Willing to Drink His Cup — Leonard Ravenhill

The gospel is recorded by Luke in chapter 12 reading verses 49 and 50. I am come to send fire on earth and what will I if it be already kindled that I have a baptism to be baptized with now. I've been going to meetings, being old and antique as I am.

I've been going to meetings for more than 70 years all over the world, Pentecostal conferences Methodist conferences, all kinds of conferences. I've heard the baptism of the Holy Spirit preached I think 50 different ways.

You can go to the greatest conventions in America and they'll put a notice up, we're going to preach about the baptism of the Holy Ghost. In 70 years I've never heard anyone preach on this text. I have a baptism, Jesus speaking of himself but the first part of that verse is wonderful, verse 49 I am come to send fire on earth.

You know Charles Wesley gave us that lovely children's hymn Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, look upon the little child. But you know some people never get past gentle Jesus. Jesus is associated with fire the next time he comes, what is it.

2 Thessalonians chapter 1 says he's coming with flaming angels thousands of them. It would have been wonderful if it had come like the first time. It would have been more impressive but that wasn't God's plan, but he's going to come.

But here he is and he's saying to these disciples I am come to send fire on earth. And what if it is already kindled. I have a baptism to be baptized with. And how am I straightened until it be accomplished.

I come to send fire again the symbol of the church. I was preaching last Sunday night in a big church with a big cross of Jesus and one for the thieves. I reminded them that's pagan, that's not Christian, that's cruel.

The cross is no symbol of Christianity. The symbol of Christianity is a tongue of fire that's sat on the head of each of them. And now God is a consuming fire. I am come to send fire on earth. I've got to quote one of Wesley's hymns or you'll be disappointed I'm sure.

But Wesley has a wonderful hymn on this. It says see how great a flame aspires kindled by a spark of grace. Jesus loved the nation's fire set the kingdom on ablaze to bring fire on earth. He came kindled in some hearts.

It is all that all might catch the flame all partake the glorious bliss. When he first the work began small and feeble was the flame. You think. Now I should have brought the hymn book. I'm getting forgetful.

When he first the work began. Small and feeble was its flame. Now the word does swiftly run. Now it wins its widening way. More and more it spreads and grows ever mighty to prevail. Sin's stronghold. It now o 'erthrows and shakes the trembling gales of hell sons of God.

You'll make a praise. He adore hath opened wide. He hath given the word of grace. Jesus love is glorified. The last standard is saw ye not a cloud arise little as a human hand. Now it spreads along the skies spreads on all the thirsty land.

Jesus mighty to prevail. I can't remember the last line. But you see he got the idea of a spark at the beginning. And gradually it blossoms out. It goes through the whole world now. Wesley wrote that in 17.

He wrote it in 17 I think 76. And yet it's prophetic because it's done that more and more it spreads and grows ever mighty to prevail. With the expansion of the thing. Usually there's a weakening but when the church truly expands there's a strengthening.

God never planned any failures for us. I'm come to bring fire on earth. What will I if it be already kindled. I have a baptism to be baptized with. And how am I straightened. Or Weymouth translates that how am I pent up.

I'm not free to let that flame go forward. This is my design. I want to kindle a fire. And all the power of hell won't put that fire out. It's holy ghost fire against hell fire. And when the church is really on fire she is indeed the most attractive thing in the whole wide world.

Suppose ye that I'm come to give peace on earth. Well that's what we love isn't it. Don't we recite from Isaiah his name to be called wonderful counselor prince of peace everlasting father prince of peace.

But listen to what Jesus says. You suppose I came to earth of peace. I tell you neighbor rather division. For from henceforth there should be five in one house divided three against two and two against three.

The father should be divided against the son. The son against the father and the mother against the daughter. And the daughter against the mother. The mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law. The daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

And so he's making this prediction. Then verse 54 he says also when ye see a cloud rise in the west straightway ye say there cometh a shower. And so it is when ye see the south wind blow. You say there will be heat and it cometh to pass.

Ye hypocrites ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth. How is it that you cannot discern this time. What time. The fact that he was there the son of God the fact that he was a culmination of all the prophets of all the ages.

Jacob said I shall see him but not now. I shall behold him but not nigh. A star shall arise out of Jacob that shall rule my people. And here he is. They'd read over and over again a virgin shall be with child.

They'd read about his kingdom coming and yet here they are blind. They can discern the weather. They had their predictors in those days fortunetellers. But he says how is it. You can't discern the time.

