Christ Builds the Church

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  Christ Grows the Church

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  I was born in the Holy Land. And for all you uneducated people in North Carolina, that's Northern Ireland. Don't be so shocked. I remember being in Texas and a pastor asked me, where were you born? I said, I was born in the Holy Land. And he said, Israel? I said, no, Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland is the land of saints and scholars, and we even have our own version of the Bible, the NIV...the Northern Ireland version of the Bible. And we're just going to read God's Word in a moment. But before I do, let's go before the Lord in prayer. Anybody can speak from a pulpit, but we don't want to speak as a mere man. We want to be the voice of God. And I need his power, and I need your prayers. And I need the help of God Almighty. Let us bow our hearts, and then we'll read the scriptures. Oh God, our heavenly Father, in this holy moment, I pray that you would do a work of grace, that you would work in each of our hearts, that you would open our eyes, that we might see the majesty and the glory of the living Christ of Scripture. Speak, Lord, this morning. Your servants are listening. Amen.

  I'm reading this morning from the Gospel of Matthew. It's a very familiar portion of Scripture. It's Matthew chapter 16, and we're going to commence reading at verse 13...Matthew chapter 16. This is not the word of man. This is not simply the word of Matthew. This, my friend, is the word of truth. It is the inspired Word of the living God. God speaks through His word. I believe that. I mean, God speaks. The Spirit of God moves in conviction. May God move in our hearts. May God move in this service this morning. More than anything, we need to hear this. We need to hear God speaking to us. Let us hear the word of the Lord.

  “When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, who do people say the Son of Man is? They replied, some say John the Baptist. Others say Elijah and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. But what about you? He asked, who do you say I am? Simon Peter answered, you are the Messiah, the son of the living God. Jesus replied, blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. For this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter. And on this rock, the rock of my divinity, I will build my church and the gates of Hades...the gates of hell...the powers of darkness shall not, shall not prevail against it. They will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.”

  This is the first mention of the church in the New Testament. The church is the Kingdom of God. It is comprised of believers, men and women, young people, boys and girls who have been rescued from the Kingdom of darkness. The kingdom...the church is comprised of people who know with all certainty that their sins are forgiven, that they stand in grace covered by the blood of the lamb. Those who are rescued are called in Scripture, the redeemed. And the redeemed of God on the authority of the Word of God, affirmed by the Spirit of God, know that their names are recorded in the Lamb's Book of Life. When you come to the study of God's Word, when you come to the preaching of God's Word, context is very important. Geography is very important. Knowing where something happens is very important. Knowing who is speaking and to whom that person is speaking is important. It provides us with vital, important background information. Knowing why something was said is very important. Our scripture reading began in verse 13. And by the way, nothing recorded on the pages of the Word of God is incidental. Everything is important...every word, every jot, every title. Everything is inspired by God, inserted in the Word of God, by the Spirit of God for a divine purpose. God provides us with important background information. It provides the setting to what is being said. We read...when Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi. In one of the other Gospels it tells us that Jesus was in the villages surrounding Caesarea Philippi. Caesarea Philippi was a very prominent and a very important city in Jesus day. It was located about 25 miles north of Galilee. It was a pagan city. It was a pagan culture. The citizens are pagans. They are godless. They are worshipers of idols. I say that to let you know that when Jesus says, I will build my church, he is standing on enemy territory. This is an evil place. Everywhere there are idols and shrines. In Caesarea Philippi there were temples. There was even one temple dedicated to the Roman emperor Caesar, and it stood in a very prominent place. Wherever you travelled in Caesarea Philippi and in some of the surrounding villages, you would have been confronted by idols and shrines. Idols that cannot speak. Idols that cannot hear. Idols that remained unmoved because they are created by the hands of men. Jesus is standing on Satan's doorstep. It's here that Jesus asks an important question. Who do men say that I am. That's a very important question. The answer to that question will determine