June 6, 2021
Evening Service

Isa 1:2-20  Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.  (3)  The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.  (4)  Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.  (5)  Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.  (6)  From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.  (7)  Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.  (8)  And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.  (9)  Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.  (10)  Hear the word of the LORD, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.  (11)  To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.  (12)  When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts?  (13)  Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.  (14)  Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.  (15)  And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.  (16)  Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;  (17)  Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.  (18)  Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.  (19)  If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:  (20)  But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

 

This reading was a picture of what the Lord thought of the nation of Israel.  They had gone far from His expectations, and commandments.  He was very displeased with them, and He allows Nebuchadnezzar the Babylonian King to carry them off to captivity.  But the Scripture I want us to think about this evening is vs. 18;  Isa 1:18  Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

 

Just as with Israel, God looks at mankind with this kind of sympathy and mercy. 

The idea, let us reason together, we need to make the right decision.

TESTIMONY

Early church life:

I had every opportunity to do this when I was growing up.  I was in and out of the Nazarene church more often than anywhere else.  It was free, and a good place to hang out.  Besides, Oma, and Chester McCart, who lived right across the street from me were the caretakers of the church, and they had two grandsons that stayed with them for a couple of years, and they were best friends.  We would attend church mostly because Oma had a way of persuading you. 

Times in the church.  Fondest of memories.  Early church was a big part of my life.

 

Family life.  A wonderful father, but an alcoholic.  A wonderful Mother, but got to the point where she wouldn’t put up with his drinking.  Mother’s house was a place of refuge for many of her family, when they would be going through hard times.  We were poor, but I didn’t know it at the time.  Two older sisters, Patty, and Peggy, ended up with 3 more sisters, Portia, Lana, and Jan, and one brother. Jon.  We were a pretty close nit bunch.  

 

1957 – 1963  A very careless, and frivolous time in my life.

 

Married in 1963.  July 6^th.  God probably thought, I better find this boy a good wife, if he is going to be around to preach one day.  And He did.

 

1968     This is the year I got under conviction.  Peggy had gotten saved in 1957, and was continually praying for all of her family to get right with the Lord.  Peggy sang with the Buck Jeans trio, and she had told me many times during a revival that she would have everyone to pray for me and my family.

 

Life began to pile up on me, my drinking and careless living began to bother me, and it was God convicting me of my sins.  At this time we had two children April, and Johnny.  For some reason we began attending church at Peggys invitation.  One night I was listening to Billy Graham, and was touched by his message.  I began reading my Bible, and because of being under conviction, became very dissatisfied with my job.  Best I recall I cussed everybody out at left.  Went to work at the powder plant in Charlestown IN.  While on that drive, a good hour each way, I new there had to be something better. 

 

Russell Jones:    A friend of my wifes brother Johnny, had recently got saved, and in the back of my mind I probably thought if this guy can get saved anyone can. 

Russell had invited us down to his fellowship for services on Easter morning in 1969.  I went hoping to get a job with him at the Ford plant in Louisville KY.  He told me to come expecting, that the guy preaching was just like walking with Jesus.  Well that didn’t interest me near as much as getting a job.

The Evangelist that morning was Jimmy Swaggart, whom I didn’t know from nobody, I wasn’t in the religious crowd, nor did I listen to them on the radio, or TV.  Except Billy Graham, I had listen to him recently.

Jimmy was very charismatic, really good singer, and he preached that morning on the Prodigal son. Peggy had gone down with us that morning, later she said, “because I felt like something was going to happen.”

Here I was in a room full of people, around 500, under conviction anyway, out of work, my brother was in Vietnam, so I was fertil ground for the Holy Spirit to get hold of me, and brother He did.  I never had a chance.

When the altar call was given I got up crying like a baby, 29 years old, and hit that altar, and began to beg God to forgive me for all my sins. 

The Pastor, Bro. Wyman Rogers, came up to me and said, “Brother, you don’t have to beg God to forgive you, He wants to forgive you.”  Then he motioned for the Evangelist to come over and pray for me.  He laid his hands on my head and began to pray, and when he was finished, I could’ve floated back to my seat.  The burden had been lifeted.  I’ve said it many times, when leaving the church that morning I just knew that the whole world had taken on a glow.  The sky was bluer, the grass was greener, and I knew what it meant to look through the eyes of someone that had been born again.

The Spirit of God came into my life that morning, and has led me ever since through this walk with God.  Into the waters of baptism, to have those sins washed away, and has never left me, but is continually leading, and help me to overcome.

 

Now some 50 years later I can say I only wished I had done it sooner.

 

Since beginning our ministry in 1978, and that’s another story, our ministry has been a teaching ministry.  Bro. Greg has taken over the preaching part, and has been doing a wonderful job of it.  We’ve had bro. Sam, and Bro. Steve,  from almost the beginning, and now God has brought us Andy, who is also doing a good job, feeding the sheep. 

We have none other goal than to point people to the Lamb of God that still takes away the sins of the world.  To speak where the Bible speaks, and be silent where the Bible is silent. 

We want to come and reason together, as the Lord says.  We want you that have never named Jesus as your savior to accept this wonderful gift of salvation.  We want to help you develop, and function in His kingdom.  Do it while you are young, and you will never regret it.  You will have such a rewarding life, of living for Jesus, and exercising the gifts that He has given you.

 

Paul said this in the Roman letter;

Rom 10:9-10  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  (10)  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

If you will obey this, then we, with the Spirit of God, will take you and baptize you in Jesus name, or authority, for the remission of sins, and you can rise to walk in the newness of life.  

Please consider what I offer very seriously, it is the most important decision you will ever make.