<TITLE>13. Par 48-51</TITLE>L-48 Notice, the church of the early age, they went for the first three centuries, and they preached the Gospel, and they healed the sick. Then after that, healing and miracles begin to die out.
Some people say today that God promised in His Word just to be with the apostles and to heal the sick in the early primitive age of the church. I count that very poor Bible scholaring. There's no such a Scripture in the Bible to prove that.
God promised in Mark 16, His last commission to the church, "Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. He that believeth not shall be damned; and these signs shall follow them that believe. They'll lay their hands on the sick and they shall recover."
The first commission He give to His Church was heal the sick; the last commission He give to the church was heal the sick. Correctly. Then He was to be to all the world.

L-49 The unbelievers says that was just to convert the heathens. The other side belief says, that the reason the church lost her--her place in Divine healing... "Oh, we have a little spirit, but it's very feeble. Just enough to move around," like somebody about half dead.
That's about the way the church of the living God moves today, just about enough to grunt a little while. And I'm not saying that for jokes. But it's the truth. Just enough courage to go down to church and say, "Well, I'm a Baptist, I'm a Pentecostal, I..." Just about as much life as they got. That's true. Some allows it to that.
I do the same. I think if the church of the living God stayed in her place, and was prayed up, and lived in the Presence of God with the baptism of the Holy Ghost, that signs and wonders would be flowing from her like a gusher. That's right. I think that's where the trouble is.

L-50 And you talking about it was used to convert heathens: "That's what God gave it to the church, the primitive church, was to convert the heathens." My dear, beloved unbeliever, did you know there's more heathens today in the world, ten times as many as there was then? Certainly there is. Two-thirds of the world is unchristianized.
And the reason we haven't got nowhere is because we've turned all the promise of God into theology, into teaching some kind of doctrines of men and organizations, and so forth, and failed to produce what Jesus said that the signs would follow the believers. We put more emphasis on organizations and so forth than we have upon the resurrection and the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. If we had more prayer meetings instead of soup suppers and card parties, we'd be a lot better off as Christians. Amen. They've turned the old fashion upper room into a supper room. You know that's true. Look what it's done. It's stripped our women. It's demoralized our nation. We're in a crumbling condition.

L-51 I've always said, "Don't be scared of Russia coming over and whipping us or any other nation." We're whipping ourselves. It isn't a robin that pecks on the apple that hurts it; it's a worm at the core. That's what's the matter here today is Hollywood and... You know what's the matter? Hollywood evangelism. Preachers come to the pulpit and not got the--the real, old fashion conviction enough to call black black and white white and tell what's the truth. They're afraid of a meal ticket at the church.
I want to see a man with a backbone in the stead of a wishbone, preach the Gospel if I have to lay on my stomach, and drink branch water, and eat soda crackers. I'd rather do it and preach the truth and stand for Jesus Christ than to eat fried chicken three times a day and live in a palace. Amen.
That's kinda raw and barefooted, but it'll help you. It's good for your spiritual gastronomics. Help you to swallow the Word of the living God. Heathenism...


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