<TITLE>12. Par 47-50</TITLE>L-47 You know that a red-hot Christian and a lukewarm Christian can't dwell together. That's what's the matter today. That's what's makes the--the church the way it is. We're just getting in to that Laodicean church age that's just lukewarm, and God said, "It makes Him sick at His stomach. He will spue you from His mouth.": just enough religion to go out to church and set there like a wilted flower. That's right.
Brother, we ought to have an old fashion red-hot prayer meeting, and a testimony meeting, and men and women out praying, and house to house work, and on the street; and doing something for God. We've lost our zeal. We've lost our love. We've lost what, the things that God gave us. We let them slip out of our hands.
And a bunch of so-called, you--you've went after a lot of noise in the stead of the real old fashion Gospel. If there's a negro laying here, I don't mean to make remarks about them. But an old negro man one time... And this is not a joke. I don't mean to joke, 'cause this is no place to tell jokes at the platform. This is the place to preach the Gospel, but to get this point that you might see.

L-48 An old negro man one morning, just kept stand and holler, "Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah." He didn't preach at all; he just kept hollering, "Hallelujah." When he got home, his wife said, "Parson," said, "I want to ask you something." Said, "What make you holler so much this morning?"
He said, "Honey, what I didn't have in lightning, I had to make up in thunder." And I think we've had a lot of thunder instead of so much real, pure, holy, unadulterated Gospel teaching. If it'd been so, then the church would've been solid on the rock Christ Jesus, and she'd be moving on. Amen. That's right. It might scorch a little, but I'd rather be scorched now than burnt forever. So just really know that it's the Gospel truth.

L-49 Now, when Abraham, then this little fellow along with him, lukewarm, there come up a fuss. That's the way it usually does. You take a lukewarm member and the first thing you know, they'll pop their chewing gum awhile, and look over and say, "I wish Sally wore that kind of a hat to church tonight." You know that's not right. Here we start. That's it.
And if you thought Sally was wrong with that kind of a hat on, why didn't you go play for her, and she didn't straighten up, then take her out to one side and put your arm around her, say, "Sister dear, I want to ask you something." Talk to her like that. That'd show more Christianity, than it would be to raise a little cult or a little friction in the church. Any Christian would do that.

L-50 But brother, what did Abraham do? They started fussing, so Abraham said, "Now, Lot, before we have any quarrels between us, you separate yourself from me and I from you. Now, you look any way you want to. You take your choice." That's the way a Christian does, giving them benefit of the doubt. "Take your choice. You go east; I'll go west. You go north; I'll go south. Well, I give you the benefit of the doubt."
Well, right quick that backslider, he wanted to look for the easiest road. So he looked over and he seen Sodom, a lot of waters, the Jordan swept through there. It was a paradise almost like Eden.
So he said, "I'll take this a way, and leave his poor uncle with all those cattle and things out there on the barren lands that Abraham... When Lot separated himself, and God saw that great move that Abraham had done, that great thing, that he had submitted himself, and give his brother the benefit of the doubt. And took the lower part, and let Abraham go on with his big fine--or, I mean, Lot with his great refine--fines and things like that as he went down and perhaps become to the mayor of the city and set in the gate to be the judge. And his wife become the leader of all the societies and everything down there, the way she lived...


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