Why are you here?
"And they passed by and reviled him. wagging their heads and saying, thou
that destroyest the temple and buildcst it in three days, save thyself. If thou be
the Son of God, come dow n from the cross
"Likewise all the chief priests mocking him w ith the scribes and elders said.
He saved others, himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him
now come down from the cross and we will believe him. He trusted in God,
let him deliver him now. if he w ill have him, for he said, 1 am the Son of God."
(Matthew 27:39-43)
The scripture tells us that Jesus trusted in God while at the bottom of the
cross they gambled for his garments and thev all said the same things Their
purpose was to convince Christ, the Son of the living God to come down off
that cross, save thyself. Not only did those beneath the cross who were gazing
Up and scorners say it. but ev en the chief priests joined in mocking Christ.
(Verse 41)
The whole purpose of this w as to kill the Christ. Satan w as aw are no one
had ever rose form the dead Oh, he knew Christ had healed a few persons,
but that was not Christ's purpose in coming. Jesus came to set people at liberty,
those who were held in captivity, to heal the brokenhearted, help those who
did not know what direction to take, to help those who were on that road
marked nowhere going to a place called never. But the devil had his crew on
the site crying conic down, come down oil that cross
M> friend, it would bo the cross winch would save hint. "For this cause he
declared 1 hav e come lor it is w ritten of me to do thv will, O God." (Hebrews
10:7)
St. John vv rites later to declare "We have seen with our eyes, which we have
looked upon and our hands have handled of the word of life." (I John 1:1)
Oh. my friend, Jesus knew why he had come to this world. He, being the
son of God stood earlier to shout openly, "The spirit is upon me. the Spirit of
the Lord is upon me, he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor."
(St. Luke 4:18)
And, my friend, because he preached this gospel we find folks in full
a'greement to take his life. It was here Pilate said unto him (Christ) "Hearest
thou not how many things they witness against thee?" (Matthew 27:13) My
friend. Jesus had heard their words, he was beat, spit upon, beat on the back.
Isaiah said "As many were astonished at thee, his visage was so marred more
than any man and his form more than the sons of men." (Isaiah 52:14)
My friend, Jesus knew why he had come to this earth and there would not
be enough of devils under the cross to stop him. They all agreed that he must
come down off the cross They had nailed his hands and feet, pierced his side,
blood dropped from his body, his life was ebbing away, yet they all said the
same thing, come down.
From that day to this day, any man who has been called to preach and has
been anointed it has been agreed upon that he or she must come down, even
at the price of death. Oh my friend, Jesus knew why he was hanging on the
cross. Jesus would say "I know why I am going through with what is set before
me. I know why I am hanging on this cross. "For he knew that for envy they
had delivered him." (Matthew 27:18)
You and I must know that we must go on. You need to say to yourselves
for this reason I must go on while there arc those saying why arc you going
through this, those people could care less about your sacrifice. My friend, when
Jesus stood and cried out, "1 will build my church and the gates of hell will not
prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18)
When Jesus declared that be would build a church all hell broke out. "The
chief priests gathered themselv es together for envy." Jesus had a purpose. Do
you have a purpose? If you do, Satan will try his best to see that it does not
materialize. He has many ways to discourage you and those around you. While
Jesus was hanging between heav en and earth, darkness formed around him
in his darkest hour, v oices rang out "Come down, come down. It's not worth
it .J3e like the rest of us." Jesus on that cross, his back cut to ribbons, flesh laid
flayed, for hours the bugs, gnats, insects, began to cover his body, his mouth
caked with blood, his eyes sw ollen, rolled back into his head, these folks for
envy stripped him naked. Oh, my friend, embarrassment was there, shame was
there. Oh my friend, you can't go through life being cute. Somewhere, some
place, you too will be called upon to come down. You see, the devil wants to
expose you.
Are you faced with the threat of exposure? Remember it is Satan's mission
to stop us He will strip you of your home, cars, food, he will ev en lie on you
and get others to join. He will hang you out there for all the world to see,
everybody on the street knows you have lost your job, but what is more
importanj i; that you have got a purpose. It may be hell itself, but God will
resurrect ydii upfrom death itseIfl!iK?Jesus, 411 ydurflpsTTis exposed to this
world, all your stuff, things you thought were secret, Satan will see to it. The
high priest and his demons will hang you for envy. But no matter what you've
got to hang there. Don't cry for someone to come and anoint you with oil. Stay
there. Jesus never calls on any faith healer, no sir, he dug with the hill of faith
and declared "I come to do thy will." You need to say to yourself, I'm coming
out and I'm coming out naked. I'm going to have the promises of God. You
need to say to yourself this ain't about me, but it is about God bringing me
through. I know all those around me are saying the same things. People have
died cursing, but not you, that nail of shame that has been driven in thy feet,
step up on it, get you another breath, scream into theeaisjjf the devil "Naked
came I out of my mother's w omb and naked 1 will return thither. The Lord gave
and the Lord taketh away; blessed be the name of the Lord." (Job 1:21) Now
that you are up there, get you another breath and say "Devil, if I do die, you
ain't going to get me. I belong to Jesus. I have come to do the will of my father."
