The Incredible Signs That Follow Those Who Believe — Carter Conlon

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Hope for Those Who Feel They Have Failed God

I have a message this morning for people who feel that they have failed God. And if that's you today, I'm trusting that you have an inner sense today that God is for you and not against you. You've become aware of it and you may have walked in here feeling like an absolute failure.

But there's something in your heart that only the Holy Spirit can put there that's already telling you in this service that there is more hope in Christ than you have realized and more grace and there's more mercy than you have ever known.

I'm going to speak this morning about an incredible sign that follows those who believe. Now, I know the scripture talks about certain signs, but there is one sign more incredible than every other sign.

And it follows everyone who believes and trusts in Jesus Christ. And it will follow you today. Now, I'm going to have to go on a journey and this journey is going to take us into some places where we have to look at some practices.

They may or may not be your practices, but they have been in measure at least the practice of the church, the pre-Christ as it is, people of God in Jeremiah's day. And in some measure have been the practice of the Christian church in our day.

We need to look at these things. We need to go through these things, understand what it is that grieves the heart of God and then move to something. And if you will hold with me on this, if you will not give up halfway through, there's going to be an incredible blessing for you at the end of this journey.

Father, I thank you, God, with all my heart, Lord, for the touch of the Holy Spirit. Oh, Jesus, the hour is very late. The world is getting very dark. And you have sworn to have a people. You will have a people.

And God, I ask you today that every person in this sanctuary might be part of that testimony that you will always have, especially in this generation. I ask you, Holy Spirit, to guide me through this word, quicken my mind and physical body.

Give me the ability to speak this in a manner that glorifies you and that everyone here can hear. I pray, God, that you even animate my emotions. I don't want to be in this message. I don't want to be in the mix of it.

I want it to come just as you've given it to me. I thank you for this enablement. And I pray, God, touch us now with your word. And I ask it in Jesus' name. Jeremiah, we'll begin in chapter 13 of Jeremiah.

If you want to just open your Bible to that chapter and just place it on your lap or wherever, and we'll get to there eventually. Now, before we begin in Jeremiah, I want you to remember that when the Apostle Paul spoke of the children of Israel in a journey that they were taking from captivity, which was Egypt, to a place of promise, which was a physical place.

But in reality, the place of promise, of course, we know today to be not a land, but it's Jesus Christ himself. But in this journey, Paul tells us that they encountered and sometimes they surrendered or succumbed or gave in to opposition.

The enemy of our souls will always oppose the work of God. You have a very real enemy against you today. He is a deceiver. He's a thief. He's a roaring lion. He sets about to devour anything that has the testimony or mark of Christ in it.

And quite often, the children of Israel of that generation gave in to this opposition. Now, Paul described it in the New Testament as something that comes against you from without. And to add to all that, we have an opposition from within.

It's our own fallen natures oppose the things of God. So when you combine the two, the devil is a roaring lion, my own heart that the Scripture says is so wicked that only God himself can fully disclose it.

The only hope I have now is God. The only hope I have is an inner life more powerful in me than he who's in the world and more powerful than my own fallen nature. This, of course, is the spirit of God.

The Holy Spirit is the third person of God. And if God be for us, Paul says, who can be against us? That's the hope of the Christian. I have now the living God in this earthen vessel. I'm not just embracing concepts about God, but I have God and I have him in full measure in the Holy Spirit inside this earthen vessel.

Therefore, there is no limit to what God can do. He can keep me. He can guide me. He can change me. And ultimately, the desire of God and the design of God in my life is to glorify his own name through me.

That's why we're here, beloved. That's why there's a church on this side of eternity, that the whole world can see there is a people who are called by the name of Jesus Christ, a people who are otherworldly, who are divinely enabled, a people who are not like the people who are of this world, who in their most sincere efforts fall short, as the Scripture says, of the glory of God.

Now, the people in the Old Testament fell short. And Paul says in 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 11 that all the things that happened to them, now he's speaking about some specific things in their journey at this time, happened to them for examples.

