What's Wrong with the Third and Fourth Generation of Pentecostals
by T. W. Barnes
1991
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Matthew 16:13-19, 2 Corinthians 1:12, 1 Corinthians 3:19, Job 32:9, Matthew 11:25, Galatians 1:12, Luke 24:49, Acts 1:8, Acts 2:37-38, 2 Corinthians 3:6, Mark 16, Judges 2:7, Judges 2:10

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/t-w-barnes--whats-wrong-with-the-third-and-fourth-generation-of-pentecostals
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
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Man, the cross belonged. The cross became popular because a man called Jesus died on it. Not because Barabbus died on it or some other outlaw, but because the innocent son of God, savior of the world, died on the old rugged cross. It became a popular cross with a church that loves it, that puts it on the steeple of the church and even on the light fixtures and everywhere because we honor the man that died on the old rugged cross. So I have been praying and others are praying, God, would you do that? You did it for Israel. Would you do it for the church? Would you put the cross in orbit? Before the end of time, you promised signs in the heavens. Sign fire is one of the signs. One other flaming cross on fire. Now I know the Lord Jesus Christ would not want to do that personally himself because you know he said if I honor myself I don't want to do that. But you see this if the church worldwide asked for this because we're the church and he's our God and we love him and we want the world to know what happened on Calvar's Hill then things could change a whole lot. Jesus said I'm the door. No one can come to the father the eternal spirit but through me. So I've been saying Lord would you just let us through the door and let us talk to the eternal spirits about this matter and that the world may know that thou art to Christ the savior of the world. What a different world it would be if everyone bowed before him. Turn to Matthew the 16th chapter. heard it many times, but I have something in here I want to lift out and talk about today. And we welcome all of you that came again and invite you back. Let us turn to the 13th verse to the 16th chapter. When Jesus came into the coast of Cicero or Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, "Whom do men say that I, the son of man, am?" That was a point blank question. And they said, "Some say that thou art John the Baptist, some Elias, and others Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." But he said unto them, "But whom do but whom say ye that I am?" Whom say ye?

I'm not interested in what somebody else says. I want to know what my disciples think. And Simon Peter answered and said, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjonah, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my father which is in heaven. And I say unto thee that thou art Peter, and upon this rock or this revelation, I'll avail my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it, and I'll give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. and my text today. What's wrong with the third and fourth generation of Pentecostals? What's wrong with the third and the fourth generation of Pentecostals? I suppose about any denomination would be asking that question, what's wrong with this generation? What in the world has gone wrong? Well, I want to dwell on that just a little bit. And some, I'm afraid, are just fallen the faith of their fathers. And they don't have a personal conviction. Our fathers that had the conviction that we care today were men who fasted and prayed and walked in holiness until it came by divine and holy revelation. Therefore, you cannot get by on somebody else's conviction. You may follow it for a while, but after a while, you'll begin to reason and to think maybe they were wrong. But you see, Jesus wanted the Apostle Peter, the man with the keys to the kingdom, to get this by the bind and holy revelation because he was going to be tested and tried. He was going to be crucified upside down. The Lord wanted him to have a revelation that would stay with him through death. This generation needs a new fresh revelation that'll stay with them through death if necessary. Now flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto you, Peter. Human brains, minds, and degrees didn't get this to you, Peter. You know the mind of Edison and the Einstein kings, presidents, great men don't necessarily have a divine revelation. These men can be carnal and far from the truth. 2 Corinthians 1:12.

