Broken Vessels — Manley Beasley

My friend is such a joy and a privilege not to be with you this month. In fact, I don't know when I've ever been more excited Than I am right now. I have just come from the doctor's office and We've been dealing with my health problem for about six months now.

And today, you know, we got such a report There's absolutely incredible. The medication that I've been on for 15 years Seemingly became ineffective and we thought it was had become ineffective because I needed some different time and You know more potent medication, but it seems that the the Lord Wanted to change the medication some but to a less potent medication and it's so Unbelievable the doctor can't believe it and I'm having a difficult time myself believing it but I just almost out of breath because of The fact that I my schedule today, but and the excitement in my heart because of what God is doing in my body.

But I'll try to share This with you when you receive this tape. We will be in Europe right in the midst of our Congress on revival. And I trust that you will pray in a special way that God will get Absolute glory to himself and protect us in such a way that The devil can't get in in any way that we'll just see the glory of God's presence on the people and we'll see lives Changed and hearts warmed and and we will see all of that turn to his glory.

The Sermon’s Pastoral Context and Burden

Now this particular tape this month There's a message that If you've been with me for a long time. Like I saw some people that day been on my tape ministry for 10 years if you've been with me for a long time I'm sure You have heard me talk about why people get sick now.

I have Written this somewhat in a book and I have also thrown it in a few sermons here and there. It's been a long time since I've just preached one sermon on why people get sick. Now this message that I'm sending you this month is not a message on why people get sick in One way in another way it is and I'm using the outline of why people have sickness.

But I'm really dwelling on one point. So you'll have to hear the introduction and if you're used to the material it'll be sort of repeat now that will be much from last month because I didn't realize that the In the introduction of last month.

There was a story that was on the tape the month before. But a lot of places I go I feel that a particular Story is important and and When my tape brother That's doing the tapes heard it. He he felt that it should stay because of its place in the message.

So I'm sorry for that, but this particular message does have some material about why people get sick in it. But when the lat when we come to the last point that we deal with about the cross. You will find in it some material that Lord the Lord has really been dealing with me recently.

In fact, I just really wish I could take you in and just really share with you How the Lord has opened this truth up to me and have and how he's brought the reality of himself in my heart over this truth now also, you need to realize that this message is preached in the context of a church on Sunday night.

Where the pastor has just learned that he has the disease. Similar to what I had that will affect his body the same way that the disease I had back in 1971 affected my body and for about the last four weeks I have been sharing with this pastor and he with me about the things of God and my it's incredible how God Is blessing in his life now?

It's in this context that I bring this message and you realize that I am dealing with his people and with him in This message, but I really believe that it will really mean something to you now. Tonight I feel that God wants me to bring this message in the revival that I'm in in Tulsa, Oklahoma Grace Mountain Baptist Church, and I believe I'll be able to Bring it more specifically in some areas in large in some areas and it may be that you know some sick folk across the country that may need this message and So we'll be glad to help you try to get them a message if you think it will help them so I trust that you'll just write us and and Do whatever the Lord says do and and and we'll see God work this thing out to help some people now.

I want you to Know that we really appreciate the people that's helped us out in Relationship to what we're doing all over the country and we thank you so much and we love you in the Lord. Continue to pray for our family continue to pray for me that God will get all the glory out of my life he wants.

I'll be looking forward to hearing from you and Seeing how you respond to this particular message. May God bless you to meet with you again next month. Thank you so much. Second Corinthians the fourth chapter and I'd like to begin reading.

The Treasure in Earthen Vessels: 2 Corinthians 4

I believe in the fifth verse while we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord and Ourselves your servants for Jesus said for God who commended Commended the light to shine out of darkness Has shine in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

But we have this treasure and earthen vessels That the excellency of a power may be of God and not of us. We're trouble on every side yet. Not distressed. We're perplexed but not in despair persecuted but not forsaken cast down But not destroyed always bearing about in our in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus that the life of Also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

But we which live are delivered always delivered unto death for Jesus sake that the life also Of Jesus might be made manifested in our mortal flesh. You might underline that mortal flesh. So then death worketh in you, but life.

Death worketh in us, excuse me, but life in you. We having the same spirit of faith. According as it is written I believe and therefore have I spoken we also believe and therefore speak now. This particular passage has a great deal of meaning to me for a number of reasons.

