All right, beloved, I want to thank you for making an effort to be in the house of the Lord tonight on this week anniversary of last week's events in Charleston, South Carolina. You know, the devil may think he's going to scare God's people, but how can you scare God's children with home? You know, we have faced many things in our lives as Christians. As Americans, we have come through. But I do want to let you know, and I know you know it as well, that there are some severe problems in America today, which is the date June 24, 2015 in the year of our Lord. And I'm going to share with you tonight some problems in America right now. That's the title of this message. Now, some have told me down through the years that perhaps, preacher, maybe you should look at something encouraging. Well, whenever God leads me that way, I will. I like to be encouraged. I don't like to turn the news on and see disaster after depressing event after depressing event. I don't like to see that, but The thing is, beloved, that too many people in our country tonight, they don't want to know what any of the problems are. Why? Because here's the thing, as human beings, normally, if we know there is a problem somewhere, then for most people, if they have a heart whatsoever, they are then obligated to try to do something about it. But there are people, I understand, that They know about a problem, and they don't care. They ignore it, and they hope it'll go away. That never solved any problem. So tonight, I want to share with you seven problems that America has right now. This may not be your problem, but as a pastor, it is my duty under God's heaven and on God's earth to warn believers, whether they are here or out there, and to trumpet then as a watchman on the wall. Indeed, God called many of his men from the prophets to the preachers watchmen on the wall. And their responsibility was to watch into the distance and see if there was an oncoming problem. A watchman's duty was, if he saw an oncoming problem, his duty then was to raise a trumpet or to raise an alarm. that may not be a very good trumpet sound but anyway I'm still learning so his duty then is to raise an alarm to let everyone inside of the city know there is danger approaching and you need to get up and you need to do something before the city is attacked or under siege so let's look at 1st Corinthians chapter 1 verse 21 1st Corinthians chapter 1 Verse 21. And if you have your place there in the Word of God, be so kind as to say, Amen. Alright, beloved. Now I won't have you stand up, but you stand in your heart, I know. But follow along there with me in your copy of the Word of God. He says, For after that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God. It pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe." Notice again, knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Let's pray. Father, tonight, Lord, I come before you with a humble heart, Lord, thanking you for all that you've done in this church, in our church family, Lord. Lord, Father, we thank you for these that are here tonight, Lord. Father, we thank you also for those that are not here tonight, wherever they may be. Lord, we know some are working. Some are providentially hindered. Lord, some are sick. And Father, frankly, some just don't care. And Lord, we pray tonight for all of us, Lord, all of us here in the family of God, or those that visit, those that are members, or those that come off and on from time to time. Lord, Father, we thank you for all who are part of this family of God. Lord, I pray tonight for strength, for courage, for healing, or for tenacity and temerity to stand our ground as Christians, for your love to be seen in our hearts, our lives, and our words and our deeds. Father, that we will show mercy and grace, but above all, that we will show Jesus to a lost and dying world. Lord, I ask tonight that you'll use me as your vessel. Hide me behind the cross, Lord. Put your words in my mouth. You'd have me to preach tonight, Lord Father. I humbly pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Right there, beloved, there it is. You know, as I watched these events unfold in the past week, As a man who loves history, a man who loves heritage, and I began to see my heritage come under attack, I began to see that there are many out there that do not know. And as I sat and I thought about that, God began to point me in the Bible to that phrase, knew not. And I began to look at those scriptures and ponder over them and read over them and suddenly I felt the Spirit of the Lord telling me, that's what you need to preach on. That's what you need to preach on. I said, okay, I'm going to preach on Nunah. When we come to the understandings of what is wrong in America, you have heard this past week by hundreds of thousands of talking heads and pundits that they say many times the problem in America is skin. skin color. I'm here to tell you tonight that you can look through every single thing in this country that quote-unquote is going wrong, and there are going to be people out there attacking this, there are going to be people out there attacking that, the pundits are going to be saying this is the problem, you're going to have Democrats saying that's the problem, you're going to have Republicans saying this is the problem, You're going to have members of Congress, members of state legislature saying this is an issue that is a problem. But beloved, as a Christian, I know what the problem is. You can call it this, you can call it that, you can call it something else, you can name it, you can label it, anything and everything. But the problem, beloved, as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, of anything and everything that's wrong in America, it goes back to one three-letter word, and it is S. I end sin. That is the problem in America. Behind murder, behind rape, behind prayerlessness, behind anything and everything that we look in our society that's wrong in our country, the issue is not those areas that members of our society say it is, that's the front. That's the red herring. They may be tools that is used by sin. I mean, guys, I can take this trumpet and I can make it into an instrument of sin if I want to. And then suddenly you can have people coming out saying trumpets are the problem. Trumpets need to be banned. But