God called it fleshly wisdom. 1 Corinthians 3:19. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. Job 32:9. Great men, he said, are not always wise. Matthew 11:25. Thou hast hid these things from the wise and the prudent, and revealed them unto babes. That's not little babies in the arms necessarily. That is babes in Christ can get a greater revelation than kings and doctors and lawyers and great men that know not the truth by divine revelation. And there's a God in heaven that knows what he's doing and where he's going with the church. Now, the news media calls this the lost generation. And the news media help cause it to be the lost generation. You can't believe everything those fellers tell you. They've been telling us for years that communism was it. But communism is falling apart. When fools rule, the nation's going to fall apart. And the Bible said the fool has said in his heart there's no God. That's why communism fell apart. They were atheist fools. How can a nation exist in 74 years? It fell apart because fools were ruling. Had they listened to the rule of the one true God manifested in the flesh, it would have been a different situation over there. The fools that were in office would tell the kids in school, "The Christians talk about pie in the sky." But we give you pie on earth. But it got to the place the only way they could give them pie on earth was to get a a big loan from the United States. Amen. A people filled with churches. A people that has in God we trust on their money. people that has old glory still flying. Praise God. Praise God. Liberty, freedom. Yes, we have watched the rule of food come to an end. And these fellas are certainly confused in the world today because they didn't read the Bible to find out they were plain fools. The fool. The Lord only mentioned the atheist one time as far as I know in the Bible. And he said the fool has said in

his heart there's no God. And he cut him off cold. He wouldn't worth writing about. Amen. Now Christians today are the greatest peace lovers. people of that love God and helped people than any other people on earth. You know that. Now the truth of the matter is the nation that has served God and history proves this has been the most successful nation on earth. And when they turned away from God, they lost their blessing of prosperity and went into great depressions. If America will turn her face back to God, God will give her prosperity again. But if she continues the road she's traveling, we are on our way to a depression that 19 and 29 would look like a Sunday school picnic. We need to wake up church and pray for revival. Revival in America. Now the generation, the missing generation that the news media talks about could be the greatest generation. It should be the greatest generation because of all history that has to look at because to just observe who made it and who didn't make it back there ought to make us stand up and take notice that the nation that loves God is the nation that prospers. always has been that way. With God in our lives and faith in our hearts and a church to help us, there's nothing in the world that can can stop us. Now, what is wrong with this generation or with the third and the fourth generation of Pentecostals, young people? Now, not all have missed the mark. Thank God there's some this held on. And the Lord said, "Now flesh and blood have not revealed this unto you, Peter. Uh, but my father which is in heaven, this is a divine revelation that'll stay with you until you're dead, Peter." The Apostle Paul had a divine revelation from heaven. He didn't get it secondhanded. He didn't even go to Jerusalem to find out. He went to the desert and prayed through. He said, "I didn't get this revelation from men. I didn't get it secondhanded. I got it direct from heaven." He said, "On the road to Damascus, I heard a voice and I saw a light.

and I fell down blind and a man came and said, "The Lord has sent me to lay my hands on you that you might receive the Holy Ghost." The Apostle Paul received the divine revelation that Jesus Christ was God there by that horse on the ground. And I want you to know that when he laid his head on the chop block, he hadn't deviated. He was still preaching the same gospel. Amen. He said, "If any man comes preaching any other gospel unto you, than that which I preach, let him be a curse." That man that gets it direct from God. You can't change them. There's no such thing as changing them. It's in them. When he laid his head on the chop block, he said, "I fought a good fight. Thank God I preached the gospel. I have live right, and now I'm going to die right. If you don't live right, you can't die right." Hallelujah. What this generation needs is a fresh a fresh divine revelation of the doctrines and the truth that's in this book. Now, Galatians 1:12, Paul said, "I didn't receive this gospel from men, but by revelation of Jesus Christ." Amen. I am so sure of it. I am dead sure. I got it direct from him. He appeared to me. He talked to me. The blinding light made me blind naturally for three days that he might open my eyes spiritually. I'm so sure that no angel will ever change me. I'm so sure that no doctor or lawyer or preacher anywhere will ever change me from this that I'm preaching. How about you? Praise God. What this generation needs then is back Pentecost. Luke 24:49. Har ye until you be endued with power from on high. If you get the right revelation, if you do it right, you'll come out with power. If you do it like somebody else is doing it, you may come out with nothing. But if you tar until you be endued with power from on high, you'll come out with power to live right, power to do right. Praise God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.