And they're written for our admonition, or that means our instruction, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Now, Paul believed the ends of the world were there in his generation, how much more, beloved, in ours.

All of the things that happened to them are written for instruction, and if we can hear the voice of God, we can learn from it. We will see that people always act the same way, and God always acts the same way.

We heard masterfully on Friday night through Pastor William that he cannot act outside of himself. He is who he is. He cannot act outside of his nature. He can't wake up one day and decide that he's going to lie to humankind because the Scripture says God cannot lie.

Paul also tells Timothy in 2 Timothy chapter 3 verse 16 that all Scripture, all Scripture, how much of Scripture? All Scripture is given by inspiration of God. These words that we have on these pages did not come from the minds of men.

They were birthed by the Holy Spirit. Through human agents that simply put their hand on a pen and began to write down what God was sovereignly speaking to them. And everything in this book is profitable for doctrine.

That means for correct thinking, theological thinking. For reproof, that means essentially that when we're going in a wrong way, God, one more time, can hold up the mirror of his book and say, look, this is the right way.

The way you're thinking, the way you're moving is the wrong way. Here is the right way. For correction and for instruction in righteousness. The word righteousness in the Greek text means that which is right in conforming to the nature of God.

For instruction in that which is God. That which is God's life within us. That which is the pathway that God has set before us. That which is what God is in and through his church. And, of course, in measure two as well, obviously, that's what he is.

Whether or not we will accept that. Now, Jeremiah chapter 13 and verse 12. Jeremiah says, therefore, or God says to Jeremiah, therefore, thou shalt speak unto them this word. Now, keep in mind, Jeremiah's ministry is in the last 40 years.

Historically of Judah. The northern kingdom after Solomon, Israel is split into two kingdoms. Really because of Solomon's backsliding, a division comes. The northern kingdom is eventually swallowed by the Assyrian conquerors and they're assimilated.

In other words, they become so intermixed with the world that they're almost indistinguishable as a separate people unto God. And in the southern kingdom called Judah, God raises up voices. One of those voices was Jeremiah to try to bring the people back again.

Now, God knows all things and he knows the people's hearts are so set on the way they have chosen to worship him. Even though that way is very distorted, they're set in it. And even though Jeremiah is speaking right from God's heart, he has an audience with God.

He knows the mind of God just like Isaiah did years before. But the people are so hardened that they're going to reward Jeremiah by putting him down a well. And whether or not they would like to kill him, but even if they can't kill him, they're going to try to do him physical harm.

Because he is bringing now a revelation to them of the true worship of God. And they don't want this revelation anymore. Oh, folks, I pray God that not be in your heart today. Now, just in the years just prior to this judgment of Judah.

Now, many of God's people had so distorted his word that they interpreted everything he was trying to speak to them from their distorted perspective. Before I read this verse of scripture, I want to show you what was happening to them.

In Jeremiah chapter 1 and verse 16. Now, God begins this ministry of this man, Jeremiah, and he tells him, he says, I will utter my judgments against them, touching all their wickedness. Now, God's looking at his own people and he's calling what they're doing wickedness.

He says, they've forsaken me and they've burned incense to other gods. Most likely, there are a lot of prayer meetings going on. Religion always produces prayer meetings. But they are, and incense is a type of prayer, but they're burning incense to other gods.

They have formed another concept in their minds of who God is. And they worship the works of their own hands. Now, we immediately conjure up an image when we see this of these little golden idols and such like things.

And that could be a small part of this scripture. But really, what it means is they were governing themselves out of their own effort. And their worship of God and their service to God was not coming out of obedience to truth.

It was coming out of their own will. They were formulating ways to worship God. They were changing the ordinances of God. The commandments of God, they're beginning to modify everything to appease themselves.

And they're worshiping as it is the works of their own hand. They're worshiping human will and they're worshiping human effort. All in the name of God. And God says, Jeremiah, I can't accept this. And I'm raising you up to stand against this.

And Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet. He didn't come in just blasting the nation. There was a brokenness in this man's heart over the condition of God's people. What had happened to these people of promise?

