I remember…I remember…

The tent revival was a thing to behold in those early days of the 1950s, the rural roads of South Central Texas. It seems that in those days everyone came to the revival tent wearing Sunday’s best: Gentlemen in their suits and ties and ladies in their finest Sunday-go-to-meeting dresses and hats, even in the sweltering heat of the day! Most of the smart ones had a hand-fan with them, while others used the free brochures at the tent, none the less it was a priority to have something to help with the heat.

The pastor had his water glass and a small towel to wipe his brow, as he would extol the Word of God. Of course as a small child, I had other ideas of how he was expressing his thoughts to all of us. It seemed that most of the time, he was yelling and waving his Bible at us and then at other times he was quiet and reserved. Still, it was quite the experience and one I will never forget!

During the day, the heat would simmer across the fields and then roll and undulate in regular cycles. On occasion dust would swirl about in what we called, dirt devils. Even though the heat was most oppressive, the breezes never once came as a cooling relief. It was just plain, hot and dry and not unusual for mid-July in the Texas barren areas! In almost every tent revival, the pastor would holler and growl and then he would slam his Bible on the pitifully small podium and everyone would jump at least a little.

Some of the older men would pop awake and then look around to see if anyone noticed them sleeping, to some degree I believe this was the point of the pastor smacking the podium. There was never a dull moment to say the least! I know some would abhor this sort of preaching, but then you would have to have been there in those days to appreciate what was happening. These tent revivals were nothing compared to the revivals of say:

Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon 19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892.

Dwight Lyman Moody (D.L. Moody) February 5, 1837 – December 22, 1899.

William Franklin “Billy” Graham, Jr. (Born November 7, 1918.)

And yet these pastors worked hard and endeavored to meet the needs of the lost. In my mind today, I look back and see the zeal of these men and I understand their efforts. Today, I wish there were still men of this type around, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, that eternal life is a choice to follow HIM. How different would this USA be today, if there were men of this stature and mind-set?

I know filling the tent would be difficult because people today are more interested in everything else than hearing the Word of God, especially on days that are so hot and oppressing. It is said that Satan has already determined a following. To do anything other than listen to the Word of God they would more than likely take potshots at the tent, just for fun. The pastors would probably have to fight for the chance to obtain a temporary License for assembly from the gay pride folk, or some other group that fills the halls of the local, state, and government buildings. Such are people today in the USA!

If there were tent revivals today…What (in your mind’s eye) do you think we would see and hear? I would hope and pray…

Brother and sisters…God stands at the door of your heart and HE knocks. Don’t stand or just sit there! ANSWER IT! Ask Jesus Christ to enter, to sit down and make HIM SELF at home. Offer HIM some of your best sweet southern iced-tea! Tell HIM to put up HIS feet and rest HIS dogs for a while!

Tell HIM to make your homeHIS home, that you plan to have HIM here with you, for a really long time! Brothers and sisters…HE…is the Son of God! The pastor then whispers: “Best thing there is, HE is here with you and that don’tget no better than that!”

Ahh…and can ya imagine being on the floor at HIS feet with the dog and the ticks ‘n fleas… just listening to HIM talk, to tell ya stories of the past and the future? Ya get to ask HIM questions and find out the answers, to see HIS face and touch HIS hands and feet where them nails was. I think that to myself and I don’t think I could say anything, cause Him being who HE is and all. I’d be a tongue-tied for sure!

Today though…it ain’t the same, that’s for sure! This old world is a hurling toward hell faster than ever before and it seems to me, that everyone is too busy havin’ a party, getting all drunk and liquored-up and carousin’ round like a tom cat!

They are too busy listenin’ to the devil, just like all them folk in Sodom and Gomorrah were, but…ya gotta remember, God destroyed that place and burnt it to the ground! And why did HE do that?

Cause of all the SIN, that’s the reason we have so many troubles in this world, like we do today. They just won’t pay attention to the Word of God. We have blasphemers and the like, we have scoffers yelling all their hatred at you and me…and ya know why? Huh? Ya know why? Because they hate God!

Some how, they believe that God is doing all these horrible things to them and the like! They don’t even know how loving and kind and wonderful our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ truly is!

If someone had done gone and showed them the Bible and everything in it…They’d be sitting here alongside you! I know the reason they act the way they do, I know why they ain’t sitting here with all of us tonight, ain’t no one gone out there and showed them the Bible, the holy Word of God! That’s why! “Oh well, their such hoodlums ‘n such, they’ll beat me up!

You might be saying: “Well, Daniel did it,Shadrach,MeshachandAbednegodid it, what’s so special about you? Now stop and remember, they went on in their lives and became big men in their societies…and why is that? They TRUSTED God─ that’s why!