Now I want to just ask you a question tonight and you'll realize that I'm basically Dealing with this passage of Scripture. You may not realize That until it's over, but I think when it's over you realize that I've been dealing with this passage of Scripture.

I want to talk on the subject. This is a question why the people get sick. Now I have volumes of things to say and I've just been praying this afternoon tonight. That the Lord would let me just pick out what?

This the church this church needed at this particular time and I want to talk to this question why people get sick now. Most of this is an outline. And because I'm only going to deal with one point in this outline in particular but I think the outline of why people will get sick will lay a foundation that's broad enough and Deep enough and from that.

I think we can be helped tonight so I want to get I want you to get the big picture so you can really get the Fine line at this point. Now I'm not going in detail in this introduction the matter of introducing what I'm going to say because I think you're aware of the Bible enough to not have to for me not have to deal with some of the details and so I'm just going to mention them and Because there's so much here that I want to say.

I don't want to get bogged down in the outline. That's broad so you can understand more specifically what we're saying for instance. One of the reasons people get sick is because they break natural laws.

Sickness from Violating Natural Laws

They just literally break natural laws. And when you break natural laws. Then my dear friend you're going to end up sick if you jump off of a tower over here. You're breaking a natural law and you're going to end up in trouble.

The devil tried to get Jesus to do that. Tried to get him to cast himself down and so on and you're going to end up in trouble when you start breaking the natural law and I Don't want to leave you in distress about the natural laws, but I'll tell you when you've broken the natural laws.

You better get back with somebody that's educated enough to try to help you get your life back in the realm of Properly operating in the natural laws like a doctor. Amen now that doesn't mean you're not supposed to pray.

That doesn't mean that you're not supposed to pray at all. But doctors know enough about your body. To help you get back in the realm of the natural laws like if you don't sleep or don't eat right you can end up sick.

Just on the basis of breaking the natural laws. And you may not have you may be like me not have enough sense to know how to get back. And so you better go find you a doctor. It's not. It's not. Having faith to go get a doctor.

You see that there's some natural ways that God works. There's some supernatural ways that God's work, and then there is some supernatural natural ways that God works. Are you aware of that? I think a lot of folk have never realized that God supernaturally naturally works.

About Jesus Christ if I said he was supernaturally born you'd say yes, but that's not all the truth. He was supernaturally naturally born. He was supernaturally conceived, but he lived in a womb for nine months just like any other child.

I'll guarantee you that's being supernaturally naturally born and when you go to see a doctor because you have some problem in your life my dear friends and that doctor can be used of God and Supernaturally work in your life to help you get back within the realms of the natural laws and God uses people supernaturally.

Naturally and it's not sin out to seek out a doctor now. That's one reason people get sick is because they make bright natural laws. Another reason they get sick is because they have sin in their life.

Sickness, Sin, and the Lord’s Supper

Now in what is it second Corinthians the first Corinthians 11 it says many are weak. Many are sick and many are asleep. Then because they have sinned against God the context of that is talking about taking the Lord's Supper and They'd sinned against God and they had sin in their life and they had partaken of the Lord's table the Lord's Supper and my dear Friends for that reason some of them were weak.

Some of them were sick and some of them were dead. So people get sick because they sin against God. Now if you're sick because you have sin against God you get right with God and very likely you'll get well.

You just get right with God now. That's not the only reason people get sick. Another reason they get sick is because the devil attacks them. You remember the boy in the Bible in Matthew where he was testing himself down and Foaming at the mouth and and going through different dark gyrations and song.

Demonic Affliction and Resisting the Devil

You remember that man and Jesus that little boy then Jesus dealt with him. He had a demonic problem and when he got dealt with about that matter, my dear friends that boy was clothed in his right mind.

He was a normal person and so the devil attacks some people and they are sick because the devil has attacked them. And if that's the reason why you're sick It might be wise for you to go seek some good counsel somewhere somebody that knows the Word of God.

Knows their position in Christ. That's right with God and get them to pray for you and help you stand against the devil now. That's not necessary if you're a Christian. That is really not necessary if you know how to stand in the truth of God you can resist the devil yourself and you need to learn how to resist the devil because I'll tell you what if.