(Amen)
Let me say this, because of envy and because Preachers are afraid of envy,
not knowing God said "The Lord is with you, he will be found of you; but if
ye forsake him he will forsake you. (II Chronicles 15:2)
When A/ariah confronted Asa he spoke the above words to him. and he
went on to sa>. for a long season Israel hath been without a true God and
without a teaching pnest and with out law
Is that not the ease of today's churches'' No forsaking, no confession, no
repentance, no burden for prayer, no passion for righteousness and no sincere
commitment of truth''
My friend, something is wrong and 1 believe we have preached it (envy)
jealousv and because of that the real issue facing the church has not been dealt
with, the hearts, pain of the body liavc not been fully expressed nor been
embraced and until they arc dealt with there will be no renewal
Formalitv and ritualism will alway s eventually lead to being bored, sad.
tired churches w hich can never be a channel for fresh out-pouring of the Holy
Ghost.
Most of w hat preaching is heard today is along the line of getting our act
together, and she has lost the thought that she has become apathetic, no longer
burdened for others We no longer seem to care Someone said anyone w ho
can read a newspaper or operate a remote control knows that something is
wrong, something is slowly destroying America There is some kind of
hideous \ iru?. some sort of deadly disease racing through our cultural blood
stream Let me tell you of a few . seeing I've been permitted to catch another
breath, standing on a nail that feels like it wants to come loose, but whether
1 die or live I'll do it unto my God
Let me share with you some symptoms of a sick society. It is a society that
legally authorizes the killing of its young before they are bom A generation
of young men drowning in their ow n blood on the streets of our cities. Even
here at home, the suicide rate is up. Another sickness in our society is that of
a culture that permits profit over justice and mercy. A nation that allowed
entertainment to establish or to promote moral bankruptcy . Our churches
today have fallen victim to a disease called spiritual polluted blood. She has
no law , is set to do as the pleases, doesn't care what anybody says, she does as
she pleases. She loaded herself w ith a deadly virus called law lessness She is
on a road marked tomorrow which ends up at a place called never.
If I can I will attempt one more spiritual breath. You can't blame all this
on the politician. The tragedy is not the sinner's sins. That is expected of them
You see they were shaped in iniquity. (Psalm 51:5)
The church, as Christians, has failed to live out our lives as Christians.
Somebody said about the condition that it was because Satan is busy. Notice
with me again, w hen A/ariah w ent to Asa he said be careful now if you seek
the Lord he can be found, but if ye forsake him he will forsake you. Well, the
scripture tells us for a long time they were without the true God. without
teaching and without law.
Then in verse 6 of chapter 15 it tells us it w as God who vexed them with
all adversityx Now let me ask you this question, are you sure what you are going
through with is of God'' Remember, he has promised us to save our families,
if we remain faithful When was the last time you were hung out to dry? Folks
wagging their head because you took a moral stand for what was right, not for
what you could gain, but something with a godly purpose, something that you
were willing to die for'' Something that got tiailed hands and feet with a
whisper in the car "It is written of me to do thy will, O God "
/ would only consider a pastoral position if you desire one who believes sin
is not to be blotted from the sermons.
hv AltflNva fhtOT.dtr.B ' ^
/Sone Question.! I've beenpondering/
Oliver North ? (WHAT would have HAPPENED if the
SANDINISTAS had NOT been RESTRAINED, at least to SOME EXTENTS
CHINA & RilSSIA ? considered (for decades) by the WEST tobe
ENEMIES. But. have thev REALLY remained ALLIES all these years?
ONE CHINA'.' (CHINA & TAIWAN)
WHERE is the "TRUE" CHINA?
(IS TAIWAN now SUPPOSED to just ROLL OVER AND GIVE UP
THEIR WAY OF LIFE to COMMUNIST LEADERS ON THE MAINLAND?