We folk here tonight…we ain’t got no excuses worth mentioning, do we? We MUST…go out there and tell them what we know is the truth. We must be TRUSTING God to help us find a way to get them interested, and to listen!

What are you going to say, as God stands there and begins to say to you, ‘Well…come on in. By the way… How come you never told no one ‘bout me? Were you to afraid to say anything? Too afraid they would jump on you and beat you senseless? Just plain scared. Right? How come ya didn’t think to ask me for some help? Yeah! That’s what I thought!’

Ya know…if HE said that to me, I’d feel like jumping in the deepest hole there is! He goes to a Roman cross and allows them folk to nail HISpreciousbody to it and then die there, just to save you and me!

Somehow, somewhere the two just don’t jive none. See what I mean? Cause one gives up HIS life and the other goes and hides in a hole…cause of fear! It just ain’t right! You…brothers and sisters…you know the truth, you know your Bible! Tell ‘em about it, don’t go and get all scared─just tell them!

I’m afraid I would not be able to say things like some of those revivalists did back in the day, although I can still hear them in my head. I can still see the crowd, the congregation, sweating and fidgeting about from the heat. I can still hear the old hymns being sung and if I work at it really hard, really close my eyes and think back, I can still “feel” the togetherness of a people praising and worshiping the Lord God Almighty.

Yuppers! The 1950s into the 1960s in South Texas at those revival tents were something else, a time that has beenrelegatedinto a time capsule of sorts. If you have never been to one, I sure wish I could give you my memories for a moment, just to experience how the Word of God moved. Sad to say, those days are long gone and we few that knew them and had been to them, know what it means to be God-fearing, Bible believing, born-again Christians of old…the old school, if you will.

I don’t mean to sound like no one else is of the like, it’s just those days, those old ways, the sense of knowing what was truly right and wrong! There wasn’t any talk of gray areas, no worries about what was “politically correct” and what wasn’t. Marriage was always between a man and a woman, a male and a female, because that was the “covenant” that was set-up by God.

Moms and dads loved their children and they worked very hard to provide for them, as best they could. There were no handouts! Communities took care of each other, helped each other, sacrificed for each other, because that was the right thing to do and the Bible said so. Children grew up being respectful to their elders, loving and respecting their mom and dad and each other. Where has this world gone? Here are some verses that tell us exactly how things are going to be in this day and age. How sad to be a part of this, too.

Mark 13.12-13: “Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.”

1 Corinthians 6.9-10: “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”

2 Timothy 3.3-7: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

There are 1,239 prophecies are in the Old Testament, and 578 are in the New Testament. [1]

The Bible is like no other book in the world. It is filled with internal evidence that it is the Word of God. No other religion has a book filled with prophecies, fulfilled one right after the other. The few books with so-called prophecies have proven to be written by false prophets who cannot foretell the future. But you can trust in the Bible, which is the true Word of God, Who proves that He is the Author of it by fulfilled prophecies. As He said more than 3000 years ago:

“I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done” (Isaiah 46:9a; 10b).

As I look at this world today and everything that is going on, I can’t believe I am seeing the same place, as I did when I was a kid. And then when I tell my children and grandchildren how things were when I was young and it is so different, they think I am crazy! They have no idea of how people could live without cell phones or television or homes, much less cars, and that did not have airconditioning. It sounds so foreign to them that I must be joking around with them or something:

“What do you mean, you didn’t have air conditioning in your house? How did you stay cool then?” My grandson asked me.

“We would open a window and pray for breezes or we would turn on the fan,” I replied “Are you serious?” he asked.

“Yup, that was about it, well…till we got our first swamp cooler,” I said.

“A swamp what?” he asked.

“Swamp cooler! It was this really big machine, that had all this straw inside and you hooked it up to your water hose outside. It had this little slit at the top that fit just inside your window. When you turned it on, the water would trickle through the straw and the fan would blow the air through the straw and the water and cool the air. Then the cool air would come out the slit in your window and cool off the room,” I replied rather spryly still thinking it was pretty cool for the day and time.

“Papa, you’re just making that up, right?” he said laughing.

“Nope, that was the best in those days, problem was, everything would get all wet too,” I replied.

Problem is, these days we have so much to be thankful for and yet how many get on their knees to thank the Lord for these things? Look at our churches, how many are out for the all-mighty dollar, instead of the gospel of Jesus Christ and HIS salvation unto eternal life? How many are out for the “feel good” gospel, instead of the cross of Jesus Christ and HIS precious blood?

And left-leaningmediarolls out all the garbage it can find and yet nothing is said about God, Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit. And we wonder what is wrong, what is happening to everyone now days? Please my friends, reread the verses above and then think and ponder on them for a while. If you are not saved to Jesus Christ…then YOU are one of those people that those verses are talking about! It’s as simple as that!

