Hadn't the Lord been good to us. Amen. I'm glad some things I found in the house of the Lord. Amen. Thank God Jesus was there when I went. Amen. The Lord's been so good to us and we are grateful for this opportunity to preach. I would confess to you this morning I wish preaching was always easy. Some of you got to help me a little bit. I wish preaching was always easy. Sometimes we got a little heavier luggage than often times I was praying. I would come in here Sunday night and I'd seen the billboard, or I don't know what you'd call it, the poster there, and it said it's time to build the walls. And I seen that gate. And I got to thinking about walls. Thank God somebody's building some. Amen. Thank God there's somebody building some walls. These days everybody's tearing walls down. I want to build some. It's all about that gate and that gatekeeper. Thank God there's somebody going to stand in there and say, hey, this ain't coming in here. God's given us this city. He's given us this refuge. And we're building some walls. There's some things on the outside that don't need to get on the inside. I'm afraid we're in a generation where we're more interested in tearing the walls down and expanding the city with smaller walls. No gatekeeper. And then we are interested in building up walls and having somebody with a flaming sword at the gate. Tell them they ain't getting in here. Inside the gates reside our families and inside the gates resides the house of God. My wife and my babies is inside these walls. You ain't getting in here. Thank God we got some men that's still bearing the burden, Brother Allen. Some men that's still holding on to God. I prayed the Lord to let me have liberty to preach something else this week and it just didn't move that way. And so I'm going to preach to you what God's put on my heart, and you can take it and like it, or you can take it and lump it, it don't matter to me. It's all God's Word, and those that love the law of the Lord are offended by nothing. His law and His testimony is pure and perfect, making wise the simple. I claim to be just a simple man, but thank God I've got a book that's making me wise. Let's look in our Bibles today in 2 Samuel chapter number 15. 2 Samuel chapter number 15. I appreciate the goodness of the Lord today. Hallelujah. Amen. 2 Samuel chapter number 15. I'm going to try to be brief this morning but I know God's put a heavy load on me for a reason. So I'm going to be mindful of him today. Just try to be a blessing to you. Let's look in 2 Samuel 15, verse number 1. And it came to pass after this that Absalom prepared him chariots and horsemen, horses and fifty men to run before him. And Absalom rose up early and stood beside the way of the gate. And it was so that when any man that had controversy came to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him and said, Of what city art thou? And he said, Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel. And Absalom said unto him, See, thy matters are good and right, but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee. Absalom said, moreover, O that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice. We understand that if any man's got any problem, he needs to go to God, don't he? He's already put himself in a bad position. And it was so that when any man came nigh to him to do him obeisance, he put forth his hand and took him and kissed him. And on this manner did Absalom do all Israel that came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. Let's pray together. Lord, I sure need your touch. God, I can't stand here in my own power. God, I can't stand here in my own might. Lord, I can't stand here in my own wisdom. Lord, I can't stand in your spirit. God, according to your words. So God, I pray that the Holy Ghost would help us this morning. God, we're needful men and needful women. So God, I pray that you'd meet those things that our hearts need today. God, make preaching easy. God, if it's hard today, help me to lean on you. God, we love you now, in Jesus' name, amen. Thank the Lord for being good to us. I was reading the other day, and I got in Psalms chapter number 3, and I was following David as he was fleeing Absalom, and I was thinking to myself, how in the world did a man like David end up running from his own son? How did a man like David come to this position and this place into which his ministry, into which he began to run from his own son? And I realized that there was more to the story than just David leaving. There was some things happening in Israel that caused David to flee. And I'd like to preach to you this morning maybe some terminology our younger folks are familiar with. Maybe if you're an adult and you are any part of social media, you'd be familiar with it But if I could preach to you this thought, I'd preach to you on liked and subscribed I'd preach to you now, this morning, liked and subscribe. Inside the social media of the world today there's these pages that men and women want you to follow and they say at the end of a video, please like and subscribe. And then eventually they share. Now all those videos aren't mad, don't get me wrong, but I'm telling you this