the trumpet did nothing wrong. It was the man whose sinful heart wielded that trumpet and used it in an ungodly, evil manner. That's what made it wrong, is to sin, beloved. And you see, that's what the devil is trying to do right now. The devil is trying to get our eyes off of a very important event that happened in Charleston this past week. And you say, what is that, Richard? Let me explain right quick as a quick illustration from not ancient or not far back history, but recent history. When we have seen white on black or even sometimes black on white events that have happened. Now some people may tell me, they may say, you shouldn't talk about that. Well folks, let me tell you something. We as Christians need to address issues in our country and our society that is impacting the family of God. Because I'm telling you folks, there are far too many people out here tonight that are sitting in their houses listening to a glowing talking box and being led by the mainstream media rather than being in the house of God where they can find out some answer to the problems in America. But anyway, when we've seen these events in years gone by, we have seen rioting, we have seen people taken to the streets, we have seen killing, we have seen murders, we have seen the torching of businesses, the destruction of homes, the murder of American citizens by American citizens, and we have seen these too many cases blow up in our faces. And you know what? I think that that was the devil's desire. The devil wanted Charleston to explode into a hotbed of writhing, but what happened? What happened is you saw Christians. You saw Christians coming together, white and black, coming together doing what? Uplifting the name of Jesus Christ. I heard and I saw with my own eyes and ears these members of those people that were slain, those people standing and saying, I hope you find Jesus Christ. They said, I forgive you of murdering my loved one. Guys, that is a testimony to the world of one thing, the love of Jesus Christ. Now then what happens? Guys, I'm telling you, you've got to learn to look at events and history through spiritual glasses. And so when I look at that, suddenly I hear political pundits start talking about this issue, talking about that issue, talking about another issue, and suddenly they jump on board, let's make everything confederate outlaw, pretty much. And what happens? We see the devil has used certain items in our society to drive the focus away from the church, away from the love of Christ, away from the forgiveness that is found in Jesus Christ, and we have found people's passion diverted elsewhere. I'm not saying these things in and of themselves are wrong or evil. I'm not saying that. I'm saying that I believe, and I'm getting over here out of the pulpit, that I believe that the devil has done something to divert attention away from God. Because anytime God starts getting any praise, the devil is going to try to make rackets somewhere. How many times have you heard me say over the years, the closer we get as a church, the closer in unity as the body of Christ we get to church, how many times have I told you, the closer we get on par with God's standard and God's Word, I've told you time and time again, watch out, the devil is going to try to rear his head somewhere and divide us. I'll tell you who made this mess about my heritage. It wasn't me. It wasn't my ancestors. It wasn't blacks. It was the media that did it. And I'll tell you who owns the media. It ain't the Jews. It ain't George Soros. I'll tell you who owns the media. Satan, Lucifer, the devil owns the media. You tell me where you get something positive about Christ in the media. for any length of time. I can't find it. All I see on that glowing box is the mockery of my faith, my culture, my heritage, and who and what we as Americans stand for. And I'll jot over here right quick. Now this verse right here starts us off base number one. Block 1. That verse in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 21 tells me exactly what the first and foremost problem in America is right now. And that is the problem in America now is too many don't know God. They don't know Him. They say, God, I mean, you can look on your American fiat money, which means it ain't backed by nothing. In God we trust. What God? They didn't define it. To a Muslim up in Dearborn, Stan, Michigan, he can say, that is a lie. Okay? That's fine, that's your right. To an atheist, he'll say, I don't believe in God. Well, in actuality, the atheist actually does believe in a God. It's himself or herself, according to the Bible. So while they may beat the drum and say, oh, we need to take that off of the money, it's right, they do believe in a god, it's themselves. The Buddhists can call it Buddha. The Mormons can call it Elohim. Not ours, by the way. The Jehovah's Witnesses can call it Jehovah. You and I can call God Jesus. And that's who I do. But for far too many people out in this country, we are in the minority. You want to talk about minorities having rights? Guys, Christians are on the firing line. Our rights are going down the drain as Christians. You want to know what they're going to come after next? Right here. Because in a couple of days the Supreme Court is going to rule, more than likely, I ain't a prophet but I'm going to tell you right now, more than likely the United States Supreme Court is going to rule that gay marriage will stand in all of the whole country. And you know what? God cannot bless a nation that endorses abomination. He can't endorse a nation that, and go look up the abominations of God. And you'll find out, guys, we've been in this way long time ago, from the 1960s and 70s. America as a country has been pushing abomination after abomination. And God, it ain't new. It's now becoming more and more recognized by our government. I'm not being anti-American here, guys. I'm telling you what the truth is. That in our country, Christians are being kicked aside and our faith and our belief in our Bible and our Bible-believing culture is going down the drain as a force in this country. And that is why it is high time the churches wake up and the men of God take a stand on the Word of God. If they come to me and tell me, you will marry a man and a man, I will tell them I will not because it is not in line with