If you resisted at one time and got peace and victory about it. And you don't know how to continue to do it. He'll come back again and attack you and so you need to learn that but there's another reason why people get ill.

Sickness for the Glory of God

Our sickness is for the glory of God. You remember Jesus in 9th chapter of the book of John that was a man that could not see and the disciple said is it? Because of his sin his parents sin and Jesus said no, but unto the glory of God.

John 11 chapter. They tell us that Lazarus is sick. Jesus said no, it's under the glory of God. Now what I'm trying to say to you here is there's a time when God allows sickness. Just because it's occasion for God the Word and manifest his glory.

That's right. Now. I have an uncle That lives in Port Arthur, Texas when he was somewhere in his 70s. He went blind. And he was in this very sophisticated church and it was a sophisticated church. There's the fish sophisticated people out there and they need some kind of preaching.

Amen, and I mean folk I don't get upset because there's some people more sophisticated than I am. More educated than I am and I'm not gonna make fun of them. I'm glad they got it just long as it doesn't stand between them and Christ.

Amen, and I'm not against that, but I'm not that sophisticated myself but I I this this uncle was in this church and he fit there and that church was dead as doornails and I mean it was just dead and cold and my uncle went blind and one day in his big mansion a deacon came by and It was wife with him and my uncle his wife my aunt was there in the house and they got to talking and this deacon Said mr. Manning.

He said do you believe God can heal you? My uncle said mr. Manning said yes, I believe you can he said well God sent me by here to pray for you. Well, my uncle said well. Okay, he said well, how we're gonna do this days about both bearing down about the Word of God.

But they said well, let's read James what it says about him and they read that passage over there said Not with all and they didn't know what they were doing and this big old mansion. Honestly, it worked about four hundred thousand dollars, you know back in those days and it just up.

They looked everywhere from so all the only thing they could find was some cooking oil. There's a little sophisticated people, you know, I'm gonna stick in their finger in some cooking oil and anointing him and pray now he'd been to that big ophthalmologist in Houston, Texas woman ophthalmologist that's been world-renowned for many years and You know, she said you're blind you'll never see again they got down on their knees not in him at all and prayed and his eyesight came back and He went to that ophthalmologist and said would you check my eyes?

She said there's no reason part. He said I just want you to check and so she said, okay. She checked she checked those eyes and I'll tell you she said you are still as blind as you ever was. He said hand me that book and he started reading that book and he could read it with 20 20 B.

Now that was no need whatsoever for that man to be healed he could have hired names. To have kept him let him around driving. He'd lived a good life. He was over 70 years old. God didn't promise him any more 70 years and his life was complete and my dear friends.

There's no reason whatsoever for that man to be healed except for the glory of God and you talking about something. He went back down there that old dead church and got the magnifying the Lord not his healing.

But the Lord got the magnifying Jesus and got that bunch so upset. They didn't know what to do didn't know what to do with it. They couldn't do without him because of his money and I'll tell you they did they just did it is beautiful.

How God healed that old boy and that I say feel good. In fact my son back there Steven. I didn't you have Christmas dinner with him Steven and he still see Kenny. Yeah, I still can't apply it. I mean, it's incredible and there's no reason for that man healing whatsoever except for the glory of God.

And it was an instant healing just like that. I mean an instant miracle just like that. No springs attacked everything else. I have a friend lives in Memphis, Tennessee. When she's 13 years old, I was in a mile revival brother bill and you know who was in that revival with me bill Himself you were No Holland, Michigan.

Oh, yeah. You remember that? Oh Well Cofield Darling Cofield, that's it, right. Yes, and that's right. We were in that meeting and this little old girl sat there every night for two weeks. It's two-week meeting.

She sat there every night 13 years old and I don't know if you were involved in this particular night or not. But we went out there on Lake Michigan and had a service out there by the Lake and those kids would sign a piece of Plank and sign their name to it indicating their surrender to God and throw it in that fire and they pray Lord Whatever it takes in my life to be like Jesus and out of that church came over 50 kids.

That went in the full-time service and one of those kids was this woman. Her name is Marilyn Ford has a book out these blind eyes can see. I believe the way the title of it. And she was in that meeting in Holland.

And you know I saw her some years after that and she's blind and could not see anything and one day she and her husband were driving down the road she married a man she'd never seen in her life and Of course she knew him.