is what the children of Israel did to Absalom. This is where they were with Him. Listen to me, liking something means you're in agreements with that statement. Liking something means you're in agreements with that statement. But when you subscribe to them, or you subscribe to that truth, you're not just agreeing with the statement, you're agreeing with who they are, what they do, and what they're for. Amen? I mean, it don't matter who it is. It could be a politician that says something right, and you can like what they say. But when you subscribe to what they are and who they are, you've not only liked what they've said, but you have subscribed to everything that they do as truth. Now, this is the emphasis of the day. I believe this is what's happened in the children of Israel, in the camp of Israel, that they liked and subscribed to Absalom. They have liked and they have subscribed to Absalom. It said, the clerk said, Behold a king, the greatest that ever lived, a profound politician and an able general, a brave soldier, a poet of sublime genius character, a prophet of the most high God and deliverer of his own country, was driven out by his own son and abandoned by fickle people. Those people have liked and subscribed Absalom's truths and Absalom's ways and it's proven to be that they are fickle people. Now inside the churches of today, we have come to a place where we have liked and subscribed people and preachers and singing and movements that has no truth of God in it. There's no touch of God in it. And we are becoming fickle people. We've lost the power of God and the anointing of the Holy Ghost and the truth of the Scriptures because we've liked Absalom and his ways. Inside Truth of Bible History, there's been the spirit of Jezebel, and there's been the spirit of Absalom. We have kept Jezebel at bay from where we are, but Absalom is still alive and well. You hear me? And hear me well. He's coming for this church. He's coming for my... Listen, I ain't preached this to just you. I preached it to my church just a few months ago. He's coming for this church. He's coming for your church. You better build some walls. You better build some walls and guard some gates. There's children on the inside. Boy, ain't that good, the big mass youth choir, what God's built up. But I can tell you there's an Absalom coming for those young people. There's an Absalom coming for every young preacher. There's an Absalom coming for every young missionary. You better guard the walls and the gates because they're after you and they're after me. Fickle people following a weak man. This man, this man, listen to him. Listen to all the things that sin they've liked. Absalom, I want to try to preach to you on what they've liked and then what they've subscribed to. Inside this passage it says that Absalom, he was prepared. He prepared himself chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run. Ain't that a sorry lowdown scoundrel? You've got to prepare somebody. You've got to pay somebody off to make your own way. I still read in the Bible where God resists at the proud and He gives grace to the humble. I still like to see where God's moved somebody up and God's made a way and let God prepare the way. I'm tired. I'm sick and tired. Good night of all the weak preachers of today's society. You're scared to do anything if you ain't got a thousand people there. You're not getting $12,000 in love offering. You're not about the gospel. You're about filthy lucre. You're filling your own belly. There's no truth in you. Help me now. We're living in a society who's liked and subscribed to Absalom. I still remember a story where a man left a great revival in the book of Acts and went and found a eunuch in the desert. Where's God at in our churches? We've liked and subscribed to Absalom's deeds, and the kingdom's falling apart. I told you, man, I wished I could preach something else this morning. I've got so many friends in here and I'm trying not to offend somebody but I don't want to offend him. We've liked and subscribed Absalom's ways. He prepared his own ways. Listen to me. We've liked his pampas. We see what's going on here in the scriptures and in the passage. He's made a big entrance. But it's not from God. It's not from God. He prepared His own way. He rose up early in the way. It says they liked Him and who He was. He was a good looker. The Bible says His hair flew in the wind. His beauty, He said there was none to be praised in Israel as much as Absalom. They like His looks. He's easy on the eyes. But he's hard on the heart. He's hard on the things of God. He's misused and abused God's ways. Absalom, listen to me. He looks good. We live in a society where preachers have got to look like a GQ magazine. Look, I'm fine for looking good in the house of God. I wish I was color-coded where I could match my suits and my socks and everything else, but don't we live in a society, Brother Joey, where men have to have photo shoots to have a stinking flyer put up for their name? We got guys that don't even smile for the pictures now. We're more or less looking like a smolder. Huh? You know what that's telling me, preacher? They're after your wife, they're