Cold Love at Midnight — David Wilkerson

Cold Love at Midnight — David Wilkerson

This message is one of the Times Square Pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing to World Challenge P .O. Box 260, Lindale, Texas 75771 or calling 214 -963 -8626.

None of these messages are copyrighted and you are welcome to make copies for free distribution to your friends.

The Coming of the Lord and Holy Expectation

Second Peter, the third chapter, and just leave it open there. And for those who have just been saved, if you get to John, turn, you've gone too far, go back. Second Peter, third chapter, and just leave it open there, please.

I'll be speaking a lot out of the third chapter of Second Peter. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for the precious word we heard this morning. How you warmed our hearts and you provoked us, Lord, to prayer and to love.

Now, Lord Jesus, you're just adding to it tonight. I pray that you give me a spirit of love, an anointing of the Holy Ghost. Lord, come down right now upon us mightily. Lord, give me a freedom. Give me an anointing, an anointing of the Holy Ghost that I may speak as the oracle of God.

Lord, we thank you for your presence here tonight. You're moving among us. Lord, you've been precious, you've been so close to us. Lord, get glory and honor tonight from your word. We do take your authority over every evil spirit, every doctrine of demons.

Lord, we take control in Jesus' name of everything demonic and of the spirit of darkness, and it's commanded in Jesus' name to flee the house that the word of the Lord may go forth and strengthen power in the name of Jesus.

Amen. I need a little more on the monitors here so I won't have to lift my voice too much there, okay? Thank you very much. Now, according to the word of God, Christians are to live every day as if the end of all things has come.

That's what the Bible says. The end of all things is near, and we're to live like that. We're always to be looking for the coming of Jesus. If you're a Christian, you should be looking for the coming of Jesus every day you get up.

All day long, you should be looking for the return of the Lord Jesus. We're to be aware, the Bible says, be diligent as servants waiting for their Master to return from a long journey. And Paul said, we're to desire that we leave this body and put on the new body.

In other words, not just when you have aches and pains, but even when you're feeling good, say, Lord Jesus, I've got a new body in eternity. And the Bible said, we long to be clothed with that new body.

We must long to be with the Lord. Paul longed to be with the Lord at all times. In my book that I wrote a few years ago called Set the Trumpet to Thy Mouth, I warned of a hydrogen holocaust coming to the United States of America.

And in it, taking many scriptures, I showed that I believe in my heart, with everything in me, that Russia is going to make a first strike attack, a ballistic missile attack on the United States. It'll come over the North Pole.

And some of you, that may blow you away right now. In fact, when I first wrote that in the first chapter of that book and gave many, many scriptures to prove it, we had charismatic preachers who banned the book.

You know what I'm talking about, especially in Texas. They banned the book. There were preachers who were absolutely enraged and called me a false prophet. In fact, one charismatic preacher of a large church wrote a book on false prophets and used me as a classic example of a false prophet.

Enraged because it was a gloom and doom message, they said. In fact, the one preacher who wrote the book said, all bad news preaching is of the devil. Words to that effect. He said, we won't have it in this church.

He said, the gospel is nothing but good news. None of this preaching of judgment and hell and none of this harping on sin, it's all false. He said, if you hear a man talking about sin, if you hear a man talking about hell, if you hear a man talking about destruction and doom, he said, he's not of God.

Well, then my friend, according to his definition, Peter was a false prophet. Peter was a false prophet by his definition. I want to ask you, do you believe that the epistle of Peter is in the gospel?

Do you believe that's a part of the gospel of the Lord Jesus? Let's read it. Let's go to 2 Peter 3 and 7. Read the 7th verse. But the heavens and the earth which are now. Now, you know what that means?

You go out and look up there and see the stars. It's your sky. It's my sky. It's not that of the flood. It's not of the apostles, even right now. It's ours. The heavens and the earth that now exist, what's it say?

By the same word are kept in store, reserved unto what? Reserved unto fire against the dead judgment and perdition of ungodly men. Now, folks, if you've never been here before and you don't understand the kind of gospel that you're beginning to hear already, please don't get mad at me because I'm just quoting you scripture right now.

Get mad at me later when I enlarge on it. But right now, just stay with the word. Don't get mad at God. By the same word, they're reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing. This one thing that one day is with the Lord is a thousand years, and a thousand years is one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but He's long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens shall pass away with the what? A great noise. And the elements shall melt with fervent heat. The earth also and the works thereof that are therein shall be burned up.

Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in all holy conversation of godliness? Looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on what?

Being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat. Nevertheless, we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Glory be to God.

Look at the next verse, by the way. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot and blameless. All right, look this way, please.

Peter makes two incredible statements here in this passage. First of all, God's fiery judgments that are being stored up right now, being held in reserve for the day of judgment, they are meant to provoke us to holy living.

They're given to us to provoke us to righteousness. Seeing then, that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in all holy conversation of godliness? He said, now that you know that the heavens and earth are reserved for fire, it's going to happen at any moment, he said, that's hanging there, it's there, it's coming definitely, he said, you see it, what kind of person ought you to be in your lifestyle and in your holy conversation in godliness before the Lord?

In the original Greek it reads, in light of everything being dissolved, and here's what the original Greek says, what country are you from? And that's exactly what it says, seeing all these things to be dissolved, what manner of persons, it really, the best interpretation is, seeing these things going to happen, what country are you a citizen of?

Are you tied down to this earth? Is everything revolving around your success, your career, your job, everything else, or are you citizen of heaven, of Zion, the city of God? Where is your citizenship?

Now folks, I love my country, when I preach like this, some people think I don't love America, I love America as much as anybody else, but I'm not a citizen of the United States as much as I'm a citizen of Zion, the holy city of God.

Peter is saying this knowledge that God has given us, of the destruction that's coming, ought to encourage you to holy living, to be weaned from the spirit of this world, and to keep your eyes on Jesus.

The second thing he says, we're not to dread the coming destruction, but instead Christians are to look for it, they're to anticipate it, and keep their garments spotless in light if it's happening. Well, let me read it to you again, seeing that ye look for such things, you know that's what bothers me, they say, I get it in the mail sometimes, Brother Dave, you're one of those gloomy preachers, you look for this stuff.

He said, you search the Bible and look for it. What's it saying? Saying that ye look for such things. I'm only doing what he told me to do. They that look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot and blameless.

Warnings Against False Prophets and Dominion Theology

Now if Peter were resurrected, and came in the flesh, and traveled around America and visited our churches, he'd be appalled, by all the sugar sweet candy cotton preaching, from pillow prophets. Listen, I mean this with everything in me, Peter would say, if he met some of the modern prophets that God's raised up in Watchman, I believe Peter would return to them, and take them by the hand and say, Brother, what's wrong?

Why aren't they warning their people of the coming destruction? Don't they know that God gave me this message? The Holy Ghost moved on me? And I got this directly from the throne of God. This is not a joke, you can't spiritualize it.

It's going to happen. Why aren't they warning them? Why do they make fun? Why do they mock preachers who try to wake up their people? Why aren't they provoking people to holiness through these warnings?

Peter would say, don't they know Jesus gave the very same warning I've given? Do you remember what Jesus said? The sun shall be darkened, the moon shall not give her light, and the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Jesus said that. He warned us of that. And Isaiah the prophet, and all the hosts of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together like a scroll, and all their hosts shall fall down as the leaf falleth from off the vine.

John, on the Isle of Patmos, got the same revelation. He said the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became blood-like, the stars of heaven fell to the earth, even as a fig tree cast her untimely figs, and the heavens departed as a scroll when it's rolled together, and every mountain and island removed out of their places.

Now, why such talk from the Scripture? Why these warnings to the church? Paul said to stir up your pure minds, to keep your hearts stirred and active, to bring to your remembrance the warnings of all the prophets.

Now, isn't this amazing? Jesus warns, Paul warns, Peter warns, all the prophets warn, all the true shepherds warn, but in spite of that, Peter predicts and prophesies that there will come scoffers in the pulpit.

Mocking and ridiculing. There will come scoffers. Look at verse 3. 2 Peter 3, 3. Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lusts and saying, Where is the promise of his coming?

For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. Did you see that? Now, look at me, please. These, Paul says, these men who are scoffing the soon return of Jesus, and by the way, there's a whole teaching now called Dominion Gospel, and they're telling you Jesus is not coming right now, in fact, he's not coming until we conquer the whole world for him, we take over the government, we take over science, we take over the arts, we take over music, we take it over all.