And when Jesus said, "Try until he had 120 that stayed with him." Acts 1:8, "Ye shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you." And there came a sound from heaven. You know, there wasn't much backsliding. I don't read of any except Judas. And he backslid before. I do find two or three. Ananas and Safara. But man, I want you to know something. That was such a divine revelation of the truth and the power of God that men feared God. They was afraid to go out and eat and drink and cuss with the world and come to church. Amen. Amen. That bunch had a divine revelation. This was not some man's concoction. This is divine. He'd come from heaven and they were all in one place. They finally got them all in one place. Nowadays, you can't get them in all in one place. On Sunday morning, some of them playing ball, some of them's fishing, some of them's hunting. But I notice here they got them all in one place at one time. And they are all in one mind. and one accord. You got to have a divine revelation to get in one mind and one accord. And when you get like that, you can mark it down. The manifestation of the spirit's going to be there. Well, there came a sound from heaven. The Bible said as a rushing mighty wind and it filled all the house where they were sitting. There was no vacancies. It was filled. Praise God. It stirred the town because this came from heaven. You see, this Acts 2:38 message came from heaven, freshly anointed when it was preached and it made an impact on the toughest people in the world. Now, Menon may be a tough town, but it didn't have nothing on Jerusalem. Man, that bunch of Jews was the world's toughest. They had just nailed Jesus Christ to the cross. They had killed a lot of people. They had their minds made up. They were tough as a boot. No. Talk to us about this Jesus. But here walked a man to the pull pit with a fresh revelation with the D of heaven on it. And he rared back and he said, "You a bunch of murderers. You killed the innocent son of God. And man, whenever he said that, they were pricricked in their hearts. The truth got them. Conviction hit them. They begin to feel it deep down inside.

There's something about the divine revelation of truth that brings conviction." They said, "Men and brethren, what must we do?" And Peter said, "Repent every one of you. I don't believe in this preaching faith only skipping nowadays. You can skip repentance. You can skip water baptism. You can about skip anything." Amen. And you're going to skip heaven if you're not careful. He's going to skip heaven. Amen. Here's a man that had it straight straight from heaven. Here's a man that was not talking himself. It was the Holy Ghost in him talking. Repent every one of you and be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. and 3,000 were added to the church because this was fresh from heaven. Ah, this generation needs something fresh from heaven right out of a red hot prayer meeting. So what this generation need is a pray down revelation, not a studed up revelation. going to book stores and all of this stuff, but they need a prayed down revelation right from the Lord Jesus Christ until we can put the spirit and the word together. We got a lot of people that can preach the word, but they don't know how to put the spirit in it. All right. Now, when reading the Bible, if you're not careful, the mind will try to reason. And when the mind starts reasoning, you miss it. You've got to learn to read the Bible with the spirit. When you read it with the spirit, it sounds so different. It is so different. I quoted one fell 150 scriptures on the subject plain as no on your page said I can't see it can't see it and he couldn't because it was concerning the godhead and he comes with divine revelation you can't figure it out you can't reason it out human reasoning you find wind up a three four five No tell how many gods before it's over with. Now when reading the Bible, we must read it in Jesus name full of the Holy Ghost to see it and understand it. Now my Bible tells me plainly that this book was written by men, holy men, filled with the Holy Ghost. That the Carl mind didn't write it.