(FORMER LEADER CHIANG KAI-SHEK and other NON- Communists
left the mainland in 1949. as Mao and his Communist comrades
were taking control of thai land. It's AMAZING the way Communists
expect to force their beliefs, or at least their way of life, onto EVERYONE
in their extended neighborhood. And THEN act like they can't believe it
when SOME individuals and/or groups REFUSE to go along !)
Remember the article I shared, describing COMMUNIST PLANS
for the future, as explained to a missionary in China whose house had
been LITERALLY taken ox er by Communist Party leaders? (Years later,
after returning to the U.S., that same missionary described the ordeal he
and his wife had suffered, in their personal story for CHRISTIAN HERALD
readers He also reported the International Communist Party's SECRET
plans to use various methods to DESTROY our culture in this
country. My research has led me to believe that many Marxist-Leninst
groups have had a part in the destruction of our nation's moral standards
over the past for or five decades.) ' >
J li1 TCf Sfvinf &l.?n
^ JDJjjv^xV o?, is if.*
CHIROPRACTIC
_ ' CENTER
Specializing In *
Auto Accident Injuries ^
Most Insurances Accepted
"APPOINTMENTS PLEASE"
Free Initial Consultation
Om
, OFFICE: 739-5751 ?
Emergency Home Number
;V^Dr. Woodrow W. Beck, Jr.: 738-3126
AUTO ACCIDENTS
WRONGFUL DEATH
PERSONAL INJURY
DWI &
TRAFFIC OFFENSES
OF ALL KINDS
I Free
Initial
Consultation
Call
24 Hours
A Day, .
7 Days
A Week
I RONNIE SUTTON
Attorney At Law
"PROTECTING YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS"
208 Union Chapel Road
(910) 521-4797
A FEW SURVIVED
by Bob Dowdirtg
mubjmtit Lid*
Order Your Book Today!
$14.95
Read About:
Growing up in the 'Dirty 30 s".
j Being a Prisoner of the Japanese
1 for 3 M years. An Official Report
, of the Death March
To Reoehre Book, tend 514.95
phis S3.20 for shipping & Handling,
KS fit NE residents add .75 for taxes.
M.;l tn
Bob Donding
P.O. Box 8 - Seward. 68434
(402) 643-4150
"I nearly ignored the ad that ended my crippling pain"
"My doctor told me that my age, being overweight and working long hours all my life had
taken its toll on my joints. He said all I could do is take pain pills and try to leam to live with
constant pain. My hands hurt so bad, I couldn't even put my billfold in my back pocket. I even
had to sleep in a chair because it hurt to lay down in a bed.Then
I noticed on the booklet I threw in the trash how an 84 year
old man with worse problems was now pain-free. I had to try.
I'm 92 now and have been pain-free for seven years."
-Donald FLFlorea, fanner
If you, like Donald Florea, are experiencing daily
pain, you owe it to yourself to try Catherine's Choice'
Aloe Vera Cansules. 100% Money Back Guarantee.
You have nothing to lose and a pain-free life to gain!
Catherine's Choice* f\H
Whole Leaf J>Zy*y /
Aloe Vera Capsules i Month Supply
FREE Catherine's Choice*
^LOFFErJf Aloe Vera First Aid Gel
with all new orders
Call for your FREE Issue of
Catherine's Journal
Ask for Discount Code N-001
1-800-330-2563
]&. . Last summer Johnnie was standing by a fence in his yard talking with two
B : friends when he felt a sharp pain in his leg. He passed it off as a reoccurrence of
P?r gout Later that evening as he attempted to dimb the stairs at church, his pastor
and daughter took one look and immediately drove him to the FirstHealth
Emergency Department Tests confirmed that he had suffered a stroke.
"I had to learn to walk all over agaln.The stroke also affected my left hand and
. arm. The doctors and the staff at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital
j-^k v provided excellent care for me."
E i: Physical and occupational therapy followed at the FirstHealth Rehabilitation
Center, and before long Johnnie was released to go home, where a
FirstHealth Home Care Nurse continued his care.
6,'-.. FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital has been recognized as one of leading
~Cjj 100, hospitals in the nation for stroke care.
fc-j "I haVe come a long way from that fateful day ||||a
In July. I have a lot to-be thankful for, most
i: especially the care I received at FirstHealth. ^
I feel blessed to live where a hospital offers Bk,
outstanding treatment and rehabilitation ; ' T
1 services for stroke victims."
(800) 724-2236 zuzvw.firsthealth.org
FhrstHealth
MOORE REGIONAL HOSPITAL
PINEHURST, NORTH CAROLINA
*4756.1