I Glory in the Cross — Jack Hyles

The Jesus freaks have something that we need. Now, we have a lot that they need, but they have something that we need. They got it from the hippies, and the hippies have something that we need. I'm not for communal living.

Neither am I for wearing dirty blue jeans and long shaggy hair. Neither am I for the kind of public demonstration that the crowds make. But there is something of a self-abandonment that they have that most Christians don't have.

Christian Commitment Beyond Formal Religion

Listen to me for a minute. Do you know why there is a Jesus freak movement in America? Because the churches just haven't meant business for God. I mean, we've gone about our business, and we've had our church service on Sunday morning, and a handful of folks have come back on Sunday night.

But we've just honestly... The thing that has killed America in many respects is the formal Sunday morning church service. The average person has... the average Christian, he thinks he's done his duty.

He comes to worship God on Sunday morning. Fly across America, as I do. Look down and see little towns from the sky. Young folks, you listen to me while I'm preaching. Every one of you, and you said your last word tonight in the service.

Every one of you listen. Look down in the sky and see what I see. A little cluster of houses, looks like a toy box. And in the midst of that is a building, maybe two, with a steeple. And that's the house where the people in that neighborhood come once a week, and they look up toward the sky and say, God, whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever you are, we worship you.

They walk out the doors, they go home, and that's the extent of their Christianity. Oh, they drop a dollar or two in the collection plate while they're there. But that's about it. Now, the honest truth is, if somebody has anything that's even near to real, in most towns, they've got to find it outside a church.

Because the average church in this country doesn't have one nickel's worth of reality in the pew or the pulpit. Not one nickel's worth. I've said this before, and you've heard me say it. I go places across this country, and Jesus freaks come up to me, and when I say Jesus freak, that's the term they use, or Jesus people.

And they say to me, if you'll come to our area and start a church, we'll be normal. We'll join your church. We're having no problem in our high school department. For example, we have a high school department for bus high schoolers.

Things are growing like wildfire in the junior high department, too. Growing like wildfire. How many haircuts did we have this morning, fellas? Dave, where are you? How many haircuts? We had 13 haircuts.

We have barbers in our high school bus department. We gave 13 haircuts this morning. We said, how do you do it? We have a straitjacket over there. No, I'm talking about now, these are fellas that come to our church, and they get saved, and they voluntarily get a haircut, look like human beings again.

Now, in most towns, if they get anything at all, they've got to get it somewhere outside the church, because there's no church like this that means business for God. Now listen to me, listen to me. This country is crumbling because Christian people, I mean God's people, I mean the churches, have just piddled.

Just piddled. Last night, I got home somewhere before midnight. Dave was in a talking mood, and he wanted to tell me about some of the kids. You just would have a hard time believing what's going on. Right here in First Baptist Church Hammond, with a bunch of, I mean, a bunch of little hoodlum teenagers.

Their lives are being transformed. I mean, people say, well, Chicago is the hardest place in the world to build a church. That's foolishness. It's foolishness. Well, the boys told me last night, two boys did, they said, preacher, the truth is, it's just like picking ripe fruit off a tree to go over in the Chicago area.

Now, why has it been hard to reach? I don't know why it's been hard to reach. Some guys come with a starchy kind of sermon, with the choir singing the seven-fold amen, and the Gloria Patri, I'm not sure what that is, but the Gloria Patri, I heard it one time, heard about it one time.

And a bunch of people come, have a formal worship service on Sunday morning, where nobody's ever changed, and no life has ever transformed, and nothing miraculous ever takes place, and the world is sick of that kind of stuff.

Of course you won't reach Chicago with it. The honest, simple, listen, young man stood right here, Thursday night, on our nationwide radio broadcast. Teenager, I'm guessing what, where is, I've forgotten the name of the fellow, Murphy, 16 years of age.

Stood right here. Tom Murphy, one of our boys, went over to the north side of Chicago, to the park, was it Grant Park? One of those parks along the shore drive there? Park. And a bunch of kids had a football game.

And Tom stopped the game. One of the 16-year-old boys, Christ. And I asked the 16-year-old boy, I asked him, well, look, how did you feel about stopping the game? He said, not bad, we were losing anyway.

And I asked, well, how did you feel? Here comes a fellow up and talks to you about getting saved. Didn't that sort of rub the fur the wrong way? He said, no. I wanted to get saved. I wanted to get saved.

