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Online Revival with Pastor Kenneth Carpenter

First Apostolic Church of Maryville (Maryville, TN)

Transcript of a published sermon by Kenneth Carpenter, transcribed from YouTube. An attributed primary source — not Acts 2:38 Life doctrine text.

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Summary

Summary prepared by Acts 2:38 Life from the transcript below — the preacher’s words follow in full.

The rich man and Lazarus

  • He opens by saying the message is to the fearful, not to the faithful, and reads of the rich man clothed in purple and fine linen who fared sumptuously every day.
  • Lazarus the beggar was laid at the rich man's gate full of sores, desiring the crumbs from his table, and received the dogs instead.
  • He insists the account is not a parable, because parables carry no names and this one names Lazarus.
  • The clothing shows a life arranged for others' opinions and for his own comfort; he was never denied any food, drink, or ease.
  • The class a person is born into matters less than the response he makes to it: poverty, middle class, and wealth all wait on a decision.

Scriptures: Luke 16:19-31

Death, the appointment no one escapes

  • Death is the one decision no one gets to make; it comes to the young unexpectedly and to the elderly as expected, to the poor man's dunghill and the rich man's palace.
  • Hebrews appoints men once to die, and after this the judgment; death has reigned from Adam to Moses.
  • Solomon charges youth to remember their Creator now, before the evil days of failing strength, teeth, ears, and sleep arrive.
  • At death the dust returns to the earth as it was and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Scriptures: Hebrews 9:27; Romans 5:14; Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

Torment, memory, and extreme measures

  • The beggar died and was carried by angels into Abraham's bosom; the rich man died, was buried, and in hell lifted up his eyes in torment.
  • He begged for the tip of Lazarus's finger dipped in water to cool his tongue, but there is no water in hell.
  • Abraham answers that in his lifetime he received his good things and Lazarus evil things; it was not the wealth but the response to it that fixed each end.
  • Memory will be in hell: he will remember the services, the preaching, and the altar calls he sat under.
  • Jesus's words on the offending hand, foot, and eye mean going to extreme measures to stay out of hell — removing what you look at, where you go, and what you keep within reach.

Scriptures: Mark 9:43-48

No exits in hell

  • Between paradise and hell a great gulf is fixed; hell has no exits, while the church has one — exit a life of sin while you can.
  • The rich man then asks for Lazarus to be sent to his father's house to warn his five brethren, and is told they have Moses and the prophets.
  • This book is all anyone gets to stay out of hell; no miracle would persuade those who will not hear it.
  • He presses the hearers to put sin on the altar tonight — habits, language, music, and entertainment they know are wrong — because children in hell would ask their parents why they did not lead them.

Scripture index: Luke 16:19-31; Hebrews 9:27; Romans 5:14; Ecclesiastes 12:1-7; Mark 9:43-48.

