WEBVTT 00:00:00.059 --> 00:00:00.642 Hallelujah. 00:00:00.642 --> 00:00:04.126 Let's pick our bibles up, wave them around, make Jesus glad in the devil mad. 00:00:04.126 --> 00:00:05.102 Let's get into the Word. 00:00:05.102 --> 00:00:07.410 This morning, praise God. 00:00:07.410 --> 00:00:18.585 Let's say this together Say, heavenly Father, I am hungry and thirsty for more, more of your spirit, more of your presence, more of your glory. 00:00:18.585 --> 00:00:28.885 In order to have that, I've got to have more of the Word, more understanding of what it means to me in the 21st century. 00:00:28.885 --> 00:00:36.683 In the last days, you picked me to live now and I will succeed. 00:00:36.683 --> 00:00:40.673 I must succeed in Jesus' name. 00:00:40.673 --> 00:00:43.039 Amen, praise God. 00:00:43.159 --> 00:00:54.487 Let's turn in our bibles, please, this morning, to the book of Acts, chapter six, and also Acts, chapter eight. 00:00:54.487 --> 00:00:57.868 We'll just turn over there when we get to Acts six. 00:00:57.868 --> 00:00:59.923 First, this is my normal. 00:00:59.923 --> 00:01:03.926 You know I don't do sermons, I don't do sermonettes. 00:01:03.926 --> 00:01:05.906 You know we don't have just a regular. 00:01:05.906 --> 00:01:08.686 You know three hymns, three hurrs. 00:01:08.686 --> 00:01:10.602 Take the offatory. 00:01:10.602 --> 00:01:13.170 You know the benediction. 00:01:13.170 --> 00:01:14.031 Have a sermonette. 00:01:14.031 --> 00:01:19.504 No, no, we have a service where we serve God, where we worship Him. 00:01:19.504 --> 00:01:23.010 Everything we do is His glory, amen. 00:01:23.010 --> 00:01:26.334 And so this I'm in Acts. 00:01:26.334 --> 00:01:27.500 This is my normal reading. 00:01:27.500 --> 00:01:34.305 This is how I get my messages from reading my Bible and getting downloads myself, and then I feed you out of the overflow. 00:01:35.540 --> 00:01:47.245 Acts, chapter six and verse eight, and Stephen barely getting along, dragging through life. 00:01:47.245 --> 00:01:53.109 I'm a victim, I'm so mistreated. 00:01:53.109 --> 00:02:05.790 Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders, mega wonders and miracles. 00:02:05.790 --> 00:02:09.245 Everybody shout miracles Among the people. 00:02:09.245 --> 00:02:11.683 Just think about that. 00:02:11.683 --> 00:02:15.582 Mega wonders, what's a wonder? 00:02:15.582 --> 00:02:17.342 It makes people wonder. 00:02:17.342 --> 00:02:21.104 We know what miracles are. 00:02:21.104 --> 00:02:22.967 We'll define miracles in a moment. 00:02:22.967 --> 00:02:25.421 But he did great miracles, all right. 00:02:26.400 --> 00:02:33.612 And then Acts, chapter eight, couple of pages over verse five, then Philip, first Stephen, then Philip. 00:02:33.612 --> 00:02:40.947 Neither one of them apostles, really neither one of them, in what we call the five fold ministry. 00:02:40.947 --> 00:02:42.887 As a matter of fact, what they were were ushers. 00:02:42.887 --> 00:02:45.806 They served the tables. 00:02:45.806 --> 00:02:46.903 They, you know, they. 00:02:46.903 --> 00:02:48.643 That's what they did Clean tables. 00:02:48.643 --> 00:02:49.727 They served tables. 00:02:49.727 --> 00:02:51.245 They were in the hospitality. 00:02:51.245 --> 00:02:54.508 We call that hospitality around here, hospitality team. 00:02:54.508 --> 00:02:57.224 They were part of the hospitality team. 00:02:57.224 --> 00:03:01.143 In order to be on the hospitality team, they had to be what? 00:03:01.143 --> 00:03:05.106 Full of faith and full of the Holy ghost and wisdom. 00:03:05.106 --> 00:03:07.465 That's what the Bible says. 00:03:10.500 --> 00:03:16.506 And so Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ unto them. 00:03:16.506 --> 00:03:17.490 Was he a preacher? 00:03:17.490 --> 00:03:18.463 Well, not technically. 00:03:18.463 --> 00:03:21.603 He preached cry, he declared. 00:03:21.603 --> 00:03:24.682 He made a case. 00:03:24.682 --> 00:03:26.967 That's what I'm doing this morning, making a case. 00:03:28.860 --> 00:03:43.568 He made a case for Christ unto them and the people, with one accord, gave heed unto those things which Philip spoke, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 00:03:43.568 --> 00:03:47.127 I mean, would you like to hear a miracle? 00:03:47.127 --> 00:03:52.028 Then it goes on to tell you how that happened. 00:03:52.028 --> 00:03:54.046 I mean, demons came out of people. 00:03:54.046 --> 00:03:55.340 They shrieked at everything. 