And I asked him, I said, well, how did you want to get saved? He said, because he had been over there a day or two before, and won my buddy to Christ. And my buddy had told me how good you felt when you get saved.

And I wanted to have what my buddy had. Don't you see what I'm saying? Brother, when it's real, folks will listen to you. That's why the building's full tonight. This church is not popular. And we get cussing and criticized and we're hated.

I know it. A fellow walked in my office this morning. And he said, I lost my job. These are college students. I've lost my job. And by the way, if you have a job for me, I'd like to talk to you. But see me and I'll point you in his direction.

But I lost my job. I said, why? He said, I witnessed on the job too much. And I said, now look, while you're working, you shouldn't witness. You ought to work. Witness before you go to work or after you get through.

But you shouldn't witness on the other fellow's time. And work hard and be a good employee while you're on the employer's time. And he said, I didn't witness. He said, I did it before or after. But I told him, I went to Hiles Anderson College.

And he said, oh, you were that proud, huh? They got together and lied about him and said he found him asleep on the job. And lied about him. And he got fired. I know what folks think about us. I don't care what you think.

You get mad. You walk out the door and never walk back in here again. And you lie and cuss and say what you want to say. But brother, there's something real going on inside these walls. There's something real here.

That's why folks are coming. Folks walking the doors back there that wouldn't, listen, that wouldn't admit they were here. But folks who hate us six days a week come to hear us on Sunday. Why? Because I'm a good preacher?

Not on your life. Because we have good music? Not on your life. This whole world is sin sick and this world is heart sick for somebody who knows God and makes Him real to people. And that's why we have the hippie crowd, the Jesus freak crowd.

I'll be honest with you. I know some towns. If I lived in them and had to choose, I'd run to the Jesus freak crowd rather than go to the starchy churches in town. Our country is going to hell. And the reason she is is because of God's people just going through the motions.

The Danger of Casual Christianity

Folks, right here tonight, Jesus doesn't mean a thing in the world to you. There are folks here tonight. You'll walk out those doors and you won't read your Bible between now and next Sunday morning. You won't bow your knee to pray one time between now and next Sunday morning.

You will let folks curse the name of Jesus Christ on the job and you will never say one good word about Him. And you live like the heathen live. Buying and selling and eating and drinking and marrying and giving and marriage.

Just living for self and living for me and living just like the heathen live. This country could be saved if God's people would just be real. Just be real. Now how do you make it real? You make it real when you come to the place with the Apostle Paul who said, God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Counting Worldly Advantages as Loss

Paul could have gloried in his past. Philippians chapter 3, the Apostle says, Though I might have also confidence in the flesh, if any other man thinketh that he hath wherewith of him might trust in the flesh, I more circumcise the eighth day of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, as touching the law of Pharisee, concerning zeal, persecuting the church, touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.

But what things were gained to me, those I counted lost for Christ. Paul said, I gave up all these things for Jesus Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all things but lost for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but done.

What's that? Garbage! Paul said, I was a man of social standing. I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said, I was a man with a great future. I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said, I was a man of the elite, but I counted garbage.

I gave it up. Paul said, My family was on the social standing, but I counted garbage. I gave it up. Paul said, I was going up the ladder in the Sanhedrin. I counted garbage. I gave it up. He said, All of it.

Why? He said, For the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. You know why we don't know God? We're trying to hang on to the world one hand and hang on to God the other. We're like these little lizards we used to have down in Texas.

They changed colors according to what colors were around them. I mean, we want to be just as popular as the world is, and yet, no God. You can't do it, brother. We want to dress like the world dresses, and yet, no God.

You can't do that. We want to wear our hair like the world wears their hair, and no God. We want to go where the world goes. We want to go to the same movies. We want to go to the same dances. We want to use the same lingo.

We want to have the same music the world has. And yet, by some hocus-pocus form of magic, we want to come to a church for a couple of hours a week and learn to know God. You don't do it that way. You take all of life's dreams and throw them in the garbage can for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ.

You take your own personal ambition and throw them in the garbage can counting as done for the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Oh, I long for the people in this church to give everything to God.

Everything to God. All to Jesus I surrender. We sing it, and we sing it, and we sing it. It means almost nothing to us. Remember the place in our lives where we say with the Apostle Paul, I was a Hebrew of the Hebrews, but accounted as garbage for Jesus Christ.