after your children, they're after your young girls. You know I'm telling it right. They're more worried about these young girls, they're more worried about these young ladies, they're more worried about your wife. Where's the men of God that would distance themselves for the sake and the testimony of the gospel? Where is the testimony where men would say, you know, my wife's not here, you can get a handshake and that's all you're getting? Where's the testimony at of men who would not shut the doors behind them with young ladies and other men's wives in the room? Where is it today? We are looking at his looks and he's easy on the eyes and it makes what he's saying so believable. Why do you think all our young girls are so turned upside down when they start courting and dating these young men who ain't got God no where around them? They believe everything because they're so easy to look at. They like his looks. They like his pomp. He's made an entrance. David don't make entrances like this. David has not brought this entrance into Israel. If a king was coming into Israel, he would ride on a donkey. If an Israel king was riding in on a horse, he was coming for war. What's he doing in the passage? Horses. When Jesus came, he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. He's the Prince of Peace. In Revelation, He'll come back but He won't be on a donkey and He won't be coming for peace. He'll be coming for war. Make war with the nations and He'll kill everyone that rise against the Lamb. Absalom from the get-go was for war. But the only problem with Absalom is he didn't even want to fight nobody. When he was charged with murder for his half-brother, who killed him? His servants. He's always about making somebody else do his dirty work. This is the spirit of Absalom and it's in our churches. I don't know, I don't pastor this church, I don't pastor your church, but I understand that I've had to come head on with the Absaloms in our church. He don't want to get his hands dirty. He sent his own brothers to kill his half-brother. Now whether or not that was due justice for what that man did to Tamar, That's a whole other message for another day. But the truth is he sent his servants to follow on his brother. Spirit of Absalom, they've liked. They've liked his looks. They've liked his pomp. They've liked everything about him. They've liked this. And listen to me. All this looks good on the outside, but it's bringing convictions. They're bringing down convictions. They're bringing compromise. It's bringing in character flaws inside the house of Israel. All this is slipping in by Absalom. They've liked him. what it is, what they're seeing, their eyes, his connection with the people. Look, he's after them. He likes their personality. They like what Absalom's bringing them and how Absalom's making them feel. Brother Bob, how's the just supposed to live? By faith. I thank God that I had a preacher growing up that didn't make me feel good about my sin. I thank the Lord that he showed me right from wrong in preaching the book. It wasn't about what I felt like or how I just wanted to be comfortable in church. We've brought character flaws into the church. Where's the days of separation? Listen to me, you might view separation different than I do in some extent, but there ought to be some anyways. There's a wall! There's a wall! It brought character flaws into the church. They liked his look, they liked his pomp, they liked his personality. Listen to me, he wasn't approached like a king. He said he'd run to them, fall down on them, love them, kiss them. Oh, you're so good. Are you from Israel? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, everything that you got is wrong. You got a just cause. Do you notice who Absalom's approaching here? He's approaching people who's already man. Any troubled people? Absalom's after. He's looking for those that's upset at David already. In the Old Testament economy, the king wasn't just the king, he was the Supreme Court judge. When you brought it before the king, he made actions accordingly. And if David said, you don't have no cause here, whatever you're arguing about, it's wrong, go on back to town, do your job, get right with God, do everything right. Absalom would say, you know, what you had, you got a pretty good reason. That preacher wouldn't let you sing on the platform because you was living in adultery. That preacher wouldn't let you sing in the platform because you're living in fornication, or you're a drunkard, or you're a doper. There's a reason the king told you no. But Absalom said, you know, that's a thing of the past, we're moving forward. It don't matter what you're living in. You've got great talents. Is that not the society we're living in? Great talents, climb up on, get behind my pulpit. Get behind my pulpit. You know, I'm scared to death to stand behind this place because I'm accountable for what God... There's things in my life that I'm sick of. There's the flesh that I deal with daily. And I've got to repent and get right with God before I ever walk up here and open this book and even conversate with God. God, search my heart and find the iniquity inside