My Message to Young Converts by W. V. Grant, Sr

8/3/2019 My Message to Young Converts by W. V. Grant, Sr.

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SATAN'S SERMON NO.1

"The Lord has promised that in every temptation he willmake a way for you to escape."

MY MESSAGEDo not rely on the above statement; for it is only a halfbaked cake. "Ephraim is a cake half baked" (Hosea 7: 8).Remember Satan quoted the Scripture to Eve, but he quotedit wrong. He put a question mark after it. He quoted theScripture to Jesus, but tried to make it mean something else.He will quote you only part of the Scripture, putting a dif-ferent meaning on it. The tradition of the elders has madethe Word of God of none effect in yout life.

THE REST OF THE VERSE.MAKES a different meaning."There hath no temptation taken you but such as is com-mon to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you tobe tempted above that ye are able; but with the temptationalso make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it"(ICor. 10: 13) .

YOUR TEMPTATION IS COMMON TO MANSince thousands of other people are tempted the same waythat you are, since for thousands of years people have beentempted in the same way, and they have overcome, thenyou must not think that your case is different from all others.Satan would have you think so and give up the battle. Your

case is not different. Scores of other people are tempted inthe same point in which you are. They are not whimperingand whining. They are not fussing and fuming. They arenot crying on people's shoulders. They, by the help of theLord, are bracing for the battle and are going through itvictoriously.Jesus set an example. Jesus was tempted in ALL POINTSas we are. Yet He was without sin. He overcame it before us.There are only three points in which you may be tempted.These are the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and thepride of life. The devil remains the same forever. Human

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nature remains the same forever. People are tempted in thesame points as they were thousands of years ago. Thank God,Jesus is the same to deliver us!REALIZE THAT GOD IS FAITHFUL

For you to say that the temptation is too great for you,that you cannot overcome it, is to accuse God of beingunfaithful. That would be worse than a lady accusing herhusband of being unfaithful. The Lord has said that Hewill not allow a temptation to come which you cannot bear . .For you to say that you cannot bear it is to make God aliar. "... he that believeth not God has made him a liar .. ."( I John 5: 10).The Lord will not allow you to be tempted above thatwhich you are able. That is a settled fact. It is an establishedtruth. He watches over His Word to perform it. Heavenand earth will pass away, but His Word never will. Just asthe temptation comes grace to bear it comes with it. If agreater temptation comes, to you than it ever has, that meansthat you are stronger than you have ever been, or Godwould not have allowed it to come upon you: You say, "I amtempted greater than I was last year." That means you arestronger than you were last year.

THE WAY TO ESCAPEGod sent with the temptation a way for you to escape.The way came with it. God had it all figured out in advancejust the way you are going to escape that temptation, evenbefore He allowed that temptation to come upon you.God said that the way you would escape is that He wouldmake you able to bear it. Tradition quotes part of the verse,saying, with every temptation He will "make a way ofescape." But the rest of the verse is, "That ye may be able to

bear it." That is the way you will escape. You will bear it.I would rather the Lord to give me broad shoulders andmake me a strong soldier and make me greater than thetemptation, than to let me be a weakling and go around it.After I am made stronger than the temptation, the temp-tation is no longer a temptation to me. That is how I grow.What was a temptation to me a few years ago is not atemptation to me now. It looks so little that I laugh at it.But some folk are like a family of people I know, who buy-2-

a car, pay a few payments on it and then let i~go.back. Theybuy another one and let it go back. All their life they arebuying cars and never have a car! Some people go .into atemptation and back out, yield to it, or go ~round It, butthey never overcome it. Therefore, they a.re still tempt~d bythe same thing. They are still a weaklmg. They will be.tempted by it until they overcome it. Like the Children ? fIsrael who went around one mountain forty years, they WIlldie in the wilderness and never reach the Promised Land.GO THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF IT

That is the way of escape. Daniel was not delivered fromthe lion's den. He went right through it. God went throughthere with him and protected him. The Hebrew Childrenwere not delivered from the fiery furnace. Jesus wentthrough there with them and gave them such grace that thefire could not burn them. God wants to make you strongerthan the lions or the fire if you will be faithful.YOU HAVE A WEAK POINT

That is where Satan will attack you. A hog that breaksinto a farmer's field will not try the strong part of the fence.He will always make a lunge at the weakest part of the fen~e.So the farmer must build that weak spot. You must buildyour weak spot. Temptations show you where ,they are.Your weak spot is not the other person s weak spot.Neither of you must criticize the other. Pray for each otherand you both will grow.

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MY MESSAGE~he above statements are false. This is the doctrine ofdevils that has caused about ninety-five per cent of thebacksliders to fall.Jesus was tempted, but He did not yield to temptations.Paul was tempted, but he did not yield to temptations.If you are without temptations you are better than Jesusor Paul.Jesus was not drawn away of His own lust when He was

tempted.Paul was not drawn away of his own lust when he wastempted.Therefore, you may be tempted without being drawn awayof your own lust.~ere is the corre~t quotation of that Scripture:But every man IS tempted, when he is drawn away ofhis own lust, and enticed" (James 1: 14).You are always tempted when you are drawn away ofyour own lust.But you can be tempted without being drawn away byyour own lust.~ ou can be tempted to be drawn off of the highway ofholiness, but you don't have to yield to temptations and getoff the road.But you are always tempted after you leave the road.