your eternal status. The answer to that question will determine, my friend, whether you are in the Kingdom of God. You are a citizen of the United States. Let me tell you, spiritually speaking, it means absolutely nothing...nothing. All that matters is this. Do you know Christ? Are you a citizen of the Kingdom of God? It doesn't matter where you were born. It doesn't matter how you were born. The question is, have you been born again? Do you belong to Christ? Are you in his kingdom. Who do men say I am? Peter answered you, you, Lord...you're the Messiah, you're the Christ. Listen to this. In an area full of idols and shrines what does Peter say? You are the Messiah, the son of the living God. Hallelujah! Our God lives. Jesus Christ is alive, and only a living Christ can solve the crisis dilemma of the United States of America and the world at this time. The Middle East is on fire. The world is on the brink, but God is on the throne. And let us remember this...men come and men go. Men live and men die, but the Messiah, Jesus is the living Christ. He's the living God. In the Himalayan mountains, in the Hindu regions, Christ lives. And the church exists because Jesus is building a kingdom. I will...not might...not hope to...I will build my church.How many of you have said Hickory Bible Church...my church? No it's not. Hate to disappoint you. It's not your church. It doesn't even belong to Pastor Adam. This church belongs to Jesus. He's the king of the kingdom. What did Jesus promise? I will build my church in every generation of time. Jesus is in the process of building his kingdom. What did Jesus mean when he said, I will build my church? What is the church? Is it what you think it is? Is it what people think it is? Or is it what the Bible says it is? Our only authority in answering questions comes from the pages of the Word of God. This is no ordinary book, my friend. This is God's word. This is God's inspired word. God speaks. He speaks to the dead through this word. I have seen God speak to congregations, men and women who were dead in trespasses and sin, and I have watched them as the power of God and the conviction of the Holy Spirit came upon them. There's authority. There is power in this word. This is God's Word. Just over a week ago, I was in Bucharest, Romania, and we stopped for a moment because I wanted to take some photos of a building. It's the biggest Orthodox cathedral in the world. It's being built by Romanians because they still need another year at least to complete it. It's cost around $300 million. It's got a golden dome. Is this the church that Jesus is talking about in Matthew 16:18? Is the church a magnificent building with stained glass windows and scarlet carpets? Just a few weeks ago in Pakistan, Islamic extremists destroyed the homes of 60 believers. They also destroyed by burning 20 church buildings. Are these 20 buildings the church that Jesus promised to build? What does the Bible say? One day a group of Pharisees came to Jesus. They love to come to Jesus. They were antagonists. They were religious hypocrites, always looking for an opportunity to trip Jesus up with their questions. And one day they came. It's recorded in Luke chapter 17, the conversation, especially in verse 20 and 21. And they were asking Jesus, when the kingdom of God would come. And Jesus answer absolutely shocked them. I love it. I've had those moments when the answer leaves people speechless. Do you know what Jesus said? The kingdom of God is not what you think. The kingdom of God is not what you see. It's not an earthly kingdom, but a heavenly kingdom. It's a spiritual kingdom, not a physical kingdom. You can't observe it. You can't see it with the human eye. It's not the kingdom of man. It's the kingdom of God. I love the Lord's Prayer. I love that little phrase, your kingdom come. And then it goes on to say this...Yours is the kingdom, the power, the power and the glory. The Kingdom of God is not confined to one people group. No one nation, no one people group on Earth has a monopoly on the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's not confined to one particular geographical region of the world. It's not confined to Israel. The gospel is for the world. The Kingdom of God is advancing around the world, and the kingdom of God was not, as the Pharisees supposed, a kingdom similar to the Roman Empire. And interestingly, the Pharisees, they assumed that they belonged to the kingdom of God...what a shock to their system they got when, in Matthew 21 Jesus said this in verse 43. The kingdom of God, listen to this will, be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. What people? What are these people that Jesus is talking about? He's talking about people who have truly repented, are genuinely converted, are in the faith, and are citizens of the kingdom. How do we know that? Because they've got a passport...citizen of the Kingdom of heaven? No. The evidence Jesus said, is in the fruit of our lives. These Pharisees, these religious teachers and leaders of the Jews thought they were in the kingdom. They even felt entitled to be in the kingdom. When they thought of the kingdom being