The Bible has been around for better than 3000 years, it has been translated into every single language there is and it is presently telling everyone that we are living in the last days! Problemis, too few pick it up and read it, other wise they would already know what is going to happen next, because all the prophecies so far, have come true, therefore all the rest of them will come true as well! What is most important here is this: Where will YOU be when all these events take place? Where will you be in one hundred years from today? According to the Bible, there is heaven and there is hell…and that is all there is!

John 3.16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

Endnotes

[1] http://100prophecies.com/

Luke 21:7-28

“And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass? And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.

But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake. And it shall turn to you for a testimony. Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolk, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. But there shall not an hair of your head perish. In your patience possess ye your souls. And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.

Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people.

And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”

Somehow, everyone seems to think that we are in the worst of times, with all the people who are out of jobs, prices are sky-high, having to pinch pennies, going without at times. So this saying is most appropriate: “Baby, you ain’t seen nothing yet!”

We have had many earthquakes, tsunamis, mudslides and the like and so many people are sitting back and saying to them selves, “This ain’t tough! Is this all HE has?” Buildings are collapsing for whatever reason, birds and fish dying off by the millions, diseases of varying kind spreading everywhere and still people are not getting the idea through their heads that something is a foot, as the old saying goes. We have sinkholes popping up everywhere, some taking lives and some not, and yet no one sees the significance in these events, much less the aforementioned events. Why is it that way?

“Well…that only happens in those third world nations! No one is going to miss them any how, what’s the difference?” As some have been known to say, even in the news. It would then be important to notice that there is arrogance in many, even in the face of someone’s death. One would think that the callousness would be a dead-give-away to the Bible in this paraphrase: For the love of many shall wax cold.

In actuality, it is worse than we might expect, even though the Bible and all these world events are a clear message that something is about to happen and it will be catastrophic, at the very least. It has been stated in many polls of the general population, “Something is going on, that something is about to take place.” And even with the Bible being over 3000 years old, even though it is readily available to anyone, anywhere, it is seldom consulted. We already know the Word of God is factual and its prophecies have been fulfilled throughout history. That being the case, why do so few ever even crack open this book, to see what is going on around us today? In the least, it would be a start.

The times are showing such great upheaval in the Middle East. Nature is becoming worse and worse with each year. Everywhere… no one is exempt. People are crying out for the wars to stop and for everyone to usher in a time of peace, which we already know will never come, until Jesus Christ comes! Somehow the world’s politicians think it is a “process” and that everyone must adhere to a “new way” of life in the rise of technology; efforts to be more green, if you will. Never once do they think for one second to consult the oldest Book known to mankind…the Bible. “Oh the Bible…it’s just too old fashioned and out-of-date to be useful in these modern times!”

And so the very information they seek goes unread, never seen! And these same people like to call Christians stupid. It boggles the mind!

Here’s another one: Ask people what they think hell will be like, or for that matter, what the devil looks like? Stand back and be ready for the dumbest remarks you will ever hear! And to think that there will scores and scores of people saying almost the exact same thing and they are grown adults! Absolutely incredible to say the least! They have this picture in their heads of “Dante’s Inferno.” So in their minds hell will be something that they believe they will be able to handle. NOT! Even worse, they still see the devil with horns, wearing a red suit and carrying a pitchfork! Mostly because that is the picture they have seen of him and they still believe it.

Forget about asking these same people about the Rapture and the Tribulation, they won’t have a clue. Many of them think we are experiencing hell on earth right now, because of all the pain and suffering all around the world. If they only had a clue! To be honest, most of them will not even broach the subject, because they don’t want to come across to others as idiots. Suffice it say few will even attempt to contemplate these things, much less to speak on them.

Inherently they feel something is already wrong in the world, something is about to happen, but they would choose to stick their heads in a hole, like an Ostrich rather than face the inevitable truth. They find it easier and preferable to sidestep the conversation all together, than face their own demise. Some know there is a God and they know they are sinners and they know that someday they are going to face judgment for their SIN. “But not today…someday! I’ll worry about that…when the time comes!”

What they miss at the moment is the coming Rapture of the church of Jesus Christ! The problem for them, even if they are church going people, is that their leaders and teachers have been lying to them thus far, which points to another event in the Bible called, the “Falling Away” (the apostasy of the church). Had they read their Bibles, they would recognize in an instant that this biblical prophecy is taking hold. Then they would have read how: Jerusalem will become a stumbling block and recognize this event in today’s news reports.

