Humble themselves

BELIEVEST THOU THIS? HOUSTON TX SUNDAY 50-0115

E-17 His birth, when Jesus was born on earth, He had a black mark to begin with. He was always received by the common people, and scorned mostly by the--the religious sect of the people in them days, and--and of the great ritzy and high minded people. And it's just about that way today too. It's the same.

Not as I'm trying to say that rich or ritzy people cannot be saved; they can, if they'll humble themselves and come like the rest of us. But we must all come in one way: that's come, knowing that we are nothing and He's all; and being willing to surrender ourselves to Him in order to receive benefits from Him.

If you ever get anything from God, you have to humble yourself and become nothing before Him, and know nothing, but one purpose; that is, you're trying to find Jesus. Then when you humble yourself down, God will exalt. But when you exalt yourself, God will see that you are brought to abase. That's right. He said so in His Word.

UNWELCOMED CHRIST CHICAGO IL 55-1002

E-44 Oh, I wish I could have been that flunky there at the door. If I knowed He was a coming, brother, I'd have had the pan of water waiting. But before I washed His feet I'd say, "Lord, I'm not worthy to wash the--worship You after I washed Your feet. Let me worship You first." Oh, I'd love to have done it.

But there He sets, unwelcome. Think of it. Unwelcome, setting over in the corner, nobody paying any attention to Him. And Pharisee too busy with his doctor friend. He didn't notice Jesus setting over in a corner. And He's setting with His head down.

You know, I'd imagine He never feels very welcome around the rich people that don't want to entertain Him. He's setting... He feels more at home with the people who's willing to humble themselves. Entertain...

There He is setting with His head bowed, His disciples standing outside; they couldn't--wasn't invited, so they couldn't come in. You had to be, really had to be invited to be in one of those banquets.

CHURCH AND ITS CONDITION JEFF IN 56-0805

30 Now, the lamb is a very gentle little fellow. He doesn't... He can't help himself. He isn't self-reliance, because he can't help himself. Here some time ago I was going through a pasture when I used to patrol, and I found a little lamb, and all of them had got away from him somehow, and he was all wound up in a little bunch of barb wire. And the poor little fellow was laying there, bleeding and bleating. And I come by and I seen way up, about a half a mile up, was a whole herd of sheep. Now, he'd have laid right there and the crows would've been picking in his eyes pretty soon if we hadn't have got him out. But I unwound the little fellow, picked him up in my arm. He never refused. He laid real quiet. I picked him up in my arms. First--first time, perhaps, a human being had ever had their hands on him, but he was gentle. He was willing to be led. He was willing to be helped. I hope you see it. He was willing not to try to resist or to kick back, or to bite. Lambs don't kick back; they don't bite; they just humble themselves. And this little fellow, I packed him up and set him down in the rest of the sheep. In a few minutes his mammy found him, how happy he was. Now, how typical that is of the Lamb of God.

CHURCH AND ITS CONDITION JEFF IN 56-0805

186 O God, oh, how I love it. Heavenly Father, for each penitent one down at the altar now, bowing upon their knee, praying... O God, may mothers, dads, children, fathers, mothers, whatevermore, neighbors, church members, deacons, trustees, O God, at this old fashion molding-up time, setting in this hot room this morning, the Holy Spirit coming right down, speaking peace. O God, I want to stand that day to hear You say, gently, "Yes, you come up and made a stand for Me; now I'll make a stand for you." I want You to put that peace in every heart that's here today, God. Quietly and gently, I want You to do it. I want You just to move in there with such a feeling that it'll never leave them no more from this day henceforth. May homes be new. May people be a new person. May everything become new today because these people has humbled themselves. You said, "If the people that's called by My Name shall humble themselves, and pray, then I'll hear from heaven." And I know You do, this morning, God.

And I pray forgiveness for those who remained in their seat, that should've come. God, speak to them, and may they have no peace no more on earth until they have made that decision, Lord, to come and to be made right with You. Grant it, Lord. Bless each one now. May Thy kindness and Thy mercy ever abide on each soul that's penitent and bowed in this church this morning.

JOSEPH MEETING HIS BRETHREN JEFF IN 56-1230

E-62 And now, we begin here with Joseph on the next service which may be tonight or Monday night one, 'cause our time is up. But, I love Him. Don't you love Him? He is wonderful. And I'm so glad today, that I can join hands with that long string of despised, and rejected, and hated by the ecclesiastics down through the land, here they are. They are the lower. That's right. The ecclesiastical sphere speaking of the world educationally and socially speaking, they are above them. And we are glad to be humble, because those that will humble themselves, God will someday come the second time in glory to exalt His Church. Until then, let's earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints. Let us pray.

