Preach the Word — Leonard Ravenhill

The Word of God and the Faith of Earlier Generations

And yet it's amazing how we differ so much in the I guess with our intake and then with our output. I don't think a week goes. I'm sure it doesn't but what I'm challenged by the by the wonder of the Word of God of course, but but particularly one of the areas I like to kind of swim in is the Eleventh chapter of the epistle to the Hebrews which we're not going to take this morning.

But you know when I read there that these men and women there subdued kingdoms wrought righteousness. Obtained promises stopped the mouth of line. And they did all these things in the area of the supernatural and yet.

The astounding thing to me is that not one of them ever had a Bible. I've ever considered that the very best all they had were just fragments of the Word of God because of course the New Testament wasn't really written yet and Nobody could afford a copy of the scriptures.

They were all done by hand and they were extremely rare. And yet somehow they assimilated the truth of God. To the degree that they were able to do those amazing things subdue whole kingdoms. Brought righteousness obtained promises stopped the mouths of lines and so forth and so on.

Another thing which is astounding is To me at least. That no man in history doesn't matter how big is you know, whether you measure him intellectually or spiritually. No man that ever lived ever had a greater Bible than you and I have they didn't have a special edition.

They just had the same Word of God that you and I have. And all they did was use it better than you and I have used it at least better than I've used it. Somebody said it is a golden casket. The Word of God is a golden casket where gems of truth are stored.

It is the heaven-drawn picture of Christ the Living Word. Jesus said when he was speaking to a group of people, I think in the 16th of Matthew. I didn't check it, but I'm sure that's where it is. He rebuked them because he said you can read the sky.

You look at the sky and say well, it's a red sky tonight. This is going to happen or it's a red sky in the morning. And this is what's going to come in the day. And he said well, are you able to discern the sky and yet not discern the sign of the time?

Holy Anger and the Character of God

It was Charles Wesley who gave us that lovely hymn a gentle Jesus meek and mild but Jesus wasn't always gently got angry. You know people suggest sometimes if you get really filled with the spirit you become docile and you know kind of sloppy.

It's like taking a fish and you fill it a fish you take the backbone out of it. And if you become a Christian, well, that's what happens, you know anger goes out of you and this that no. There's not a thing goes out of us.

There's nothing wrong with your personality in one sense except it's in cure and so God purifies every area that's in cure. And therefore we need anger. We quote so often be filled with a spirit. But the same book that says be filled with the spirit also says that we're to be angry and sin not.

There is a holy anger. God is a god of anger. You never see a bumper sticker with that on it's all God is love. God is love smile. God loves you but if you if you look through the word of God you discover that there's more said about the wrath of God and the anger of God and the justice and righteousness of God than that is about the love of God and we are those again the I'm sure of what the word of God says that we are those upon whom the ends of the age of camp.

A Voluntary Dark Age and the Loss of Biblical Light

And I believe with all my heart we're moving into a new period that we've called the Dark Ages the Dark Ages aware. About 467 to the time Columbus came to America, and you know that day. Out of that came the Renaissance and after it was it was really destroyed of course by the Reformation and so forth and so on but we're entering now into a voluntary period of the Dark Ages.

We're putting the lights out. We're putting the light of truth out. We've taken the word of God out of schools for instance. And you know God is a patient his patience runs out. He says he will not always chide and neither will he keep his anger forever.

And we're not going to see World situations it is now is totally chaotic. I Read a magazine yesterday a part of it a magazine from England. And one of the leading men in the country there says that all the nations now in boil they're boiling or they're in a ferment.

You don't know what's going to happen. We thought well. You know Iran's gone down the drain next thing is China's having a war now. They're invading Idiomines territory that should have done that a long while ago, but anyhow there.

It is the the fact is that the world's been broken up before our eyes the great nation of Bundled nations. Actually Africa isn't it and we're seeing and you know like the domino theory the Areas are going down one after the other Rhodesia, and then all these other things.

The Church’s Stewardship of the Gospel

And now this is a very serious thing to me. Now I have no hang-up on color. I I love black people white people. I preach to folk around the world in all kinds of conditions the Murder camps and letters colonies and all kinds of things.

I've no problem with that. But I remind you of this fact that the the white man's day is just about over every new nation that is born is a colored nation. I Used to go into the United Nations in New York.