00:03:55.340 --> 00:03:57.287 They heard the demons leaving people. 00:03:57.287 --> 00:03:59.445 We've had that happen right up here. 00:03:59.445 --> 00:04:03.405 Stay tuned for the video. 00:04:03.405 --> 00:04:04.127 Praise the Lord. 00:04:04.127 --> 00:04:07.546 No, it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens. 00:04:07.546 --> 00:04:10.865 Sometimes it's very dramatic, sometimes it's real quiet. 00:04:10.865 --> 00:04:14.026 Most of the time the devil tries to sneak out of here. 00:04:14.026 --> 00:04:19.365 He doesn't make a big fuss, he usually just kind of slinks, hits the floor and kind of wiggles out. 00:04:19.365 --> 00:04:26.112 And so I wanted to make a case for miracles. 00:04:26.112 --> 00:04:30.086 That's what my message is about the case for miracles. 00:04:30.240 --> 00:04:33.050 Why are miracles so important? 00:04:33.050 --> 00:04:38.423 When I read the book of, when I read Jesus, he had miracles. 00:04:38.423 --> 00:04:42.887 When I read the book of Acts, jesus was gone and they had miracles. 00:04:42.887 --> 00:04:48.665 What numbskull came up with the idea that miracles passed away? 00:04:48.665 --> 00:04:52.184 It's not in my Bible, it's nowhere in my Bible. 00:04:52.184 --> 00:04:55.084 It says that, well, brother healing. 00:04:55.084 --> 00:04:57.007 No, it didn't actually. 00:04:57.007 --> 00:04:58.800 In fact, it says the opposite in the Bible. 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:02.288 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever. 00:05:02.288 --> 00:05:05.307 If he did it back then, he does it today. 00:05:05.307 --> 00:05:11.723 Otherwise we have every room to doubt Amen, now, were we saved then? 00:05:11.723 --> 00:05:14.487 If they passed away, how about salvation? 00:05:14.487 --> 00:05:15.223 It passed away. 00:05:15.223 --> 00:05:17.403 Oh no, brother, I'm saved, I'm born again. 00:05:17.403 --> 00:05:29.543 Really, based on what you tore half your Bible out, it starts in the cemetery, I mean the seminary, that's where they take. 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:31.406 Brother Osteen had that testimony. 00:05:31.406 --> 00:05:40.209 I mean, there was no place in all of his seminary training that gave any hope for his daughter, who was born with something like cerebral palsy. 00:05:40.209 --> 00:05:42.869 She had no Lisa had no sucking reflexes. 00:05:42.869 --> 00:05:52.564 She couldn't make a sin, she couldn't cry, she could just squeak and she couldn't crawl like a baby, she just had to scoot. 00:05:52.564 --> 00:06:02.586 When she got strong enough and the little old thing was so tiny and so weak, there was nothing in his seminary, you know, preparation, that gave him any hope. 00:06:05.180 --> 00:06:07.649 Thank God he started hanging around full gospel people. 00:06:07.649 --> 00:06:10.382 Thank God he started hanging around people believing miracles. 00:06:10.382 --> 00:06:15.043 Oh, come on, come on, let's thank God For miracles. 00:06:15.043 --> 00:06:15.946 We need them. 00:06:15.946 --> 00:06:17.110 They're not optional. 00:06:17.110 --> 00:06:22.891 If they needed them in Samaria, we need them today. 00:06:22.891 --> 00:06:28.947 If they need miracles among the Jews, I mean, where did Philip preach? 00:06:28.947 --> 00:06:34.410 You know, where did he do these wonders and great wonders and miracles among the people. 00:06:34.410 --> 00:06:35.242 What were the people? 00:06:35.242 --> 00:06:36.822 The same people that crucified the Lord. 00:06:36.822 --> 00:06:39.927 I can just see, I can just hear him now. 00:06:39.927 --> 00:06:40.682 Well, you know what? 00:06:40.682 --> 00:06:42.666 We're being persecuted by these people. 00:06:42.666 --> 00:06:50.184 I'm gonna go preach to them, see, because they were all scattered abroad because of the persecution that came on the church, because of the man at the gate. 00:06:50.223 --> 00:06:54.488 Beautiful, you know, not everybody's excited when miracles occur. 00:06:54.488 --> 00:06:55.644 Some people get mad. 00:06:55.644 --> 00:06:58.899 They get mad. 00:06:58.899 --> 00:07:00.024 That's kind of inconceivable. 00:07:00.024 --> 00:07:03.423 You don't get mad if you're the person that gets the miracle. 00:07:03.423 --> 00:07:04.182 You don't get mad. 00:07:04.182 --> 00:07:05.144 Somehow that's different. 00:07:05.144 --> 00:07:16.985 Alright, so this message is gonna give us the answer to why the need for miracles. 