You know I believe God looks from heaven and says the same to us. I think he's saying you're a dumb crowd. What do I have to do next to tell you all these things around about us. Didn't I tell you in the last days.

There'll be corrupt living corrupt families families divided divorce diseases damnation. We finance damnation. We invest money in every cruel damnable thing that there is. We know the gospel isn't being preached.

It's being diluted in a very very tragic way. So it's for us again to discern the sign of the times. Now I want to bear this out actually from the gospel according to Matthew the twentieth chapter, excuse me.

Ok, are we in chapter twenty now? Matthew chapter twenty from verse seventeen Jesus going up to Jerusalem took the twelve disciples apart in the way and said unto them behold we go up to Jerusalem. The son of man shall be betrayed and the chief priests and the scribes.

And they shall condemn him to death and shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucify him. Then came. Then they came to him the mother of Zebedee's children. Who were they? James and John.

God is worshipping him and desiring a certain thing of him. And he said unto her what wilt thou? She said unto him grant that these my two sons may sit the one on the right hand and the other on the left in thy kingdom.

But Jesus answered and said ye know not what ye ask. Well she asked a big thing in the other gospel it says that they asked that John and his brother asked here it says his mother asked. I guess there's a collusion in this.

They'd agreed together to try and give Jesus. They believed he was going to have a kingdom and they wanted to sit on the right hand and the left hand when he came into his kingdom. But notice they came worshipping him.

And yet in their worship there was begging. It wasn't pure. They had an ulterior motive. They were trying to bargain with him. Jesus answering said ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of and be baptised with the baptism that I am baptised with.

Now we said there in Luke go back a minute there into chapter was it 12 again verse 49. I am come that sent fire on earth. What was that fire. Why didn't he what hindered him from giving them the fire at that moment a baptism of what sorrow, a baptism of anguish.

A baptism we call Gethsemane. You see there's no place in the whole wide world where you can put the upper room before the cross. The cross comes before the upper room. We try and turn that round as I said sometimes very often.

Now we're asking people to tarry in the upper room who've never knelt at the cross. They get a false experience and it evaporates. We shun the cross. I have a baptism to be baptised with. But I want you to receive a fire that will change that degraded will of yours.

It will endue you with power. It will give you energy. It will give you life. He says I want to do that but I'm straight now. I wish it could be accomplished but it cannot be done yet. So then we go back again to that other chapter again in Matthew chapter 20 remember if we'd gone a bit further back in that previous chapter a man listened to him long enough.

Then he says why don't you ask my brother to settle the estate settle a family dispute. You know there are people that think God is only around to help us. We've got a great utility God to be. You pray and he does this.

You pray and he does that. You pray and he sends you money prays and he gets you out of a jam. He's not somebody who worshipped in speechless adoration. He's a utility God. And these boys on TV are exploiting that to the nth degree.

I'm going to read this again chapter 20. In verse 20 then came to him the mother of Zebedee's children with her sons worshipping him and desiring a certain thing of him. What is that you would like me to do.

Let one sit on thy right hand and one on thy left hand when thou comest into thy kingdom. Jesus answered you know what he asked. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with.

They say unto him we are able so that he did. He took them at his word. I want my son to enter the kingdom sitting on the right hand sitting on the left. There's only one way into the kingdom. That's death.

In the Acts of the Apostles chapter 12 verse 2 it says Herod. And that Herod was Herod the gripper the first. He was the grandson of Herod the great. You remember Herod the great tried to liquidate Jesus when he was a babe.

See before he could walk or talk. The world was afraid of Jesus when they heard he was born. Herod was troubled. Why? Herod's got a standing army. Herod has a palace. Herod has everything he wants. You mean to say that little thing there sucking his mother's breast that the king is terrified of him.

Herod was troubled and all Jerusalem with him. Except one or two old people. Older people have more wisdom. As you can see we know I think so often that we talk so much about Hannah in the Old Testament.

We don't talk so much about Anna in the New Testament. She's a hundred years of age. And she's going day by day to pray. And Simeon's an old man. Just a bunch of old folk going. And they will not die until God has sent that precious child that he promised 750 years before.

Magnificent. Ye know what she's like. Are ye able to say yeah. We can drink the cup. Alright lady. I wonder if she was living when her son was brutally put to death again. Acts. Acts what is it. 12 and 2 says that Herod killed James the brother of John.