Transcript

not to the faithful this message is to the fearful Luke chapter 16 and verse number 19 there was a certain rich man which was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day there was a certain beggar named Lazarus which was laid at his gate full of sores and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table moreover the dogs came and licked his sores I'm gonna keep reading won't have prayer I want to preach to you tonight on a place called hell I preached this morning on a place called heaven I want to preach tonight on a place called hell lay your Bibles down if you're serious about living for God I want you to help me pray tonight that I steer someone off of the path of the road to hell father I've read your word and I'll continue to read your word God Lord Jesus tonight I pray that you would touch this congregation I pray God that you would touch me with your spirit that I would be able to preach the word tonight Lord there is a heaven because your word says there's the heaven and there is a hell because your word says that there is a hell Lord helped me tonight to steer any that's on the path to hell off of that horrible road tonight young and old the light Holy Ghost use me tonight Jesus name we pray amen you may be seated I told you this morning that I used a lot of word and I will use a lot of word tonight because I do not want any to leave here and think that heaven or hell is some kind of figment of imagination of church culture there is a place called hell this morning I believe that I laid the proper foundation to biblically show you several men that left this earth and went to that place called heaven inna Elijah Moses and tonight I take the scripture and I can show you through Scripture of at least one man in Hell at least one man in Hell please do not believe the commentaries that want to tell you that this was a parable it is not a parable and we can prove that it is not a parable by one foundational key parables never had a name never had a name there is a name in this story and there is a name in this story because it is not a parable it is something that acts happened the name of the beggar is Lazarus the rich man's name is not mentioned and simply because when you are not saved you do not have a name with God depart I never knew Jesus begins by telling us the two lifestyles the rich man he was clothed in purple and fine linen and he fared sumptuously every day I would have to surmise to say that he may have been born into a family of wealth that is very possible that he could have been born into the family of wealth or it could be possible that he made the wealth on his own it's of little importance other than his lifestyle is mentioned he's a certain rich man he is clothed in purple and fine linen there's a message here purple is a color purple is a color that you would want to speak to everyone that see you of your importance he wore the color of purple so that everyone that seen him would have a certain opinion of him he also wore fine linen fine linen was soft and comfortable to the flesh you will notice with me that his clothing included what others thought about him and how it fits his comfort the Bible simply says that he fared and uses the word sumptuous Li every day there was no kind of drink nor food nor comfort that was ever withheld from him he was never hot because servants rotated Fanning him he was never cold because someone would be there to lay a blanket over him he fared sumptuously every day and then there is a certain beggar named Lazarus which was laid at the rich man's gate evidently he was sick in his body a blood disease possible open sores on his body and all he asked for was not a slice of bread not a loaf of bread but all he asked for was the crumbs that would be swept up under the table but in return he did not receive crumbs he received the dogs as the dogs were turned upon him lifestyle is an important thing you could be born into poverty you could be born into middle class or you can be born into upper-class but really what's important is not that you're born in poverty middle-class or upper-class the question is how do you respond to what you are born into born in poverty you can rise out of poverty hard work right decisions born in the middle class you can be thankful born into upper class you can be thankful but all of these different classes of wealth you would be born into all are waiting for your response decisions well the Bible says that these two men who are on opposite ends of a lifestyle it's possible that Lazarus was born into poverty it's possible that the rich man was born into a into the affluent but what's important is how they responded to it the Bible says in verse number 22 and it came to pass that the beggar died and was carried by the Angels into Abraham's bosom the rich man died also and was buried and in hell he lift up his eyes being in torments and seeth Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom death now there's a lot of things that you have control of there's a lot of decisions that you can make whether or not you listen to me tonight is a decision left to yourself your response is a decision that's left to yourself but there is one thing common to all of us that we have no control over and that is death death comes to the young unexpected and death comes to the elderly as expected death comes to the poor man's dunghill and death comes to the rich man's palace I want you to know tonight that there's a lot of decisions you can make because you are your own person but there's one decision you'll never make and that's when death comes for you to the young you can be logged asleep to believe it could never happen to you tell that to 13 year old Rhonda Johnson to the young we can believe that it'll never happen to you tell that to the 18 year old Dallas Martin who was on his way to church his daddy's home missions Church when he had a head-on collision with a tractor-trailer on a highway in Mississippi you say tonight it's enough kind of preaching that makes me want to shout you exactly right I don't want to make you shout tonight I want to make you think I want to make you think because death is something that comes to all of us or will come to all of us I heard a minister say recently he said you know years ago we were might we were reminded of our mortality every time we went to church we were reminded of our mortality because to go to many churches years ago you had to go through the church graveyard to get there as they went to worship their God they walk through tombstones that reminded them of their mortality death will come to all of us tonight death will come to all of us if we live long enough if the Lord tarries the Lord tarries should I say if the Lord tarries death will come for all of us Bible