00:07:16.985 --> 00:07:25.110 And then there's gonna be a second part of the message is why is it so hard to find miracles in most churches? 00:07:25.110 --> 00:07:27.826 Gonna answer that question as well. 00:07:27.826 --> 00:07:30.464 And so y'all ready to get started. 00:07:31.480 --> 00:07:35.488 You know, I hear people say well, I don't need a miracle to know that Jesus is here. 00:07:35.488 --> 00:07:40.449 Well, I appreciate that and I think that's an admirable attitude. 00:07:40.449 --> 00:07:47.769 When you come to church, you're not just looking for fireworks, that you can have a good Sunday in the Word. 00:07:47.769 --> 00:07:55.925 You can have a good service where the Word is preached, and you don't see or hear anything that you can hang your hat on. 00:07:55.925 --> 00:08:01.351 That was a miracle and you're not angry about it, you're not disappointed. 00:08:01.351 --> 00:08:04.509 You've got faith in what the Word says. 00:08:04.509 --> 00:08:08.483 You have patience when you just trust God that he shows up. 00:08:08.483 --> 00:08:14.709 But in the bigger scheme of things, we live in a time where we must have miracles. 00:08:14.709 --> 00:08:21.392 We have to have them on a regular occurrence, amen. 00:08:21.392 --> 00:08:28.334 And so the Bible is filled, as I said, with miracles. 00:08:29.160 --> 00:08:42.589 The early church thrived on miracles, and if it's true that they needed miracles, how much more do we need them in this time when there's such skepticism, such animosity toward the church? 00:08:42.589 --> 00:08:49.309 The church is hated, jesus is hated, god is hated by these people. 00:08:49.309 --> 00:08:51.263 They hate God. 00:08:51.263 --> 00:08:53.490 They make fun of God. 00:08:53.490 --> 00:08:55.663 Are you with me now? 00:08:55.663 --> 00:08:57.864 So what is it? 00:08:57.864 --> 00:09:04.067 Isn't it true that miracles ought to be a major part of the church of Jesus Christ? 00:09:04.067 --> 00:09:07.441 See, if you agree with that, then you know. 00:09:07.441 --> 00:09:09.864 I learned a long time ago you can have what you preach. 00:09:09.864 --> 00:09:11.249 That's why I preach this way. 00:09:11.249 --> 00:09:12.586 I've preached this way before. 00:09:12.586 --> 00:09:14.044 I preached this way about a year ago. 00:09:14.044 --> 00:09:14.687 I don't care. 00:09:14.687 --> 00:09:29.706 I mean, when you come here, we need to be constantly reminded and refreshed in the idea that this church is a supernatural organism, and miracles ought to be commonplace. 00:09:33.092 --> 00:09:33.874 What is a miracle? 00:09:33.874 --> 00:09:34.764 Let me give it to you. 00:09:34.764 --> 00:09:42.049 A miracle is an event contrary to the established constitution and course of things. 00:09:42.049 --> 00:09:46.389 This is out of Webster's 1828 dictionary. 00:09:46.389 --> 00:09:52.610 Webster took a lot of his definitions right out of the Concordance, out of the Greek and Hebrew. 00:09:52.610 --> 00:09:58.639 A miracle is an event contrary to the established constitution and course of things. 00:09:58.639 --> 00:10:03.354 It is a deviation from the known laws of nature. 00:10:03.354 --> 00:10:06.019 How about Jesus walking on the water? 00:10:06.019 --> 00:10:08.508 Why did he do that? 00:10:08.508 --> 00:10:09.331 What did that do? 00:10:09.331 --> 00:10:10.052 Well, it was a wonder. 00:10:10.052 --> 00:10:12.458 We ought to have more wonders in the church. 00:10:12.519 --> 00:10:14.597 I remember the testimony of Brother Hagin. 00:10:14.597 --> 00:10:25.500 One time he was preaching at a church on a Sunday night service and he got to preaching and preaching, and preaching, and preaching and preaching and he was walking and he walked off the edge of the platform and he didn't fall. 00:10:25.500 --> 00:10:27.869 He just went out in mid air and came back. 00:10:27.869 --> 00:10:34.630 Man, I tell you what that'd make you stand up and blink a few times if you saw that. 00:10:34.630 --> 00:10:44.607 I saw the video of Pastor Mac Hammond up in Minneapolis, minnesota. 00:10:44.607 --> 00:10:46.986 He's still up there in his 80s. 00:10:46.986 --> 00:10:54.600 I think he's an ex fighter pilot in Vietnam War In. 00:10:54.600 --> 00:10:57.890 This was in the 80s, but he was not a light guy. 00:10:57.890 --> 00:11:04.186 I mean, he was pretty heavy even in the 80s and more heavy now than he was then, but he's not a small guy. 00:11:04.186 --> 00:11:19.571 Brother Hagin was visiting in his church and they were having a Holy Spirit time and people were running around the church and people were getting filled with the Holy Ghost and he was up on the platform and I saw it with my own eyes. 00:11:19.571 --> 00:11:20.745 The video's still out there. 