And now, with our heads bowed, I just wonder if there would be one this morning, or many I hope that has never yet accepted this Christ, and His great blessings, and His great powers; and we are wondering today, if you would make your choice today, and say, "Lord Jesus, it is I, and I desire to be Your servant with all my heart to take the way with the Lord's despised few. I see now, Lord, it's not what the world speaks of; it's what Your Bible speaks of. It's not what the world calls me. They hate me as they did Joseph. They hate me as they did Abel. They hate me as they did John. They hate me as they did Daniel. They hate me as they did Ezekiel, Zechariah. They hate me as they did Jesus. They hate me as they did the apostles and those who followed You without a cause. Lord, I pray for them."

BE CERTAIN OF GOD JEFF IN SUNDAY 59-0125

20 Sometimes faith will do great miracles and still doesn't come from a spiritual heart. Did not our Lord say, "Many will come to Me that day and say, 'Have not I did this and that in Your Name?' and I will confess to them, "Depart from Me, you workers of iniquity." What is iniquity? It's something that you know to do right and don't do it. "I never knew you," He will say. And we're living in that day.

What we need today is not a lot of material things; we have that. We don't need greater churches; we don't need greater congregations. We don't need more on radio and on television. We don't need so many more of these things. But what we need today to be spiritual, is a person that will humble themselves before God if they haven't got a penny, and will pray till that spirit within them is satisfied with the goodness of God, and a revival takes place on the inside of their heart that changes their attitudes and atmosphere that they live in.

STRAIT IS THE GATE JEFF IN 59-0301M

96 What do we come to? And now the illegitimates, because of adultery, and sinful women dressing on the streets like men, which is an abomination in the sight of God, cigarette smokers, cocktail drinkers, so-called professed Christians... God forbid such a bunch of prostitutes. That's right. Then call themselves Christians? No wonder Jesus said, "Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, but few there'll be that'd find it."

They won't humble themselves. They're starchy. Look, when David was told of his sin that he done, quickly he repented, and God loved him for it. You tell them of their sins, they'll say, "I'll never darken the door again." Why? They got plenty of places to go; they can go to those old illegitimate dens that'll put up with such. But it's time that preachers put on the full armor of God and preach the Word without compromising, Gospel. Men should humble themselves.

GOD'S WRAPPED GIFT JEFF IN 60-1225

50 Another thing, It was brought by the poor. Mary and Martha, or Martha, rather, or... Mary and Joseph was very poor people. They were peasants. And because It was brought by the poor, they didn't want It.

So is it today. When this great Gift of the Church, the Holy Spirit, falls upon the poor and humble, the rich don't want It. They don't want to humble themselves. They want It with class, but they don't want It the way God sends It. Many people wants to receive the Holy Ghost, but--but they want to get It the way they want It. But, oh, I'm so glad that you can't do it that way. You have to do it the way God sends It to you, and humble ourselves to receive It.

GOD'S WRAPPED GIFT JEFF IN 60-1225

61 No wonder there was no room for Him in the inn. No, wasn't wrapped right; It wasn't wrapped, the classical paper around It. It was wrapped as a Gift, as a Gift from God, sent from God, a God that they didn't know nothing about. They claimed they did. And they claimed they was looking for Him. But He did not come in the way that they thought He was coming, according to their creeds, and they could not receive God's Gift. He was wrapped different. He was wrapped up like a baby. He was borned in a manger. He come from poor people. He come from a bunch of fanatics, so how could they receive something like that? No wonder there was no room for Him in the inn.

There's no room for Him yet, in the churches. They oust Him. They don't believe in It. They'll say, "Away with such a thing. It's fanaticism. We want nothing to do with It. It's against our fathers' doctrines, the doctrines of this church, the doctrines of our creeds of our forefathers." Therefore, Christ is just as rejected today as He was back there. There's no room tonight in our good churches, our big churches, our fine churches. There's no room in our religious circles today for a Holy Ghost meeting. They don't want It. It--it belittles them in the sight of the classes of the country. It belittles them to think that they'd humble themselves to come down to an altar to cry and to tarry there until they're filled with power from on high, to rise up from there with newness of Life; to let women let their hair grow out, and act like women ought to; to make men throw away their cigarettes, and to quit their drinking, and treat their families right. It's too much for them, so they hold onto the creed of their church instead of receiving God's Gift, God's Christmas Gift.