MAIN REASON FOR BACKSLIDINGMany converts have been led to believe that a temptationis a sin . .Someone tel!s t~em that they may as well do wrongas .to think about domg It. They believe if they think aboutdomg something, it is as bad as if they committed the act.

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So they say they may as well do it as to think about it. There-fore, they go ahead and do it.But that is a false and a dangerous doctrine.A temptation is not a sin. Jesus was "tempted in all pointslike as we are, yet without sin" (Heb. 4: 15).You can't keep birds from flying over your head, but youcan keep them from building a nest in your hair.You can't keep certain thoughts from coming into yourmind, but you don't need to let them into your heart.When a desire hits your mind you can rebuke it and doas Jesus, say, "It is written." Resist the devil and he will fleefrom you.Know the Word and then fight Satan with the two edgedsword.When you become willing to do an act of sin if you had achance, it is then that lust creeps into your heart andbecomes a sin."Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin ... "(J ames 1: 15).

SATAN'S SERMON NO.2"When a man is tempted he is drawn away of his ownlust and enticed. If you were never drawn away of your ownlust you would not be tempted. When you are tempted todo something it shows that you are lustful. You may as wellgo ahead a~d commit the act as to think about it. It is just

as bad to think about it as it is to do it."

A MISTAKEN IDEAOne boy backslid about three times in one revival andprayed through again. We went after him to baptize him,but he had backslidden again. When he was asked why, hesaid, HI thought about going to a dance. I knew I might aswell go as to think about it; so I went." Someone had taughtthis young man wrong. Most people, like this boy, willstraighten up and do right after you simply explain thetruth to them.Some fine young Christian men have stopped trying to livefor God just because they thought they had backslidden. Ayoung lady walks by which is a temptation to them. Theythink about what they used to do while they were in sin.They reason: 'If I look upon a woman to lust after her Ihave sinned." So they stop living for God.Here is the way the verse reads: "But I say unto you,That whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hathcommitted adultery with her already in his heart" (Matt.5:28).This also is speaking of being willing in your heart if you

had a chance. It is not speaking of temptations which strike-5-


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your mind and are overcome. It is speaking of the act ofthe heart. ."D_oye. not perceive, that whatsoever thing from withoutentering into the man, it cannot defile him' because itentereth not into the heart. ... That which cometh out ofthe man, that defileth the man. For from within out of the

heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornicanons,murders" (Mark 7:18-21)..A : a man thinketh in his heart so is he. When you thinkevil m your heart it is then that you become willing to dothe act.If you accidently short change a man five dollars that isnot a.si~. If you are willing to short change him five'dollars,then It ISa sin even before you have a chance to do it.If y.ou a re ~empted to hit a man it is not sin if you over-come .It.. But .If you are willing in your heart to fight him,then It IS a SIn as soon as it gets into your heart when voubecome willing, even before you hit him. ' ,

.If :ou are tempted to drink whiskey, and resist the tempta-non It makes you stronger; that is not sin. But if vou becomewilling in your heart to drink, it is a sin even before you 00into the bar. 0.Once when I was tempted to fight a man I could seebrick bats all around me. I resisted the temptation. I over-came it. That made me stronger. That was not as bad as ifI had hit him with the brick bats.I~ is not as bad to think about doing something as it is todo It. A man thought about hitting me. That was not asbad as if he had done it.

Then I happened to think about how Jesus was temptedwhile He fasted. It was only a temptation. By the help of theLord I won that battle and received power with God to castout devils.When a temptation hits you, go right through the middleof it, and overcome it. It will make you bigger than thetemptation .When my wife puts biscuits into the stove she watches

them carefully. She lets them stay in there until they aredone. As soon as they are ready she takes them out. Shewill not let them stay in there longer.Sometimes we find ourselves in the fire of temptations.The Lord is watching us carefully. As soon as we are doneHe takes the fire from under us. He does not want us to staythere any longer. He does not want us to be burned. Neitherdoes He want us to be a half baked cake, done on one sideand raw on the other. He is coming after overcomers ."When thou passeth through the waters, I will be withthee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee;when thou walketh through the fire, thou shall not beburned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee') (Isa.43:2).

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THEOF FAnYOU CAN OVERCOME

Jesus is coming after overcomers, andTHE PRAYEROF FAITH

you can be anovercomer.My school teacher had wronged me twenty-five yearsbefore this. He had almost broken my arm. There was nocause whatsoever. But I thought I was over that.

One day I was fasting. I had not eaten anything in abouteleven days. I was tempted to go whip that school teacher.I lay there on the bed and wrestled for hours it seemed.What was wrong 'with me? Had I backslidden? I had notfought anyone in fourteen years!

LIVE FAITHFAITH

B y W . V . C r a n tk~1r '1...... OVINI"AlING A,SW!ltS(Vol1}

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MY MESSAGEIt is true that the Bible says that the thought of foolish-

ness IS sm."The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is anabomination to men" (Prov. 24: 9).The Scripture in this place is not speaking about foolishthoughts running through your mind, which vou cannotavoid at times. God does not expect us to do something thatwe cannot do. He does not demand of us the impossible. Itis the thoughts of the heart that God is concerned about.The reason that the Lord destroyed the people with theflood was that the thoughts of their hearts were evil."And God saw that the wickedness of man was zreat inbthe earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of theheart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6: 5).When foolish thoughts come to your mind never speakthem or act them out. Don't allow yourself to think of themvery long; then they will never reach your heart and becomea part of you. Plead the blood of Jesus. Resist the devil andhe will flee from you. The best way to get thoughts to leaveyou is to think of something of more value. Fill your mindwith the true Word of God. Then you can do as Jesus didwhen the devil put vain thoughts into His mind, and toldHim to turn the stones into bread. Say, "It is written." Fool-ish thoughts came into the mind of Jesus and suzzestionsbbcame to Him tc jump off the temple. He chased them awavwith the two-edged sword of the Word of God. \Ve knO\~that Jesus was tempted in all points and yet He sinned not.Job's wife talked to him as one of the foolish women. ButJob resisted those thoughts and accepted them not into hisheart.