re-established, they were thinking of a physical temple. But isn't it interesting in the epistles we learn that every true believer is what?...a Temple of the Holy Spirit. Have you ever wondered what Jesus did between the morning of his resurrection, Easter Sunday, and to the moment of that incredible, indescribable, magnificent ascension to the glory of the father, to sit at the right hand of the Majesty and high 40 days. What did Jesus do? Most people have no idea. Do you know the answer is on the first page of Acts chapter one. I wonder if you ever noticed it. Hey...have you ever read it? I never assumed that Christians are familiar with the Bible. Not only that, I never assume when I go to a conference where it's all pastors...I never assume that every pastor is born again. Does that shock you? Shocked me the first time I realized it. I remember being in Plymouth, in the south of England, preaching at a pastor's conference, and I thought, oh my goodness, I think I'm preaching to the unconverted here. And I changed my message and preached a conversion message to pastors. Can you imagine asking pastors to repent of their sin and turn to Christ. There's power in the Word of God. And I witnessed men with tears say I never understood it before. And here I am preaching God's Word. I never realized what it meant to be born again. What did Jesus do for 40 days? Well, if you read Acts 1:3, it tells you.  It says over a period of 40 days he spoke about the kingdom of God. See, it was there all along. You just didn't notice it. Even the apostles, even the followers of Jesus, didn't fully understand, didn't comprehend what Jesus meant when he said, I will build my church.  Just before the ascension, just before Jesus is gathered to the glory of heaven they gathered around him in Acts 1:6 and they asked, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel"? Now they had witnessed the power of the resurrection. They saw Jesus. They spoke with Jesus. They ate with Jesus. They had conversations with Jesus. They even touched Jesus. He gave them the promise of the Holy Spirit. And they all understood that the era of the kingdom of God was imminent. But they still don't get it. They think it's going to be a political kingdom, a military kingdom that's going to expel the Roman armies and bring true freedom to Israel...restoring national sovereignty. And Jesus corrects their understanding. And he says in verse seven, it is not for you to know the times or dates the father has set by his own authority, but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes in you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. The kingdom that Jesus was building was not a physical structure. It was not a glorious, magnificent temple made with the hands of men. It was the church of the living God. Men and women who are now by grace temples of the Holy Spirit. Are they going to triumph over the armies of Rome? No. They're going to do something even more magnificent. They are going to triumph over the entire Roman Empire. And they're not going to do it with a sword or a spear or a weapon made by human hands. They are going to do it empowered by the Holy Spirit, moving forward prayerfully on their knees, preaching the gospel of Christ. It's the gospel that conquers people. It's the gospel that's the answer to our dilemma. Isn't it interesting that Jesus in Acts 1:8 didn't simply say, you will receive the Holy Spirit? Read it carefully. I always tell people. Read it slowly. Read it carefully. Don't tell me what you think it says. What does it say? Do you know what it says? Jesus said you will receive power...power. When will you receive the power? When the Holy Spirit comes upon you. Not only did Jesus promise power...Jesus said, this power will enable you. It will energize you. It will help you in unbelievable ways to be my witnesses. You see, if you're a citizen of the kingdom of heaven, whether you live in Hickory or Katmandu, whether you live in London or Nairobi, if you're a Christian by nature, you're a witness. Every church, if it's a real, genuine Biblical church, it's not only a preaching church and a praying church and a discipling church, it is also a witnessing church. Jesus is building a kingdom. It's a kingdom that is eternal. It is a kingdom that can never be overpowered. It can never be conquered. It's the kingdom of God. And very interestingly, here's something. Why don't you go home today and read the entire book of Acts? Your reaction...you've got to be joking...the entire book of Acts? Do you know what work that is? That's not work. That is an exciting blessing. Anthony Hopkins, very famous actor...godless actor. I read something interesting about him. They asked him, how many times do you read a script before you go to the studio and begin to practice the film that you're about to make? Listen to this...at least 100 times. I tell that to students in seminaries. You got to read a book at least a hundred times. Pass out the heart pills. It's unbelievable. We need to be saturated in the Word of God. We need to know the Word of God. And the Word of God needs to be oozing out of us naturally and supernaturally.