said in Hebrews 9:27 and as it is appointed unto men once to die but after this the judgment we have an appointment with death you can choose not to listen to me tonight you can choose to get up early leave you can choose to text you can choose to do a lot of things I'm telling you there is an appointment you have no power to escape it romans 5:14 nevertheless death reigned rules from Adam to Moses please yes these twelve and one is very interesting please yes these twelve one through seven one begins by saying remember now by creator in the days of thy youth while the evil days come not nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them Solomon says please remember God now please remember God now he said that to youth please put God in your life now because he said there are evil days coming and verses 2 through 6 he describes the failing health that a human body goes through he describes your legs getting weak and unable to stand he describes teeth falling out and unable to eat he describes ears being closed and you're unable to hear he describes how your fearful he even describes how when you're older that you don't sleep well verses 2 3 seven two through six he starts out in verse one of saying it's time to remember now your Creator and then he describes it and he closes it in verse number seven then shalt thou then shall the dust return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it he tells about a man dying decomposing and he goes back to the dirt of which he was made his spirit goes to God who gave it the beggar died the rich man died but here's where things begin to change for the Bible said that when the beggar died God's heavenly angels became the pallbearers they came and they carried him into a place of paradise into Abraham's bosom of which Abraham was there the Bible says that the rich man died and was buried and in hell he lifted up his eyes being in torments and seeth Abraham afar off and Lazarus in his bosom follow with me tonight one man goes from a life of sores and suffering hunger and begging into the glories of God no more sorrow normal no more pain the rich man that wore the purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day had any drink that he could walk food that he could want he now lifts up his eyes being in torments he is being tormented and as he lifts up his eyes he sees something that he sees Abraham and he sees Lazarus in his bosom he had seen Lazarus a lot of times he had seen him as the despicable beggar that messed up the front of the driveway he's seen him as a nuisance turn the dogs loose on him but now he sees Lazarus from Hales point of view see there's one thing about hell I don't want to go there because I don't want to have to go to hell to be educated about Hell I believe the Bible is giving us enough about the place called hell that we ought to all be bound and determined I don't want to go to hell I don't want to go to hell I don't want to be oh the foolish deceived demonic rock-and-roll group that pinned the words to the song I'm on the highway to hell I'm on the highway to hell you gotta be a fool and you gotta be the scene because I'm gonna tell you hell it's not someone big sex party hell is not someone big draw drunken brawl hell is not someone big drug fest hell is not someone big Woodstock can I tell you in Hell there is no singing in Hell there is no drinking in hell there is no satisfaction in hell there is nothing but torments nothing but torments inhale but he sees Lazarus very differently because he makes a request if you'd follow it you ride in your Bible if you write in your Bible and verse number 24 he cried and said father Abraham have mercy on me send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue for I am tormented in this flame but Abraham said son son you know we have here five times the rich man called Abraham father five times Abraham calls the rich man's son we have here at-bats Jew no one except of the Jewish descent would call Abraham father but a full-blood Jew a full-blood shoe that was privileged to all the ordinances of God a privileged child a child that was brought up to here here o Israel the Lord our God is one Lord nothing Gentile not a dog not an uneducated Gentile put a little boy that was brought up to know the commandments of God but somewhere in his life he decided to let the world begin to motivate him and he left his roots and he finds himself in hell he finds himself in hell he still has the recognition that that's father Abraham and that's Lazarus interesting to note that the name lazarus means god's help that's what the name lazarus means it means god's help of which i wonder was Lazarus really sent there to beg for bread or was Lazarus an opportunity for the rich man to turn around whistle azeris really sent their bike was he really sent there for bread or did God love that rich man enough to send him God's help to try to turn his life around can I tell you tonight you can view me as a lot of things but you're looking at God's help talking to you right now you can view me as a lot of things you can view me as a lot of things you can misunderstand my motive you can turn the dogs loose on me of criticism if you want to but at the end of the day all I am is pawns help trying to tell you to turn turn make the right decisions make the right decisions oh I've got to preach to the church tonight don't go to hell get sin out of your life get things out of your life that you know is wrong get habits out of your life that you know is wrong get music off of your players that you know is wrong get entertainment out of your life that you know is wrong stir yourselves move yourself the Lord is come on you've got to be ready get it out I'll tell I'll not have him come beyond the gate he's not gonna get into my life keep his nose in his own business keep him up there at the gate isn't it amazing that the one that the rich man would not allow into his house but in hell he sees it differently I don't want any of you to go to hell because when you go to hell it's too late matter of fact I don't want any of you young folks I don't want anybody in here to have to go through trials I don't want you to have to lay flat on your back in a hospital for you to wake you up and start serving God but if that's what it would take God put them flat on their back I don't want to have a tragedy in our youth group but if it would take a tragedy to wait some of us up then God you might have to give us a tragedy because you can send me to the gate if you want to but if you're not lost that same preacher that you wouldn't let come into your life that same word that you wouldn't let come into your life those same standards that you said I don't have to do that I don't have to act like that I guarantee you if you drop the microphone