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"In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly"(Job 1:22).SIN COMES FROM THE HEART

Everything is only a temptation before it reaches theheart. It is not in the heart until you become willing for itto become a part of you. Your heart is the seat of your affec-tions.Every thought that comes into your mind must first getyour consent to enter your heart before it can become a sin.H you never become willing to speak those foolish thoughts,or to act them out, they will never become a sin."But those things which proceed out of the mouth, comefrom the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heartproceed evil thoughts ... " (Matt. 15:18-19; Mark 7:21).The best thing to use to overcome evil thoughts is theWord of God. They will flee every time in the light of God'sWord. They run from the Word as darkness runs from light.Turn on the light of God's Holy Word."For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharperthan any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividingasunder of the soul and spirit and of the joints and marrow,and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of theHEART" (Heb. 4: 12).

THE THOUGHTS OF YOUR HEART

SATAN'S SERMON NO.3"The Bible says that the thought of foolishness is sin.Every time you think anything foolish you are sinning. Noone can keep foolish thoughts from coming through hismind sometimes. Therefore, everyone must sin all the time.You can't keep from sinning. No one can live right. Whatis the use in trying?"

are not always known by you. You may be deceived, but wecan know you better than you know yourself. That is whyyou should let the Word discern the thoughts of your heartdaily. I know one King, Nebuchadnezzar, who did not knowthe thoughts of his own heart.Daniel said, ", . . but for their sakes that shall makeknown the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightestknow the thoughts of thy HEART" (Dan 2: 30).For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that hemight destroy the works of the devil. Evil thoughts are theworks of the devil.It is the way the devil first attacks you. He first got Eveto think; then she looked; then she took. David first thought;then he looked; then he took. Jesus can help you overcomethose thoughts .

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"Behold this child is set for the fall and rising again ofmany in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;that the thoughts of many hearts shall be revealed" (Luke2:25).FAITH AND FEAR DO NOT MIX

Faith drives out fear as light drives out darkness. Faithcometh by the Word of God. When faith is not there thedarkness of fear enters. That is when vain thoughts enterinto your heart. That is what concerns Jesus. He wants toreveal Himself to us. So He said to the disciples:" ... Why are ye troubled? And why do thoughts arise inyour HEARTS?" (Luke 24: 38). When you think fear anddoubt, until they enter your heart, they become part of you.That is why you should fill your mind with God's Word.What you think about very long soon becomes a part of you.We need to use Spiritual weapons against these fearfulthoughts:"For though we walk in the flesh we do not war after theflesh: For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, butmighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalt-eth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing intocaptivity every THOUGHT to the obedience of Christ" (IICor. 10 : 3-5) .THINK RIGHT THOUGHTS

How can one throw off evil. thoughts? Just think of betterthings. Fill your mind with good things so there will beno room for evil things. Stay so busy doing things for Godand the Church that your mind can't dwell long on evil. Ifit were impossible God would not have so commanded."Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts shallbe established" (Prov. 16: 3).If for any reason your heart becomes full of bitter thoughtsagainst your neighbor or against the Lord, these thoughtsmay be discerned by a man who is filled with the HolyGhost. You may be delivered if you will do as Peter com-manded Simon. It was because the thoughts entered intohis heart.". . . thy money perish with thee, because thou hastTHOUGHT that the gift of God may be purchased with

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money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter; forthy HEART is not right in the sight of God."In this case Simon had not yet passed any money. He hadnot committed the act; but he was willing in his heart to doso if he had a chance.I don't know whether Simon repented or not, but I knowyou can and will be delivered should thoughts ever enteryour heart.

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, SATAN'S SERMON NO.4For to be carnally minded is death.So they that are after the flesh cannot please God.But we are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so bethat the Spirit of God dwell in you.For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die; but if ye throughthe Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

YOU CAN MOVE

"Paul said that when he would do good evil was presentwith him. As much as he tried he could not overcometemptations. That he would do, he could not do. That isthe way all men are. They are only human beings; so theyare as prone to sin as the sparks fly upward."MY MESSAGE

In the seventh chapter of Romans, Paul was telling thecondition that he was in while he was under the law. Hereare a few of the statements:Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in meall manner of concupiscence.When the commandment came sin revived.Sin taking occasion by the commandment ... slew me.But sin . . . working death in me.I am carnal, sold under sin.What I hate that I do.Sin that dwelleth in me.For I know that in me dwelleth no good thing.How to perform that which is good I find not.The evil which I would not, that I do.When I would do good evil is present with me.". . . another law in my members . . . bringing me intocaptivity to the law of sin.Who shall deliver me?With the flesh (I serve) the law of sin.