00:11:20.745 --> 00:11:22.311 You can probably search for it on YouTube. 00:11:22.311 --> 00:11:26.811 And he had a pretty big pulpit with a Bible open. 00:11:26.811 --> 00:11:34.789 It's got a slanted top on it and he stood and he leaped and he landed and he jumped on top of his pulpit. 00:11:34.789 --> 00:11:38.167 You try that in the natural. 00:11:38.167 --> 00:11:43.828 Maybe JJ Watt can do that, but I don't. 00:11:43.828 --> 00:11:48.572 Pastor Hammond, are you with me now? 00:11:50.759 --> 00:11:52.847 A deviation from the known laws of nature. 00:11:52.847 --> 00:12:04.745 A supernatural event, boy, we need more supernatural events in the church, all right, so why do we need miracles? 00:12:04.745 --> 00:12:15.828 The case for miracles Number one I see Number one miracles testify that Jesus is alive and that he's the same yesterday, today and forever. 00:12:15.828 --> 00:12:17.205 Hebrews 13, eight. 00:12:17.205 --> 00:12:31.869 If Hebrews 13, eight is true how many of you believe Hebrews 13, eight is true, then it absolutely destroys the idea that miracles passed away because it would mean that Jesus changed his mind. 00:12:31.869 --> 00:12:34.865 But no, he's the same. 00:12:34.865 --> 00:12:43.369 I said he's the same and the church should be the same, because the church is what? 00:12:43.369 --> 00:12:45.626 Well, the church is part of Jesus. 00:12:45.626 --> 00:12:46.604 We're one with him. 00:12:46.604 --> 00:12:48.863 He's the head of the church, we're the body. 00:12:48.863 --> 00:12:52.364 I mean, why would the head be one thing and the body another? 00:12:52.364 --> 00:12:55.145 It's ludicrous. 00:12:55.145 --> 00:13:01.803 I said it's ludicrous In Acts 433,. 00:13:03.528 --> 00:13:19.450 The Bible says, after that tremendous miracle where the lame man who was above 40 years old was healed, had never walked, and Peter and John fixed their eyes on him and pulled him up, said you know, rise up and walk. 00:13:19.450 --> 00:13:21.807 And Peter didn't wait for him to get up. 00:13:21.807 --> 00:13:32.565 He pulled him up by the hand and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength and he went walking and leaping and praising God into the temple, right in front of all those Jews that had crucified Jesus. 00:13:32.565 --> 00:13:35.586 And again, it didn't make a lot of them happy. 00:13:35.586 --> 00:13:38.349 About 5,000 men got saved on that day. 00:13:38.349 --> 00:13:45.970 That meant 20,000, conservatively, 20,000 people were added to the church over one miracle. 00:13:45.970 --> 00:13:48.106 And you know the high-muckety bucks. 00:13:48.106 --> 00:13:50.903 They got mad, they were angry, they didn't like it. 00:13:50.903 --> 00:13:55.508 You stop bringing this man's blood on us. 00:13:55.508 --> 00:14:01.703 You quit preaching and teaching in that name and they threatened them. 00:14:01.703 --> 00:14:08.666 And so they went back and had a prayer meeting in the place where they prayed and they shook with the power of God. 00:14:10.159 --> 00:14:18.928 And the Bible says in Acts 4.33, that great grace was upon them all, was upon all the apostles, and they gave witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 00:14:18.928 --> 00:14:20.240 How did they do that? 00:14:20.240 --> 00:14:22.485 With signs and wonders and miracles. 00:14:22.485 --> 00:14:39.990 The little bit later it talks about how Peter would be walking down the street and they would rush to go get the sick and line them up in his pathway so that at least the shadow of Peter passing by would touch them and they would be healed. 00:14:39.990 --> 00:14:42.979 Everyone would be healed, everyone would be delivered. 00:14:42.979 --> 00:14:44.051 That needed to be delivered. 00:14:44.051 --> 00:14:47.119 And how many of you know your shadow don't have no power in it. 00:14:47.119 --> 00:14:51.845 It was the proximity to the power of God that was resting on the Apostles. 00:14:52.386 --> 00:14:54.214 Great grace what is that word grace? 00:14:54.214 --> 00:14:57.947 It means God's ability to do anything well. 00:14:57.947 --> 00:14:59.894 Do we need that in the church right now? 00:14:59.894 --> 00:15:10.120 Every other so-called religious leader is dead and decaying in the grave. 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:13.717 Jesus is alive and we serve a risen Savior. 