Now, back in chapter 13 and verse 12, here's how hardened they had become. Therefore, thou shalt speak unto them this word. Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, every bottle shall be filled with wine. And they shall say to thee, do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

And so here God is saying one thing, but they're hearing it another way. God was speaking of a judgment that was coming. And they're saying they're interpreting his words as if he's blessing them. They're interpreting this.

Well, wine means joy. Wine means gladness. And surely every bottle in every house will be filled with joy and with gladness. Because, of course, we are God's people and he can't do anything but bless us.

But the wine that God was speaking to them was the wine of judgment. It was not the wine of blessing, but nobody seemingly stops and asks the question. They simply throw back their concept of God. And there's no evidence that anybody even stops and says, Jeremiah, what kind of wine is God talking about?

They just interpret it the way they have wanted to see it. And in that way of wanting to see God, they've run with what really is judgment and falsely believed that God was blessing them. Look at Isaiah.

Keep a marker in Jeremiah. And go back to Isaiah chapter 56 now. Isaiah is on the scene just a little before Jeremiah. The nation is already sliding into its final stages. And God is speaking all the way through, all the way through to his people, trying to get them to turn.

Isaiah 56, verse 9, he says, All ye beasts of the field, come to devour all ye beasts in the forest. His watchmen are blind. They're all ignorant. They're all dumb dogs. They cannot bark. Sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.

Yea, they're greedy dogs which can never have enough. They are shepherds that cannot understand. They all look to their own way and every one for his gain from his quarter. So here's the spiritual condition and here's why it's happening.

There's a devouring coming into the body because the shepherds have been raised up over God's people who really don't have a passion for the things of God. They don't have a passion for the glory and the honor of God.

They see ministry as an opportunity for self-improvement and self-betterment and gain. And because this is in their heart, they are leading the people of God farther and farther away while speaking to them about coming blessing.

Come ye, they say, verse 12, I will fetch wine and we will fill ourselves with strong drink and tomorrow shall be as this day and much more abundant. We will fill ourselves with strong drink. This is what they say.

This is a time of blessing. Folks, the nation is coming to judgment very, very quickly. Enemies are gathering on every side. But they're saying, oh, no, this is a it's a wonderful day. No cause for alarm.

We're going to be blessed and we're going to be blessed even more. And no matter what happens, we're still going to be blessed. Now, they're talking largely about physical blessing. They're not there.

They're completely locked out of the spiritual side of this. It's all about how much I have and how good I look and how much wine, as they see it, is in my pantry. Now, this wine that they speak about, this strong drink, offers those who partake of it strong delusion, especially the delusion of false security and happiness.

And Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah, said it this way. This is Micah. Listen to this prophet of God. In chapter two, verse 11 of Micah, he said, If a man walking in the spirit and falsehood do lie, saying, I will prophesy to thee of wine and strong drink, even he shall be the prophet of this people.

Micah says this nation has gotten so backslidden. This people of God are so backslidden that if a man arose and he started prophesying to them of strong drink and wine, he would become the prophet of this people.

If a man stood up and started making the whole lot of them drunk and act like fools, he would become their prophet. That's how backslidden they've become. That's what Micah is saying. In Jeremiah, chapter 13, verses 13 and 14, remember now, he said, Every bottle shall be filled with wine.

But they said to him, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine? Verse 13 and 14 tells us what he was really saying. Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings that sit upon David's throne, and the priests and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with drunkenness.

I will dash them one against another. In other words, there will be no unity. There will be all kinds of disunity. Even the fathers and the sons together saith the Lord, I will not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy, but destroy them.

So this is what God is really saying. He says what you interpret as future security is going to leave you all stunned. All that I've trusted in begins to fail in front of your own eyes. It was coming, folks, and the people couldn't hear it.

Oh, God help us as the body of Christ in our generation not to be found among that group of people that Paul the Apostle says in the last days are no longer going to endure sound theology. But they're going to heap to themselves teachers having itching ears.