me. Cleanse me from head to toe, within, without. Everything that's of me and in me that's contrary to your will, help me, Lord. But there's folks that's living in blatant open sin in the pulpits and preachers who are saying, go ahead. You know them old preachers that wouldn't use you? Them old preachers that wouldn't use you, they're a thing of the past. But here's the wonderful thing about those crazy folks that say that. They want to sing those songs from fundamental circles. Listen to me now, you hear me. We want to sing those songs that's written in the hard times and hardships of folks who walked with God and talked with God, had old time convictions, old time prayer life, old time Bible reading. We want to sing those songs where folks has labored in God, who's sacrificed and served God, and then we want to make fun of them because we don't have the same standards and the same convictions, but we want their power. A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. Not just the ways of the church, but every way. If he's double-minded in one way, he'd be double-minded toward marriage. He'd be double-minded toward finances. He's double-minded in all His ways. They've liked who Absalom is and what he has. But when they subscribed to him is when he got to dealing with them personally. When he got to loving on them intimately like he was really for them. But at the very beginning of the get-go he was never for that hurt person. He was after David's throne. At the very get-go, he had it in his mind and in his heart, I'll take the throne of David. That's the spirit of Absalom in the church today. You better try the Spirit and see if they have God. Now I ain't crazy charismatic but I know God tells us that and there's a spirit of God and there's a spirit of antichrist and there's a spirit of the devil. There's devil spirits and demons and darkness of this world. Spiritual wickedness in high places. We fight against all those things. You better try the spirit and see if that man is preaching what he's preaching and is living what he's living. Yes sir. Am I telling it right brother Nobles? Yes sir. Is that right? If I'm wrong, Brother Joe, you sit me down. I'll submit to you right now. I promise you, I don't have any ill will towards anybody, but there's a high calling inside my heart that come from an eternal, ever-loving world, from a thrice-holy God of heaven, to preach, thus saith the Word of God, without fear or favor of mankind, to preach the Book, to be instant in season and out of season, to reprove, rebuke, and exhort with all longsuffering, doctrine. And as much as I love you, I love him. Absalom was never after you. He was never for you. And he never will be. He's about splitting the kingdom and taking over the throne. So what is after? He don't care if your wife leaves you. He don't care if your kids get off on dope and live in sin, cross up and everything. They don't care about that. They've subscribed to Him because He's sympathized with them. He called to them. He said, if anybody's got a problem, He can see it on their face. You're hurt. Come here. Let me help you. He said, where are you from? Your cause is just and right. Everything's just and right. But it wasn't. There's a reason the king told him no. There's a reason your preacher tells you no. God put him as an under shepherd for a reason. God put you as an under shepherd for a reason. If you ain't got enough guts to stand up there and tell somebody no, if you ain't got enough guts to build a wall, take the sign down, get your name off the sign, you ain't worthy to have your name there. You're a hireling. Bought with money, paid with money, and you'll be sold with money. Absalom, Absalom, Absalom. They've liked and they've subscribed to him as good cause. He didn't leave the troubled person less troubled but more agitated. He said, listen to this term, Absalom does not work with his hands, he works with words. The spirit of Absalom, I'm telling you, you better be careful what you're liking and you're subscribing to. He said, oh, that if I were judge, If I had the platform, if I had the power, I'd do everything right. If I were where He was, you'd have everything perfect and pure. Everything would be just and right. He left discord. and the vision and the minds of the people. So, Joey, this is what he's doing. He's dividing and he's conquering. The oldest trick in the book. Brother Finney, I don't know how it is where y'all at, but I know where I'm at and I know where I used to be. I remember the fellowship amongst the churches where I used to be and how tight it used to be. I remember going to meetings in North Mississippi. Brother Benefield, you know. 30 preachers, 40 preachers at a meeting at every service. Now you might have three. The divide and conquer slipped in through damnable heresies, through deceitful men, doctrines of devils, all by the whisper of an ear. He was as subtle as a serpent in the garden. And His words flowed as smooth as a mountain stream. He looked good, He sounded good, but He's just like Jesus told those men, you're whited sepulchers and you're full of dead men's bones. I told you I wish I could preach something else this