PAUL WAS DELIVEREDWe will see that by the following statements in the eighthchapter of Romans which are opposite to the above state-ments.There is now no condemnation to them which are inChrist Jesus, WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, butafter the Spirit. (Rom. 8: 1).For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath maderue free from the law of sin and death.That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled inus, WHO WALK NOT AFTER THE FLESH, BUT AFTERTHE SPIRIT.

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out of the seventh chapter into the eighth chapter, as Pauldid. If you don't you will die in your sin.In the seventh chapter of Romans, as Paul was stating hiscondition while he was under the law, he says he was guiltyof all manner of concupiscence.Concupiscence means filthy lust, or unlawful sexual plea-sures. This includes all manner of low, base, sinful acts.Speaking of the same thing, Paul commanded us to putoff such things:"Mortify therefore your members which are upon theearth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil

CONCUPISCENCE .... For which thing's sake the wrathof God cometh on the children of disobedience: in the whichye also walked sometime, when ye lived in them" (Col.3:5-8).Paul's converts had put off these things. Paul had put offthese things. You can put off these things.Some men will teach you that Paul lived in concupiscenceof all kinds, that he could not keep from it, that you can'tkeep from it. Don't believe them, for they will cause you tobe lost.YOU CAN PUT THEM OFF

First, put them out of your mind, before they enter yourheart and become a sin. Put them out of your mind bythinking something better.One lady looked at the television so much that when shewas in her husband's arms she imagined that she was inthe arms of some movie star. What you think about soonbecomes a part of you. The devil will try to hang every pic-ture in your mind he can, including what you did while youwere in sin. Get them out of your mind before they enteryour heart.

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FIRST, lVIAKEA DECISIONA lady came to me and said, "I can't keep from smoking.I can't overcome the temptation. Can you help me?"'Have you quit?" I asked.'I have been trying to. I don't smoke nearly as much Idid," she answered."Would you taper off of any other sin? Would you taperoff lying when you are saved? Would you taper off com-mitting adultery or stealing?"Looking down she said, "I never thought of it that way."Then I continued, "Suppose you cut a dog's tail off justan inch each month for a year. It would hurt just as badlyevery time. Why not cut it all off at once?"As soon as she made the decision, as soon as she let her-self know that regardless of how much she was tempted shewas not going to yield, the battle was over.For two 'years after some folk are delivered from whiskeythe craving comes back suddenly. If they think how whiskeyused to taste, if they let their mind run on it the battlegrows worse until they take a sip. Then they have the habitagain. If they resist that temptation it will leave in a fewminutes.For years after a man is delivered from smoking the crav-ing will corne to him suddenly for three or four minutes. A

young convert may think, "It has come back." But it has not.-14-

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It ~sonly a temptation. I am here to tell you that you canresrst that tempration and be over with it in a matter ofminutes. Resist the devil and he will flee from vou.Not only tobacco and whiskey, but every oth~r sin is thesame. Remember this: A temptation is not a sin. There is away to escape that you might be bigger than the temptation.A GREAT DELIVERANCE

The other night at church several people were prayed for.They seemed to get great deliverance.Soon the pastor called me to pray for a lady again, whohad been backslidden for about twelve years. She said thatthe lady was craving a cigarette so badly that she couldhardly keep from going out and smoking one right then." I looked at the lady and felt like saying something. I said,Why. do~'t you go on out right now and smoke a cigaretteor a bIg cigar? Go on right now if you want to ." _She looked toward the door; then she looked toward me.She started one way and then she started the other. Then

she made an important decision: The minute she made thedecision that she would trust God, the Spirit sent me to her.S~e was slain under God's power. She was instantly filledWlt~ the Holy Ghost. She threw her cigarettes away. Shetestified that she was delivered from tobacco and received amarvelous healing for her body.Had she made the other decision she would have yet beenbound.

. A man had been calling a lady on the telephone veryoften. She wanted to be nice to him, for he used to be herold boy friend. The temptation grew greater and greater allthe time, to date him.Finally she made the decision: She rebuked him and lethim, know for sure that she was through talking to him onthe phone. That was all. She had it settled in her heart.This man stopped 'phoning her. He admired her for herdecision. He had to go to the next neighbor.A decision is all you need to make. Resist the devil andhe will flee! He will not walk away; he will run away. Butyou must do the resisting. Until you do the temptation willgrow larger. You have no one to blame but vourseIf. You

will overcome it, or it wiII overcome you. '

YOU CAN OVERCOME TEMPTATIONSA lady recently carne to us and told us that she wastempted to step out with another man. She said that thedesire grew larger each day until she felt sure that she mightbe overcome any time. She wanted us to pray. But before Iprayed I first explained to her this:"You must first make a decision that you are through withthat life forever regardless of the cost. Put your foot down.

Set yourself down and let yourself know that regardless ofwhat happens you will never, never lean that way. Get holdof yourself and let yourself know that you will never give in."Then we had a prayer with her and le t her go. Later onshe told me that after she made that decision she had thevictory, mainly because she would not let herself think alongthose lines.

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SATAN'S SERMON NO.5"The Bible tells us that a man who is born of woman isof few days and full of trouble. There is no use for a humanbeing ever expecting anything on this earth but trouble. Heis born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward. There is nouse to ever expect anything else in this life. This is atroublesome old world as long as you live here."