We have a pastor sitting here from Texas. He's associated with Pastor Victor, I was talking to him the other day. He was into that gospel. And he had a marble company, and they prophesied over him that in this new kingdom age, this was going to be the kingdom marble company, and it was going to be the biggest.

So he was going to live like that, so he was about to buy a yacht, and his associate was going to buy an airplane, so they could enjoy this new dominion. The Lord had other plans. The plan was bankruptcy.

And God got him out of that stinking, horrible mess, and now he's preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus, and he's longing for the coming of the Lord. You see, scoffing, saying, where's the sign of his coming?

And then, Peter said, they're outright lying. He said, look at verse 5,. For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water, and in the water, whereby the world that then was being overflowed with water perished.

You know what they're saying? Where's the sign of his coming? Everything's continued as it was in the beginning. They're lying. He said, they willfully will not tell you that there was a preacher of righteousness named Noah.

He said, they know it. They're willfully ignorant. They're hiding something from you. He said, they know that God destroyed the earth once by a flood. He said, they know that God's revealed his character of judgment towards sin.

They know that. And they're willfully ignorant. They're hiding it from you. They know that for 120 years God waited patiently. Things have not continued the same from the beginning. Not at all. He said, these men are willfully ignorant of the whole flood, the destruction of the whole earth, when God destroyed everything that breathed, except those who were in the ark with Noah.

Eight souls. Eight people saved. They're willfully ignorant of the destruction cast on Israel when they sinned. They're absolutely ignorant of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. He said, they know Sodom was destroyed.

They know Sodom and Gomorrah was wiped out. Fire and brimstone. He said, but they come along and they tell you that God is not like that. God is all love. He said, they're willfully ignorant. They're telling, they're absolutely ignoring that.

You know you can go to churches right now where the men in the pulpit are willingly ignorant of this. They pass it out of mind. They will not tell you about the judgments of God. Let me tell you something else.

I preached a message last week of absolute love and mercy. And I'm telling you now, I'm preaching as much and more mercy right now than I did last week. Because the most merciful thing God can do for us is to raise up prophets and watchmen and warn us and prepare our hearts.

That's mercy. That's the mercy of the living God. Hallelujah. There shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lust and saying, where is the promises coming? Peter calls them willfully ignorant.

Now this is a very serious charge by Peter. And nothing I could say could make it any stronger at this point, I don't believe. So I want to move on. But you see, there's an attempt to kill off the conviction of the Holy Ghost.

Peter preached this. We, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace without spot and blame us.

Today you hear just the opposite. Jesus is not coming. Not until we take that dominion. So relax. Get yourself in position to be somebody in this new world. Now here's the real gospel according to Peter.

Verse 7, look at it. The heavens and the earth which are now, this is our world, by the very same word, the same word that destroyed the earth by the flood, the same word that brought fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, is the very same word of God kept in store, reserved under fire, against the day of judgment and prediction of ungodly men.

Judgment, Mercy, and the Call to Repentance

Now look this way, please. I believe that if we got our just reward, America would be destroyed already. It should have happened after the first million babies were killed and aborted. There was a river of blood.

There's been blood on our hands. Do you know that the first million babies that were aborted in the United States, God should have sent fireballs out of heaven and destroyed us because of the blood on our hands?

Do you know the first million rapes in the United States? This is the first million rapes. Our nation is only a few hundred years old. But the first million rapes, wouldn't you think that would be enough?

Wouldn't you think that the first million babies or little children were molested by their fathers and mothers with incest? Wouldn't you think that all these babies that are being drowned and murdered and killed and molested, wouldn't you think that all of heaven would be so in grief right now that God would say that's enough, I can't look on it?

Don't you think God should have destroyed us already? Wouldn't you think that the first ten billion dollars worth of drugs, demoralizing our youth, the first ten billion dollars with the mugging and the robbing and the stealing and everything goes with it, wouldn't you think that when President Reagan's top man in his drug program says that we have lost the war against drugs, drugs are spinning out of control, all our borders are down, it's coming in from Canada, from Mexico, from the Pacific, from the Atlantic, it's just like a sieve, nothing can hold it out now.

We are being baptized with drugs of all kinds. Wouldn't you think the first ten billion dollars worth would have been enough to grieve the heart of God and shut us down? Why isn't God destroyed? You get angry at me by me saying that God is going to wipe out much of this country with the Hydrogen Holocaust.