  Here's something amazing. The book of Acts begins in chapter one, talking about the Kingdom of God. 30 years later, because it's just a brief history of the New Testament church. The early days of growth, expansion, opposition, persecution. When you reach the last chapter, Acts 28:30-31, we're no longer in Jerusalem. Do you know where we are? We're in Rome. We're in the heart of the Roman Empire. And here's what Paul said in verse 31, boldly, boldly, and without hindrance. Paul preached...wait for it...here it comes...Paul preached the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus, even in the heart of Imperial Rome. There were those who could call Jesustheir Lord and their Savior. The Bible tells us that even in Caesar's household, the kingdom had arrived, and there were brothers and sisters in Caesar's household who could bow their heads on a schmidly and look up to heaven and say, Lord, thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory. The Kingdom of God, my dear friend, is on the move around the world, on every continent...in isolated valleys, hidden in remote mountain areas. In small tropical islands scattered throughout the world. In remote deserts scorched by the sun. In large cities and small towns and villages everywhere...Jesus is building his church. Hallelujah! And every century of time, he's never paused. He's never stopped. Jesus, Jesus. Jesus is building his church. Albert Einstein was a very famous scientist. He traveled a lot by train, and one day he was on a train going to some city, and the conductor comes down to check the tickets. He was looking for all the people from North Carolina who hadn't bought a ticket. So he comes to the compartment of Albert Einstein. And Albert Einstein must have been Irish, you know, looking in every pocket. Couldn't find his ticket. And the conductor looked at him and said, Doctor Einstein, it's okay. I know who you are. You travel a lot by train. I know exactly who you are. Don't worry. And he continued down the train, checking, looking for North Carolina. And then he's making his way back, and he comes by the compartment of Albert Einstein, and he's on his knees. And by the way, he wasn't praying. He's on his knees, searching underneath the seat, looking for his ticket. And the conductor with a smile says, Doctor Einstein, I told you it's not a problem. I know who you are. And immediately Einstein jumped up and said, I know who I am too, but I don't know where I'm going. The Church of Jesus Christ knows where it's going. We have received marching orders...all the world...no exception. During the Communist era Jesus did not say all theworld except the Communist nations. Jesus never said anywhere except North Korea or China. Jesus never said anywhere but Iran. You know how bad those people are. No, Jesus said, all theworld, every creature...starting in Jerusalem, then Judea, then Samaria...listen to it, and then to the ends of the earth. The gospel of the Kingdom is moving forward. I had an unforgettable experience some years ago. Sometimes when you're traveling and you've got moments on a plane, you go down memory lane. And sometimes I think of things, and I have to pause because I feel so blessed to have experienced it. I was in the city of Zaporozhye. Two thirds of it, by the way, are now under Russian occupation. We've lost hundreds of churches. I was in Zaporozhye. It was a Saturday afternoon, and along with a few other pastors, I stood in the Dnieper River. And as I stood in the river, I looked and I wept because we were going to baptize over 1000 people and they were all dressed in white. I've never seen anything like it in my life. I've never felt so moved, so humbled, knowing that God had honored His Word and saved lost sinners and brought them into the kingdom. And I'm having this unique privilege, along with some of my dear brothers of baptizing them. Did you know that in a corner of northeastern Brazil, in a remote area of the Amazon, an area, by the way, that for some it takes them four weeks traveling by boat just to get there Doesn't get any more remote than that. They just baptized 14,500 people. That's what God can do. No, that's what God is doing. When I was a young boy, I was converted at 14. Thank God for a godly geography teacher who led me to Christ in a geography classroom during the lunch break on a Monday. I got off my knees, never to be the same again. I remember listening to missionaries when I was young. It was the last century, by the way. In particular, I remember one missionary who worked in the interior of Brazil. He actually was located in an area called Manaus. And I never forget, he said they planned this expedition. They were going to go up the river. It would take a long time to reach an unreached tribe. They were excited. They were praying. They had people everywhere praying for them. And he said...his name was Bill. He says, when we arrived at this village along the shores of the river, I fell on my knees and I wept because the first thing I saw was a Coca-Cola bottle. And he says, I saw that Coca-Cola bottle. And he said, Lord, how can it be that Coca-Cola got here before the gospel? My dear friends, we have a mission to accomplish. A previous CEO of Coca-Cola many years ago had a vision. Do you know what his vision was? That every person in the world would taste Coca-Cola at least once in their lifetime. How many millions are in the world today who have never heard the gospel? I was taken once to a remote area of Nepal up in