So now we see two events taking place right in front of you, two events written in the Bible over 3000 years ago, as a prophecy, and if these two are real, then the rest of the Bible is true as well. They would then understand that the Bible is absolute truth, and that God is indeed doing the things HE said HE would do, that time is short and you do NOT want to be left behind! Of course, we cannot say to them, “Hey…dumb-butt, read it. The Rapture may happen in the next 5 minutes!” If you do that, then you are a “hater” or even worse: A “fundamentalist Christian” who wants to send everyone to hell for not believing as they do! WHAT?

If for one moment, some people think things are tough now, just wait till after the Rapture, when all hell begins to take place, then call me and see if I answer the phone! They see all these things taking place all around them, but for a moment, do you think they would consult the Bible as to the reason for these things taking place? “Heavens to Betsy, “NO.” “You ain’t gonna call me no Bible Thumper or crazy fundamentalist!” Okay…okay! I am ranting here some, but the truth be told!

Once the Rapture takes place and ALL the children are gone, along with all those crazy fundamentalists, the Holy Spirit” (He who “letteth” will be removed) and his influence will be greatly diminished, meaning practically─non-existent. “What does that mean?” some will ask. Again truth be told, many things they thought impossible to happen will begin to take place, the ruthlessness of people toward others will be out of control! In other words, everyone is going to be looking out for Number One…them selves and they won’t give a horse’s patoot about anyone else…for any reason. A day is coming, when food will be extremely scarce or too expensive for the average person to purchase, so many will take to robbing from others. Diseases will be on the increase and the remedies of yesterday will no longer be available.

Since so very many people will be gone already, the rest will form militias and governments will fall, safety will no longer exist. There won’t be any place to run to and no one is going to care how many will die. Any Christians left over or converted after the Rapture, will be rounded up and put in government concentration camps otherwise know as FEMA camps. Does anyone have any idea of what their demise will be? If I were in their place, I would be most concerned for myself, because they will be looking for ways to decrease the surplus population, as foodstuffs will be in short supply. Survival of the: fittest?

“And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:15-17).

Now if you’re paying attention, you see where these people are the great men, the leaders of countries, the “mighty men.” Do ya think something is going to be happening at that time, that would be making them so afraid? And also to note, we haven’t even come close to finishing the events yet to come prophesied in book of Revelation. I hate to be the bearer of such bad news, but then again, the Bible has been around for better than 3000 years. These verses have been there the entire time and FEW have been reading them, much less taking their content to heart.

This can include Christians, because not all of them are going to be in the Rapture. How many in the Apostasy, the “feel good gospel” or the “prosperity gospel” are paying attention, but are being lead astray? Far too many in my estimation! Far too many of the people that try and teach and preach the true Gospel of Jesus Christ are being told not to say anything to anyone. In their minds we are the “haters,” the ones that are too strict and not willing to conform to the “tolerant” society of today!

How many times did Jesus Christ say, “If they hated me, they will hate you” as well? Do you think HE had a point to make? Problem is, most of those people are not willing to bow in humility to God and confess that they are SINNERS and ask HIM for HIS salvation! Why is that? The exact same reason we are hearing these same things today: PRIDE! Man does not want to be under any ones authority, even that of God, Man wants to be GOD, just as Satan did when he got thrown out of heaven.

It is obvious that Satan has been using this same theme in everything he does, since the exact moment he was cast out of heaven. What makes you think he is going to change anything now? Everything in the last three and one-half years of the Tribulation is only going to get worse, and the reason is, the time left to Satan and his ilk followers is growing severly short and he wants to win. The day or moment Satan fails in his mission is going to be the day that Jesus Christ comes for the second time. At that time, Satan and his followers will be thrown into the lake of fire! Up until that time, and speaking in all seriousness, all hell is going to come on the inhabitants of this earth, the evil people will meet their match in the woes yet to come.

“For in those days shall be affliction  such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days. And then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is Christ; or, lo, he is there; believe him not: For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.But take ye heed: behold, I have foretold you all things. But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13:19-26, emphasis added).

Since man has been on earth, God has always told them what HE was going to do and when HE was going to do it, and last but not least, Why He was going it. That being the case, everyone, from Adam and Eve and until today, this very moment as you read this, have been warned. Everyone always has some excuse for anything they do, right or wrong, problem is, there will be NO excuse for NOT following Jesus Christ, for NOT accepting HIS perfect Gift to humanity. I am going to say it over and over again, Life here on this little planet is a road that divides into two roads, one goes to Heaven and the other one goes to Hell. The Lord God stated in the Bible;

“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

We also have the verse that says it all, about how to avoid the Tribulation, by going with all the others in the Rapture to Heaven to be with our Lord and Master Jesus Christ” (Matthew 7:13-14, emphasis added).

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).