morning, but this is heavy mail on me. They've liked Him and they've subscribed to everything He said. because he sympathized with them. Thank God for the times that I served around preachers. Brother Barefield's been big in our life and in our ministry. He's gone today. I wish I could give him, you know, just a little bit of thanks. The other men in our life's been so big. I wish I could thank Him publicly more than I could, but I think it would be better to go to Him in private anyways. But I thank God for the times that He said, yes, it's wrong. We don't push that way and we don't promote that way because it's not the way the Bible teaches. Brother Curtis, I wish I could say I always lived right and did everything right in the ministry, but I've been a fool so many times. I've made so many wrong decisions. But I thank God for preachers who said you need to straighten up right here. I thank God for men who's promoted the pulpit as a place of holiness. I thank God for preachers who promoted me to dress right. Listen to me, I wasn't raised in all this. Honest confession. You can find one of my very first sermons, Brother Joey, and I'm preaching on the beach in short breeches and a cut-off t-shirt. Listen, I'm just telling you. That might suck the wind out of this place, but if it was gone because of that, it wasn't ever here anyway. I had a preacher told me, Brother Nobles, he said, you need to respect your calling. You need to respect the pulpit. You need to respect the book. You need to respect God, His salvation. He bought you with His own blood, sealed you with His own Spirit, taking you to a heavenly place. He seated you in places in Christ Jesus. You ought to respect your place. My dress apparel may not match, but I try my best. But you won't find me trying to get up and preach without one of these on. Huh? We've slipped away from our convictions because we follow in the spirit of Absalom. I remember, Brother Josh, when I used to play basketball, we'd be getting ready for a game and we had warm-ups on. I remember taking so much pride in that game. I'd put my suit on, I'd put my jersey on, I'd tuck my shirt in all the way around tight. I was going to play basketball. I'd lace my shoes up and I'd tie them double knot real tight, high on the ankles, long socks. I wanted to look like a basketball player. I had a coach that told me, look in the jobs, half the victory. Look in the parts, half the victory. He told me that about a basketball game. And if I could incline my ear to a coach over a stinking old round ball, what do you think I ought to do to God? And a holy calling. We've lost everything because we've heeded to the Spirit and the sound of Absalom's low down words. We've subscribed to Him. I had a preacher call me. He wanted me to come preach. He said, you don't have to wear a suit and a tie. I said, I know I don't have to, but I want to. I went and preached at a cowboy church. They said, wear your overalls. I said, I will, but I'm going to have my tie on with it. I don't feel right, listen to me. Now after preaching, I'll get out of that thing. After church is over, if I'm going to eat at the supper table, I'll get out of that tie. But you listen to me, if we're in church, if we're a part of God's house and God's services, why not live holy? Why not dress right? Why not look like a preacher? Brother Ronnie Barefield's church, his camp meeting one year, I come in from work and I didn't have time to change. Come straight off of work to his camp meeting that night and I was, I'd changed into slacks and I'd left my tie and I sat down. He wanted all the preachers to stand up all across the building. I was so embarrassed. You say, that's simple. It might be to you. I stood up and I called my name, Kodalatin Martin Baptist Church, and there's a little old boy in front of me. You listen to me now. A little boy, about five years old, he turned and looked at his mom and said, he ain't no preacher. She said, why do you think that? He said, he ain't even got a tie on. You talking about making me sink down low in my seat? We've lost it because we listen to Absalom. We've subscribed to his ways. Absalom is not interested in you, he's interested in the kingdom. He's after these things. And I want you to know some things about Absalom real quick and I'm going to be done. I'm running too long already. One man said, Absalom seemed to stand nearer to the throne than anybody else, but a sin was that he sought it during his father's life and endeavored to dethrone him in order to take his stead. Everybody thinks we're against Absalom. David wasn't even against Absalom. He cried and wept for Absalom when he left. Listen to me, this thing ain't about Absalom. It's about what he's done. It's about that spirit. If you'll study Absalom, his dad, his granddaddy was Talmain the king of Jeshur. He fled to Jeshur when he killed his brother, or had his servants kill his brother. And when he came back in, he was set two years, was restored to the fellowship of the king, and immediately he sought to dethrone him. Now I told you, listen to me, I told you these things. Nero, all of them, when they entered into a city, it was their custom to push