the Word of God. I don't care what they tell me to do. My allegiance is not first to that flag or any other flag. My allegiance is first of all to my Lord, my King, my Savior, Jesus Christ. And it should be yours as well. But our problem is, beloved, we have too many people in this country who talk about God, but they don't know who the true God is. And that's a problem. Why is it a problem? Well, guys, because we need to be on the same page in the Bible. We need to be having in our hearts and minds a biblical worldview. And we can only have that biblical worldview when we understand who God is, the God of the Bible. And then we begin to let God's will and God's way and God's Word shape the way we think about issues in society. The Muslim thinks about issues in society based on how the Koran tells him to look at it. The atheist looks at issues in society the way he thinks they should be seen. That's the way they do. Your God and my God, Jesus Christ, the Trinity, the three in one, has laid down how he feels about things in our society. And it's time we go back to God's definitions and quit trying to change them to please a group of people. Let's go to problem number two, a problem in America now is too many people don't know Jesus. In John 21 for it says, but when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. You know what really bums me out a lot of times is when I read about the Mormon church, the group of people coming to their faith from a different faith is Southern Baptist. The highest number of converts to their faith, to the Mormon faith, from an existing religious denomination slash faith, it is Southern Baptists. I'm telling you, whether I'm Independent Baptist, Southern Baptist, American Baptist, National Baptist, Free Will Baptist, whatever Baptist it is, a Baptist ought to have a brain enough if he reads his Bible enough to know that the Mormon Jesus, who is the brother of Lucifer, and who is the physical offspring of Mary and Elohim, that is not my Jesus. That is not the Jesus of the Bible. The problem with too many people in this country, they say they know Jesus, but they don't know who Jesus is if he stood right in front of them. You know why? I'll get to that in a minute. Just hang on. I'll tell you why. But that's a big problem. You know why? Because the Bible tells us there is none other name given among men under heaven whereby we must be saved. That's a big problem that people say. They'll talk about Jesus all day long. But are they talking about our Jesus? I remember Brother Clarence Robbins when he was in hospice. The nurse came to him and said, Mr. Robbins, can I pray for you? He said, whoa, wait a minute. He said, what? Which God are we going to be praying to? Jesus. Which Jesus? The Jesus of the Bible. Which Bible? You've got to love Brother Clarence. He said, the King James Bible. He said, alright sister, let's pray. So you can pray all day long, but are you praying to the wall, the ceiling, to a little fat man statue, or are you praying to the God of heaven who is alive and powerful right now? Number three, a problem in America is now too many people don't know the Holy Ghost. Think about what happened back in Judges 14.6, and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he ran him as he would have ran a kid, that is, a goat. And he had nothing in his hand, but he had not told his father or his mother what he had done. That was when he tore apart a lion. That was Samson, by the way. But later on, he got mixed up with a harlot. He broke his vow in Judges 16, 20. And she, that is Delilah, said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep and said, I'll go out as it is at times before I shake myself. But here's the big problem. And he wished not that the Lord was departed from him. They didn't get the Holy Ghost like you and I get the Holy Ghost. They had him on loan back in them days. And Samson broke his Nazarite vow. and the Holy Ghost left him. But the problem with old Sammy boy is he wished not. That means he didn't know. You know, there's another thing I want to share with you there that comes in 1 Samuel, a little while after that. It says, And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory has departed from Israel, because the ark of God was taken in the cause of her father-in-law and her husband. You see, the Israelites were defeated in battle, and the ark of the covenant was taken. And when the ark of the covenant was taken, the glory of God departed from Israel. It departed from the house of God, and therefore, she called that baby Ichabod. which meant the glorious departed. God, there are a lot of Baptist churches tonight that should be renamed the First Baptist Church or the Baptist Church of Ichabod because the Holy Ghost ain't there. You can't feel Him. You can't feel the warmth. You can't feel the power inside the preaching anymore. You can't feel the love of God's people and the movement of God the Holy Ghost. And so you might as well just call it Ichabod because he's done gone. And then you got these yahoos out here like Benny Hinn. I tell you, you just go Google it sometime. Just go watch it sometime. And say, oh, how I love Jesus. And then he says, be healed, sister. Woo-hoo, and she falls down on the floor. What really gets me is when they take their coats off, sister. They take their coats off and they start slapping people with it. You call that biblical? I call it a mess. or they blow on them, or they do some Jedi power. I've watched it, they say, you want the Holy Ghost? And then suddenly they're like dominoes, they all fall back. God, that is chaos, that is mockery, that is confusion. I mean, I could do that around here and you look at me like I lost my mind, rightly so. There's too many people out here today that say, oh yeah, I know the Holy Ghost of God. They don't know the Holy Ghost from Adam's apple. And I don't even know that he ate an apple. He probably ate grapes. I don't know. Anyway, no extra charge. Now why don't so many people know God, know Jesus or the Holy Ghost today in America? Which is part of our problem. I mean guys, I call that the greatest problem of all. If you don't know Jesus Christ, if you don't know God, that's your biggest problem right now. It ain't the fact that you can't pay your bills. You're in, you're bound for an eternal damnation right