the Himalayas, and they told me I was going to a place where the gospel had never, ever been before. They knew nothing of the kingdom. What do you say to people who have never heard the gospel before? Do you know the four spiritual laws? Throw them out the window. God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. So Jesus died on the cross for your sins. Who's Jesus? I remember going and thinking, Lord, what am I going to say? Because these people don't know anything. Where do I start? Well I am Irish...I'm very smart...start before the beginning. Go back into eternity. That's where it all started. And you start to explain the incredible majesty and glory of God who designed the universe, the stars, the sun, the mountains, the flowers, the trees, the grass, therivers. And this God had a plan for mankind. And you start then to go into Genesis, and you come to Genesis 3 and the fall of man, and you go right through the Old Testament. And then you come to Jesus, then you come to the cross. How can you speak about salvation when people don't even know what sin is? How can you be convicted of sin if you don't even know you're a sinner? We've got to get our message right. It's got to be scriptural...scriptural.  Jesus is building his church. It's a great church. I've been to some interesting buildings around the world. In fact, when I was converted, my home church was a church just outside Belfast. It was a place called Dundonald in Northern Ireland. And the church building, by the way, is still standing today. It was built in 1645. And as I told the people in the first service, I know because Pastor Chris was there, he had a photograph of that, that event 1645. Do you know how many pastors have preached in that pulpit? How many have come and gone? They came to preach. They died. They were buried. Here's the good news. I remember standing with Dwight Stone. I said, Dwight, you got to see this. This is the triumph of the gospel. Here we are, hundreds of years later, and the same gospel is being preached from generation to generation. In May, I was in Armenia speaking at a graduation, preaching in churches. I went to one church. You know how old this church was?...still standing. It is magnificent...huge. Even an earthquake could make this thing fall. It is nearly 1000 years old. The acoustics...absolutely perfect. Unbelievable. The test of time. That's just the building, by the way. The church has stood the test of time.

  One of the greatest stories about the church and the kingdom of God that I've ever heard...it literally moved me to tears. I could even tell you where I was standing when I heard it. It was from a brother in Armenia, and it's a story about the kingdom of God in the Islamic country of Turkey. There was a tourist and he came to a remote village in the mountains, a place that people usually didn't visit. He was expecting to see a mosque, but he didn't see a mosque. To his absolute amazement, he saw a small church. He couldn't believe it. I'm standing on Turkish soil. This is a church. And he saw an old man coming down the street and he stopped him. He said, sir, when did this church arrive in this village? And the old man put his hand around his shoulder and he says, let's sit down. And they sat down, and the tourist heard something unbelievable. The man said, sir, 2000 years ago a man from our village went to a city called Jerusalem. When he was in Jerusalem, he heard the gospel being preached by a man named Peter. His life was changed by the power of God. He returned to our village. He brought the gospel with him. Listen to this. And the gospel's been here ever since. I tell you when I heard that, I wept. That's what it's all about. The lasting effect of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Oh what a church...what a kingdom Jesus is building. Someone told me all the sinners come to the second service. I'm not sure if that's true. I'm not even saying it is true. But I do want to say this to some of you here today. This might surprise you. Nowhere in the Bible are we told to go to church. We are to be the church. And you can't be the church unless you're in the kingdom. And those who are in the kingdom and part of the church, they gather faithfully like you gather right here this morning for fellowship, instruction, encouragement, and strengthening in the faith. Do you know what the big question is this morning? It's not do you go to church. Because you, my friend, can go to church, listen to this, and go to hell. I have stood over the graves of people who were church people and they went to hell. Going to church will not transform your life. Going to church will not give you a passport to heaven. The question is, are you in the church? Are you part of the church that Jesus is building? In just over a week, I'm going to be in Armenia. I'm going to teach at the seminary. One of the places I'm going to go to is in a remote corner of southern Armenia. It's called Agarak. It's right on the border with Iran...the Islamic Republic of Iran. When we're driving into Agarak, the river that separates both nations is there. It's not very wide. The old Iron Curtain from the Soviet era is still there, separating. And you can look over to the other side of the river and see shepherd boys...Iranian shepherd boys...minding sheep. You can see the little villages dotted on the hillsides. There is a church in Agarak, and I remember when it was being built. I said to the pastor. Do me a favor. What? I said get the biggest neon sign that you can get. Make it the cross and put the cross on top of the church. Because they were in a high position.Because at nighttime, I want them to see the cross.  