down in hell tonight hell would say there would be women there to say if you'll get me out of this place I'll dress any way you tell me to yes I believe they'd be men tonight to say if you can get me out of this place I want you to know if you tell me to stand on my head and gargle peanut butter I'll do it if you can just get me out of here Oh help me pray right now I want the Holy Ghost to get on this message tonight inhale inhale he lifts up his eyes and he was in torment father Abraham sin Lazarus I wouldn't let him touch me on the earth I wouldn't let him be all the y8 in the earth on the earth dirty sore ridden despicable Lazarus nosy outdated preacher nosy outdated parents nosy outdated people in that church I think I'll go somewhere else you can you can but I promise you in Hell what you deemed is despicable here on earth you'll be asking for that person to come with just one ripple water on the end of their finger and cut your tongue with it he didn't ask for wine he didn't ask for beverages he asked for the most common thing water water can I tell you in Hell oh I wouldn't care if you get me out of hell I'll listen to a sermon that goes an hour and a half if you can get me out of hell I'll start studying my Bible you can get me out of hell I promise you I'll get up early in the morning I'll listen to the word would you just send him in let him touch my tongue verse 24 for I am tormented in this flame but Abraham said son remember remember that thou in my lifetime received a style good things and likewise Lazarus evil things but now he is comforted and thou art tormented he wasn't there man's wealth that sent him to hell nor was it the poverty that sent Lazarus to heaven was how you responded to it you realize tonight God sends nobody to hell and God places no one in heaven the decisions that we make determine whether we'll stay in hell be placed in hell or in heaven do you remember you took things and you lived a life of comfort don't make me feel uncomfortable don't inconvenience me my goodness we have Church all the time around here my goodness can he lighten up on these things can he lighten up others are lighting up can he lighten up a little bit don't he know how uncomfortable this is can I tell you tonight when comfort becomes your God he allowed comfort to become his god he says the statement here son remember some things that are not in hell there's no water in hell there's no water in hell but some things will be in hell your memory your memory mark chapter 9 and verse number 43 jesus said if thy right hand offend thee cut it off it is better for thee to enter into the life maimed than having two hands go into hell into the fire that never shall be quenched where their worm no notice it's not the worm their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched if I foot offend thee cut it off it is better for thee to enter halt into life than having two feet to be cast into hell into the fire that never shall be quenched where their worm dieth not and the fire is not quenched if thine eye offend thee pluck it out is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than having two eyes be cast into hell where their worm I have not and the fire is not quenched nay is not advocating literally cutting off a right hand or cutting off a right foot or plucking out a right eye he is advocating going to extreme measures to stay out of hell we must go to extreme measures to keep ourselves in the right relationship with God if it takes me pray pray if it takes us keeping the flesh on the altar keep the flesh on the altar it's not going to be some little ritual church that's going to get you to heaven it's going to be somewhere and that's radical about it if my right eye is offending me pluck it out if what I am looking at and listen here now if what I am looking at is causing me to sin stop looking at it if it means getting rid of the television get rid of the television if it means getting rid of the computer get rid of the computer if it means getting rid of a phone that will put you on the internet then for God's sake pluck it out get rid of it come on church come on I'm preaching to you tonight I'm telling you it may get extreme if it's extreme then let it be extreme but we've got to stay out of hell your hand represents something that we zoom within reach if you keep things in reach of you that cause you to stumble get them out get it away from your life if they're places that's causing you to stumble cut your right foot off don't go to those places if they make you stumble but then he said where their worm dies not the analogies here is how they describe the human brain in those days not knowing the medical names that we know for what a brain looks like now a brain simply looks like a glob of large worms that are intertwined and he is literally saved in Hell your memory will not die now you know it would be something to be born way over in a Middle East country where you woke up every morning to the sound of the prayers of their gods and never to have known and wake up in hell it'd be one thing to be born in the dark regions of a third-world country and wake up in hell and just know this might have been a part of life but oh my to be a member of the first Apostolic Church of Maryville and wake up in hell because you'd wake up in hell and you remember the sunday night when the sunday morning the pastor preached on a place called heaven and wide headed Saints on walkers and canes some of them limping down here to the altar walked away with tear-stained eyes praising the sweet name of Jesus but then you'll remember that Sunday night when preacher preached and the atmosphere was a little bit sober but right now while I am preaching there's more going on here than my words God the Spirit of God is dancing all over this place tonight God isn't stopping at the pews God is hovering over hearts in there's hearts of men and women tonight that our understanding I've got sin in my life I tell a lie and the drop of a hat I don't look at a woman up and down and think of are ungodly thing about her I've got less I've got jealousy I've got in me I've got all that and cops trying to tell you you better get it out of your heart you better get it out of your heart he's not an old fogey preacher he's not an outdated sometimes I get report of people that belong to this church using language I ought not use can I tell you you believe I go to hell I do you made the cuts it will take you to hell no it's not percussing it's you not knowing God because you can't say you know God and use the same language of people use that don't know God folks are just going to bear with you pastor a little bit tonight but God has run me out like a rat like a tower for the last few days we are deceiving out y'all don't want you to get