I was circumcised the eighth day. I was in every way a high-class kind of a kid, but accounted garbage for Jesus Christ. I was on the Sanhedrin or studying for the Sanhedrin, but accounted garbage for Jesus Christ.

Look what he got. He got the excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Now you listen to me for a minute. If you could ever one day in your life, just one day in your life, come to know God long enough to go to bed that night and say, I'll walk with God today, you wouldn't care any more whether you were popular or not.

The average person in this house has never gone to bed at night and been able to say, honestly, today I knew God. Oh, you're saved. I know that. You've trusted Christ. But you don't know God any more than I know Spiro Agnew.

I mean, if he runs for president, I'll vote for him. Because I'm for him and also because of the crowd that puts up a man every year, I wouldn't vote for them. There's Charlie Brown running against them.

But I mean, you're saved. You've trusted Jesus. But you never have gone to bed at night and said, I'll walk with God today. I knew God today. Oh, for some people who know Him. Oh, for some people who walk alone if needs be, but they know God.

Walk with Him and they know Him. I mean, they know Him. Paul said, I'm saved. But he said, I came to the time in my life where I got the garbage can out and I put my heritage in the garbage can and I put my race in the garbage can and I put my religion in the garbage can and I put my profession in the garbage can and I put my future in the garbage can and I put my social standing in the garbage can.

Paul said, I did it. Why, Paul? Why? Paul said, I want to know Jesus Christ. The excellency of the knowledge of Jesus Christ. The longer I live and the more I walk with God, the more fed up I get with the flesh.

I mean, just a little. Most of us, we live just to talk and chat, call somebody on the telephone and read some newspaper, read some magazine and watch John's other life on television or Secret Storm or the public hurricane and watch the television program and then turn the radio on right quick and listen to that call-in program.

We're going to talk about house this time and we just go from one to the other just enjoying ourselves and talking a little bit and we'll gospel a little bit and we'll criticize somebody a little bit and read some more magazine and then go talk to somebody a while longer and just chit-chat and fellowship one with the other and most of us never one hour ever walk with God.

And if anybody ever does decide to walk with God, everybody thinks he's nuts. Paul said, I want to know Jesus Christ. And he said, I'm willing to put everything else in the garbage can. I don't claim to have apprehended.

I don't claim to be all I want to be and all I ought to be. But I never did begin to know God until I started giving up some things that I wanted. I recall when the president of my college, when I graduated, called me on the telephone.

He said, I want to have dinner, I want to have lunch with you today or tomorrow or next Tuesday or sometime at the Baker Hotel in Dallas. Dr. H .D. Bruce, president of my college, where I graduated, sat across the table from me and he said, Jack, he said, I want to tell you something and I was shocked to death.

He said, you're one of the two outstanding young men ever graduated from East Texas Baptist College. Now, not my grades. My grades weren't that good because I was preaching every night somewhere and I'd take all the cuts I was allowed.

I was preaching revivals and so forth. But he said, Tim Trammell, he said, Tim Trammell and you are the outstanding students that ever attended East Texas Baptist College. Now, he said, Jack, we want to honor you.

We want you to come back to the school and be honored by your school. But he said, if we do, you're going to have to change your style of preaching a little bit. Now, he said, go ahead and hate sin, but don't call it by name.

Don't stomp so loud when you talk about it. He said, we want to honor you. He said, you, now forgive me, I sound like I'm bragging. I'm really not. But he said, you, hold in your hand the hope of East Texas Baptist College influencing this country.

And we want you to come back and be a part of our family. But he said, you'll have to tram. And I got up from the table and I said, Dr. Bruce, I'm not going to change my preaching one whit. Not one whit.

He shook his head and he says, you're the same old Jack. And I said, thank you. I think I know what you mean. If it means I haven't changed, I thank you. And I hope under God, I said, I hope under God, if sin is wrong tonight, if it's wrong tomorrow, if it's wrong the next day.

And I said, come back 20 years from now and I hope under God I'm still preaching against sin, just like I do tonight. What happened? I can go on the campus of the school where I graduated and they won't even ask me to lead in prayer.

I came to a place in my denomination's life where I couldn't support the mission program and the schools that were liberal. And I decided not to give a dime. And by the way, not one dime is going to come from this pocket to support any dirty school that allows the Fosdicks and the Buttricks and the Norman Vincent Peals and all the rest of them to come and shake the faith of young preachers who ought to be hearing God's men bring the message of God.