And I was editing Dave Wilkerson's paper magazine cross and switchblade. And I was impressed by the fact see these tall dignified men coming down with lovely robes. And they'd have gold chains on the neck and they'd greet you very courteously better English than I speak.

Many of them were educated at Oxford and Cambridge and so forth and The sleeping giant as it were is awakening and so it should. But you know we were given the Commission from God America and England particularly.

Have the Word of God, and we've taken that word and then you know it it's kind of a Something that sticks in my throat when I think that I think of a Christian magazine that says look we want to send you The New Testament in 24 versions and the rare is in the world.

They don't have one version of more than a thousand tongues that still have no translation at all of the Word of God. And some of the others only have a Fraction like the gospel of Matthew or the gospel of John or something like that and yet We have the whole counsel of God.

God listen if you live to be a hundred. I don't we any of us will but if you live to be a hundred God has nothing else to say to this world. I Like the him how firm a foundation these saints of the Lord you remember a phrase in that him that said what more can he say? Than to you he had said God has no afterthought.

I guess you do sometimes if you're like me you do. I write a letter and my wife always checks them to say Len you left This out there. Oh, okay, dear. And I put a PS then I read it again myself and find I left another one.

I put another PSS. Then I need another PSS SS or something. There's more at the end of the letter. It's got more tail and Headle by the time I finish, but God has no afterthought. You mean whatever God is going to say to men anywhere at any time is all packed in the in the covers of this book.

And I still think in Jen's version is the best because it's a it's translated from the from the Not from the Codex Sinaiticus, but the textus receptus, which is which is unquestionably the purest of all those marvelous Bits of paper or what in the world they are papyri.

That we dug up all around the ages so here again. I'm saying this this is God's Word. Now if you and I are his. These are our instructions. There's nothing I need in one sense outside of this word of God.

The Great Commission and Submission to Christ

I Was in the home recently a very lovely charming young lady had been to one of the best Bible schools in America and now she's home she's teaching a class in a Christian school and We got talking and one of my sons asked her what she was going to do say oh, I'm just waiting for a call.

I'll go anywhere in the world if the Lord calls me. Well, you don't need a car. You don't need a car is already said going into all the world. What you need is an excuse for not going when you get to the judgment seat.

He's already said going into all the world. The thing is find out where he wanted to go. You see again the Word of God says we're not our own if if you really born again in the Spirit of God. You didn't just give God your lousy sins.

He says you're not you're only a bought with a price. From the moment that we became really regenerate if we passed into the kingdom of his dear son. Then obviously being in the kingdom. We're subject to the King who is the Lord Jesus Christ.

And he has given us our marching orders. There's a vast world. No, this is an awful thing. I try to think of this every day of my life. You know that there are more lost people in the world at this moment in any period in history.

By the time we go to bed tonight, what is it. 200 ,000 more babies will have been born around the world. We can't handle this burgeoning this this expanding World population it totally out of reach. George Bernard Shaw said the war is God's method of cutting the population down.

I don't believe that. I Do believe this we're desperately near to Armageddon unless there's an intervention. It gets more serious the the ring is being tightly put around the world right now. Russia's got a bigger fleet in the Mediterranean than America has and then at the other end in the Indian Ocean.

She's got more shit. And she can bottle up the Suez Canal and she can cut us short of oil and all these things are their little thing. In one sense, they're big thing. I don't know if you've read Gulliver's travels if you haven't you should and.

It's not a children's story, it's a satire on capitalism I think. It's like Humpty Dumpty. You know, you see a little baby and maybe. And it's a youngster could say hey mom who is Humpty Dumpty she say well no relative.

I don't know who he is. Anyhow, Humpty Dumpty. I've never thought of it. Who is it? Well, it's a satire on the world. Humpty Dumpty is they depicted as an egg you put on the edge of a wall. It falls over and break.

Well as the old saying is anybody can scramble eggs who can unscramble them and. The thing is a anybody can drop an egg who can put it back together again. It's a satire on the fall of man. To me nobody can put mankind together except God.

Revival as the World’s Only Hope

I remember reading a story some years ago about a man who he had a little boy a mischievous boy which is a sign of good health and. This little fella was always in mischief couldn't keep his fella quiet.