They will be turned from the truth of God, and they will be turned to fables. It means stories. The stories may even have a good moral to them, but they are not the word of God. They cannot offer insight into the character of God.

There is no strength in these fables. Jeremiah 14, verse 13, Jeremiah said, Then I said, Ah, Lord God, behold, the prophets say to them, You shall not see the sword, neither shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.

You see, the prophets were assuring, or the false prophets, the people of continued blessings in this place. That means being in the spiritual state that they were in. But God says now to Jeremiah, and Jeremiah speaks to the people in chapter 15, verses 3 and 4.

The Four Judgments Against a Distorted People

He says, I will appoint over them four kinds. Here's their judgment now. Now I want you to follow me very closely in this. Remember that Paul said, all these things are written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the earth have come.

Now I will appoint over them four kinds. Here's four judgments God says are going to come upon them. The sword to slay them, the dogs to tear, the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy, and I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth.

He says now there's going to come a judgment. There will be evidences of this judgment, and at the end of this judgment they're going to be assimilated in a similar fashion as it is, although it was under Babylon, in the very same way that others before them have gone into captivity.

The Sword of the Spirit and the Authority of Scripture

I will appoint over them a sword to slay. Now in the New Testament, we are told by the Apostle Paul that we're to take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And God says to Jeremiah, I'm going to appoint over them a word that will slay them.

And folks, you must never, you must never, you must never sit in a place and listen to any person who does not literally believe that this is the inspired word of Almighty God. You must yourself get into this book.

You must rightly divide it from beginning to end. Scripture is interpreted by Scripture. It's not enough to be lazy and go and sit in some place and say, well, this man or woman who appeared to be of God opened the text and said this is what it means.

Folks, you have the Holy Spirit within you. You've got to discern this text yourself. You've got to get into this book. There is no protection for your soul outside of the word of God. And here are a people, and God says I'm going to appoint a sword to slay them.

And false prophets always arise just before judgment. A multitude of them arise. Ahab had 450 of them in his court just before he went into the battle that cost him and thousands of others their lives.

False prophets will always arise. It's a sign when judgment is coming. It's the rise of the good time prophets, which is a sword that has been arisen to bring and to devour. And also he says I will appoint over them dogs to tear and fowls of the heaven and beasts of the earth to devour and to destroy.

Animal Manifestations and Spiritual Discernment

Now several years ago there was an apparent revival that took place in a lot of the Pentecostal and charismatic churches in Canada, in the United States, somewhat in Europe and England, and various other places throughout the world.

They say this was the Spirit of God that came upon them. And they began to have manifestations of barking and making noises of birds, roaring like lions, and doing all of these animal things in this apparent blessing.

Remember, Jeremiah came and said you're going to be filled with wine. They believed it was a blessing, but God says no, this is a warning that's coming to you. This Spirit of drunkenness that's going to come upon you is a warning that everything now is coming to an end and judgment is just around the corner.

Now here's where it gets interesting. There was a great debate that arose in the Pentecostal charismatic churches about is this the Holy Spirit doing this? Is this the devil doing this? Is this a combination of the Holy Spirit and the flesh, or the flesh and the devil, or any mix of those combinations?

And of course it divided the church. Half said it's the Holy Ghost, half said it's the devil, and there were some in the middle who just said we don't know, we're staying away from the whole thing. Now let's suppose just for a moment that it really was the Spirit of the Lord that came upon these people.

The Bible tells us, and for the sake of learning I'm going to repeat this, that all these things happened to the children of Israel for our instruction. There's nothing new, Solomon says, under the sun.

If something happens, if you are in Scripture, you can find it in the Scripture. You can find why it happened in the Scripture. You can find the purpose of why it happened in the Scripture. And the people who were involved adamantly held to this and said this is the Spirit of God.

And they were possibly in some measure right, because there were people who went there and they do claim that their lives were greatly touched by God. I'm not going to dispute any of that. If you say your life was touched by God, then thank God for that.

I'm happy for you. But they misunderstood the purpose. You see, he's warning of impending judgment. And it's judgment on that which claims to represent and love him, but has embraced a great measure of falseness in his name.

