through it for time's sake. Jesus comes to the city of the seed and they bring a blind man to him and Jesus took him by the hand. He took the blind man by the hand and the Bible says he led him out of the city. It says that he led him out of the city. When he led him out of the city, the Bible says that Jesus spit in his eyes and touched his head and he asked him, "How do you see?" And the man said, "I see men as trees walking." Jesus touched him again and the Bible said he saw all men clearly. Now some have said that this is a miracle to where even divinity sometimes cannot fully work. I don't believe that. I don't believe that. I believe what happened to the man is what happens to a lot of us. Spit is the highest form of reproach or disrespect that you can show some show to somebody. And when Jesus spit in his face and laid his hands upon him, there is the mixture of offense and divinity that gets mixed up. He's offended and the power of God hits him. And anytime we allow offense, and this is why we've got to keep changing our view, I cannot afford to get offended. I cannot afford to let bitterness stay in my heart. I cannot not afford to have an unforgiving spirit. I can't afford to hold a grudge. My spiritual condition depends upon me staying free. My family, my wife, all of this and on and on and on and it goes. Did he mix it up and it caused him not to be able to see people clearly? Could we not all testify tonight? Give me a little leeway. Could we not all testify tonight that we have seen people get offended? And what they used to see is a church full of good people. They now see it totally different than ever before. What they used, friend, what they used to say, you can't have church long enough for me. You can't hardly keep them here for throughout one service. What you used to be, they used to come up to the front. Now they stand in the back because they're they they've allowed an offense to get in there and Jesus touched him again without the spittle and he saw all men clearly. But that's not even the point I want to get to. He later tells that man, he says, "Don't go back into that city and tell what I've done. Don't go back into Baya and tell what I've done." You read it on service, it's like, wonder what that's about. Well, later in the book of Matthew, Jesus pronounces a curse upon Baya. He says, "Woe unto you, Bessaya. For if the mighty works that were done in you were done in Sodom and Gomorrah, they would have repented." Bayeda was a city that would not repent. And a city that will not repent is a city that will not see the work of God. I want God to work in my life. That's why I've got to keep changing my view. I want God to work in my marriage. That's why we got to keep changing our view. I want God to work in our family. That's why we got to keep changing our view. I want God to work in this church. That's why we have to keep the spirit of repentance. are closing this. Would you stand with me right now? Would you not only stand with me right now, but would you tell the old man you're going to lift your hands up right now? Would you tell the old man you're going to lift up your voice right now? He'll kick a little bit, but just go ahead and lift up your lift up your hands right now. Tell the old man, I'm going to lift up my voice a little bit louder, cuz this is the new man praying tonight. This is a new man praying. Repent. Repent. Repent. Repent. Repentance is in the Old Testament. Repentance is in the New Testament. The last book in our Bible, can you believe some of the scripture I'm going to read you? The last book in the Bible, Revelation 2 and five. Remember Jesus is speaking here as the high priest. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen and repent. Revelation 2:16. Repent or else I will come unto thee quickly. Revelation 2:21. I gave her space to repent of her fornication and she repented not. Revelation 2:22. Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. Revelation 3 and3, remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, hold fast and repent. Revelation 3:19, as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Be zealous, therefore, and help me now, and repent. Revelation 9 and 20. Now, we leave the church. We leave the church in chapter three. Now we're talking about tribulation time. But even in tribulation, this is this brother Jeter. Even in tribul, this is how bad this is how bad God wants you to repent. Even in tribulation, watch this. Revelation 9:20. And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues, yet repented not of the works of their hands, but that they should not worship devils and idols of gold and silver and brass and stone and of wood, which neither can see nor hear nor walk. He's saying, I even gave them an opportunity to do what? Amen. Revelation 9:21. They neither repented they of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their fornication nor of their thefts. Revelation 16 and9. This I can't trying to wrap my mind around this. Revelation 16 and9. And men were scorched with great heat and blaspheing the name of God which hath power over these plagues. And they repented not to give him glory in the midst of tribulation. God is just saying, "I wish somebody would repent. I wish somebody would just change their mind." My last one tonight, Revelation 16:11. And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and they repented not of their deeds. Can I tell you that if God would be merciful to people in tribulation, it's another dispensation. How much more would God be merciful to you and I tonight if we just take about 60 seconds and just lift up our hands and our voices. God, search me tonight, God. Oh God, search me tonight, God. Oh God, just search me tonight, God. Oh God, you search my heart tonight, God. I God, I've allowed sin to darken my view. God, I've allowed sin, God, to give me a negative spirit. God, I've allowed sin, God, to be a wet wet blanket on my praise and on my worship. God, I repent tonight. I I change my mind tonight, God. Lord, there's something in your word. There's something, God, Lord, and praise. There's something, God, in this place tonight, God, I change my mind right now, Lord. I I change my mind right now. Come on, just a few more seconds right now. Oh, I please beg for you tonight. I I plead with you tonight. I I I beg you wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up. Jesus God. Jesus God. Jesus God. What a good God we serve. What a good God we serve. Would you with all sincerity just turn to somebody beside you and say, "What a good God we serve. What a good God we serve. What a good God. Sister Carpenter, let's go to the back. What a good God we serve. Isn't he a good God? Isn't he a good God tonight? Is he a wonderful God tonight? Who's going to change her? God's not wanting to kill you. God's not wanting to kill you. Hey, if you're feeling a frown from God, it's just because he's tried to smile at you, but you've not responded to his goodness. So, he's kind of giving you a little bit of a cold shoulder, but he's not forsaken you. He just wants you to know that he's there to love you. His frown will turn into a smile if you repent. One more time tonight. Lift up your hands and your voices. And after you praise him, consider yourself dismissed.