Particularly when visitors came he'd say now you don't say a word and of course he'd say it's out. You tell children not to do it. It's a challenge. It's not a command. It's a challenge. And so the little fella was always interrupting.

One day daddy was out and he saw a crossword puzzle not my crossword puzzle one of those What we call them the jigsaw puzzle. And it was a lovely jigsaw puzzle of the world. He thought boy. This is great.

So he took this great big Jigsaw puzzle with a two hemispheres told his little boy. This is one hemisphere. This is the other so forth. And he said now what and he brought it all up and he said put it together again.

And then he said to his friend now, come on. We'll go in the other room and been in the other room half an hour the youngster came and he got a thing put together. Again, he said this kid must be a genius.

How did you don't even know geography? How do you put it together again? He said daddy I noticed when I was putting it together some marks on the other side of the Of the pieces of the puzzle and I turned them over and I found on the other side.

There was a there was a picture of a man. And all I did I put the man in that right and turn it over. I got the world, right? Pity some of the politicians don't know that. Is he went away trying to put up to jump together politically and so forth when all the time the only hope for the world Again is revival.

The only hope for our age is a great marvelous outpouring of the Spirit of God, there is no other answer. There is no other way. You can't cure the human heart. There's nothing we can inject into man.

Which is going to make him saintly now. You mentioned dr. Tozer and Tozer said to me on one occasion, you know, Len Christians don't tell lies. They just sing them. Have you ever wondered how many lies you sing?

It's amazing. We sing hymns, you know like that and it doesn't faze us a bit. You know, we're the whole realm of nature mind that what an offering far too small. We won't even give him what we've got never mind the whole realm of nature.

Or you sing a hymn beneath the cross of Jesus one of my favorite hymns a phrase in it says I ask. No other sunshine than the sunshine of that. Is that really true? You mean to say that if somebody needles you if somebody drops you if somebody deserts you if somebody hurts you it doesn't faze you.

I'm not saying it doesn't hurt. I'm saying it doesn't disturb you because Paul said none of these things moved me. He didn't say none of these things hurt me. Sure, they hurt but it didn't move him. Now the difference being touchy being touchy and being sensitive.

But again, I asked no other sunshine than the sunshine of thy face. Or Charles Wesley's him again. Jesus lover of my son. Thou O Christ art all I want. How many hundred. I must have sung that thousands of times in my pretty long life.

And yet only a few years ago. I realized what I was singing. Thou O Christ art all I want and more than all in thee I find He did it. This is why as you get older. I'm not just saying you get more sense.

I don't believe that maturity comes with years, but a lot of old fools around for sure. Maturity comes through obedience. I know people who've been safe 50 years. I don't think they're six months old spiritually.

And I've seen a man come out of the jaws of hell and in less than a year. He's been a mature man. He's been a saint. Why. Because he followed on to know God he knew. He knew In whom he had believed. Well, we were singing him the other day one of the one of the oldest.

One of the finest hymns written written in America, too. I thought I noticed somebody said the other week that some lady had addressed the Congress. She was the first woman. That's not the first woman that addressed the joint sessions of Congress you know it was it was Fanny Crosby.

The little blind hymn writer and she wrote some of our greatest him. Billy Graham used to have one of the hymns as his kind of Marching song in his early days to God be the glory great things. He has done and she wrote blessed assurance.

Jesus is my you know I've often felt like saying now everybody sit down start at this end. Will you tell me how you know you have assurance after all if you have assurance what else do you want? I know an old lady said blessed insurance, but it's our children.

Blessed assurance. Jesus is not now. Is that really true. If I have him what else do I want if I don't have him I? Got nothing if I have him then with God with Jesus Christ God has freely given us all things.

You know the more I move around these days the more I realize the poverty of the Church of God. We talk like a millionaire as we live like pauper. The Word of God says all things are yours and near Christ and Christ is God.

Hearing and Internalizing the Word

Now you know when you come into a class like this or any other Bible class. In one sense it's here where you kind of shall we say we make the bricks. You get the material. And then you take those bricks out.

Individually one man builds a house with them shall we say another man builds a tower with them another man builds a pink star. Something here you get the material now. What are you going to do with it again?

There's only one word of God. There's only one Holy Spirit now. You know again in Revelation. It talks about having ears to hear what the Spirit says. Some people register things intellectually they do not register them spiritually.