now where you sit. If you're not safe, that's a big problem if you ask me. All my marriage is on the rocks. Well, do you know God? You can't save your marriage. God can save your marriage. You might need to get saved, sir, ma'am. Then you might have a good marriage. You see, it's the big problem. We can fix this other stuff, but if you die and you don't know God, you're in trouble. You're not in trouble just now, you're in trouble for eternity. And you can't fix that. When so many people get so up in arms about politics. I mean, it's coming. Next year is election year. We already got these debates coming up in August between all these contenders to become the nominees of the different parties. And there are people out there, guys, that are going to work their fingers to the bone to get their man or their gal elected. But what about us and our God who saved our rotten soul from the pit of hell? Are we even remotely that dedicated as we would be to our politics than we are to our God? I dare say no! No in the house of God anymore. Because there is this, I'm going to use a Jimmy Carter word, malaise. There is a malaise, there is a disease that has come across many Christians today and it is Being cowards. Oh, I don't want to offend nobody. Let me tell you something. You're talking to me about my heritage being offensive. I'll tell you something that is more offensive than any Confederate flag. It is this right here. The B-I-B-L-E, Jesus Christ, is more offensive than anything you can dream up. I've seen all kinds of people come to support heritage, but I have yet to see some people say, that's it, that's the book, that's the way. They will fight you tooth and nail over this book. We've got a big problem in America, and the biggest problem is that the vast majority of people, even people who go to church and say they believe in God, they don't know Him. I pray and I don't believe that's your problem tonight. I look across this congregation and I don't think that's your problem this evening. I'm not even saying any of us in here have any of these problems. And I'm telling you that's one of the major problems in America that's driving this whole mess in our society right now. That's why. If these yahoos that wanted to get married, a woman and a woman get married, they would not even be a Supreme Court decision coming in a few days if they dealt with sin, if they knew God. You say, how do you know that preacher? Because my Bible tells me, Paul the apostle said, he goes down this whole list about people that ain't going to inherit the kingdom of God. And some of them he called defeminate. You want a definition of effeminate? Bruce Jenner. That's effeminate. And that is an abomination in the eyes of God. And you know what Paul says? You know how I know that a man ain't saved? He said, oh, he's Caitlyn now. I don't care what he calls himself. He's still got a lulali in him down yonder, and he's still a man the way God made him. He wants to go call himself a girl, he can do that, but the Bible calls him one word, effeminate. Remember what the Bible says, the Bible says, in such were some of you worth. If that man gets saved, he'd get it right in the head of what he really is. He'd leave that lifestyle and that perversity and that abomination and that wickedness and he'd get right with God and he'd put a pair of breeches on. I ain't condemning him, I'm just telling you what he's involved with. I hope he gets saved! I ain't gonna be like that knothead preacher, Mr. Anderson, down in, what is it, Arizona or whatever, praying that Obama would die and go to hell, praying for Jenner to die and go to hell. I ain't gonna pray that, because I want these people to come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, because that might help our problems in America! You say, I never heard of that. That man stands up for the King James Bible and he is a mockery to what we believe. He thought Westboro Baptist Church was wrong, that's a mockery too. Anyway, these people need to get right with God! Fourth, a problem in America now is that too many don't know the Bible. I have dear friends. I've seen them on Facebook in the past few days. They're throwing a Bible verse. And it's ESV. I sent him a little message out of John 7. I said, do you know that your Bible translation makes Jesus into a liar? Oh, that's just easier for me to understand. No, it ain't. I don't care what you say. Easier to understand. My eye. That is not just easier to understand. When that Bible says Jesus tells his brother, I ain't going down to the feast. And then a couple of verses later it says that he went down to the feast. That makes him into a liar. And my Bible says that it is impossible for God to lie. And David, it also says all liars will have their place in the lake of fire. So according to that own Bible, Jesus is going to the lake of fire. Oh, but you go over to the Christian bookstore in town, Oh, they'll tell you. Oh, the ESV is wonderful. It's one of the most modern translations today. No, it ain't. It's an update of the ASV revision from 1901. You think I don't know my family history? Go all the way back to Adam and Eve, I'll tell you about some of the family histories of some of these Bible perversions out there. Because we have too many people in this country tonight, they don't know the Bible from a book on the shelf called a novel. Your Bible is the King James Bible. It is the Word of God. It is perfect, it is infallible, it is inerrant. And I've had people, a person I went to school with, and I looked up to a great, talented person, knew how to make art and clay sculptures and all that. They said, you ain't nothing but a southern, redneck, country bumpkin, don't know the truth, and you don't know nothing, you're just going blinded by this religion. I fired back and I said, listen to me. I got so mixed up about this Bible, I was ready to throw Jesus and the trash can, I was ready to throw Christianity away, because I was so cotton-picking confused, I was called to preach and I didn't even know what the Bible was. I remember my own mama coming in and telling me, she said, son, just use the King James Bible. It's the Word of God. I said, I wish it were that simple. And I laid everything out that I believed in and I begged God, God open my eyes and let me see the truth. Even if it's something