SEED SHALL POSSESS THE GATE LONG BEACH CA 61-0212E

E-9 The next morning, Mr. Sidney Smith, the mayor of--of--of Durban called me, said, "Watch the window towards the seashore from your hotel room."

I said, "What is it?"

Said, "I will see if I can get there in time. It's on its road." Well, I was sitting there. I wondered, what did the mayor mean? And just that night, there'd been a woman had died over there that day, a friend of his. Prayed for her, she'd come to life. The papers given big headlines about it. And I went up...

See, where people really humble themselves, and forget everything else and just believe on the Lord, just everything takes place. And then... But you have to believe it. That's all. Just... Not--not just strain at it, but just simple believe it (See?), just like...

WE WOULD SEE JESUS BLOOMINGTON IL 61-0409

E-7 Now, there's enough electricity in this room to light the room, if it was correctly, and light would be out in a big field where it's dark. And we know that Franklin and so forth has proved that science, that electric's in the air. Now, take a copper wire, and hold it up, drop it down, and you... The static, the electricity pick up, till it will almost light the earth, if it was a mile high in the air, would set the earth a fire.

Now, you could stand out in that field and scream as loud as you wish to, "I'm lost. I'm lost. Great electric, come now and light the way up, that I can see how to get in out of this darkness." It'll never do it. But if you'll work according to the laws of electricity, why, it'll light the way up, so you can get out. But you have to work according to those laws.

Now, God has a law too. And there's healing and salvation in God's 'termination for you, if you'll work according to His plans and His laws on such. So that's the way we must plan the meeting, that's the way, seven times around the world, I have been of all different races, kinds of people by the tens of thousands... I have seen great things that our Lord has did. But I always notice that it takes people that will humble themselves and lay aside their own thoughts of it, and just take God's thought of it, and work according to His plan, which is faith in what He said.

PUTTING ON THE WHOLE ARMOUR OF GOD S PINES NC 62-0607

E-75 Oh, God makes Himself present in His army then. Do you believe that? Now, God said, "I sent them the Word. Eve just walked right over the top of It, disbelieved It. I made It manifest, and they crucified it. I'm just getting tired. I'm coming Myself." So here He come: God in you. God above us, the Pillar of Fire; God with us in Jesus Christ; God in us, the Holy Spirit. What is it? The same Word, the same God. Amen.

No more trusting in anything else, God come Himself. This was a man-sized job, so He just brought it on down, He come down Himself. "They won't have to do nothing about it. Just let them surrender to me and I'll walk in them, talk in them, speak in them, work in them." Oh, my. That's it. "I'll do the do--I'll do the work. Just let them just humble themselves. Let them just empty up. I'll just beat my enemy out there through them." That's it. You can't do it in yourself now; you're not a match for him. But if you'll just let God do it, get the Word in you, then it'll all be taken care of.

CONVINCED THEN CONCERNED SHREVEPORT LA 62-1125M

E-2 Our heavenly Father, in the sacredness of this service, knowing that the God that we worship is not a--an idol, as the heathens would take the idol and fall prostrate before it, and of an imaginary god, and believe that a--an imaginary voice come to them, that he hypnotized hisself into an idol...

What a strange thing it is for the devil to do a thing like that, when truly God is a Spirit that He does not come into an idol, but He comes into living human beings and speaks His own Words through the man. And we are His living images, created in His image, and for His work, and for His glory.

And we see the sick and the afflicted around us. The--then, Lord, we--we feel we're let down on the job. There's something somewhere we need, Lord. Give it to us this morning, won't You, Father? Standing, hearing this gracious brother speak of that something they had years ago in--in that Azusa Street meeting he was the smallest man there--wanted to crawl under a bench.

God, I wish I could see that happening again, where everybody, people don't--not be big, but be little, humble themselves. God, send it to us again in our days. We have stirring, and membership, and so forth. But we--we want Jesus. We want You, the Spirit that we know is here gathered with us this morning. We want You inside of us, Lord. We want ourselves out. Empty us, Lord, and fill us with Your Presence. Humble our hearts, and we'll praise Thee.

Now, we have gathered, Father, for fellowship around the Word. You are the Word. And we pray that You'll divide Yourself among us this morning and make us one in heart, one in purpose. For the Kingdom of God's sake we ask it in Jesus' Name. Amen. May be seated.