It was Herod Agrippa the first the grandson of Herod the great a terrible butcher a man who could be linked up with Pharaoh that liquidated all the babies in Israel. In Egypt. No in Israel an ancient Hitler.

I'm trying to write a book. I'm not doing so well with it. On the judgment seat of Christ. I think of the days when all the armies of men that have been slaughtered. All the babies have been butchered.

The million babies that were dragged out of the mothers wombs this past year in Christian America and torn up and put down the toilet. Every one of them is going to rise up in judgment. One day didn't we say the other day about Jeremiah.

God says I knew thee when thou wast in the womb. And I sanctified and ordained thee. There is he the exception. No no no no. Life belongs to God. And whatever we do with it we'll be accountable for it.

We said that the one thing that sustained as it does all men who get in there. The one thing that sustained Jeremiah he had more conflict than any other prophet of old. Immediately he was raised up. He was in conflict.

He was conflict when he was dying. What was the secret of his power. I'll tell you the secret of his power. It's very obvious. He states it. He says thy fire burned within my heart. While I mused the fire burn yesterday I took the prophecy of Jeremiah in account.

Do you know he mentions 41 times he mentions fire. They put him in a pit. Didn't burn the fire out. Didn't destroy the fire. I think it was Amarishah's son. I think that wrote a hymn that a verse of the hymn he wrote says this waters cannot quench it.

Floods can never drown. Substance cannot buy it loves a priceless crown. Oh the wondrous story. Mystery divine. I am my beloved's my beloved is mine. The fire is unquenchable. The fire of hell is unquenchable.

The fire of the holy ghost is unquenchable. I know a lot of opposition against the second blessing. I challenge you to find me a man that has made history in God's kingdom who somewhere didn't have a second crisis after he was born again to the spirit of God.

The founder of the Quakers said he found something in him that wouldn't keep peace and he wanted to get rid of the thing in him that wouldn't keep was always troubling him. William Booth said I found I ebbed and flowed until one day I the holy ghost came in his fullness.

And then he wrote that marvelous battle hymn that the modern salvationist doesn't know. They marched. The salvation army was a penniless organization, it went into 70 countries in 90 years, not 70 cities, 70 countries.

Men and women left their castles in England. Professors left their professions. University people went, why? Because there's a fire, they could see that fire as clear as Israel could see that pillar of fire at night, the holy ghost is here and old.

William had them going singing, marching down the street, thou Christ of burning cleansing flame. Send the fire. Thy blood bought gift. Today we claim, send the fire. Look down and see this waiting host.

Give us the promised holy ghost. I'm not sure we want it, we need it. You see the thing between where you are now and the baptism of fire is a cup. I better get to it or I'll talk too long. Verse 22. Jesus answered and said unto him ye know not what ye ask, are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink.

Remember again. He said, I have a baptism to be baptized with, he'd been baptized in Jordan, he wasn't talking about that. The man who introduced him to the world said I baptize you with water. The baptism is external, when he comes he'll do something internal.

He'll baptize you with the holy ghost. The literal Greek is, he shall baptize you with holy ghost fire, not with the holy ghost. And with fire, you can't separate them. God is a consuming fire. He shall baptize you with holy ghost fire.

But you see there's something between here and there. Some of you haven't been here before but I'm glad to see you, but let me say this, I say it often. I don't know where you are spiritually but there's not a man who's walking with God that doesn't know he could have been further up the road than he is if he'd really taken care, if somebody had taught him when he was born again, it did not happen.

He was born and he was put in a refrigerator. There's a dear old the last of the line amongst the Baptists. I think, Vance Havner, he wrote the foreword to my last book, he's a great character and he said some people where he lives up in Greenville, where is that, South Carolina.

Oh he said they're still living in the last century. He said the man came selling refrigerators, they didn't know what they were. They still had iceboxes and he said well this is what you do with a refrigerator.

You take this plug and stick it in but they didn't have any electricity so it didn't help very much. But in his draw I couldn't imitate, you know he said you know, oh in my country we've got the biggest refrigerators in America.

They've got steeples on them now. I didn't say that, a Baptist said it Mr. Chatterwick used to say to us gentlemen, don't bring them to birth and put them in a refrigerator. The church never had more equipment than she has now, she never had less power never less anointing never less of the miraculous never less than the omnipresent God, as I've said before, when did you last tip to out of church Sunday morning breathless awed by the awesomeness of God's majesty, God's glory God's omnipotence.