comfortable here I am here tonight to afflict the comfortable and the comfort the afflicted I am here tonight if you're all these pews and you're playing Church tonight lying is a sin gossip is a sin lusting is a sin these are things that you must put on the altar and ask God to help you with I don't care how many young people are using dirty language that just means you're all going to hell and listen a crowd will not make the flames of hell any more comfortable any water water water father water mother he can happen son why verse 26 Luke 16 besides all this between us and you there is a great gulf fixed so that they which would pass from hence cannot to you cannot neither can they pass to us that would come from thence she looked around here tonight the grand here what's above that door right over there I'm pointing to young folks tell me what some of that door I'm pointing at what's bevy somebody say it what's above it huh what's above that door over there exit exit exit exit exit but can I tell you only the church has an exit hell has no exits Abraham said I got to tell you something rich man there is no way when God prepared hell for Lucifer he did not prepare hell for humans he prepared hell for Lucifer and when he prepared hell for Lucifer he made a way that hell could see what's going on in heaven for the fact of torment but when he made hell he fixed it in such a way that those that are in Hell can never exit and those that are in heaven can never come to where they're at and help them out can I tell you tonight you ought to exit while you can you need to exit a life of sin while you in exit your lifestyle while you can if you question whether your life is pleasing to God you listen to this preacher tonight exit while you can I may not even get finish preaching tonight before the trumpet of the Lord shall sound I know that's a lot a lot of people to sleep you've heard that so many times that it doesn't do anything to you anymore but I've got to keep on telling you just because your cat conscience has been seared does not negate the fact that Jesus is come on exit why you can maybe see exit I've been preaching now for almost 40 years pastor Erickson tonight I'm gonna say something in my short four decades of preaching I've seen the change you used to be able to preach like I'm preaching tonight you'd never put an ending you never put an ending to your sermon on hell because they didn't end what ended it was people gripping the back of the Pew coming to an altar but you see we've heard it Jesus could come before you're finished I heard you I got you think I'll roll the dice one more time brother one day I'm gonna get right one day I'm not really gonna pray up one day no exits in Hell no water in Hell Luke 16:24 the rich man's sister carpenter understands that he cannot get relief from his torment he realizes that there's no water there's no way out and he turns his attention then he said I pray thee therefore father that that would have sinned him sin Lazarus to my father's house for I have five brethren that he may testify unto them lest they also come into this place of torment abraham saith unto him they have Moses and the prophets let them hear them and he said no father Abraham but if one went unto them from the dead they will repent and he said unto him if they hear not Moses and the prophets neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead don't you look up here for a moment you see me in this book this is all you're getting to stay out of hell that's all you get just had a miracle but just had some kind of miracle I really I really believe no you wouldn't this is all you get if this right here can't keep you out of hell then you're gonna bust hell wide open because that's all you get Steve Wilson preach the message and he borrowed a thought he preached a message entitled something better than heaven and something worse than hell when he said the title is something better from heaven something something better than heaven something worse from Hell worse than hell you began to think what could be better than what could be better than heaven and what could be worse than him he said what could be better than four then heaven would be as you are walking up to the throne as you're walking up to the throne brother sister Pooh you made it to heaven you made it there and you're walking up to the throne and all of a sudden you hear mama mama that's Jared your mama I'm over here on Jeremy and for the entire family to come around the throne of God I can think of nothing better I can think of anything that would top heaven than to me around the throne of God and to have my shoulder or held the throne of God and we say they paid off in it son in laws it paid off business if they didn't no no it paid off didn't it I know they were making fun of us I know we were getting ridiculed but it paid off look at Jesus Nolan look at the Lord Nolan it paid off but I can think of nothing worse than Hill and over my eyes and hell flames dancing all around me a body that won't burn because it's an eternal body that won't burn gnashing of teeth people gnashing on each other with their teeth you're gonna freefall the whole time because it's a bottomless pit you hear the hissing of demonic spirits as they whiz around your ears and you hear all of these things are nasty and moaning oh god it's a car of the unimaginable you're hearing all of these people are knowing on you in all of a sudden your boy comes up beside you until you hear me cannot I'm about to preach you to this altar you'll hear me tonight daddy you better live such a way then inhale your children don't come up around you and say daddy why didn't you lead us daddy wanted to get your feelings hurt mama why was your so carnal mama why weren't you in the prayer group instead of a gossip group I've come to tell you tonight that would be worse than hell come on daddy you better shake yourself up tonight you better shake yourself up tonight you're going to find out what Tullius you're going to find out what he'll help this late you brother for the building thank you you better save yourself up here I don't if somebody if somebody makes fun of me because I rather if running keeps me in the church I'm gonna round I gotta be I gotta be saved I gotta be saved come on daddy come on mama come on there's some things we need to put on the altar or not in this church there's some music being listened to that we need to put on the altar there's some language being used but some of the youth not just them there's some there's some there's some tones you need to be put on the altar tonight there's some serum that needs to be put on the altar Nabila my girl to go to hell in hell

Scripture references as spoken: Luke 16:19-31; Hebrews 9:27; Romans 5:14; Ecclesiastes 12:1-7; Mark 9:43-48.