MY MESSAGEIt is true that in Job 14: 1 we read these words, "Man thatis born of woman is of few days and full of trouble." It istrue of a man that is born of woman. But that does notapply to a man who has been born of God. Whoever preachesfuneral sermons all the time and quotes that verse, shouldturn to John 3 and read that Jesus said that a man can beborn again. A born again man does not have to have troubleall the time. He is also promised more than only a few days.We can be born of God here in this life."Beloved, let us love one another . . . and everyone thatloveth is born of God ... " (I John 4: 7)."Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin . . ." (IJohn 3: 9)."... I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him andhonor him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew himmy salvation" (Ps. 91: 15-16).u bloody and deceitful men will not live out half theirdays ... "( Ps. 55:23).

THE LORD IS WITH US IN TROUBLEThe disciples went through the storm on the lake, butJesus was in the boat with them and brought them outsafely. Jesus is with us alway even to the end of the world;that means while we are in trouble also. A Christian maymeet up with trouble sometime, but the Lord is with himto deliver them. His life is not full of trouble. He has muchjoy and happiness along the way. You will notice that Joblived hundreds of years, one hundred and forty years afterhe was healed. God blessed him and gave him twice as muchas he had before. All his sickness may not have been over a

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few weeks. His life certainly was not full of trouble.The Lord is saying, "And to you who are troubled restwith us ... " There remains a rest in the Lord from trouble."The Lord will also be a refuge for the oppressed, a refugein time of trouble.""For in the time of trouble he shall hide thee in hispavilion . . .""Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from

trouble ... ""God is our refuge and strength, a very present help intime of trouble."._

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GOD WILL DELIVER YOUI went out into the woods just after I was saved to praywith a preacher who had not been saved very long. He wastelling me his troubles. He talked like it was more than hecould bear. He wondered why he was tempted all the time.He felt it would be that way from then on the rest of hislife. So he backslid and went back into the world. After

twenty-four years I am still going on with God. Had thatpreacher gone on and trusted God, his temptation wouldhave only lasted a day or two. Then he would have gottenthe victory and been stronger than ever. He would havegrown with God each time he overcame a temptation. Buthe is still back in the world. He no doubt had been toldthat all anyone is promised is only a few days and that wouldbe full of trouble. But there is more in the Christian lifethan that."... for the Lord will deliver him in time of trouble.""For he hath delivered me out of all trouble ""Thou callest in trouble, and I delivered thee ""Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and hedelivered them out of their distresses.""The righteous is delivered out of trouble and the wickedcometh in his stead."" ... the just shall come out of trouble."

YOU CAN AVOID TROUBLE

I went to a certain town to hold a revival. While the pas-tor and I were driving through town he told me that hewas never tempted any more. He said he had come to the-17-


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place that he was beyond temptations.I did not believe that man. I won't believe you if you tellme that. If you are beyond temptations you are better thanJesus. He was tempted in all points as we are.But much of the temptations we have, we bring uponourselves. They come after we are drawn away of our ownlust an~ enticed. You bring much of your trouble upon your-self. It IS all uncalled for. You can pray, "Lord, lead us notinto temptations."Even in temptations which the Lord allows to come ourway, we don't need to be troubled over them. We can praisethe Lord in the middle of them, because we know that heis going to lead us out."My brethren, count it all joy when vou fall into diverstemptations." 'Jesus commanded us to not be troubled as other people,for we have Him with us in adversity."Let not your heart be troubled .. ."" see that ye be not troubled . . ."" Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about

many things.""And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? .. .'", . . be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.""That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled ... "We can be in a troubled world, but we must not let thetroubled world get into us. A ship can be in the water butif the water gets into the ship, the ship will go down. '

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SATAN'S SERMON NO.6"The Bible says that if we say we have no sin we deceiveourselves and the truth is not in us. There is none righteous,no not one. All have sinned and come short of the glory ofGod. There is not a just man upon the earth that doeth goodand sinneth not. Everyone in the whole world is a sinner.

There is no use in anyone trying to live right. No one canlive above sin. It is pride and ignorance for anyone to claimthat he lives without sin."MY MESSAGE

As I have told you before, the devil only quotes part ofthe Scripture. He does not finish it. Let's finish it for him.That will make him flee.Paul, like many of us today struck up with selfrighteouspeople who said that they were good people and did not needto be saved.I was trying to persuade a young lady to be saved a fewyears ago when her grandmother interrupted me. She saidthat her granddaughter did not need to be saved, becauseshe had always been good all her life. She said she hadalways been a Christian and did not need to be born again.That is the way thousands of people feel about it. And thatis what Paul was talking about.Paul first showed people that all people are includedunder sin. All people are sinners by nature. So he told themthat all have sinned."Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world,and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for allhave sinned." But the verse which follows says, "For as byone man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by theobedience of one shall many be made righteous."People must first know that they are sinners before theycan repent of their sins. Therefore, Paul says, speaking ofall people, 'If we say that we have no sin, we deceive our-selves, and the truth is not in us." Satan stops there; he willnot quote the rest of the message. Man divided the Scriptureinto verses and did not divide it right. Here is the rest ofthe thought:


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"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgiveour sins, and to cleanse us from ALL UNRIGHTEOUS-NESS."Everyone who says he has not sinned makes God a liar.If he will confess that he is born in sin, and confess that heneeds a Saviour the Lord will cleanse him from ALL UN-RIGHTEOUSNESS. CI John 9).Let's take a look at the two verses above the one the devilquotes:"If we say that we. have fellowship with him and walk indarkness, we lie and do not the truth: But if we walk in thelight, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one withanother, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth usfrom ALL SIN" CI John 1: 6-10).The preacher who preaches that there is none righteousputs himself in