00:15:13.717 --> 00:15:16.211 He hasn't changed already. 00:15:16.211 --> 00:15:17.053 Come on, let's. 00:15:17.053 --> 00:15:18.979 Let's just worship him right now. 00:15:18.979 --> 00:15:20.481 Thank God for miracles. 00:15:20.481 --> 00:15:26.400 Thank God, when we need one, we have access to the miracle worker. 00:15:26.421 --> 00:15:38.601 All right, the second one is that miracles testify that the church, that is, believers, represent Jesus and the Father, god, on the earth. 00:15:38.601 --> 00:15:42.115 We're His representatives, we're His ambassadors. 00:15:42.115 --> 00:15:47.797 If we had no power, if we had no miracles, then we would have nothing but an argument. 00:15:47.797 --> 00:15:55.594 We would just have a debate out on the side of the road and some atheists would debate this and we would debate the other, and there's nothing to settle it. 00:15:55.594 --> 00:16:00.279 But let me tell you something when the miracle shows up, all the arguing it ends right. 00:16:00.279 --> 00:16:02.989 There are we just right fighters. 00:16:02.989 --> 00:16:04.153 We're trying to win the argument. 00:16:04.153 --> 00:16:13.846 No, we're trying to win the lost, or at least give a witness to people and confront them with the truth. 00:16:13.886 --> 00:16:19.890 You know, a miracle is a truth and when you confront people with the truth, then they're responsible forever. 00:16:19.890 --> 00:16:22.940 They can never stand before God and says well, I didn't know. 00:16:22.940 --> 00:16:23.690 Nobody told me. 00:16:23.690 --> 00:16:24.351 Yes, they did. 00:16:24.351 --> 00:16:29.208 They told you and you either said yay or nay, that's our job. 00:16:29.208 --> 00:16:31.513 I said that's our job. 00:16:31.513 --> 00:16:41.538 Mark chapter 16, verse 17 these signs shall follow them that believe in my name. 00:16:41.538 --> 00:16:44.967 They shall cast out demons in my name. 00:16:44.967 --> 00:16:47.741 They shall lay hands on the sick and the sick shall recover. 00:16:48.163 --> 00:16:53.070 I mean, sometimes we make a mistake in thinking that miracles are instant, that they're just like right now. 00:16:53.070 --> 00:16:57.245 Some of them are, but most of them are over a process of time. 00:16:57.245 --> 00:17:05.681 Most miracles are or a process they happen over a period of time or they, they are delayed, they, they happen after a certain period of time. 00:17:05.681 --> 00:17:10.057 I mean, you know, we can't just get discouraged when something doesn't happen instantly. 00:17:10.057 --> 00:17:12.852 Let's keep the switch of faith turned on. 00:17:12.852 --> 00:17:14.777 I mean, otherwise, god lied. 00:17:14.777 --> 00:17:16.299 Did God lie to Jesus? 00:17:16.299 --> 00:17:17.631 No, he didn't lie. 00:17:17.631 --> 00:17:21.777 If we believe in our heart, are you with me now? 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:26.743 I mean Philip man. 00:17:26.743 --> 00:17:41.023 He had credibility among those Jews and he, and because he did those mega wonders and and miracles among them, then he turned his preaching on and he was, you know, he could have maybe been a little more polished in his delivery. 00:17:41.023 --> 00:17:43.132 You uncircumcised of hard and ears. 00:17:43.132 --> 00:17:44.856 You always resist the Holy Ghost. 00:17:44.856 --> 00:17:50.070 He didn't cut him in his slack. 00:17:50.070 --> 00:17:56.794 I mean he, he was preaching hellfire and brimstone of those Jewish people and they didn't like it. 00:17:56.794 --> 00:18:01.871 I've had some things thrown at me, but not enough to kill me. 00:18:01.871 --> 00:18:11.180 They threw, they threw those stones at him till they killed him and he said, oh Lord, laid this, lay not this sin to their charge. 00:18:11.180 --> 00:18:17.155 And he, he said I, I see Jesus standing at the right hand of the father. 00:18:17.155 --> 00:18:17.537 And they went. 00:18:17.537 --> 00:18:27.662 I mean, jesus got up out of the seating position to honor him as he, when he came to heaven. 00:18:28.471 --> 00:18:31.438 Praise God, are you with me now? 00:18:31.438 --> 00:18:38.751 You know, miracles exposed the absolute bank rupsy of dead religion. 00:18:38.751 --> 00:18:42.459 It exposes all the deadness. 00:18:42.459 --> 00:18:46.270 We're here to be salt and light. 00:18:46.270 --> 00:18:48.339 We're here to reprove darkness. 00:18:48.339 --> 00:18:52.093 We are here, you know, to bring a demonstration. 