And so I decided I couldn't do it. And they gave me a choice. Either you support the work or you won't belong to our group. And I took my denomination and tossed it in the garbage can. I tossed my school in the garbage can.

Over 13 years ago, I tossed my state in the garbage can. Now that's getting serious when you come from Texas. But I'll tell you what, I didn't ever really know God. Well, I was saved, but I didn't know God until I came to a place in my life where I decided to count everything else but loss.

All of it but loss. Paul said, I determined, God forbid,.

That I should glory in nothing.

Save the cross of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Paul could have gloried in his past. Paul could have gloried in his sufferings. In 2 Corinthians 6 and other passages, he lists his sufferings. How that he was beaten so many times and he was shipwrecked so many times and he was in jail so many times and how he was in prison and how he was hated and all the things that happened.

Paul could have said, I have glory in the suffering that I have done for Jesus Christ. But Paul said, God forbid, that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Paul could have gloried in his revelations.

In chapter 12 of 2 Corinthians, he told about the time when he was caught up in the third heaven and Paul said, I could glory. But he said, lest I be exalted above measure that was given me a foe in the flesh.

Paul could have gloried in what he saw in his revelation. He could have gloried in his sufferings. He could have gloried in his past. He could have gloried in his education. Paul said, I'm going to glory in the cross of Christ.

The Cross Above the Incarnation, Life, and Resurrection

But now, wait a minute. Notice, he didn't say, I glory in Christ. He said, I glory in the cross of Christ. Paul didn't say, God forbid that I should glory save in the incarnation of our Savior. The incarnation was wonderful.

My, my, my, Christmas is coming and I get a little weary of Christmas time us talking about a little baby born in Bethlehem and the average kid, all they know is that 2 ,000 years ago a little baby was there in a manger and here was Mary and here is Joseph.

10 ,000 times more happened than that. God, the eternal, preexistent God of glory became flesh and walked among men in Bethlehem's manger. God incarnate. God clothed the form with flesh. Don't be deceived and hoodwinked by the world's attempt to direct your attention away from the incarnation toward a little baby in a manger and a woman and a man beside him.

God became flesh in Bethlehem. We beheld His glory, but glory is of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth. Paul could have said, I glory in the incarnation, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in the life of Christ.

Never a man lived like he lived. You've heard me say from this pulpit again and again almost every Sunday, Oh, never a bad word came through his lips and never a bad thought entered his mind and never a bad thing entered his eyes and never a bad path was trodden by his feet.

The perfect Lamb of God, Paul could have said, I glory in nothing but the life of Jesus Christ. I glory in the fact that He stilled the wave and calmed the storm, caused the dumb to speak and the lame to leap like a heart and the dead to live and the sick to rise.

He stilled the storms and calmed the waves and blessed the little children and raised the dead. Paul could have said, He the sinless Lamb of God, I glory in His life, but Paul didn't say that. Paul could have said, I glory in His resurrection.

Ah, His resurrection. You've heard preacher after preacher say it, but still it's true. The Buddhists can take you to a place tonight and say, here lies the body of Buddha. Mohammedans can take you to a place tonight and say, here lies the body of Mohammed.

Confucius followers can take you to a spot and say, here lies the body of Confucius. Joseph Smith followers can take you to a spot and say, here lies the body of Joseph Smith. But twice I've been to a spot where I can say, here was the body of Jesus Christ.

He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today. Paul could have said, I glory in His resurrection. Oh, it seems to me that would be a lot more glory about than in the cross. It seems that blessed incarnation when angels sang the songs to shepherds watching their flocks by night, when wise men came to the little Christ child and brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, when Mary and Joseph looked in the face of God becoming flesh as He was in the manger and all of heaven still to a holy hush as they looked down and saw God becoming flesh.

What a glorious thing in which the glory or the wonderful life of our Lord as He lived among men and walked as the perfect Son of God. Walked with sinners, but never sinned. Walked with liars, but never lied.

Walked with murderers, but never murdered. Walked with thieves, but never stole. Walked with bad folks, but never did bad. Walked with haters, but never hated. Walked with those who cursed, but never cursed.

Walked with those who did wrong, but never wronged. Paul could have said, I glory in that kind of a life, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I glory in the resurrection, that empty tomb, but he didn't.