THE FOLLOWING GROUP

THE BIBLE DOES NOT CONTRADICT ITSELFIf you say that we have to sin, if you say that the Scripturethe devil quotes means the Christian, then you make thatcontradict the following:"Shall we continue in sin that grace may aound? Godforbid. How shall we that are dead to sin live any longertherein?"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye. t "Ill no ..."And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth him-self, even as he is pure ... and ye know that he was mani-fested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin: Whoso-ever abideth in him sinneth not: ... he that doeth righteous-ness is righteous even as he is righteous ... whosoever isborn of God doth not commit sin .... We know that whoso-ever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten ofGod keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth himnot." CI John)."He that saith I know him and keepeth not his com-mandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him."". . . and thou shall call his name Jesus: for he shallsave his people FROM their sins."

THERE ARE ONLY TWO WAYS

", . . There is none righteous, no not one:There is none that understandeth, there is none thatseeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, theyare together become unprofitable; there is none that doethgood, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; withtheir tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps isunder their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bit-terness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction andmisery are in their WAYS: And the WAY of peace theyHAVE NOT KNOWN" CRom. 3: 10-17).This group of people Paul was talking about are ignorantpeople. They have never sought God. They are not in the

Way. They are murderers, hypocrites, serpents, blasphemers,and they have never known God.Paul is quoting from Psalms 14 starting the verse off with"It is written." He is speaking about fools."The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God . . ."CPs. 14: 1).Are you in that group? Are you a murderer and a liar?Are you a fool? If you share the doctrine that you have tosin all the time you are in that group.Before Jesus came all was included under sin. But Jesuscame to destroy the works of the devil.-20-

You are either straight or crooked. You are clean or youare dirty. You are either in or out. You are either a sinneror you are a saint.No man can serve two masters. A house divided againstitself can't stand. No fountain can send forth both sweetwater and bitter. A tree does not bring forth good fruit andcorrupt fruit.There is no such thing as an honest thief, a truthful liar,a safe murderer or a sinning Christian. If you steal you area thief; if you lie you are a liar, if you kill you are a mur-derer; if you drink you are a drunkard; if you sin you are a

SInner.If you are saved, then what are you saved from?If you have to sin every day, you are no better than thedevil, for that is all the devil can do. A lot of people do notstop to think what sin is.-21-


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A MISTAKE IS NOT A SINA mistake is of the mind and not of the heart. Every sinthat one commits comes from the heart (Mark 7: 21-23).Every sin that a man commits is without the body. (I Cor.6: 18).A sin is a willful transgression of the law. He thatknoweth to do good and doeth it not to him it is sin. There-fore, sin is doing wrong on purpose, when you know better.

NQ man can sin without knowing it. If you don't know youhave sinned, then you have not sinned. Don't let the deviltell you that you have.At one time man could sin through ignorance, but thatwas when the law was written upon tables of stone. In ourtime man does not sin through ignorance (Acts 17 :30), forthe law is written on his mind and heart (I Cor. 3: 3). Hecannot sin without knowing it.The Lord only demandsOUR REASONABLE SERVICE

It is no more than your duty to live right."Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is inheaven is perfect" (Matt. 12:48).Perfect means complete, not half baked. God wants us tobe complete Christians, not angels, gods, or supreme beings.There are perfect angels, perfect sinners, perfect devils, andthere are perfect Christians. It is not by our goodness, forno one is good within themselves. But if we are dead andour life is hid with Christ in God we have His righteousness.If God is in us we are good, for God is good.A young apple is perfect, but it is green. Itmust grow andbecome ripe. A young Christian is perfect, but he needs togrow and become mature. God won't ask you to do what youcan't do.I tell you these things so you can meet with temptationsand by the help of the Lord battle with them, overcomethem, and receive the victory. Don't let anyone tell you thatyou must yield to temptations of the devil.

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,

MY MESSAGELet us quote all the Scripture. Itwill make another mean-ing when you read the rest of the thought."... Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath itentered into the heart of man, the things which God hath

prepared for them that love him. BUT GOD HATH RE-VEALED THEM UNTO US BY HIS SPIRIT ... " (I Cor.2: 9-10).Man divided the Scripture into chapters and verses forconvenience, but many times one verse does not finish thethought. Sometimes it is not rightly divided at the verses.There IS a revelation in our day. If any man be in ChristJesus he is a new creature. Old things have passed away andbehold all things have become new. God revealed Himselfto you when you were converted. He can reveal Himself toyou all along the way after you become a Christian.

\ MY CUP RAN OVER WITH JOYThe fruit of the Spirit is joy, peace, love, longsuffering,and such like. He who does not have the fruit of the Spiritdoes not have the Spirit."Thou preparesti a table before me in the presence ofmine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cuprunneth over" (Ps. 23: 5).The Lord g3ve me that living water until my cup ranover. I was happy and knew I had a revelation from God .No one had to tell me. In fact it seemed that my saucer

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SATAN'S SERMON NO.7"The Bible says that eye hath not seen, nor ear heard,neither hath it entered into the heart of man, the thingswhich God hath prepared for them that love Him. It is truethat if you ever go to heaven you will feel the supernaturalSpirit of God, but in this life you must never expect anykind of revelation. You must just change your mind about

sin and join a church, but you should not expect any kindof Spiritual experience. God does not reveal Himself tohuman beings in our time. There is no revelation in thisage. It is foolish to expect a feeling or a change when youbecome a Christian."