that heaven spoke the words to the prophets that came from the Holy Ghost. Then how can a carnal mind understand what the spirit is saying? He can't hear it. He can't understand it. He can't feel it. He can't get a hold of it. This generation needs a Bible revelation of what it all means. and then you'll not be staggering around over this scripture and that scripture now. But if you read it on fire with the Holy Ghost, you'll receive it gladly. There's something about it. You know, I worry about folks that's always worried about having to give up something that just turns me the wrong way. They were, I you don't have to give up this, you don't have to give up that, you don't have to give up this. And my Lord, what you think about the apostolic church, Jesus gave up his life for this. Amen. He died. That's how much he believed it. He died. Every apostle died a martyr except John. They were called a thunder. They were eating by lions. They were burned to escape praising God. They had a divine revelation. You couldn't do that, honey, with one of these carnal revelations. You couldn't even give up one meal. You couldn't even let chop one little toe off. Oh, Siri, honey, you you far from giving your life for this unless it come to a divine revelation. Now I read here in 2 Corinthians 3 and6 the letter kills that is the Bible alone just a fellow with a carnal mind trying to read it it finishes him up the car the the letter kills but the spirit with it gives life he's trying to tell us something here is spiritually revealed The Holy Ghost had it written. Therefore, to read it with a carnal mind, you'll miss it every time. That's what he's saying. It's spiritually discerned. Now, remember the Bible with a carnal mind kills faith. It kills conviction. It kills love. It kills truth. You heard me tell it. One day the story goes they met they they met the devil. He had a suit of clothes on all shined up. Man, his hair was all parted just right and they were creased was just right with the Bible under his arm. And they said,

"Man, what in the world has happened to you, Satan? Have you got converted?" He said, 'Oh no.' He said, I've started preaching, though. He said, I have learned to preach without the spirit. He said, if you preach the word without the spirit, it kills them. So, I have them good and dead before the fellow that has the divine revelation gets to him. That's the truth. Amen. It's a story, but that's the truth because I just read it to you. The letter kills. You can debate it. You can argue and reason the human mind, you'll never come to the knowledge of the truth. But if you read it, if you read it with the anointing of the Holy Ghost, it'll bring light. It'll bring life. It'll bring liberty. It'll bring joy. It'll bring peace. It'll bring everything you need if you read it with the Holy Ghost. Got to do it that way. Amen. Now, preaching doctrine to the letter. sometimes when men are backsliding, they they come become what they call conservatives. They going to preach the doctrine. Oh, they preach it, brother. They can preach it. Amen. Until it scares you to death to think, man, he he put the finishing touch to it. He he he really does. He preaches the doctrine and his truth. It's truth. But his truth preached without love, without conviction, no anointing, no freshness. No love, no faith in it whatsoever. So when is preached like that, it kills hope. Our greatest hope in the church is revival. But this kind of doctrinal preaching only. Don't misunderstand me. I believe all the doctrine. But I'm telling you, it's killing a lot of people. It's causing division in churches. It's causing division in organizations. Preaching the doctrine without the Holy Ghost, without the anointing, without the love, without the faith that goes with it. It kills hope. Watch these fellas. They say in the days of revival's over, ain't nothing over long as God's alive. Amen. They say no more gifts of the spirit. That's in the past. Nothing's in the past. Jesus said, "I'm God today as well as yesterday, and I'll be God tomorrow." When this bunch of dead heads are dead and gone, I'll still be alive, and I'll be God.

Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Thank you, Lord. All right. Great revivals, signs, and wonders are preached until he comes. And revelation knowledge exalts Jesus Christ and his word. Mark 16, revelation knowledge. The disciples when they preached when they went preaching with the divine revelation, the spirit was there to confirm their word with signs following. That's proof that they had more than just a dead letter doctrine. When they preach the doctrine, signs are. That's a way to tell. One will preach it and nothing happens. Never does happen. You don't expect it to happen. He he just brushes the doctrine. You know, it just most fellas that have been in Ezekiel's boneyard that have been out there with a shoe shine kit shining the bones. Ain't no man don't ever preach this. This could be a butt to be alive again that they're they're dead. They're dead. And so is the fellow looking at them. He's dead, too. So a dead man don't believe that dead bones can come together, take on flesh, stand up, and be an army. But you see a divine revelation come from heaven to Ezekiel. And he said, "Preach to them bones." Yeah. And whenever he hauled off and let go and preached, the bones came together. Flesh come on the bones. And there was a great great crowd of people lying there. But he said, "Now prophesy of the wind." And when he prophesied to the wind, they came alive and stood up. The mighty army. And that's happening before our eyes today. The Jews returning home. They're coming home. And they all going to get there one day. It's all going to be over. Now, what are we talking about? The third and fourth generation of Pentecost. Some of them at least needs what I'm talking about today. I read here in Judges 2 and 7. And the people served the Lord all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua. Now notice, the people served the Lord all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua who had seen