Paul could have said, I glory in the ascension. Oh, we don't say enough about the ascension of our Lord, we don't say enough about it. Ah, when Jesus died, all the saved who had ever been saved before he died had gone to a place called Paradise, a part of Hades.

And there they were waiting, the time when our Lord would ascend into the pit of Paradise and bring captivity captive. And our Lord, when He died, went down to Paradise, the division of Hades and Paradise, and took those spirits that had been in prison, in Paradise, ever since Abel had died, and He lifted them out of the prison and carried them to heaven, and He rose up into heaven to be the intercessor and the priest of all those that trust Him.

Paul could have said, I have glory in that, but he didn't. Paul could have said, I have glory in His second advent. He could have said, I have glory when I think of the Savior coming and the clouds and those who are dead and Christ rising, and we which are alive and remain, being caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Paul could have said, I have glory in that. Paul could have said, I have glory in the fact that Jesus is going to be crowned at the judgment seat of Christ when He gives us our crowns, and we hurl them at His feet.

I have glory in that. Paul could have said, I have glory in the time when Jesus shall come on a white horse and put down the Antichrist and establish a kingdom of peace that will cover the earth with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea.

And King Jesus shall ascend the royal stairway of Mount Zion, and He shall rule and reign on the earth for a thousand years. Men shall beat their swords in the plowshares and their spears in the pruning hooks, and they shall not know war any more.

The knowledge of God shall cover the earth like the waters cover the sea. Little child shall play at the hole of the cockatrice then, and little lion down the street, and old man shall die at a hundred, and folks will say, what a pity, just a baby died.

And that age where sin shall be put down, and God's people shall be mayors and presidents and city councilmen. We are on the show for a thousand years. Paul could have said, I have glory in that, but he didn't say that.

Paul said, I have glory in the cross. For a minute, would you please, would you compare that old bloody cross to that precious empty tomb, and wonder why Paul would glory in a bloody cross? Oh, that old rugged cross so despised by the world has a wondrous attraction for me, for the dear Lamb of God suffered and bled and died on dark Calvary.

Oh, the cross for glory, not in the ascension, not in the coming of Christ, not in the incarnation, not in his sinless life, but the cross. God's own darling son was nailed to a tree after being scourged with a cat of nine tails and hated and jeered and mocked.

Here's the king of glory, lift up your gates, and the king of glory is coming in. Here's the king of glory with no throne but a cross, no crown but a crown of thorns, and no royal scepter but a walking stick, and no robe to wear but a borrowed overcoat.

No subjects but a jeering mob. Here's the king of kings and lord of lords on the cross, and blood running down his face and his hands, and a crown of thorns on his head, and those old Middle Eastern thorns down into his brow, and blood running down his cheeks, and a spear in his side, and the blood and water came out of his side, and dogs are licking his wounds, and people laughing and mocking, and suddenly Pilate stands up and says, at this time of the year, we always let some prisoner go, some criminal go.

On this side we have a wicked man named Arabus, and on this side we have Jesus. I find no fault in him. And so on this side we have a man guilty of sedition. On this side we have Jesus, the sinless one about whom the centurion said, surely this was the Son of God.

On this side we have a man who's been caught in robbery and in sedition. On this side we have Jesus, whom shall I let go? The angry mob cries, crucify him, crucify him, crucify him, let Arabus go. The wicked criminal goes loose while the darling, perfect, sinless Son of God goes to Calvary.

See from his head, his hands, his feet, sorrow and love full mingled down, did e 'er such love and sorrow meet a thorns composed so rich a crown, were the whole realm of nature mine, that were a present far too small, love so amazing, so divine, demands my life, my love, my all.

Paul said, that's my glory. I glory in the spittle on his face. I glory in the nails in his hands. I glory in the crown of thorns on his head. I glory in the spear in his side. Why? I'll tell you why.

That's the hope of the world. There on the cross, that's the hope. Paul said, I glory in that. But now wait a minute. There are three deaths on this cross. Are you listening? There are three deaths on this cross.

The Three Deaths of the Cross

Jesus died, the world died, and Paul died. Galatians chapter 4, verse 16 says it. God forgave that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

Three deaths there. Give me just a trifle more volume, please. Three deaths there. What? First one, Jesus died. Why did Jesus die? You know, let me have your attention for a minute. We have the strangest idea that all Jesus died on the cross for was so we could go to heaven.