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splashed over also. I felt that I would never have anothertrial while I lived. It seemed that I was in heaven and wouldnever come back to earth. It is all right to fly high, just sowe walk straight when we hit the ground.But I did come back to earth. I fell into divers tempta-tions. I soon felt like I would never receive another bless-ing while I lived. It seemed there was no use in going backto church. I felt like I was backslidden. There is where aboutnine-tenths of the converts give up. They feel like they havelost the victory so they don't go to church.These trials caused me to dig a little deeper.Many people stop digging just before they strike water;so they have a dry well. Some people have hued themsel:esout cisterns that will hold no water. Some people are dymgbecause they depend on broken cisterns of organizationsand rituals instead of the living water from God.I dug a little deeper in prayer. When I did I went backto church and found that

MY CUP TURNED INTO A "VELLI was happier than ever! I thought I could not hol.d anymore, but it seemed that God had increased the capacity.'Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wellsof salvation" (Isa. 12: 3).My cup had turned into a well. I drew and drew anddrew! It seemed that I would never have another trial whileI lived. I was sitting in heaven! God had really revealedHimself to me.'And hath raised us up together, and made us sit togetherin heavenly places" (Eph. 2:6).I think sometimes when we are getting such blessings atchurch that we really have a little heaven to go to heaven in.When I did have more temptations and trials, they weregreater than ever! The trials I used to have before were solittle that they would not have been a trial to me. This wasthe sign I had grown. I was larger, so God could trust mewith greater trials. .People lied on me! They talked about me. They misunder-stood me. How could I ever face them again. I really prayed.I dug a little deeper. I kept digging until I finally went backto church. Then

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It was just the same thing as I had the other time I wasat church except there was more of it. God blessed me morethan ever!God filled me with the Holy Spirit and gave me a riverfull of the same thing. It was flowing over without my draw-ing!"He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out

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I STRUCK A GUSHERIt was really an overflow of that living water. It seemedthat it was like one of those wells in South Texas. \Vhenthey dig so deep, about two hundred and fifty feet, the waterautomatically comes out, without anyone drawing artesianwell.When speaking to the poor fallen woman at the well,Jesus told her that He would give her this living water, thatshe would not need to draw. He said it would be an arte-sian well, springing up. She would not need to draw theliving water."But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall givehim shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give himshall be in him a \iVELL OF WATER springing up intoeverlasting life" (John 4: 14).The woman became so happy that she forgot her waterpot and took the well back with her. Her whole life waschanged! You could not tell her that we cannot receive a

foretaste of heaven in this life! She received a revelation thatJesus was the Christ. You can receive that revelation. Godcan reveal heaven to you.When you receive an experience like that you don't needto stop there. You may be tempted more than ever beforethe week is out. When you are stronger in the Lord yourtrials will be greater.Sometimes I arose from bed in the morning and could notfeel a thing. It seemed that everything went wrong all daylong. I felt like giving someone a piece of my mind. But if

I had I would have lost the peace of mind. With the Wordof God I fought the devil until I dug a little deeper. Thenwhen I went to church I receivedA RIVER OF LIVING \VATER


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of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spakche of the Spirit, which they that believe on him shouldreceive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because thatJesus was not yet glorified)" (John 7: 38-39).When I went home again the temptations were greaterthan ever. I felt like someone had filled up my well as theydid the wells which Jacob dug. But the more they tried tofill them the deeper I dug. I prayed and quoted Scripture tothe devil. Then when I did go back to churchMY RIVER WAS LARGER

ness a sa esman came b d USI-candy. I smacked m y an gave. me a sample of chocolatesaying 'Send d y tongue and lIcked my lips and felt likeWe can actually have in this life

A FORETASTE OF HEAVEN

edges. I t:a~:Pt~. She left some raw cake dough around thethat d bYndex ~nger and raked it around the side ofpan an rought It across my to I h dtaste of what I would actuall h S ngue. a a fore-heaven in while 1 e eaven to go toW'11 I1_lanypeople have a hell to go to hell inint~ ::. never get Into heaven until we first get some heave~

My dad used to be real thirsty as he lowed .

. en carried him a' f 1water from our wel l he turned that iu . Jug 0 cooit seemed that th . ." J g up to his mouth andTh' e Jug was sayIng Good, good, good, ood.". at IS the way I feel sometimes after I have workeJ h dgIvedsme t at Iiving water. I feel like saying "Good dgoo , good." , , goo ,

Jesus is coming after overcomerse as prepared for us. ace

I did not only go out into knee deep water, or water upto my loins, but I went out into that living water that Icould not pass over. I swam and swam! There is no end. IfI want to see the end to a Christian race I'll have to back-slide and go the other way; for there is no end the way Ihave started."Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a riverthat I could not pass over; for the waters were risen, watersto swim in, a river that could not be passed over" (Ezek.47.:5).Some people are playing out in ankle deep water. Butthey need to overcome some more temptations and go backto church. They need to measure out into the water up totheir knees, then they can pray through every day andreceive a re-filling, so they can overcome the trials and growin the Lord.It is better still if they will go out into the deep waterand let down their nets. They can get into the

WATER THAT CAN'T BE PASSED OVERAs long as they live, and in eternity, they will yet bepartaking of that living water. John peeked through thedoor of heaven once and saw a large, long river of life. Thatis the same river of life that we have experienced down herein this world, except it is many, many times greater. Wewill go on and on and never pass over it."And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear ascrystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and the Lamb"(Rev. 22:1).It is a lot of what we have some of in this life.