weird and off the wall. If that's what the truth is, I'll go with it. And I put my God out, everything I knew and believed, and I got it settled. You cannot change this preacher's mind that this is not the truth. I've done examined it, and I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. I know that God is the Trinity, and I know that He promised to preserve His Word, and I know this book is His Word. But you got some spineless, yellow-bellied, lily-livered cowards out there, they will not take a stand on this because they're in fear of losing their money, they're in fear of losing their church, and they're in fear of offending somebody in their congregation. If you can't handle the truth, you can't handle the Word of God, Many times, those that have Bible, they don't read them and they don't study them. And that is why today we have too many ignorant Bible believers. That's why you have so many Southern Baptists leaving that faith and going to a cult. Because they have not been trained and they have not been taught, many of them, the Word of God. for programs. They'll go in and music non-stop, an hour, and ten minutes Bible. You think that's going to get you through the day? You think that's going to get you through the life? You're weak? What about when you're weak, get turned upside down? I'm not saying songs aren't powerful, they are. My Bible does say making songs and melodies in your heart. My Bible does say to sing a new song unto the Lord. But my Bible says more and more and more and more about the Word, the testimony of God. Another problem we have in America now is that too many don't know anything about the church. Many, many churches in our society tonight, I'm going to be honest with you, That's the only way I know how to be. Too many churches in our society tonight have turned into crusaders of some thing in our society. I remember I was an associate pastor at a church that's no longer in this county. And I saw a soup kitchen born right before my eyes. I saw it supported by the church family. And I laid in there and I helped deliver soup and food to families on that road where we were. But suddenly when it came time for Wednesday night church service, after we had been there already for two to three hours, cooking soup, feeding the homeless, feeding people, delivering food, Suddenly everybody that was there would leave when it came time for church. And I watched this go on for a month. And as associate pastor, I finally stood up at a business conference and I said, we need to move the soup kitchen to Thursday, to Tuesday, to Monday, to Friday, to Saturday. One, one of them said, whose soup kitchen, it was their baby project, their pet. I said, because it is taking away the feeding of what we need, and that is the Word of God. Too many people in this church are leaving, and they're going home, and they're skipping church! Because they come up with, oh, I'm tired. I've worked all day. I'm hot and I'm sweaty. Well, I'm hot and sweaty too! I'm not going to make an excuse. Let's just say it what it is. I don't want to go. My want is bigger than God's want. That's it. Right there. Within one week, the deacon came to me on my secular job and said, it's time for you to go. I said, oh, really? Yep. I said, why? Because you don't like Sukkot. And I said, OK. Let's bring him to a vote. They voted me in. They can vote me out. I said, have you talked to the pastor about this? I don't need to talk to the pastor about this. I said, okay, I see where this is going. I went home. I prayed about it. I called the pastor and he said, you do what you need to do. I prayed about it. I went and that Sunday morning I preached and I attended my resignation and I came back here home. God had a plan for that. I'm telling you folks that there are too many churches out there tonight and I, listen, I'm not saying we should not care for our fellow man. We need to. But if that's the only reason you go to church, if that's the only reason so you can do something else outside of the church, and you don't want none of the reading and the studying of the Bible, of the Word of God that God commands that we need, there's a problem! For too many churches, all they have become is homeless shelters and food banks for everybody else. But their own people are starving to death because preachers will not stand up and preach the Word of God! Is it wrong to help? No. But you remember what Jesus told them? He said, the poor you will have with you always. Me you have not with you always. He was telling them, get your priorities straight. So many people today think that the mission of the church is to help everybody. I cannot tell you how many people have called me and said, preacher, can you help me pay my power bill? I said, listen, come to the house of God and worship with us and we'll try to help you pay your power bill. They never come, they have never returned my call. We want to help, but I am not gonna help somebody unless I can get them the word of God. People say, well, maybe you need to love them first, then they'll come. That may be so. But what do they need more than that? They need Jesus. They need the Bible. And we need to show them love. You know what the purpose of the church is? Luke 19, 10. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Let me tell you out of Acts 19.32, some therefore cried one thing and some another for the assembly was confused. And the more part knew not wherefore they were come together. Now that is a riot from Demetrius and the silversmith in Ephesus, I understand. But I'm applying that here. There's a lot of people, they go to church and they have no clue why they're there. Some of them are there to meet chicks. And I'm not talking about little dibbies. Some people go to church just to meet other people. That's wonderful. But that's not why we go to church. Some people go to church because this is the church that my great great great great granddaddy built. That's wonderful. You have a godly heritage. But that's not why we go to that church. I go there because I love the preaching of that preacher. Thank you, but that's not why we go to church. We go to church, Hebrews 10, 25, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the matter of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching. That's why we go, because God told us to. And if we love Him, we will obey His commandments. You say, well, I can't find a church to go to. Well, two or three are gathered together in his name. Get you and a couple others and just read the Bible there inside of a home. They did it in the first century, why can't we do it again? I've even heard some of you, you were to the point where you were about to give up looking for a family of God, somewhere to go worship with. But then suddenly God led you here. I'm telling you, folks, don't crucify the messenger. I'm just here to give the message. You see, the other purpose of the church is Matthew 28, 19 through 20. Jesus said, Go ye therefore and teach all nations. That is in Mark's gospel is preach the gospel. Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. You see, we lead them to the Lord, we bring them into the house of God, we baptize them, and then what? Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. That is discipleship. And that is what so many tonight are missing. They are not getting any teaching whatsoever. And that is why this pastor preaches and teaches. Because you need to be fed something. I love good preaching, Brother David. But I know in my heart, even I need teaching, feeding from the Word of God. Let me remind you what Paul the Apostle said in Ephesians 4, 11-15. Again, this shows why we have a church. And he says, and he gave some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers. Now that word, and, between pastors and teachers, is under the Greek Granville Sharp Rule. And the Granville Sharp Rule identifies the lack of a definitive article will turn that and into acting as a hyphen. And you heard what it said, and some apostles, and some evangelists, and some blah blah, and some pastors and, there's no some there, it says pastors, and some pastors and teachers. It's like when the Bible says Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. It doesn't mean that he's our Lord on alternating Thursdays and our Savior every other day of the week, no no no. It means he's our Lord Savior. The same office. And there are some pastors out there that will weasel around that and say, well I'm not a teacher but I'm a preacher. And there will be other preachers that will say, well I'm not a hellfire brimstone preacher but I'm just a teacher. No, it's got to be both, if God truly called you. Because he says, and he gave some pastors and teachers. A pastor who has been called by God will be a pastor teacher. He will have the gift of preaching, but he will also have the gift of teaching. Because the sheep need it. Alright, why? Why? For the perfecting, verse 12, that is the completing of the saints. Did you just hear that? Of the saints? Who's the saints? Whoever's saved! So my major emphasis, my major duty is to you. To do what? says, "...to the completing of the saint, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." Why? that we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the slight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive, but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ. That is the purpose of a church as well, to reach the lost and to equip the saved. How? By doctrine. Doctrine. Doctrine. Teaching. Preaching. Doctrine. Teaching. Preaching. My child! That's why some of you have come here and you've been blown away and you have told me to my faith. I've never heard anything like that before. It ain't because of my merit. It is not because of me being so wonderful. It is because we emphasize the teaching and preaching of the King James Bible here. That's why. It ain't because of me. Don't get hung up on Craig. Don't do that. Because if you do, suddenly I'll say something or I'll do something or I'll have something in my life that you'll find or uncover that will offend you. And you know what the devil will do? Oh, no, no, you don't need to do that anymore. You don't need to go down no more. You need to leave. In 11 years, I have watched before my eyes over 150 people come in and leave. Nine times out of ten because they blame me. That's fine. I'll know where I'm right and I'll know where I'm wrong, one by the Bible and one when I get home to heaven. But don't make me an excuse. Stand on the Word of God. Now if I start using too many illustrations that are off the wall, tell me. If I start going off in the left field, tell me. But if I'm driving straight on the Word, listen. Yes folks, a major problem in America now is that too many don't know a rotten thing about the church. Too many people have turned it into a club. And they don't view it as the boot camp that it really is for our faith. And that's why we have so many baby Christians walking around, many Bible believers tonight walking around, that don't know nothing about why they are who they are. I will never forget Brother Burt Schroeper. I met him through the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and he had got mixed up with a cult, and every time I saw him, I'd say, Burt, why don't you come to church? And one night, he showed up and surprised me. For about a month, two months, he stuck around and finally on a Thanksgiving service, he said, I wanna join. And he came and Geraldine will remember we sat many times in Q&A. And I'll never forget Bert's telling this one time. He said, you wanna know something about why I love this? I said, why Bert? He said, because here I'm learning why. That's the truth and why I believe what I believe. For far too many people, the only reason they can find in their heart or in their mind why they believe this, the Baptist way, why they believe this, the Bible, is because that's what my daddy believed, my mama believed, my grandparents believed. No, you've got to make that rock solid in your heart and you've got to nail it down by faith. You've got to make it your own, and that's one reason why so many people are leaving the Christian faith. Because that's all they've had, a lily pad floating. And suddenly, when they're impacted by something that makes them doubt their faith, that water, that living water goes out, and suddenly that lily pad falls, and they walk off that lily pad, and they leave that faith far, far behind. Because they've never nailed it down and made it their faith! Am I thankful to God on high that this man believed the Word of God and had me in church when I was a