INDICTMENT THE JEFF IN 63-0707M

24-1 Now, compare that Calvary with today. Because of organizational prejudice, because of indifference between scholars who ought to know God's Word and plan; because of this, God can take a little group of people that He can work through somewhere and reflect Hisself, who will humble themselves to the Word. And they cannot say it isn't so. They could not say He didn't do it, for their congregation was witness of it. It was before them. They couldn't deny it. They couldn't deny His claims, because the very Word that they said they believed was the One Who proved that He was, because God took the Word that was supposed to be the Messiah and show It through a Man. And they had to get rid of Him. It's the only way they could go on was get rid of the Messiah. And they did it through blindness and ignorance, regardless of their education. They were smart, intelligent, worldly speaking, as we compared the other night. When the Light struck the rich young ruler, look what he did. He rejected--a smart man. Paul, another smart man, the Light struck him. What did he do? He accepted It. He forgot it, all he every knowed, that he might know Christ. That made his life worthy of the Gospel. (Last Sunday night's message.)

PERSEVERANT CHICAGO IL 63-0802

145 The trouble of us tonight, we don't have people humble themselves to get some crumbs. "I didn't get in the line." That don't make any difference. I just come to see if He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. I'm after some crumbs.

Oh, how different she was from now. Remember, she had never seen a miracle. She was a Greek. She'd never seen a miracle, yet she was persistent because something inside of her told her she was going to see one.

She was like Rahab the harlot. Rahab the harlot, she didn't say, "Now, bring Joshua up, you spies, and let me see how he wears his clothes, and what kind of a manners he's got. And let me see whether he's handsome or not, or how he combs his hair, if he's a well-groomed man and everything." Remember, that was kind of her line of work, you know. She was hunting handsome men; she was a street harlot. And so she said, "I have heard that the Lord God is with you, and I'm asking for mercy." Oh, my. There you are; faith cometh by hearing. "I heard that you took Agag, and what you did down there. And I heard what God did for you at the Red Sea, and I believe it. And I know that you're His servant. I just ask mercy." Amen. She was granted mercy.

GOD'S POWER TO TRANSFORM PHOENIX AZ 65-0911

182 So it seems to be now, so hard for people to humble themselves to the Word of God. They--they just don't want to do it. They'll humble themselves to the creed of the church, sure, but not to the Word of God.

If you want to find this, you go to... I got a Scriptures here, that's what I'm referring to here: Genesis 4:6 and 7. God said to Cain, said, "Why are your countenance fallen? Why are you all full of temper, walking around? You just heard a message that upset you." Said, "Well, what are you doing that for? Why are your countenances fell, because I didn't come into your church? So why did you do it?" Are you using a thinking man's Filter? See?

Or, "Why didn't... Why you looking like that?" Said, "If you'll do well, go do like your brother's doing out there; I'll receive you and bless you. I'll do for you the same thing." But he just couldn't do it. He said, "Now, if you don't, sin of unbelief lieth at the door."

POWER OF TRANSFORMATION PRESCOTT AZ 65-1031M

247 And these theologians see this Bible; they read It, but they don't want to do It. See? It shows the serpent's seed. They had seen it vindicated, and--and so simply before the people, but it seems like it's so hard for people to humble themselves to the Word of God.

Don't you all find, when you're talking, you women to girls, about wearing long hair, and they say, "Why you got your hair long?" See? "Why do you wear your skirts down long?" You go to talking to them, they kinda give you the shoulder. Isn't that right? See, they know that's right, if there--if there's any lady in them. See? They know that's right. But, you see, they can't humble themselves to that. See, that's what...

See how Cain did? He couldn't humble himself to the vindicated Word of God. He couldn't do it.

POWER OF TRANSFORMATION PRESCOTT AZ 65-1031M

252 Notice it in Genesis 4:6 and 7, just reading off some Scripture here. "Do as Abel did." He said, "If you--you see what your brother..." Said, "Go ahead and do what Abel did; do the same kind of a service that he did, and--and I'll bless you. If you don't, sin layeth at the door." Now, "sin" is "unbelief." "If you don't do as Abel did... You seen I vindicated him, and made him right. Now, if you don't do that, then it shows that--that sin, unbelief, lays at the door." See?

And today they see what God vindicates. They see what God is a-doing. They see all these things happening. They know about it. God's showing His signs in the heaven above and on earth below, and all these things like that, and they see what's taking place. But they won't do it. See, Satan, serpent's seed; smart, come out of seminaries, educated to the spot, every word, every everything, stand in the pulpit just as correct, and every word has to be exactly, their grammar has to be right, and everything like that. See? Sure, they can't humble themselves down, a guy like that. See? They just can't do it. They don't. They just can't do it.