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"Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is (now)born of God . . ." (I John 4: 9) ."For whatsoever is (now) born of God overcometh theworld: and this the victory that overcometh the world , evenour faith" (verse 4)."If we know that he is righteous, ye know that everyonethat doeth righteousness is (now) born of him" (I John2:29).Jesus was trying to explain to Nicodemus that a man hadto be born from above. That is hard for a na tu ra l man tounderstand, but we who are Spiritual can understand it, forwe have had the experience.

YOU CAN'T EXPLAIN HEAVENto the na tu ra l man. He receiveth not the things of the Spirit.It is like explaining to an Eskimo about the pretty country inthe State of Florida. He can't understand a ll about the birdsand the bees, the flowers and the trees, the sunshine andthe swimming waters. About the only way you can explainto him is to tell him in his own l anguage . You can explainto him like this: "When you reach Florida there will be nomore six months night. There will be no more ice housesand dog sleighs. There will be no more sub-zero weather."In this way he can have a faint understanding of whatFlorida is like.While talking to a na tu ra l man we can't explain thebeauties of heaven. But we can say, "There is no more sick-ness, sorrow, sin, and suffering, for the former things havepassed away. There will be no more pain there. There will

be no more night. There will be no more darkness , dread,demons, disease, and devils there. Death win be gone for-ever. We will be no more burdened for sinners and sickpeople. There will be no more sun, moon, or lamps; forthe Lamb is the light! No more graves on the hillside ofglory , no funera l trains in the sky. The ol d men will beyoung men forever; for there we will never more die ..In heaven no drooping or pining,No wishing for elsewhere to be.God's lights are forever there shining.

Oh, this is just what heaven means to me.-29-


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I am told there was a .little blind girl who was very poor.She was staying with her grandmother, for her mother anddad would not own her. Some little children were sorry forher because she would receive no toys for Christmas. Theywere trying to explain to her about the toys in the storewindow. But she was blind and could not see. She felt forthem, but there was a glass between her and the pretty toys.Then a rich man came along and asked whose little blindgirl that was. He grew interested and fell in love with her.He did not rest until he adopted her into his family. Shebecame his daughter. He could not stop until he had hereyes operated on by the best surgeon. He was determinedto make her happy .He was there when the last piece of gauze was takenfrom her eyes. He had all the toys and Christmas gifts readyfor her as the last piece of cotton was removed. He wasgoing to show her all the toys. There was

NO GLASS BETWEEN

There will be no more pain, disappointments, discour-agements, despondency or despair.d ". h "H do vou o.'ll meet you in the mornmg .WIt a ow ,We'll sit down by the nver,And with rapture old acquaintances renew.

We have mentioned what won't be there, but now wethink ofvVHAT WILL BE THERE

pearl. The foundations are precious. stones. I hafvenev~:ht a Imuch old here. They keep it buried or out 0 my s e .h g cold rings not even fourteen carat. Butave never worn b , . I S e sav thatthere I will have plenty. My time is commg. om ld - Purethe streets are paved with gold. The streets a r : k gOlo~g forgold is soft. I can imagine how we can wa . a d Thathundreds of miles and never grow weary or tired. .We can look down and see ourselves as we wa a 0 g,our long white robes, for the gold is transparent'd dOur brother, sister, uncle, aunt, grandpa, an gran rna

I want to see Samt Peter, St. Paul, t.Matthew. I' . tome sweep-Swing wide those golden gates; m gomg 0 cing through! d d filledI want to see all the ones who have gotten save anwith the Holy Ghost in my meetings. I want to see Mood~,Wesley and Finney. I want to see Abraham, Isaac and [aco .I want to see all my people.Will the circle be unbroken ?ye ~nd bye? kThere is a better home awaiting, m the sk.y,IIIthhes ~'aceWe will know our loved ones there. \Ve will see t emto face.

WE \I\1ILL KNOvV AS "VE ARE KNO\VN" but then shall I know even as also I am know~"( I Co r.13 : 12). We will be like Him for we shall see HImas He is.

Some day we will come face to face with all the beautiesand grandeurs of the real heaven. There will be no glassbetween! It will be a reali ty! .Just as the man saw the operation was successful; justas the little girl saw for the first time in her life, she lookedtoward the man who adopted her:"Look at the gifts! Look!" the man said."No," she'said, "I want to see the man who opened myeyes."She knew his voice, but she wanted to see him.

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WHEN I REACH HEAVENI may get a long robe. I may receive a crown. I mayreceive a harp. But first I want to see the Man who openedmy eyes! I want to see the Jesus who adopted me into Hisfamily and let me become His heir!I think I will cast all the gifts down at His feet and say,"You are worthy. For all the glory and honor belongs toYou." And that is what ten thousand times ten thousand,are saying now!"And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude,

and the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty-31-

B O O K S B Y R E V . W . V . G R A N T -


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thunderings, Saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotentreigneth."All the overcomers will join in together:"Thou art worthy . . . for thou was slain, and hathredeemed us to God, by th y blood out of ev~ry kindred, andtongue, and people, and nation .... Blessl~g and honour,and glory, and power, be unto him that sltt~th upon thethrone, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.

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My Message to Young Converts by W. V. Grant, Sr