Thank God for the cross. Thank God for the message of the cross and the work of the cross and the power of the gospel in modern day Iran. Let me tell you, my friend, the enemy of the United States may be the government of Iran. It's not the people of Iran. There are over 1 million born again citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven in Iran. They meet secretly. They're persecuted. Some of them are put in prison. Others have been killed for the faith. In spite of opposition, in spite of pressure...the church is continuing to grow...the fastest growth rate of any nation in the world when you look at the population. That, my friend, is a miracle. Iran sent 181 missiles to hit Israel. I know a missile stronger than anything that Iran has in its arsenal, and it will explode all over Iran. It's the gospel of Jesus Christ. The Bible says it is the power of God unto salvation. Listen to this...to all, even Iranians, even North Koreans, even Chinese, and even someone here in this service today. The gospel, the gospel of the Kingdom is the power of God unto salvation. The church that Jesus is building will never be destroyed. Before I close, let me say this. For many, many years I preached in Ukraine. We built many churches. When I went first to the city of Zaporozhye, over 1 million people, two churches...in the entire city. And then in the ? old blast, that became hundreds. Now they've got a theological seminary. The war between Russia and Ukraine has resulted in the destruction or the partial destruction of over 600 Ukrainian churches. It's heartbreaking. Some of those churches, we spent a lot of money and a lot of effort building. I tell you, you look at a photo of something that you were there on opening day and you see the destruction. It breaks your heart. And then I'm encouraged because that's not the church. That was just the building. Jesus. His church is made up of living temples of the Holy Spirit. I spoke to the wife of a dear pastor, and she said,when war broke out, within a few weeks, our church went from 120 to 10. It was devastating. And you know, they ain't coming back. When they got out of the country, they're gone. The pastor, what are we going to do? And they prayed and God showed them through His Word. Lift up your eyes and look. The fields are white. They're ready for harvesting. All the people that haven't left. That's your mission field. That's the kingdom to come. Today they have more people than they had than when the war started. That, my friend, is what God can do. Jesus is building a kingdom. The king is coming. Hallelujah! Jesus is coming again. He's coming to reign over his kingdom. People say, when is He coming? I can give you the answer. And I'm not even a prophet. Are you listening? I find this in the NIV. When the last soul on earth is converted by God's grace, when the last soul in this earth, wherever they are, is washed in the blood of the lamb, the lamb is coming in triumph, in power and in great glory. I thank God for Hickory Church. You've got a great name. Hickory Bible Church, and I know that this is a church that preaches the Word, but America has lost the Word. We need to rediscover the message, the authority, the power of the Word of God. We need to recover the fear of the Lord. And we need to recover biblical holiness. If we're going to impact the world and extend the kingdom, we need to rekindle the fire of lukewarm love for Jesus. And we need to reignite our passion for world mission. One of the most moving verses that you will find anywhere in Scripture is this: Jesus wept. Can you imagine the creator of everything, the giver of salvation, the worker of unspeakable miracles. He looked over Jerusalem and he wept. I ask you a question in closing. When was the last time you wept for lost souls who are still outside the Kingdom of God. We need your prayers. The world needs your prayers. Most people assume when a missionary stands on a platform, he's going to ask for money. We don't need to ask for money. I always plead for prayer. Pray for Iran. Pray for Turkey. Pray for Romania. Pray for South Africa. Pray for North Korea. Pray for Honduras. There are millions, yeah, billions outside the kingdom. Oh that the day will come when many who are yet unconverted will one day be able to say. Lord, thine is the kingdom, the power and the Glory. Dear friend, we must glorify God. We must obey God. We must remain faithful to the message of God. We need power. You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. May God move in this church. May God move to the preaching of the Word. May God work through the prayers and the tears of his people, may Hickory come to Christ. May North Carolina bow before the power of Almighty God. What America needs more than anything in the church is revival. What America needs, and the highways and the byways and the little backwoods towns and in the major cities is they need Christ. They need the gospel. All that the kingdom of God would extend everywhere. I will. Hallelujah. He never breaks apromise. I will build my church.  
  Let's pray. Oh, God, our heavenly father, we need your help. We need you to move in our hearts, motivate us, move us, send us out. Lord, energized by your spirit, that we might reach the world and bring the message of the kingdom to lost peoples everywhere. Amen.