And they slip down into what the smart people call they repress complex of your subconscious. And then somewhere God may bring it up at a certain time at a critical time in your life. But what I'm trying to say is this get get into God's Word get into it.

But more than that let it get into you. You see the psalmist said again didn't he thy word have. I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee. Now the Word of God says we're to be steadfast and unmovable and always abounding.

That's a paradox. How can it be abounding if you're unmovable and steadfast? Well, it means this that we know in whom we have believed this this was the great strength of the Apostle Paul as far as I'm concerned.

And I want to just begin this session by by Mentioning to you one or two things about this amazing man Paul. You know he began his life in the ancient capital of the world Tarsus. He finished up in the military capital of the world which was wrong.

In between he went to the intellectual capital of the world in the what 16th or 17th of Acts there Athens. He went to the religious capital of the world Jerusalem. He went to the immoral capital of the world which was Corinth.

His life spanned such a vast area and you know if you get a good map and you you see number one missionary journey number two missionary journey number three missionary journey and then Reckon that this man did all this without any planes or trains or any fast means of travel.

He spent more time in prisons and palaces for sure. And let's look just for a little while in this first session in the 26th chapter of the Acts of the Apostle. The 19th verse says this whereupon all King Agrippa.

I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision. This is in verse 19. I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision. Now here he's testifying as verse 1 says he's testifying before Agrippa in the 23rd the verse of the previous chapter it says on the morrow when Agrippa was come and Bernice with great pomp and was entered into the place of hearing with the chief captains and principal men of the city at Festus's command Commandment.

Paul was brought forth. So here is it before Agrippa and Bernice if you go back into the 24th chapter. You discover that Paul there is in verse where three. In all places most noble Felix is there before Felix now somebody has said and I don't know how to explore this but somebody has said and it surely is true that one man with God is a majority if There was anything that characterized the life of the Apostle Paul.

It was fearlessness. Fearlessness he feared no man. He feared no devil. You know when it when you come to look closely into his life. You discover this that Paul actually did everything that Jesus did as far as I'm concerned except walk on the water.

Jesus raised the dead. The Apostle Paul raised the dead. Jesus cast out demons. This man cast out demons. Jesus healed the sick. This man healed the sick. Jesus had nowhere to live. This man had nowhere to live and he puts on as you might Kipling would say it's seven league boots.

And he strides there of a shamanic, but here he is before Felix now. That's what it says at the top of the Bible at top of my Bible. It says Paul before Felix now, that's just nonsense. It is not Paul before Felix.

It's Felix before Paul. The whole thing turns around. Look what it says in verse 25. Or verse 14 first this I confess unto thee that after the way which they call heresy so worship I the God of my father's believing all things which are written in the law and the prophets and Have hope toward God in verse 25 and as he reasoned of righteousness temperance and judgment to come Felix tremble now Paul should be trembling.

This guy can cut his head off. And yet Paul isn't a bit he's as solid as a rock. What does he do he reasons with this ungodly man with right of righteousness and temperance and judgment. The man didn't know a thing about any of them.

He was one of the most unrighteous men living. So when this man comes he shoots an arrow of fire into his heart about righteousness. He begins to panic and then he goes a little bit further. He talks about temperance.

This man's the most intemperate guy around at that time and then when he speaks of judgment. You know I believe that if every day of your life in fact if you ever come in my office. Don't all come at one.

I have a sign there that says. That says eternity and then I have a little steel thing about that side. It says judgment, and I look every day at those two things that I am heading you say well. You're old, and I'm much younger.

No you're not. No, no, no you say well. What do you mean? No? No? No you're 70 odd years of age. That's right. I'm 20. Oh, that's right. So I've got more like no you don't. The only thing you have is what I have one beat of your heart.

You could drop dead don't all do it at once. It's going to give us a problem, but you could drop dead. You've only one beat of your heart you you you know you can't mortgage your life in one sense. You have no assurance of tomorrow.

This could be your very last day on earth now if it was how would you live it I? Try to do this. I don't know if I get through always. I've tried to preach every sermon as like the last sermon I was going to deliver before I go into the presence of God.

I want to feel clean of the blood of everybody that I preach. And sometimes I get a little too fierce and anxious. I suppose but there it is. We have a fantastic meeting. Sunday night the Holy Ghost came on that meeting preachers were at the altar.