But I mean she'd never seen him and they were driving down the road and her eyesight came back and just about six months ago. She had her eyes checked again, and they said you still cannot see and she can see what.

2020. Nothing in the world, but for the glory of God God does it focus. Yes, he does. Yes, he does. Yes. In fact, I went blind. I didn't tell you everything this morning. You'd have been here all day.

I went blind 65 in the right eye 45 in the left eye. Ophthalmologist in San Antonio, Texas told me the condition and I got on a plane and flew to Denver Colorado started a revival meeting that night a big Bible conference and as we when it came time for me to preach I was in such pain and of course.

My eyes had been dilated and I was in such pain that I was crying when I went to the pulpit and I asked the Pastor there to read the Bible for me and I read it. He read it and while I preached that night the Holy Ghost came and just literally touched my body and I'll tell you I went back to the doctor and the scars on my eyes were not even there how God had healed those eyes and I picked up a dollar pair of glasses here about five years ago and had to start using the reed and.

But God just touched them, but that is for the glory of God. Now what I'm trying to tell you there's reasons why people get sick and sometimes it's just for the reason for God to have occasion to get glory to himself.

Death, Resurrection Hope, and the Shadow of Death

But there's another reason that people get sick and That is that is one of God's appointed means to get people out of this world in the heaven our hell. Amen, now I realized that a lot of these doctors will say that person died of natural causes.

But you've been around as many doctors as I have and know as many as I know. I'll tell you friends everyone. I've ever talked to I've asked them this question. How many dogs how many people die of natural causes as you know, and now everyone I must say I don't know of any.

I Said then you are telling me that they die of some kind of sickness and they say yes. They die of some kind of sickness usually that's it and so God uses death my friends to get us to heaven. Now if I started preaching on the second coming tonight.

You'd probably climb the fuse and walk the few and I'll tell you because you'd want him to come but I don't know I don't like understand why a person can't shout when you start talking about death. The second best thing that could ever happen to you is Jesus first thing would be Jesus coming in the air.

But the second best thing is he's in the death angel to get you. I was able to look death in the face folk. I found out something. You only go through the shadow. And if a car comes down the road and hits you to hurt you.

But if a car comes down the road that throws a shadow and passes you by and the shadow touches you. It doesn't you don't feel it and I'm gonna tell you something. The Bible says we go through the shadow of death.

I don't want them coming for me and no black hurts. I'll tell you folks that the better only thing be better than dying would be being taken up in the rapture. Amen you might have to take that so you need to get it settled.

Amen now. That's another reason why people get sick and I have sort of moved it around to last because that's where I want to camp. Now the reason people get sick is another reason that is this this is life reason and that is because it is a cross.

Sickness as a Daily Cross

Now some of you might say well, what's the difference between a cross and God getting glory to himself? Well When I talk about God getting glory to himself, I talked about God just instantly. Healing you have to get glory for himself, but a cross is something that must be carried out daily.

Daily, so it differs a little bit than just getting glory for himself. Now this passage I read you talked about you and I Having this heavenly treasure in this earthen vessel. Amen. We're having this heavenly treasure in this earthen vessel now I'm not getting my watch off to check on how long I'm to preach.

I'm just checking on how much I ought to preach. Because I can go a long time and probably to my own damage, but nevertheless. This passion I Tell you you need to look at this passage. He talks about this heavenly treasure.

Heavenly treasure and we know that treasure is the Lord. We know that when a man gets saved by the grace of God. Our spirit and God's spirit becomes one spirit. He that is drawn under the Lord is one spirit.

Look. I mean we become the dwelling place of the very life of God himself. I mean the life of God himself the glory of God himself the ability of God himself the very essence of God himself, I mean we become the very very containers of Everything that God has ever been and is and will ever be for the continuation of this message.

Please turn the tape to side to meant God. I.

Christ’s Life Manifested Through the Broken Vessel

Mean your spirit and his spirit is one spirit and I'll tell you that's a subtle fact forever. It's all settled and it's a subtle issue forever when you get saved by the grace of God now. One of the things that you and I need to see is this that if the Spirit of God is in us We not only have the wealth of God the health of God the wisdom of God, but the reality of God in our lives.

