<TITLE>12. Par 55-61</TITLE>L-55 And when He spoke to Gideon, Gideon was a little surprised. He said, "Now, mighty man of valor..." He didn't know he was. Maybe you don't know you are. You might be many of those mighty men of valor tonight, setting here. "You saying the--the little church, small group?" Oh, my. There was only two there, him and his daddy. There only has to be two here, you and Christ. That's all it takes to be a mighty man of valor. That's right.
Now, the first thing you know, what happened? As soon as He spoke to Gideon, "Thou mighty man of valor.," called him, what he could do. And he said, "Nay, Lord. No, Lord. I--I just I--I--I can't believe that."

L-56 Now, He looked like, probably, an old bald-headed man setting over there leaning up against a bush, you know, setting back against the bush, -maybe a sheepskin wrapped around him, or something another, stick in his hand. He wasn't very much to look at. And He said--told him He'd come to commission him to go deliver Israel. The prophet had done give his message, so he said, "I'm sending you to do this."
"Why," he said, "Nay, Lord. Nay. No, no. I know the prophet might've said so-and-so and such-and-such as that, but--but remember..."
He said, "God is with you." He said, "If God is with us, then where's all of His miracles?" There's the question.

L-57 Well, now, what if he'd have said, "Oh, sure, our organization growed ten thousand this year. God is with us. No, each one of us got so prosperous, everything prospered till each one of us got two Cadillacs apiece." That's what you can't be spiritual nowadays till you own three or four Cadillacs, you know, at least with these things, (See?), something like that, have the biggest thing there is in the country. But listen.

L-58 No, he--he couldn't get that. He didn't say that. You see? He said, "If..." Today we say, "Well, how do you know God's with us? 'Cause we're growing in numbers. We got more churches than we ever had. We got... Why, you know, even the mayor of the city comes to our church. We know. We--we--we're the biggest church in the... We're the best there is. We know that God is with us because our people are prospering; they're wearing better clothes. They're--they're... They got better homes." That's all right. We're thankful for that. But that isn't a sign God's with you.

L-59 Gideon knowed what he was talking about. He said, "Then, sir, if God is with us, where's all of His mighty miracles? That prophet told us that He was a God that brought us up out of Egypt. He smote the land, He delivered them. He's a God of deliverance. And if He ever was God, He's still God."
I say the same thing tonight. If He ever was God, He has to always remain God. If He ever was all--the Almighty, He's still the Almighty. Certainly He is. The Bible said, "He's the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever."

L-60 He said, "Now, if that be God, if God is with us, where's all the miracles at--at? Where's all the signs that He done?" Now, they might've had all kinds of signs and everything else, but they wasn't Scriptural signs. Now, you--you got to have a Scriptural sign.
Jesus said... Some of them said, "Well--well, we got more members. If we got a bigger organization, if we got this, that, or the other, better dressed people, if our churches are growing, our organization, our denomination, our--our--our ministers are better trained, isn't that a sign God's with us?" No, sir. Has nothing to do with it.

L-61 Jesus didn't say, "They'll have better organizations as they grow and--and serve Me, they'll have better churches as they grow and serve Me." Jesus said, "These signs shall follow them that believe; in My Name they shall cast out devils; and speak with new tongues." There you are. That's Scriptural signs. Yes, sir. If Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then where is He? We have a right to say that.


<A HREF="P13">Next Page</A>