And it was just an enormous meeting. You know every meeting should be that. I? Mean we're dealing. We're not dealing with Dow Jones averages. We're dealing with eternity. This man's vision never dimmed.

And he's delighted. He's been praying. I guess if you could get that back in his in his diary. He's been praying God. Just make it possible for me to get before Felix one day. I'll give him both barrels when I get there.

And I promise not to be worried about the the consequences. Well, then after he's been before Felix. Who's the next guy always brought before Festus in the next chapter. And then in this chapter now is before King Agrippa.

I My goodness when you go in the presence of King. I Was thinking this morning if you were called to the White House next Friday. Well, what is it today Tuesday? You've got Wednesday Thursday. I Guess the next two days will be the most awesome days in your life.

You'll be saying to everybody listen. I just don't know what to do. I've got to walk into the Oval Office, and I understand just the president and I will be there. I think I'll go to pieces up. I think I'm gonna tie a rod up my back, so I won't shake or something.

I It's gonna be awesome in the presence of the president of the United States. Paul the Queen of England sits on a throne and you you know if a man goes in to be knighted. He bends the knee and she puts a sword.

She's sitting there she puts a sword on his shoulder and put it over his head. If it were me. She'd know my name was Leonard Raven. She'd read the little script he has there and she'd put that sword over my head and say rise sir Leonard.

You know when people have said well going in there. You know the room is full of golden things and Gorgeous carpets, and you want to look around you think it's kind of the Caesars Palace you're in. Not not here of course the old Caesars Palace and It's the awesomeness of being in the presence of somebody which are such awful power.

But you know I don't think that grips us very often when we come into the presence of God does it I Mean when you kneel to pray you say well. You don't know what I'm doing. I personally have audience with the eternal God.

And he's listening to me like he listened to Elijah on Mount Carmel. He's listening to me like he listened to Jonah when he said from the belly of hell. I cried. I have a personal line. Now supposing you had a hotline of your own in your little room wherever you are right to the White House.

And you were told that there's so many things were available to you. Do you think you'd have used it this week? Do you think I'll know I'll struggle. I won't Bother Jimmy's enough rather than trying to sell his peanut farm and a few other things and Nazi don't know these other guys are up.

I think that because you have that line and you believe the character of the man that you you had a personal line into his presence. That just by the same token if I have these resources in Jesus Christ.

If I'm weak, it's because I want to be weak if I'm spiritually poor. I've decided to spiritually poor. If I don't have the power of the Spirit upon me, it's not God's fault. This is all here available.

I'm not saying God's going to make every man a Philly or every man a John Wesley or every man shall we say a David Brainard or every man again a missionary after the caliber of maybe Fenton Hall or Gilmore of Mongolia.

Some of those characters, but I am saying this that it we sang it Sunday night in our meeting. I'm pressing on the upward way new heights. I'm gaining every day. Now. Is that a lie? Is it really true when we stand up?

Supposing I said to an audience of a thousand people now if this has been true in your life this week sing it. And if it hasn't keep your mouth shut and I say so come on. I think I'm pressing on the upward and I find us just me and a guy there sing.

The other 999 can't sing it because it's not true. We're pressing on the upward way. I'm finding new heights every day, but we shouldn't be. If you go to a diamond mine, you don't find men scratching where other people are stuck.

They're breaking into a new territory. There's something here to get. I Went down a call a gold mine. I've been on a coal mine, too. But I've been in the gold mine that where they're exploring the man is scratching in the rubble saying, you know He may have missed a little bit.

He's going on and saying listen, I'm gonna find a new nugget right in here. I I want to break into new territory. Now look, you can look at history and kind of think to yourself for me. For me I'm born in this lousy age people don't know the right hand from the left.

I wish I'd lived in John Wesley's day. I wish I'd lived in the days of David Brainerd. Well, all they did was face the world the flesh and the devil anyhow. And all they had were the same resources. Again, the Word of God says that he is Christ and Christ is God.

I do not believe that any man that ever lived explore explore the possibilities of grace like the Apostle Paul. When he says here to King Agrippa, let's look at this. Let's look at those ten because of the time.