all the wonders of the Lord that he had done. Now, here's Joshua. There was only two men that left Egypt, came all the way into Canaan land. The rest of them died in the wilderness because of unbelief. They died looking at the pillar of fire in unbelief. You can't convince some people. Amen. They died looking the pillar of fire. They died. Their bones bleach in the wilderness looking at a cloud spread out over them in daytime. They died with miracle bread in their mouth and and miracle water to wash it down. They died in unbelief with all these miracles happening. But there was two fellas that got it by divine revelation, Caleb and Joshua. And they were there when they walked across. And all these elders were men that were born and grew up in the wilderness. And the Bible said as long as the elders lived, the younger generation lived for the Lord. But whenever the elders died, their faith died. I wonder why. You see, the elders here saw the pillar of fire. The elders here saw the bread from heaven. These elders were there when they crossed the river Jordan. These elders were there when they marched around the walls of Jericho and they fell. These elders were there whenever Joshua said to the sun and the moon, "Stop. I need to win a battle here. stop. The Bible said they stopped. You see, this fell is a man had a divine revelation. God told him what to do and what not to do. And so when all these fellas died, the younger generations faith died. Now, there should not have been because God had something great for that generation something great for that generation. He hadn't stopped breaking walls down. He had a new field, a new area to move into. But they turned. The Bible said here, this verse said, "But what?" When that generation died, there arose another generation. There arose another generation that knew not the Lord by divine revelation. They knew not the Lord. They did not see the pillar of fire. They did not see the mana that fell from heaven. They were not there whenever the river Jordan rolled back.

They were not there whenever the walls of Jericho fell. They only listen to what the elder said about it. And when the last elder was gone, their faith is gone. I'm going to tell you something. You got to get the faith once delivered from Jesus yourself. Amen. It's not enough for you to go on my faith. It's not enough for me to go on your faith. We got to have a direct revelation from the Lord himself. Now, this generation could be the greatest and has the greatest promise of any generation since the world began. You talk about a generation. You talk about a promise to this end time generation. I've got it here and then we'll close here today. The Apostle Peter was taken up what the Apostle Joel said, and he said, "But Peter standing up with the 11, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken unto my words, for these are not drunken as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day." They were drunk, all right, but drunk on the Holy Ghost. Staggering like drunk men. God, help us to get enough of Holy Ghost to make us drunk. Not just human flesh and blood, the plain oldfashioned Holy Ghost to make us drunk. Amen. Then we're getting somewhere. But he said, "But this is what?" But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in the last days, sayaith God, I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. And on my servants, and on my handmaidaidens I'll pour out in those days of my spirit, and they shall prophesy. Now, here it is, the end time, the very days of 19 and 90s that we're living in right now. We have a promise that in the end time, he'll pour out his spirit upon all flesh. There's no place anywhere that he said it was going to dry up. The church is going to dry up and blow away. My Bible said that in the in the book of Joel that the floors will be full, the barns will be full. talking about the church and running over and I'll show wonders in the heavens above. That's why I've been praying, Lord, let one of them be the flaming cross. I'll show wonders in the heavens above and signs in the earth beneath, blood and fire and vapors of smoke and on and on. He said, "The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon and the blood before the great and the

