<TITLE>18. Par 48-50</TITLE>L-48 And here the other day, I'm in a tax dispute myself, of the money that I spent in these meeting. The government said, "It ought to be mine alone. I ought to pay taxes on all that..."
I said, "How do you think that?" I said, "It went through my church, and paid for these meetings."
Said, "Oh, it was yours before it was the church." And they was going to arrest me for it.
And I said, "I want to ask you something, in the name of all decency." I said, "You put on these programs at night. I've spent thirty-two years of my life across the nation, around the world, trying to make it a better place to live in, trying to break up crooks, and make them honest men, try to take children from the cradle size, and put them in the church, and a thing for right. I spent my life, on earth, to try to do that. And the money that I've used out there, you're trying to tell me that I owe it." And I said, "Then you'll let all this old, nasty vulgar programs come one, of television, and that whiskey company, and tobacco companies, which is killing the nation, and making rape, murder, and everything else, juvenile delinquency that's tearing your nation to pieces, and they write it off as advertisement." I said, "What have we got left?"

L-49 There's one thing we got, and that's Christ. Sure, that beer companies, and everything you see advertising that, that's government taxes. They're writing it off. But let me try to write it off, say, "Well, I had a meeting at Madison Square Garden; they took up so much. I have to show every penny of it. And then we paid this out for the auditorium."
"Yeah, but the people give to you. It was yours. You have to pay income tax on it."
There you are. See? Now, that's--and then you call it justice up over the courthouse doors. Not in my books, it isn't. Not in this Book, it isn't. That's right. We've give Caesar what's Caesar's, and God's what's God's. That's true. But this world is so crooked, till their even examining the examiners. Why, it's pitiful. The neurotics are examining the neurotics, and the--the psychiatrists the--are taking care of the psychiatrists. Why, the things corrupted, gone to eternity. But the Kingdom of God shall stand forever.

L-50 Listen. You'll never satisfy that longing. You go out and get drunk tonight, and paint the town red, tomorrow morning you got a headache, and a dread. You'll break up your home. You'll ruin your life. You'll throw it to the dogs, as it was. But there's only one way to ever satisfy that--that... And I'll tell you now, you'll... Listen to this! You, the people, young or old, how dare you to try to take the things of the devil to hush that blessed, holy thirst that's in you. How can you ever take pleasure of the world, or whiskey, or drinking, or big times, and luxury, to ever satisfy that blessed, holy thirst that God give you to thirst after Him.
Some people, even the devil's got so bad that he lets them join the church to satisfy it. Oh, yes. People go and join the church, say, "Well, I'll put my name on the church book, and I'll..."
The church is all right, but let me tell you friend, joining the church will never satisfy that holy, hungry thirst. That's the place that God comes in, and nothing else can fill it until you're filled with the Holy Ghost. Then the Holy Ghost comes into your heart. He is the everlasting fountain of God. He's the inexhaustible Fountain of Life. You just receive Him and drink from Him the rest of your life, in all ages. God made that place in here for Himself. You're thirsting, what for? For Him. He wants you to thirst. Thirst after Him.


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