that pump to promote who was coming in. I personally believe this was the problem with Absalom as he learned things from Jesher, from Talmai, who was pagan. In other words, he learned worldly customs and tried to infiltrate the children of Israel to gain their mind. Now, we're living in such a carnality, such a carnal church age that we're more interested in worldly ways than we are God's ways. This is the biggest problem with Absalom. We do not hate Absalom. We hate the spirit and the drive of Absalom. We hate his motives. We hate his ways. That's what makes us sick inside churches today when you live in such a way where young people are promoted to live in fornication where it's alright, they can go do as they please, there's no living that's holy anymore and you can play on the platform. We live in such a defiled priesthood today that it's wicked to even come to church sometimes. Because the people on the platform has no holiness about them. Our problem's not with Absalom. David loved Epson. Our problems were his ways. Our problems were his ways. And these days, this kind of preaching does not sit well in hearts and homes of many count meetings than I understand. I've never come to preach to get meetings or anything like that. I realize how sorry I am and if God decides to use me, I'm blessed and highly favored. But the Lord put a shepherd in the church a little over five years ago and I'm doing my best to keep the world out. I've seen something real in churches like these that I loved and struck a chord in my soul. I see the youth choir dressed right, looking right, seems to be living right. But there's an absolute in the scepter. There's an absolute in the scepter. He's not willing to lift any sword but he's willing to cause division. You young people listen to me if you're part of Fundamental Babies Church. God gave you a pastor. And any man that wants to come between you and your pastor, any woman that wants to come between you and your pastor, he's a wolf in sheep's clothing. He's a wolf. We ought to cry wolf. They'll be in sheep's clothing, but you can tell a wolf just like you can tell an Absalom when they open their mouth. They can hide their fur, but they can't hide their teeth. You're Myers kids, your daddy's here, he's your pastor. Anybody that calls divisions between you and your daddy, he's not on your daddy, he loves you that way, but he's your preacher. And he loves you in another way. Cut ties with a sorry outfit, low down scoundrel. I'd rather serve the king that went after the lion that went after the bear, that when none of the others in the camp of Israel to walk out on the battlefield and face Goliath the giant, Goliath of Gath, I'd so much rather sit underneath the feet of a man who's proven for war, who's proven for victory, who's anointed by God than appointed by man. I'd so much rather, I'd so much rather, Brother Finney, I'd so much rather Go with David, who walked in the midst of that valley of Eli and said, Not today, Goliath. You can yell out to all these other boys about the God of Israel, but I'm coming to you in His name and I'm cutting off your head. I'd so much rather be with them than I would be Absalom, who's halfway out of the world, bringing the world into the kingdom, to divide and conquer and he's not even willing to pick up his own sword. God gave the man of God a sword and he's to use it. They've liked and subscribed Absalom's ways. Now, this is my question and I'm done with you today. Who are you giving ear to? Who's got your ear? Listen, you say, well look at who went with Absalom, the Hithophel, the counselor of David. There were some men who would seem to be mighty men who went with him. I don't understand this in this day. There are many mighty men who seem to be going the way of Absalom. But their defeat and their downfall will be the same way as Absalom did. David might be going out and they might be 600 with him, they might be some mighty men with him, but I guarantee you I'm going with them. Has Absalom got your ear? Or does the king who's anointed by God and appointed by God and who's living for God and got victory with God, has he got your ear? Inside the preachers today there's many different men that you'd listen to. Different men than I would. Some of you and some of you the same. But you need to understand if you listen to Absalom or David. Who's got your ear? Who's got your ear? Young people? Who are you listening to? Your preacher ought to be number one. You ought to honor your father and the mother and the Lord. You ought to respect the elders that rule over you. Well, Joe, I hope I tell a lot. Matthew, I love you, boy. Anybody calls the vision between you and Brother Kerry, you ought to cut cords with them, son. Anybody says it's alright to live in sin and fornication, I don't care if they're in the church or out of the church, if they live in ungodly, you ought to cut ties with them, son. God's called you to preach, to be holy and righteous and pure and hold fast to things of faith that was given to you and delivered to you from the saints. You ought to hold fast. Don't you give ear to them sorry outfits who defile the things of God. Who's here giving to?