boy? Yes! He did what a parent should do and put his children on the path leading them and teaching them the fear and admonition of the fear of the Lord. But, I had to make it mine, David. And I did. That's why, guys, tonight if I go home and I turn on the TV and they say, breaking news, we just found the bones of Jesus Christ, I don't know, that ain't nothing but a lie out of the pit of hell. Because I know what this Bible says. Another problem in America now is that too many people don't know nothing about America. Our country. You say, how do you get that? Acts 27-39. when Paul was on his way to Rome. And when it was day, they knew not the land. They discovered a certain creek with a shore into which they were minded, if it were possible, to thrust in the ship. You see, it looks like right there, they knew not the land. There are so many people today, guys, that don't know nothing about America, our land, our country. You know, used to, you could define America's values. our culture, our morals. Used to, when you'd go over to another country or immigrants would come over here, they would have in their mind a set of morals, values, and ideals that America stood for. You know what we have now? We have something called multiculturalism. That means we make everything open to everybody. So that if you come from another country, not just you keep your native tongue and use it whenever you can as your heritage, as your birthright, but you learn English. No, no. Now is you speak that and then we cave and we change our way to accommodate you. Let me tell you something as a historian. There has never in the history of the world been a multicultural diverse nation that has ever lacked it for over 350 years. Oh, there have been empires. And I'm out of the pulpit on this one. I'm going to tell you that's what we have. It's an empire. And that is why America hasn't broken apart into shatters yet. Many people don't know our country and that is why when you have all these little factions They're tearing apart our national fabric of unity, and they're ripping our country, our morals, our value to shreds. I mean, didn't it used to be baseball, you know, apple pie, fireworks, you know, some of the things that made us American? Now some of that's even gone down the drain because that offends somebody. And we have to accommodate this other group of people. Our country is going down the drain because too many people don't know our land. You see, that was the problem with the Jews. The Jews didn't know their land. God told them if you disobey, the land will spew you out. A verse that was made for the Jews is applicable, I believe, now. 2 Chronicles 7, 14. I heard it until it fell on bleeding ears after 9-11. He said, I heard it from the United States Congress. I heard it from the President. I heard it on the radio. I heard it in town. Guys, I heard it everywhere I went. But now if you go out there and say these exact same things, oh, you can't say that. If my people, which are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways. Then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. It goes back to us. God said judgment begins where? In the house of God. We are being chastised because we have not humbled ourselves. We have not forsaken our sins. We have not repented. We have not got it right with God and expecting everybody else to but us. all across America. We've forgotten about our land. We don't know much about the land. America has been blessed over the years. And another reason why, another problem in America now is that too many don't know about history. In Acts 7, 18-19, Stephen in his great sermon, this is point 7 by the way, he said, "'Til another king arose which knew not Joseph, the same dealt subtly with our kindred and evil entreated our father, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.'" I tell you now, too many of our children are graduating from schools not knowing a thing how to live. They have been indoctrinated and brainwashed. Just like Hitler brainwashed the youth of Germany. And when Nazi Germany fell in 1945, you know who was the hardest fighter? It was those 15, 14, 17-year-olds who had grown up in the Nazi indoctrination system, being told that Hitler was their god and he was going to do something to save Germany. Veteran after veteran, some who had even fought in the First World War, looked at these young children and said, we're doomed. The Russians are here. The Americans are there. We can't win. And they looked at them with a proud, Stands, thumped their chest with their bazooka, and they said, the Führer will save us, yet. And the Führer was down in the bunker, ready to kill himself. Many don't know their history. Many don't know Bible history. That's one thing they're missing right now. They don't know the history of the Jews, therefore they don't know the future of the Jews. They don't know church history. That's one thing right there. They don't know church history. At all. Martin Luther, the great German reformer. I won't get into all that, but anyway. World history. Family history. Who cares about family history? Well, let's see. I think it matters because God devoted nine chapters in 1 Chronicles about so and so begat, begat, begat, begat, begat, begat. The first chapter of Matthew is nothing but a family tree. Let's see, Genesis chapter 5 and the latter second part of Genesis chapter 4 is nothing but a family tree. I think God cares about a family tree. You know why? Because I think he knew, since he knows everything, there would come a time in our lives where there would be men telling our children that they come from monkeys. No. We come from men. Man and woman. Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve. We come from a man and a woman, not an orangutan, not a Neanderthal, not any of that. We come from a fully functioning man and a fully functioning woman. We have a family. I know Adam and Eve is my 141st great-grandma and grandpa. Too many people don't know or care about family history. And then they don't know or care about American history. The history that shows that our country has been through the crucible of war and has been blessed beyond measure by God, and nobody knows, nobody cares. And that goes for northern history, southern history, history on the west coast, east coast, all parts of American history. We learned it through American history that it was from the pulpits that many preachers helped convince colonists that the time was right for the colonies to succeed and become a new nation. A lot of things, beloved, have been unknown for far too long in our country, in our society. So what can I say? That that is all due to these unknowns. Since so many people in America tonight do not know about God, they don't know about Jesus, they don't know about the Holy Ghost, they don't know about the Bible, they don't know about the Church, they don't know about America, they don't know about history, and because all these things are coming around, and then some, what do we see right before our very eyes? Our country. Our culture. Our society is becoming unglued. Our nation is being destroyed by Sodomites, liberalists, compromising churches and preachers, you don't know any of these things. And the beloved Hosea said it right in Hosea chapter 4 verse 6. He said, quoting God, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because thou hast rejected knowledge, I, that is God, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me. Seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children. And I believe, beloved, the reason we are seeing all of this tragedy, all of this terrible things that are happening in our country right now today, all around us is because too many people in America have no clue about these things. That is the very heart and the very fabric and, if I may say, the very foundation of this great republic that God blessed and founded so many years ago because we have forgotten those things. Our country is being destroyed now before our very eyes. You say, Preacher, what do we do? The only things we can do. One, pray and fast. I'm getting out of the pulpit. I don't think God can save America. We're already under his hand of judgment from what I've seen. But I could be wrong. I hope I'm wrong. But I think we're too far gone as a country. But, as people, What does he say? His mercy endureth forever. God is always willing to save someone else. The only time it becomes too late for an individual is when that heart stops beating, that breath starts breathing, and that brain goes defunct. As long as you have breath, as long as you have brain waves, as long as you have cognizance in your mind, it is not too late for you to turn to Jesus Christ, to learn who God is, to learn who Jesus is, to learn who the Holy Ghost is. Even, even if you have to come with a cane, even if you have to come in a wheelchair, You can make it to the house of God. If not here, somewhere, where they will tell you about that song we sang, more, more about Jesus. Now you may say, Preacher, I've heard politics. Let me explain. I don't define what they make politics. All I know is what this Bible says is right and what this Bible says is wrong. And if that happens to be out there in the public square, so be it. But I am charged by God to tell you the truth. And as far as I can see, standing before my Lord, as far as I can hear from Him, I feel that I've told you that this evening. God can save the people of America. He can preserve us, His people. He can allow us to go through a crucible, a fire, a trial, yes. But He won't leave us. He won't desert us. He won't forsake us. He will always be with us. When you see our dear sister Geraldine and the things that have happened in her life, She knows God has not left her. She knows that. You look at daddy. Mama gone since 2008. Awfully lonely over there on that house in Shiloh Road. But he knows that God has not left him. Any one of us in this room. We know that there are things worth standing up for. So the first thing we have to do to be able to stand is to be on our knees. When I was ordained, this wasn't here. When I was ordained, I was right here on my knees for 40 minutes. I know. But I had about 13 to 14 preachers in this church. Deacons in this church came out, laid their hands on my balding head, and I'll never forget what one of them told me. He said, Brother Craig, if you want to be a good pastor, if you want to be a good preacher, he said, the key to that is this right here. Stay on your knees. And the only way I can fight this battle for my faith, for my country, for my family, is to first start it right there on my knees and fasting. The second thing, beloved, is to not desert the army of God. Only you can fill your post. Only you can fill your place. Do not desert the Word of God above all. Keep it near. Keep it handy. Keep it fresh. And then go and live what you have read. When all hell breaks loose and all the darkness of the world and sin and tumult of the world crash around us, from the marketplace, to the schoolhouse, to our family house. You let Jesus shine out into this lost and dying world, and suddenly they will take note and say, hey, what's different about that person? And you will then begin to fulfill the mission of the church. Am I saying if you meet a hungry soul, don't feed him? No, I'm not saying that. Am I saying that we never should feed anyone? No, I'm not saying that. But I am saying that our primary objective is to get this Word out to the lost. And for me, as a pastor, for any who ever will come, to give them the Word of God, so we, we can grow thereby. So is that beloved? There are many problems, some problems in America right now. I don't think I've covered them all, but there are seven of them right there. And I look around this church tonight, from Adriana, to Tara, to Whitney and Susan, to my wife, to Miss Carolyn, to the Holtzclaws, to Geraldine, to David, to Debbie, to all of us here. I don't think we have these problems. So that being said, you, you and I may be an answer to someone who has one of these problems. Don't count on Washington or Raleigh or Ralston to solve these problems. They won't. It is up to you and I to do our job as citizens of the Kingdom of God to do what we can to bear the torch forward and to stand for the Word of God. Everything else in our country, beloved, our society and our culture may fail and fall, but this Word never will. And as long as you and I stand together on this book, this church will not fall. But we will stand as the children and people of God, even if no one else will. So now it's in your court, in my court. With that said, as we bow our heads,