In this time of blessing there were no shortage of those who claimed to be speaking for Christ, but not many of their words were from the revealed text of Scripture. They stood up and said, no, I know what God is thinking.

We know what God is saying. But you see, there is a judgment that comes on a church that's out of the Word of God. This thing didn't just happen. It's the result of many years of allowing false prophets into pulpits and equating the revelations of men's own minds and hearts on equal basis with the Word of God.

It produced this stupor that allowed people to be moved into this type of practice. They would get up and say, oh folks, this is the Holy Spirit. You see, we're barking like dogs because we're watchmen.

And this is how the Holy Spirit is guarding over the nation to us. Folks, I read these things. Others were saying, we're crowing like roosters because we're waking up the church and we're waking up the nation to the blessing that God wants to pour out on all people.

They had apologists, but their apologists were ridiculous. There's hardly anybody that understood the Scriptures. And they said, well, we can't prove this because we can't find it in the Scriptures. Oh yes, you can.

You have to be willing to look at all the Scriptures. You can find it in the Scriptures. God says, I'm going to appoint the sword to slay. In other words, an interpretation of Scripture that is not from my heart or my word.

Dogs to terror, fowls of heaven and beasts of the earth that come to let you understand that this system of religion is under judgment. It has to go. Now, some today who are hearing this message and others who are going to hear it in the future on the Internet are going to say, oh God, how much falseness concerning Christ has been injected into my heart and into my mind, into my very being.

Will Jesus Christ cast me off? And how can I hope to find and get back to spiritual truth? Now folks, you have to understand my heart today. I'm not here to rail on these things. I'm not fighting against the church.

I'm fighting for the church of Jesus Christ. For the people of God. For the testimony of God. I'm not standing and waving my finger on any kind of a little soapbox saying to anybody, I told you so. That's not the point.

The point is, we are in this battle together. There may be a few boats along the way that have gotten swamped. And maybe in this moment of time, I might need to be a voice from God's heart to them. But who's to say in the future that it might not be my boat that takes on water and they might have to speak from God to me?

We are in this together, folks. Lest anyone think that we approach this topic from a position of arrogance, that is not so. It's from a position of wanting to see the church in Canada and Europe and the USA become the church of Jesus Christ one more time in our generation.

And there are people that have embraced these things. There are people sitting here that you say, oh God, what have I been listening to? I've been on the television. I've been attending meetings. I'm just so confused.

How do I get back to God? How can I know what is spiritual truth and what is not spiritual truth? Remember, I started out by saying there is an incredible sign that follows those who believe. Now, I want you to go with me to the book of Acts, chapter 28, if you will, please.

Paul, the Viper, and the Church's Testimony

In this chapter of Scripture, the apostle Paul, in serving God, has been on a journey. And in this journey, Paul has been shipwrecked along with everybody else. They set out. It looked like a smooth sailing time, but they encountered an unprecedented storm and the whole boat was destroyed.

It was all shipwrecked. They all had to grab onto pieces of wood and swim to get to shore. Now, in Acts, chapter 28, we see Paul now setting about to gather wood. And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat and fastened on his hand.

Now, I see this as a type. Now, I'm going to preach about this as a type. It's a type of the world. They were on this ship with Paul. Paul represents the church. The other people, let's say, represent the world.

The whole thing is falling apart. People in the world know that everything around them is falling apart. They know they are falling apart. Nobody even has to convince them. They know it. They know that there's such an uncertainty around about them that everything they trusted in seems to be breaking into pieces.

And they look to Paul because Paul was the voice for God in the midst of the storm. And I see these people from the ship as a type of the world who are gathered around and they're looking at Paul who represents the church.

And he's out there picking up sticks. And as it is, regathering pieces of wood. I see it as a type of the world looking at the church saying, you're just as shipwrecked as we are. The world turns on the television and knows the church is shipwrecked.

They know it. They see it. They hear it. They're not foolish. They know that what they're hearing is the bulk of it. Not all of it, thank God. But the bulk of it is from charlatans that are just simply merchandising the people.