00:18:52.093 --> 00:18:54.017 Are y'all with me now? 00:18:54.017 --> 00:18:57.123 Well, I know this, I know that. 00:18:57.123 --> 00:19:06.159 Well, let's get this in our hearts and let's get stirred up to be one of the ones that get so filled up that you get out and do some miracles in your world. 00:19:06.980 --> 00:19:08.295 That's what happened to me at Lakewood. 00:19:08.295 --> 00:19:12.231 I started, I started moving out, I started laying hands on the sick. 00:19:12.231 --> 00:19:16.316 I start, I mean, you know, man, I tell you what well that's, because you were called. 00:19:16.316 --> 00:19:18.190 Well, I might have been called, but I wasn't there yet. 00:19:18.190 --> 00:19:19.797 I'm just a believer. 00:19:19.797 --> 00:19:24.512 I just took, I just took what I heard at church at face value and I started doing it. 00:19:24.512 --> 00:19:26.336 I started having results. 00:19:26.336 --> 00:19:35.058 But we're to be witnesses, we're to represent God to people. 00:19:35.058 --> 00:19:36.233 That's a priest. 00:19:36.233 --> 00:19:38.284 We're kings and priests unto God. 00:19:38.284 --> 00:19:38.950 What is a priest? 00:19:38.950 --> 00:19:42.470 A priest represents God to man and man to God. 00:19:42.470 --> 00:19:43.615 You're a go-between. 00:19:43.615 --> 00:19:48.440 You're the FedEx guy or girl. 00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:56.096 You didn't generate the copy, you didn't make the product, you just delivered it. 00:19:56.096 --> 00:19:57.845 That's all I did. 00:19:57.845 --> 00:19:59.512 I'm a delivery boy, that's all. 00:19:59.512 --> 00:20:02.028 But what if I don't do my job? 00:20:02.028 --> 00:20:03.717 Well then they don't get the delivery. 00:20:03.717 --> 00:20:08.438 I mean, years ago we moved. 00:20:08.509 --> 00:20:16.717 We spent a year and a half in Corpus in the 80s and it's a long story I won't go into. 00:20:16.717 --> 00:20:19.038 But we were part of Dean and Ray Garner. 00:20:19.038 --> 00:20:27.178 Pastor Dean Garner was Brother Deerman's son stepson and he was the director of missions at Lakewood. 00:20:27.178 --> 00:20:29.557 He just saw something in Gladys Nades. 00:20:29.557 --> 00:20:34.194 He always took a shine to us and wanted to talk to us and he was always kind to us. 00:20:34.194 --> 00:20:44.811 So when we left Lakewood he made a phone call to Pastor Garner and said hey, I'm sending you a couple of gold stars and I don't make them go through all your rigmarole, put them to work. 00:20:44.811 --> 00:20:47.816 But we went through everything. 00:20:47.816 --> 00:20:49.476 We went through membership class. 00:20:49.476 --> 00:20:52.038 How many of you have been through membership class here? 00:20:52.038 --> 00:20:53.635 It doesn't take long. 00:20:53.635 --> 00:20:54.834 There it took six months. 00:20:54.834 --> 00:20:58.332 We couldn't do anything for six months, nothing. 00:20:58.332 --> 00:21:03.719 We had to go through classes, classes, but eventually we became home group leaders. 00:21:03.769 --> 00:21:06.959 So we had a cell group in our home in Portland. 00:21:06.959 --> 00:21:18.352 So if you lived in Portland you came to our house and so what they would do is they would send crews out to visit the sick in the hospital and any kind of a network. 00:21:18.352 --> 00:21:19.215 People would call. 00:21:19.215 --> 00:21:26.778 And so it came across somebody that a young man had wrenched his back changing a truck tire. 00:21:26.778 --> 00:21:38.055 He was working at a tire store, a big old 18-wheeler tire you know how huge they are and heavy and he pulled it off of there and he hurt his back and he was in a hospital, put him in traction, was in the hospital for a week. 00:21:38.055 --> 00:21:45.017 So one of our team went there and laid hands on him and prayed over him and said, hey, you know, you ought to go to where do you live? 00:21:45.017 --> 00:21:47.417 And we ought to go to the home group meeting. 00:21:47.970 --> 00:21:57.842 And I got his phone number and then once a month we would have fellowship where you just get together and not have any teaching or anything. 00:21:57.842 --> 00:22:00.117 We would have a miniature church service. 00:22:00.117 --> 00:22:07.757 You know, I'd play my Omnicord and lead several courses, you know, and then we'd pray and then we would see who had a need. 00:22:07.757 --> 00:22:16.420 We'd lay hands on people and I'd bring a message that was given by Brother Pastor Garner and we had to preach what he had on a piece of paper. 