We know what's going to happen. Stand up, sit down, stand up, sit down. Now the choir will sing, sit a bit longer now the box is coming drop some offering in it and now we're going to have another song.

You know if we'd spent as much time teaching people to pray as we've taught the choir, we'd have set the world on fire. What's the good of having all the machinery in the world. If you've nothing to drive it I don't care whether you've come on a, I'm going to say a skateboard.

If you've come on a Volkswagen tonight or a Rolls Royce. We're all dependent on one thing when we sit in the car, we turn the switch and if there is no spark, there you're finished your car may be insured, it may be the cleanest car, it may be in wonderful condition, but it needs a spark to drive it.

But look at all the equipment in the church, if the fire of the Holy Ghost really came upon the church today, we could shake the world in six months without a shadow of doubt you know not what you ask.

I wonder I wonder how often God says that to us as I've told you many times and I say privately in my press I don't want to get to the judgement seat with maybe trillions of eyes looking on me. I'm here, Jesus is there and everybody that's lived since Adam is going to see me come up for trial.

I do not want God to say to me in that day son I had many things to tell you but you couldn't bear them. I've got a new saying and I'm always pushing it down people's throats. Now when are we going to get serious about being serious about revival, we're not serious about it, I got a big brochure this week, oh I don't know how many big celebrities are going.

The man that's running the thing, I want you to come as my personal official guest and I'll pay all your fares and I'll pay your hotel fees and everything and it said so and so is going to speak and there's going to be a special session don't get this often so I'll give you the address if you want, there's going to be a special session maybe twice or three times in the week to teach puppetry and then it goes on to say we're going to teach mimes.

I'm not being facetious, can you imagine the men coming out of the upper room teaching those rebel priests and grouch puppets, coming with their faces painted white and their hands and clowning, dear lord we've enough clowns outside the church, why bring them in, why should the world take us seriously when we don't take God seriously, come on are you able to drink the cup and be baptized with the baptism that I should be baptized with.

What's the cup. Skip to chapter 26. Please, in Matthew and verses 39 39 to 42 here's the baptism for you, he went a little further and fell on his face and prayed saying oh my father if it be possible let this cup pass from me.

Nevertheless not as I will but as thou wilt. And he cometh to his disciples and finding them sleeping said to Peter what could ye not watch with me one hour. Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation.

What was the cup. Well I'll tell you what one ingredient was, it had betrayal in it. The men who'd sworn allegiance to him, when it came to the crisis, they quit. Can you drink of the cup. What's in the cup.

I believe in that cup. There was internal suffering mental suffering and spiritual suffering. Do you want to drink the cup. I'm straightened. He says I cannot do anything. Now there's a baptism. I have to go through the Holy Ghost can't come down until I go up.

I can't go up until I've done the will of the Father. And he goes through the agony of Gethsemane. He goes through the lonesomeness he drank of that cup. I say it was internal. Why. Because in Isaiah 53 11 he says he travailed.

Isn't that internal deserted by others. And in the darkest hour not only deserted by men, deserted by God. Can you drink of that cup. Do you want to travel. You see what people are seeking for today is a painless Pentecost.

There isn't such a thing. The day of Pentecost was fully come. What happened immediately after Pentecost. They prospered, yes they did, they went to jail. It wasn't prosperity. It was prison, pain, privation persecution.

The men are dishonest that preach on TV today. They're liars. It's in the case of blessing. And God will open the windows of heaven on you. Jesus goes on to say when that man in the other chapter that we didn't read of when he says settle this dispute between my brother and myself about the family estate.

Jesus says lay not up for yourself treasure on earth where moth and rust give up and thieves break through and steal. You know there's a lot of wealthy Christians will get to heaven bankrupt. And there's a lot of Christians almost bankrupt living in poverty, they'll be super millionaires when they get into eternity.

But this is the way. But if you read in the other version that if you're going to follow the Lord it's division in the family your father or mother will hate you. Jesus got to the place where his brother said he's insane.

You know people say I want to be like Jesus, I doubt it. You want to get kicked out of your family because you love God. You want to be so true to God that a Thomas comes and doubts you that a Judas sells you.

You really want to be like Jesus. Well why don't you practice it, why don't you have 40 days and 40 nights of fasting. Forget all the paperwork. We make such rash vows, when the temperature is running high in a meeting we make vows, vows, vows.