When our spirit and God's spirit becomes one spirit now. What I want you to see is that heavenly treasure is in this earthen body. And that actually means a earthen vessel a Vessel of clay. Amen. There that heavenly treasure is in that vessel of clay.

Now Paul put it this way. He said I must decrease that Christ might increase. John said that didn't and Paul said death in me but life in you. In other words the cross is That instrument of God of death.

That's what the cross means focus death. So for the resurrected of life of Christ to be manifested in your life that always has to be the cross. So God allows sickness to come upon you as a cross. Why.

Because this body is dead because of sin and God allows the cross To come upon your life. Sickness to come in your life to bring you to death that the resurrected life of Christ Might work in this mortal flesh.

That mortal flesh is not talking about flesh after death of a rapture. Mortal flesh means the fish you got right there in your body tonight. You can feel of it. Amen so that cross brings us to the end of ourselves for me to live in is Christ now naturally Christ gets glory out of that kind of life.

Because the only explanation for your life then is what? The Lord. Amen. Now I had to face this one time I Believe and you may not be able to handle this, but I'll give it to you and let you worry about it.

Learning to Live by Christ Rather Than Seeking Immediate Healing

Back several years ago after I got out of the hospital after four and a half years months. Several months up the road several a couple of years up the road I had the flu and back in those days something like that would so affect me.

That I'd have to go to hospital and usually spend about four weeks and I went to the hospital and in that time in the hospital. The Lord spoke to me very plainly and he said, you know, I can heal you instantly.

Right now I can heal you and I said yes Lord. I know you can I think the Lord asked me Would you like to be healed or would you rather be in such a life that the only? Explanation for your life would be God and it wouldn't be a healing.

It would be a life and God by his grace Gave me the grace and the understanding to say that day Lord I can't handle the healing. Because if I you heal me I'd go off like the rest of this bunch. Go to seed on healing and that'd be all I had to say.

But I said Lord if I stay like I am I every day. I will have to have you to live and I'd rather take you and Folk I'm gonna tell you something so be it. I Thought that wanting a healing was very selfish very sensual when I could have the life of Jesus.

Every day. Sufficient adequate under all circumstances. And folk I'll tell you what. Yeah, I turned it to him and he became my life. When I read Romans 8 11 Where if his spirit dwells in you that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.

That same spirit shall quicken your mortal flesh. And I got on my knees and I said God my kidneys are damaged they are 35 functional and I said you're going to have to become my life and Those kidneys leveled out and for 15 years never fluctuated.

If you don't believe it go up here and ask Jack Bryce. And this this nephrologist that I'm going through right over here on my way. Asked her the other day. I said, how is it that I've been able to why didn't these this disease destroy my kidneys over 15 years?

Ago, she said medical science has no answer for that. I Said well, how is it then that I haven't died in these six over 15 years? She said medical science doesn't have any answer for that. But I did have an answer and you know what that answer was.

My dear friends not that I prayed a lot not that I was good enough to receive that. But one day by the grace of God God Let me see that this old earthen vessel had to be brought to the end of itself. But the only explanation for my life would be the Living Lord.

Yes, sir, and folk he became the Living Lord and The disease that caused all this has never been found in my body since that day. Amen. I Just went right through Baylor a few weeks ago, and they took all the tests they could take fine.

And I'll guarantee you if there's no a in a factor no difficulty. No sign of the disease that Destroyed that much of my kidneys Amen and the doctors have no explanation for it. That's right. That's I'll tell you I have discovered That he is my life, and he said that he's all-sufficient in all things under all circumstances unto every good work.

Suffering, Divine Providence, and the Ministry of Comfort

And when it's over folks, it's over Amen, but he'll keep me under that day if I'll stay right with it. I don't believe I can get out and sin. See, I've seen a lot of these people getting supernaturally healed and turn around five years later.

They're living in sin. But you see folk if I start living in sin that life stops. Amen, how much one would you rather have a healing of the life of Jesus? But you see what happened on up the road When God got me to the place that he thought I could handle a situation.

You know what he did. He took the disease away. But here's the last year, you know, I got to doing so good That he let something sort of shape things up a little bit Amen, I put trust in him every day.