Not family. Let's let's go back to this. Hey, I believe in repentance. Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead? I had verily thought within myself I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

Which thing I also did in Jerusalem and many of the saints did. I should have been prison having received authority From the chief priests and when they get wet when they were put to death I gave my voice against them.

I punished them off in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme and being exceedingly mad. Now you see here again, this is the disposition of this man. He's firing and all God does is purify that fire and put it into another channel.

John the Apostle could never have been. Could never have been the Apostle Paul. The Apostle Paul in one sense could never have been John. God takes the disposition we have and he refines it. You need all those dispositions in the Church of God.

After all not everybody's a blazing fire evangelist. There are other evangelists and fire apostles and teachers and prophets all for what for the perfecting of the same. They're like this. You see they're all spokes in the wheel.

Here's the wheel of and here's apostles and here's prophets and evangelists and teachers and so forth. They're all essential to make us fully rounded believers. But listen again. Think of the transformation the man who writes the epistle to the Colossians and Ephesians and Romans is a bloody man.

He's a murderer. He's put men and women in prison. He couldn't believe for a minute that focus are gullible that they believe that. That fellow called Jesus actually died and rose again from the dead.

That's idiocy. Nobody's ever seen him anyhow. Don't you wish Jesus had really cleared the whole mess up when he rose from from the dead. You know the Lord showed me something the other day. Maybe you've seen it years ago.

I won't be surprised if you have. I Was thinking of that man that sat at the beautiful gate of the temple and it suddenly struck me like that Heavens. Jesus passed that man a hundred times. The Apostles passed him hundreds of he'd been sitting there.

He was 40 years of age. And Jesus went back never bothered with him. Peter and John went back never bothered. The 70 went out never touched him. There was a moment in his life When God was going to heal him not for his own sake.

But the glory of God would be that the whole city would be disturbed because of it. It's the timing factor in your life and mine that matters. You may get out of school. You may not suddenly move into a ministry.

Well, don't worry about it. It's God's timing. The psalmist says my my times are in my hands and Him right as I did another line to that my god, I wish them there. They're in his hand. I'll be and I'll be.

Am I training here and I'm hoping when I get out somebody will discover my genius. I mean after all I am the best student we've ever had at a gap it. That's apart from that. You'll get over your humility later, but apart from that.

What what are you going to try to kick doors open? Listen if God has called you he'll open the door. He never waste anything. If I'd fed the 5 ,000 I'd say well, hallelujah. This is great now. Let the bird come on birds.

Have a good time. Jesus said pick up every crown. He suggested if a sparrow falls off the roof. It upsets the balance of earth and heaven. God can't see the sparrow. He doesn't very hairs of your head in under.

The little boy in England who heard a preacher preach on that going home. He saw her. He said mommy what number is this that apart from that? What it what it's saying is that God takes care of the finest detail.

My times are in that there is no waste in the economy of God. Get that in your little head or your big head. There is no waste in the economy of God. God is designing something in your life for his eternal purpose but going back again to the resurrection.

I Maybe I mentioned it the other week. I don't know, you know, I think the resurrection morning while we were jubilant about it. We clap and sing and shout have a whale of a time. I'm so we sure. After all Muhammad is still buried.

You can go see his corpse over there and go to the Mecca or somewhere over there. They have his body and bond. You can go see Stalin. I Wish you could go see a few more, but there it is the. But you can't see the body of Jesus.

We'd be in trouble if you could see the body of Jesus we'd have no hope. You see the Apostle Paul wrote 14 epistles. That is if you if you take if you take Hebrew and if you stand those and put them up like a pyramid like this.

You know, let me do it with my pencil here. This is this is the basis and you can take Romans the other then he goes up building his pyramid and he's got 14 epistles. And then he turns the pyramid over and he balances it on a fine point.

He says listen, there's just one thing you know if you say to people and I like to shock people and I said to an audience not long ago, you know, we're not saved by the death of Christ and boy that's heresy, but we're not.

We sing a hundred hymns on the death and blood of Jesus for every one him we sing on the resurrection. Paul says we're not saved by his death. We're saved by his life if he isn't alive this morning. We're sunk.

Now if he is alive. We ought not to be afraid of the world or the flesh of devils and deacons or anybody else if he is alive. Is he alive? Okay, then you ask me how I know he lives why he lives. Does he does he really is this more than a mental thing does he actually live.