I say the pain was internal. He shall see of the travel of his soul and be satisfied. I'm sure it was not only internal, I'm sure it was mental pain, I'm sure it was bodily pain because it says in the 50th chapter of Isaiah I gave my back to the smiters.

We don't do that, we fight back. We don't like somebody to carve us up scorn us, ridicule us humiliate us, misrepresent us. And he got the whole works and yet he never muttered once what did he say, he said that when it came to the agony of the cross that men shot out the lip.

I don't understand those disciples, I never will. Why after he came from the judgment hall and was going to the cross, why didn't they line up on either side of the road and applaud him and say this is the way our king comes into his kingdom.

Instead of that, men shot out the lip and scorned and said, if God's your father, let him deliver you. I say again, the perennial challenge to a Christian is come down from the cross and save yourself.

You made a decision in a missionary meeting, I'm going to give more money to missions and you backed off. I'm going to spend more time with God, forget it. You didn't do it, you know when Elijah before he called down the fire, he went back and he built the old altar.

We don't want to go back to old altars, to old vows, to old commitments, we're always trying to make new things, God knows they'll be broken down anyhow in a few weeks. Christianity has not been weighed in the balances and found wanting, it's been tried, found difficult and rejected.

Amen, Amen. It's too tough, there's no part-time service, leave all and follow me, drink of the cup in the darkness and agony of Gethsemane, I've told this story, I'll tell it again briefly. I was going down the street in Oldham which is nine miles outside of Manchester.

I was in my early twenties and I pastored the largest church in town in fact the largest holiness church in England. Going down the street one day I past this house, the lady opened the door. Hi. I said Hi, she said you're the pastor at the tabernacle.

I said yes, I often come to your church. I sit on the back seat. I'm very poor fine. I don't like to come, I can't give, I don't want to come give anything in the offering. But she said I wanted to do something.

She said would you come in my house and drink a cup of tea. Well usually of course I want tea. I said yes, the only thing is that I went in, you know you went in like this boy that house did it smell.

I got in there. And you know the books she bought books from a junk shop nearby. I'd seen her in the shop many times. She had them like a wall. When you went in the door, you could just keep your hands on top of them, go right through to the back room.

The dining room, which was dining room and everything else. Oh you will have a cup of tea. I said sure I'll have a cup of tea. She had lovely fingernails. They got plastic patoot around them, you know all of, well in common language, your fingernails were all in mourning clogged up with dirt.

The kitchen sink had dishes this height from here about this height there was a plate there with some old bacon on and it had got, what do you call that stuff mould? Penicillin. You've heard this story before.

She didn't know she could have sold it. Penicillin, yes sir she got that fuzzy horrid looking stuff. Well you take tea, yes. She reached in the kitchen sink with a stack of cups and you know the tea had run on the outside, and she picked it up.

Mercy on us looked as though it had about a hundred bugs at the bottom. Dried, dirty, rotten old tea leaves. In fact some were mouldy. Well now she said, I'm going to give you a cup of tea. I said alright.

She poured the tea into the cup. It was as black as my shoes. And I don't like black tea. Do you take cream? Yes, I have none good. Do you take sugar? Yes I have none. And with that dirty hand shaking I saw that black stuff that was supposed to be tea cold as ice.

And I hesitated. I felt like tipping it up but I knew I was on trial. And she held the cup out. Well I hesitated, drink it. And as she handed me that cup of dirty tea my mind went two thousand miles away from the town.

I was in to a place called Gethsemane two thousand miles away two thousand years back. And the father gave a cup of all the dregs of impurity and wickedness in it. And he didn't give it to Gabriel. He didn't give it to Michael the Archangel.

He gave it to his son. This is what he's come to do, he's come to consume iniquity, and he's going to do it in the garden of Gethsemane by himself when everybody's betrayed him and his nerves are down and he can hear the enemy coming.

And he's thinking of all the years, he's demonstrated his power as a son of God. He's walked on the water, he's raised the dead he's cleansed the leper, he's put in sane people, and they didn't believe on him.

So what's the difference today? Do we believe on him? Remember there wasn't one of the twelve disciples ever had a bible. Not even the apostle Paul had one. You know, don't boast too much about your bible knowledge, it's going to face us at the judgment seat.

I wonder sometimes, I don't have a big library, I have a few nice books. I was handling one yesterday and I thought, will these books rise up in judgment against me? I say again with all my heart, we're looking for a painless Pentecost.