Because I got in the land. And I got houses. I God gave me houses that I did not build. Let me eat the milk and the honey and got the inheritance of his glory and got my dear friends Satisfied and independent of God so God let a few things happen and Let me see that if he wasn't my life, I wouldn't make it.

Amen. So I came back to him. And if you don't think God Has ordered the steps of a righteous man. I Only mentioned this because you are aware of what happened. I Was out here in this little hospital in room one or two twenty in two to twenty Jack right came by to see me.

He asked me if I'd talked to your pastor. He here's what he was saying to me. He said brother manly. I have chosen you in the life of suffering that you might just minister through your life, I'd never accepted that and I never accepted that but I got willing to just continue to suffer every day.

That's what Jesus wanted and I'm gonna tell you something friend. It didn't come in no ten minutes. But that this particular day Jack Rice said would you see this pastor? And I said, you know a man's already come in here to me and mentioned him to me and He said well his disease if it runs its course will affect him just like Yours has affected you and I think you ought to talk to it.

He said but I don't want to impose on you. I said I know you're not imposing on me and do you know a Couple of days before your pastor showed up in my room, which was the same room He stayed in for a couple of weeks very same room.

Did you know? That the nurses over there at this hospital messed up and it cost me another day in that hospital and My doctor I've never seen her mad but she was so mad at the incompetence of Professional people that she didn't know what to do and because we have such a relationship She and I have such a relationship that she just was so embarrassed By them doing that it cost me another day.

She wasn't embarrassed about the money she was just embarrassed that she was consuming my time because of the incompetence of some professional people and She had every right to be embarrassed and I mean she was mad and I told her I said now listen I said Christians believe that God is in control of this business and I said there's some reason for this delay and Do you know when Jack Rice left my office?

He went home I went to his office up here and started trying to get in touch with your pastor. And I'm sure he's told you about it. But he and his wife driving home from Houston on Friday mentioned the fact that they needed to talk to me.

Jack Rice tried to get in touch with him couldn't reach it when he got home that afternoon. He called Jack Rice and Jack got on the telephone asking if he'd come visit me. At first he didn't tell him who it was just make a visit for him and then he told her who it was and he came over and Then my dear friends.

I knew Why that delay? One day. One day delay. One day delay folk. I'll tell you he thought he came over there to get blessed that night. But I got blessed not only was he and his wife and their tender heart towards God.

I got blessed by that but both I got blessed because I could see a mighty God a mighty God that's so big he could create this whole business and this whole body and he'd take a few minutes to Delay some nurses and mess some things up.

So I'd be delayed. So I'd be right on time and he would be right on time and God would work just through that simple contact boy. I'm glad I have a God like that. Oh My friend what a Savior. Amen, what a Savior this old earthen vessel folk Must come to the end of itself.

That's a light of glory might shine through. Now what is done is of him and not of you. Amen. Let me give you one more illustration and boy, I'll tell you I've seen this since I saw you like I mean That's a blow your head off.

Gideon’s Broken Vessel and the Light of God

You may my angel of the Lord came to Joshua not Joshua. Gideon and Gideon he said Gideon Now great man of valor and old Gideon said who me? He said man, I'm nothing but a weakling and God Was seeing Gideon is one way and he was seeing himself in another way.

And you remember how he prepared Gideon? Why was it 20 ,000 at first in 10 ,000 finally got down to 300 and he says boys. Here's how we're gonna do this thing. He said we're gonna take three sides. So we're gonna take three get on each side of these this bunch and He says we're gonna take Trump and then he said We're gonna put a light in a earthen vessel and he said when you blow that trumpet break the vessel and the light broke out and Since that bunch in such a ray they killed each other and they fled for their life.

But when he did it happen when The earthen vessel was broken. I love it. I Love it, brother. Yes, sir. Yes in me, but life in Man I had people to go out of here this morning and they say, you know, brother Manly I've gone through a lot of suffering and you know what most the time you have endured it and your life was not changed.

For the better and no one else was and you've missed the whole purpose of it. You have wasted your time God's time and everybody you could have helped time. God did not come folk to enchant us or entertain us.

He came to change us and folk when we discover why? The sickness the adversity. That you may be just adversity may not be sickness. It may be some kind of problem. But when you do not find out why? And how to respond to God in that situation where the earthen vessel is broken and the light shines forth.