00:22:16.420 --> 00:22:22.980 I preached his outline, preached it the way he wanted it done, very strictly controlled, and that was fine. 00:22:22.980 --> 00:22:24.134 I'm a man under authority. 00:22:24.134 --> 00:22:25.715 I did what I was supposed to do. 00:22:26.509 --> 00:22:29.819 But I got this young man's address. 00:22:29.819 --> 00:22:33.416 He had been dismissed from the hospital and he said call him and invite him to your fellowship. 00:22:33.416 --> 00:22:35.053 I said all right, so I did. 00:22:35.053 --> 00:22:45.237 He answered the phone a bunch of party and going on Sunday afternoon about 2 o'clock I could tell a bunch of music is happening and you know people's voices and all that. 00:22:45.237 --> 00:22:48.037 And I told him who I was. 00:22:48.037 --> 00:22:50.617 I said you know we're having a fellowship tonight. 00:22:50.617 --> 00:22:52.537 You know there's no big deal. 00:22:52.537 --> 00:22:56.480 We're going to have some cake and pie and coffee and refreshments. 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:57.694 We'd just like you to come by. 00:22:57.694 --> 00:23:00.517 We're right here in your neighborhood here in Portland. 00:23:00.517 --> 00:23:08.162 And he kind of hemmed and he kind of hawed and you know he sounded about as excited as you know. 00:23:08.162 --> 00:23:10.617 He just was not excited about my phone call at all. 00:23:10.617 --> 00:23:15.801 So you know it gets time for the fellowship. 00:23:15.801 --> 00:23:17.095 People start getting there. 00:23:17.095 --> 00:23:18.776 Six or seven people is all. 00:23:18.776 --> 00:23:20.252 It was A little old, bitty group. 00:23:21.035 --> 00:23:31.662 And then, plus my family, claire and Jay Gladys and myself, and so Dorbell rings in this, this young Hispanic man. 00:23:31.662 --> 00:23:33.690 He's about 6'2", weighs about 230. 00:23:33.690 --> 00:23:35.999 I mean, he is a specimen. 00:23:35.999 --> 00:23:37.395 I mean he's just like this. 00:23:37.395 --> 00:23:39.736 I mean you talk about macho. 00:23:39.736 --> 00:23:44.461 I mean he might have been macho-camacho, I don't know, but he was whew. 00:23:44.461 --> 00:23:52.458 And he looked so uncomfortable he didn't even know why he was there. 00:23:52.458 --> 00:23:56.836 He was standing on one foot and another and he couldn't put a sentence together. 00:23:56.836 --> 00:23:59.295 I said, oh, come on in, come on in and have a seat. 00:23:59.869 --> 00:24:07.698 And right off the entry hall was our dining room and I didn't want to bring him into the room because I knew he was embarrassed, and so I brought him to the dining room table. 00:24:07.698 --> 00:24:12.175 We sat down and chatted a little bit Tell me about what happened to you. 00:24:12.175 --> 00:24:13.877 And he told me. 00:24:13.877 --> 00:24:16.095 And I said well, you look like you're still in pain. 00:24:16.095 --> 00:24:18.196 He said I don't know why I'm here. 00:24:18.196 --> 00:24:19.099 I ought to be at home. 00:24:19.099 --> 00:24:21.659 He said I hurt, I really am. 00:24:21.659 --> 00:24:23.075 My back is really hurting. 00:24:23.075 --> 00:24:25.877 And I said well, you know we believe in healing. 00:24:25.877 --> 00:24:33.318 Would you mind if we prayed for your back, and he kind of well, I guess. 00:24:33.318 --> 00:24:38.178 So he wasn't really eager, and so I walked him into the dining room. 00:24:38.178 --> 00:24:39.856 I introduced him to the group there. 00:24:39.910 --> 00:24:59.134 I said, ok, y'all kind of form a little circle here, I'm going to sit him down in this chair and back then, mostly when I would pray for legs or backs rather, I would have people extend their legs, sit down and have them extend their legs, put my thumbs on the points of their ankles. 00:24:59.134 --> 00:25:04.118 It's not that you grow a leg out, it's just that your pelvis turns and your back straightens out. 00:25:04.118 --> 00:25:16.394 It's like a miniature chiropractic session and only the Holy Ghost is the chiropractor and so, sure enough, and I do it so he can look down and see the movement. 00:25:16.394 --> 00:25:31.934 And he felt a crack, and I mean my thumbs were about three quarters of an inch difference, and so that's because his back has been torqued, his pelvis is crooked, it's putting pressure on that vertebrae, sending all that pain down. 00:25:31.934 --> 00:25:39.819 So anyway, it just moved in perfect alignment and I said, ok, sir, let's just stand up now. 00:25:39.819 --> 00:25:42.057 And I pulled him up by the hand and he stood up. 00:25:42.057 --> 00:25:44.837 I said now bend over and touch your toes. 00:25:44.837 --> 00:25:45.813 I did it real. 00:25:45.913 --> 00:25:59.300 Rapidly and just without thinking, he bent over and touched his toes and he came back up and it looked like I had hit him across the jaw with the right cross. 