And they know it. They know the church is shipwrecked. They walk by all over this country. They walk by churches every morning and all these buildings that have a history. But they've become virtually insignificant to a large degree to so many people today.

Recent surveys are telling us that less and less and less people in America believe that the Bible is relevant or Christ is relevant or the church is relevant. They know they are shipwrecked and they know the church appears to be shipwrecked.

And so they're standing on the shore and they're watching Paul pick up these sticks. And it's a type of the world looking at the church as the church gasps or grasps for truth again. As they too have suffered in the storm.

And they're picking up sticks. And that's exactly where some of you are today. So many people are just looking for fragments of truth. And Paul starts gathering wood. And it represents to me that which remains of the cross.

That which truly is of Christ. He's out there as a type gathering this up saying, I don't know where the whole cross. I seem to have lost the cross in my life. But I'm going to go out and I'm going to gather the truths that God has revealed and wants to reveal in me.

And I want to know. I read about a life that says I'm crucified with Christ. But I know so little about this. I've been under the ministries of illusion that talk about the Christian life is just this grand big elusive party where I'm to be.

And there's drunken stupor all the time in God's presence. But I'm heading out because there's something about the cross that I know is true. There's something in my heart that's telling me this is right.

And while everyone's standing around looking at Paul, Paul heads out. And he picks up these sticks and he begins to put them under fire. And there are people gathered around. And they're saying we're under judgment.

I'm sure they're thinking that in their mind. We're under judgment. They felt it on the boat in the middle of the storm. There's a season coming, folks, when there's going to be an awareness, even if it's for a moment, that the justice of God has come.

And they're standing there watching this church as it is trying to become the church again. And Paul picks up these sticks, puts them on the fire. And the moment he does this, it represents putting them, his fragments, in a place that offers light and comfort and protection.

And as he gathers them, a viper comes out and fastens itself on his hand. And it's funny, the serpent bites him. And as the people are going through this battle, I'm sure in some measure the enemy is attacking Paul.

And he's saying, look at where your spiritual journey has taken you. Think of the mistakes you have made. You're under the same judgment as everyone else. And everyone around you knows it, Paul. The serpent comes out and bites him.

Paul knows he's on a journey. Paul knows the hand of God is on him. There's an inner knowledge in Paul that greater is he who is in me than he who is in the world. Yes, I ended up on that ship. But I'm there according to the will of God.

And yes, we all got shipwrecked. And yes, we all ended up on the same shore. But there is a difference between you and I. And Paul took that serpent, and the Scripture just says he shook him off in the fire.

That's an amazing thing. When the barbarians, it says, saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, Acts 28, 4, they said among themselves, no doubt this man is a murderer, though he has escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffers him not to live.

And verse 5 says, and he shook off the beast into the fire and felt no harm. He shook it off. Paul knew this. Maybe in his mind he might have said, I know I probably made mistakes. No man is perfect. No man has any perfection apart from Christ in himself.

I make mistakes. You make mistakes. Everybody makes mistakes. But Paul knew in his heart, God has promised to keep me. And keep me He will. He will keep me. In 2 Timothy chapter 1 and verse 12, Paul says, I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day.

And the word against means until I reach that day. I know whom I have believed. And when the people saw that He should have fallen down dead or swelled up, and they saw no harm come to Him, they changed their mind and they said He was a God.

The reality is, they saw God. They saw what only God can do. Folks, you've got to stay with me in this because you're going to see something very, very shortly. Go to 2 Kings chapter 8 in the Old Testament very quickly.

Restoration of What Was Lost in Spiritual Famine

2 Kings chapter 8 is about a woman who was sent into a certain place because the Lord had called for famine upon the land. Hard to think that God will call for famine in a place where His own people dwell, but He will do that for a purpose, for a reason.

In chapter 8 of 2 Kings verse 1 tells us the Lord called for a famine and would come upon the land for seven years. And this woman, I want you to read this as a type of the church with me, arose and did after the saying of the men of God, verse 2, and went with her household and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.