notable day of the Lord come, and it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." That's it. Signs until the end. I said the other day, I said, "Now, Lord, that sign of the sun turning to darkness, blinking out." Someone called me the other day and tell me that scientists found out the earth has a little wobble to it. It's not enough yet yet to be too disturbed about it, but it's just a little bit of wobble. My Bible said in the end time it would reel and rock like a drunk man. The earth would reel and rock like a drunk man. And the sun would go out at times and the moon would turn as red as blood signs of fire pillars of smoke. That's why I said now Lord all that's good. There's a reason for it. But the church wants a cross up there. Amen. Because everybody would know what that meant. The sign of the son of man, a divine revelation coming down from God above. Amen. Are you ready to seek God for a divine revelation that'll make you a true blue Christian without wavering, true to the doctrine, true to the leadings and guidings of the Holy Spirit. loving this book. So in essence, I have proved to you you can be doctrally right but spiritually dead. We want both. We want to be doctrally right and spiritually alive. Amen. Now this is the reason I'm preaching this. I hear it so often to young people in various places going astray, drifting away. They need a divine revelation, a prayed through experience when God talks to them. Amen. There's a lot of things was passed to me that I had to pray through about. They passed to me the truth of one God. I couldn't understand it. I said, "I believe it because the elder said so, but I don't understand it.

I just confused and I prayed and I prayed and I prayed and I said, "God, whatever is truth, that's what I want. I want a divine revelation." And brother, when it came, the whole Bible There's an open book on the subject. Everywhere I read, I could see it. Amen. A divine revelation. And they're still coming. Some of the most powerful revelations on that subject. I thought I knew it all till the last year or two. And I found out it's the greatest truth. It's the only truth that's eternal. One God. Amen. It's the most powerful revelation ever been revealed to men or angels. And I still see it. And I don't think it's over. More and more will come as we stay in touch with the Holy Spirit. We'll see things to come. Saints, let's pray. If there's something you're staggered, troubled about, young people, let's pray through about it. Let's set our pace. I got to have this from God. And don't let it be a five minute prayer. You'll come up with your own reasoning. Pray until the Holy Ghost is moving supernaturally. And when you get the revelation, you'll read it in the Bible. If you don't, it's not in the Bible, you didn't get it. It takes the two. You cannot separate them. The word and the spirit. You can't separate it. You got to have them both to have it right. Amen. There's no telling what God will do. I'd like for our young folks, the third and fourth generation of young people to come down. Let me pray in one prayer with you as we stand and they sing. There's no telling what God will do. We just believe this generation has a work to do that'll amaze the world. that'll that'll turn the world around and wake them up. There is something in the air for this generation. God is not going to write them off. God is not going to say, "I'm through with them." The world may say it, but not Jesus. He can do anything. Come on, young people. Come on. There's no telling what God will do if you believe. There's no telling what to do. If you believe I know he he my

soul and there's no telling what God will do if you believe. Oh, there's no telling what God will do if you believe. There's no telling what God will do. If you believe my God and your love, he'll heal your body. He'll save you. And there's no what God will do if you believe. Oh, just try God and you'll know. He'll heal your body. He'll save your soul. And there's nothing to lose. Brother Tucker, come up here. Brother Pucket, come up here. You're looking at three of the elders here that will soon pass off the stage. I wonder what you're going to do with what we have left you. I wonder if you're going to be a flaming group of young people that'll help set the world on fire. If you ever make it, it'll come through divine revelation, total consecration to the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen. This is your greatest hour, your greatest day, right now. It's right here. Father, you see them. They walk down here. This is a church beginning today. the church will soon be gone. But Lord, if the faith once delivered unto the saints that came direct from the heart of Jesus Christ, this faith will stand when the world's on fire. This faith will carry them

through the trials and the tribulations and all the ws of the devil. this faith will help them to destroy the works of the devil and keep on keeping on for you. I pray Lord that this day you lay your holy hand upon them and anoint them with a new vision and with a burning desire in a prayer closet to pray through and to find you until you're fresh in Jesus name. Amen. The fresh anointing. Let's sing it again. The whole church what God will do if you believe. Well, there's no telling what God will do if you believe. Well, I'm trying on and I know he is he and there will do one more time. Sing it for me. But there's no telling what God will do if you give me and I know he is my praise God. Praise the Lord. Brother Pucket, pray for them and dismiss us.