No. Jesus died on the cross so God could get us back within his righteousness and justice. Did you know that God was happier about Calvary than man was? Did you know that Christ died for God before he died for sinners?

Did you know that God had to accept Christ before you had to accept Christ? You could accept Christ all you want to, but unless God accepted Christ and his penalty on Calvary, you'd still be lost in sin.

Christ died for God. Father, man has fallen. Yes, I know it, son, and I want him back. I don't know why, but I love him. I love old Adam. I love him. I don't know why I love the old sinner, ate the forbidden fruit, but I love him.

And I love Eve. I don't know why I love her. She's going to be deceived by the devil, and she's going to turn her back. I don't know why I love her, but I love her. And I love old Bob Billings. I don't know why I love him, but I do.

And I love old C .W. Fisk and John Colston and Ron Perkins. I don't know. I love old Jack Hiles. I don't know why, but I do. Oh, why don't you forgive them? I can't forgive them. My justice must be met.

Their price must be paid. And Jesus said, Father, I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll go to the cross, and I'll take Ron Perkins' sins and Hiles' sins and Billings' sins and Adam's sins and Eve's sins and the sins of all the world, and I'll put them on my record, and I'll dip my own soul into hell and pay the penalty for their sin.

Oh, let me tell you something. Let me tell you something. When God the Father turned His back on Jesus Christ 2 ,000 years ago, and Jesus Christ looked up and said, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

I think it broke the heart of God to turn His back on Jesus, but I think while His heart was broken, I think God said, Hallelujah, I can take them all back now.

I can have them all back now. My justice is satisfied.

That's the thing we ought to glory in. Paul said, I glory in that. Paul said, nothing good about me, I just glory in the cross. But there's a second thing. It said, Paul said, I glory in the cross. Nothing said the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified.

I mean, what does that mean? That means that while our Lord was being crucified on the cross, the world was dying to fall. What do you mean? I mean, when Paul came to Christ, the world died. Boy, I wish I could get you there.

I wish I could get you to the place where the world is dead. I wish, listen, some of you ladies that sit home in the afternoon and watch one of these little soap operas after another, you just can't wait until the medics come on.

Or, I'm trying to think of them. I read the television schedule in a paper for this sermon. I forgot them now. Secret Storm. What are some of the rest of them, Ron? As the world turns. What's the one you watch after that?

As the world turns. Do you know what? If you ever get a good old glimpse of the cross, now you listen to me. If you ever get a glimpse of the cross and ever one day walk with God, that'll be the deadest stuff you ever saw in your life.

It'll die. And you'll look at it, Ron, if you ever one time, and I'm just kidding you, of course. You don't watch that. You only watch the Carson Show and other good Christian programs. But one time, boy, tomorrow afternoon, you'll say, oh, I got to be sure and get the ironing all done.

And I got to be sure and get the house all clean. And be sure to take the phone off hook because the world's going to turn now. And so you turn that little knob on and boy, you just can't wait. And you say, I just wonder what's going to happen, wonder which one she's going to run off with this time.

And so you sit there and all of a sudden you say, you know, it's not as good as it usually is. You know what happened? It died last night. The world died last night. That's what the Apostle Paul meant when he said to Timothy in 1 Timothy chapter 6, I think it is, where he said, she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth.

Dead! Dead! This may come as a great shock to you. You folks say, you folks go to church all the time. Come back on Wednesday night and go to church all the time. One fellow said, I got one of you members next door to me.

He said, he's never home. He's never home. If we do go to church, we get home two hours before he does. He said, what do you folks see in all that? I'll tell you what we see. We see in your life exactly what you see in ours.

We drive by this little tavern down here, little leaf-in, limp-out place down here on Soul Street, and we look in there just like you look in here. I mean, we drive by and say, good night! It's dead!

Why? The world is dead! That's why Max Hilton, Max Palmer, stood up a while ago and he said, I haven't wanted a bottle of liquor or whiskey since I got saved. You know why? The world died! He said, two days after I got saved, I quit smoking and haven't wanted a cigarette since.

The world died! Paul said, I have glory in the cross. Jesus died for me there, but the world died to me there. Maybe he said, I went back to the world, but it wasn't, it was dead. Went back to the old crowd, but the old crowd was dead.