00:25:59.300 --> 00:26:03.700 He was just like he could not believe all the pain had left him. 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:07.018 And so I said well, did the pain leave? 00:26:07.018 --> 00:26:08.536 And he started to tell me. 00:26:08.536 --> 00:26:13.013 And he choked up and started crying in front of all these gringos. 00:26:13.013 --> 00:26:22.837 You know, if you're a young Hispanic male about 25, you're not going to cry in front of anybody, much less a bunch of gringo strangers. 00:26:22.837 --> 00:26:27.212 Tears running down his face. 00:26:27.212 --> 00:26:29.638 He's healed instantly. 00:26:29.638 --> 00:26:34.875 Oh, thank God for the Holy, thank God for miracles. 00:26:34.875 --> 00:26:36.154 They haven't passed away. 00:26:36.154 --> 00:26:41.896 And so I gave him a chance to kind of compose himself. 00:26:41.896 --> 00:26:43.853 I said now. 00:26:43.853 --> 00:26:47.076 I said Jesus healed you without any strings attached. 00:26:47.076 --> 00:26:52.719 I said I've never said anything to you about joining the church or doing anything like that. 00:26:52.719 --> 00:26:56.559 I just Jesus healed you just right now, didn't he? 00:26:56.559 --> 00:26:57.473 He said, yeah, he did. 00:26:57.910 --> 00:27:06.576 I said wouldn't you want to give your heart to such a wonderful savior like that, because he's not only a healer, he's a savior and you need to give your heart to him. 00:27:06.576 --> 00:27:07.755 Would you do that today? 00:27:07.755 --> 00:27:08.633 He said, oh, I'm not ready. 00:27:08.633 --> 00:27:12.017 I said well, what would it take to get ready? 00:27:12.017 --> 00:27:13.375 He says I don't know, but I'm not ready. 00:27:13.375 --> 00:27:14.031 I'm not ready. 00:27:14.031 --> 00:27:24.317 I said, man, it would be terrible if you left this meeting, got in your car and got over here to the railroad crossing and the train ran over and you died and went to hell. 00:27:24.317 --> 00:27:25.213 That would be terrible. 00:27:25.213 --> 00:27:26.653 You'd go healed. 00:27:26.653 --> 00:27:32.595 You'd go healed your back has been healed but you'd go and you would be lost forever. 00:27:32.595 --> 00:27:36.459 I said don't you want to give your heart to Jesus? 00:27:36.459 --> 00:27:37.432 I'm not ready. 00:27:37.432 --> 00:27:40.015 And he left my house without getting saved. 00:27:40.015 --> 00:27:41.941 Well, you failed. 00:27:41.941 --> 00:27:43.154 No, I did not fail. 00:27:43.369 --> 00:27:44.363 Our job is not. 00:27:44.363 --> 00:27:48.441 Our job is not to get all everybody saved. 00:27:48.441 --> 00:27:50.156 Our job is to bring a witness. 00:27:50.156 --> 00:27:53.357 Our job is to bring people to a point of decision. 00:27:53.357 --> 00:27:57.419 And he will never if he later didn't get saved. 00:27:57.419 --> 00:28:02.219 I prayed for him a few times over the years, but I don't know whether he ever got saved or not. 00:28:02.219 --> 00:28:03.653 I don't know if he's still alive or not. 00:28:03.653 --> 00:28:07.434 Oh, that's our job, folks. 00:28:07.829 --> 00:28:11.330 Miracles, oh praise God, the last one. 00:28:11.330 --> 00:28:16.396 Miracles give hope to those people on whom the world has given up. 00:28:16.396 --> 00:28:25.981 How the doctor's given up on you, they've given up on Anita Maude. 00:28:25.981 --> 00:28:28.221 Anita, we haven't given up. 00:28:28.221 --> 00:28:29.239 You haven't given up. 00:28:29.239 --> 00:28:30.519 We're standing with you. 00:28:30.519 --> 00:28:34.442 You'll live and not die to clear the works of the Lord. 00:28:34.442 --> 00:28:37.001 We don't impose ourselves on her. 00:28:37.001 --> 00:28:38.419 We ask her what she wants. 00:28:38.419 --> 00:28:39.702 What do you want? 00:28:39.702 --> 00:28:40.545 What do you believe in? 00:28:40.545 --> 00:28:41.637 For We'll get an agreement. 00:28:41.637 --> 00:28:42.622 I want to live. 00:28:42.622 --> 00:28:45.159 I want to get back to Gloria Swaig Church and give my testimony. 00:28:45.159 --> 00:28:46.901 Well, we agree in Jesus name. 00:28:46.901 --> 00:28:51.979 Jesus, she's a miracle woman. 00:28:51.979 --> 00:28:59.125