We want to invest a dime and get a million dollars back. Can you drink of the cup? We're able. So they drank, and they were crucified today. It's considered sadistic if you say people have to take up their cross even don't tell young people about the cross.

They'll be discouraged. Are you suggesting Jesus wasn't smart? If you're going to be my disciple kiss the world goodbye. You see when people are born again these days, they don't get separated from the world.

Most likely their pastor is the most worldly guy that is around, but if you're going to get what he wants to give, if you're going to get the real true baptism of the spirit you have to drink of that cup.

They said we're able and he said you shall drink indeed of my cup and be baptized with the baptism that I'm baptized with, but to sit on my right hand and my left, it's not mine to give, the father's going to do that.

Verse 24 says when the ten the other ten disciples were around listening, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. Now he rubs their noses in the dust. You're looking to sit on my right hand and my left in my kingdom.

He could have said aren't you prepared to go. Are you prepared to go through hell to get there. You can't show me a revival in history that hasn't been born of travail and pain and loneliness and dark weary nights.

As I read this I thought again today of seeing, there's a model up in Scotland, nine miles out of Glasgow, there's a great big big big house. It's a national memorial to David. I was going to say David Brennan, no what was his name.

David Livingstone and it shows the room where he died, where for years and years he prayed. It's like some of those houses in India that just got bamboo and then leaves woven in, and there he is kneeling over a bed, if you can call it that, two bamboo rods and with some leaves on and a candle flickering.

There's an automatic electric candle flickering there and they said every night he would kneel at that bed and you would hear him crying with his hands raised. God, when will the wound of this world's sin be healed.

He fought the Portuguese slave traders. He did many many marvellous things, why. Because he had a Gethsemane of his own. His precious wife died, he buried her in the jungle then the baby that she born died.

He buried the child at the side of its mother, another child he had died. He buried that, and the record I have said that he said this as he laid them to rest and he buried them of course the Christian way and said they'd die and come back in the resurrection.

You see the reason he brought his wife, he married the daughter of Moffat the great missionary Mary Moffat. She kept writing and saying David why don't you let me come over there. People say that you don't care, you don't love me.

People say you got tired of me. People say this, say that so finally she came. I believe she brought one child, another one was born afterwards. What did she get. He told her not to come because they didn't have the drugs that we have today the quinine and all kinds of stuff, she got malaria and as he pointed the finger down he said Mary darling Mary, people will say you were killed with malaria.

No, no, no such thing. He said you were killed by the cruel tongues of people in Scotland that drove you out of your native home and sent you here, but that grief didn't change his zeal for God, it added fuel to the fire, the devil's trying to rob me, the devil's trying to hinder me and he worked with greater zeal, he prayed more than ever he prayed, and they said night after night his voice would echo through the forest.

Oh God, when will the wound of this world of sin be healed. Dear God, all our past are concerned about is adding one or two members getting another bus to bring the people in. There can be no revival again.

I say without travail I want my son to sit on the right hand. Well listen, here's his answer. Verse 24, when the ten heard it they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. Jesus called unto them and said, know ye not that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and their great exercise authority upon them, but it shall not it shall not be so among you whosoever will be the greatest among you, let him be your minister and whosoever will be chief among you let him be your servant, that's the switch isn't it, they wanted to sit on the right hand, he says well the way into my kingdom, if you want to go up you go down exalt yourself, I'll abase you be abased and I'll exalt you, save your life.

You'll lose it, lose your life you'll save it. It's reverse logic. Verse 27, whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant even as a son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister and to give his life not to give his theology not to declare.

I have a mandate from the father to instruct you. He gave them all he had, he gave them the sermon on the mount, he gave them evidence that they had dominion over sin and death and disease and devils and everything.

And yet they were unbelieving. I say the one thing reverting to the other thing again I'm straightened, I'm tied up, I can't do anything yet. That's what he said in Luke 12 there I have no release. I have a baptism to be baptized with before that word of John that startled you when he said when he comes he'll baptize you with the Holy Ghost and fire.

But he didn't do that not immediately he says I've got to go through the father's will and the father's will is Gethsemane, the father's will is the cross, the father's will I go down into the depths and I lead captive in a captive and give gifts unto men.

As I've said there's one great two great reasons we don't have revival. One we're content to live without it. Number two it's too costly. We don't want God to disrupt our status quo. We want to eat, drink and be merry and tomorrow we'll live.