Did you read the paper yesterday? It was on the news all day yesterday that our CIA has discovered a huge multi-billion dollar underground cities all through Russia, even connecting city to city underground subways.

They are ready to take their whole government and all the elite of their society underground. They are already prepared. They can go through a first strike against America. And the Bible said when they cried peace and safety, then sudden destruction is going to come.

Sudden destruction. It's going to come on a noon day just like it did in Sodom. Everybody preparing to go to the parks for picnics and going out for their boat rides at the Dead Sea. Whatever it was, totally ignorant, totally unconcerned.

And God suddenly, near noon time, the fire began to fall and took them all away and they weren't even aware of it and so they'd been warned. And so it will happen again. America should have already been destroyed by fire.

Wouldn't you think that when the Supreme Court stuck its finger in God's nose, in his face, and said, get out of our schools, out of our courts, out of our society, wouldn't you think that would have been brazen enough for God to say, alright, that's enough?

And then to turn around and legalize homosexuality, legalize abortion, wouldn't you think God says, how much does it take? We've been spared, my friend. And I'll tell you why we've been spared. For the same reason God waited 120 years patiently while the ark was being prepared.

When once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah while the ark was preparing, wherein few, that is eight souls, were saved by water. And look what Peter says, 2 Peter 3, 9. Long-suffering, he is long-suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

You know what God's waiting for? Listen real good now. God is not building an ark now, but in a way it is an ark. He's building a city. Now that city is a people. A wholly separated people. Folks, I believe this started probably ten years ago.

In the last five years, it's really catching fire. The Lord is going to churches all over this nation and around the world and He's waking people up. And He said, you can't play church anymore. You can't live one foot in the world and one foot for Me.

I'm going to demand everything. I'm going to demand total obedience. I'm going to demand all for My people. I'm going to raise up a people who cleave to Me with everything that's in them. And God is awakening hearts.

He's calling them out of dead churches. And He's saying, you're going to serve Me with everything. You're not going to be sitting around watching pornography. You're not going to be sitting around watching those R-rated movies in your house anymore and those movies.

I'm going to purify a people after My own heart. And He's getting a people ready. And He's waiting for that city to be completed. And one of these days, hallelujah, just like God gave the very day when He closed the ark.

He said, that's it. That's it. Tomorrow, the Friday. And one of these nights, it may be a Sunday night just like this. God said, well, for New York, that's it. And there are other churches, that's it.

It's all wrapped up. Close the door. Close the door. And God will move on a Soviet polar bear. He will move and they will silently have the signal and they will creep underground. The button will be pushed and there will be a holocaust.

And you say, well, that's frightening. Not for a Christian that's walking in Zion. It says, look, seeing that you look for these things. What Jesus said, when you see all these things begin to happen, look up and rejoice.

Your attention draws nigh. Hallelujah. You say you want to be raptured? Well, I'll tell you what. If there were a hydrogen bomb that fell on New York City, here's one preacher that's not afraid because I'm going to be dissolved right into the presence of Jesus.

It may happen when I'm, oh, I'd love it when I'm preaching. Hey, wouldn't it be wonderful to be in church? Praising the Lord. Singing majesty. Majesty. He's waiting. Something. How else do you, how else can you explain in seven months?

We were almost full here this morning. We've got hundreds in the balcony also. How do you explain in seven months what's happening here? How can you explain what Jesus did to you in your heart? How do you explain that wakening that came to you?

For years, for years and years you're hungry and you're thirsty and finally God says now. And God began to open your eyes. He sent somebody to you, heard the call. What is that? That's supernatural. That's the Holy Ghost at work.

He's putting something together. He's putting something together. Hallelujah. It's his body. Hallelujah. Glory. Well, I've got to move on or I'll start shouting. Jesus warns, and here's my message. Jesus warns that on the eve of destruction, at the midnight hour for mankind, the love of many believers is going to grow cold.

Love Growing Cold at the Midnight Hour

Matthew, don't turn there, but I'll read it to you. These are the words of Jesus, Matthew 24, 12. And because sin shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. Do you know what it reads in the New American Standard?

The love of most will grow cold. The love of most Christians will grow cold. And in the Greek it says a great number, a large host. Either way you look at it, any way you look at it, many, many Christians are going to be cold in their love to Jesus right on the brink of judgment, right at the midnight hour, when they should be burning with fire, fervent, white hot.

They're going to be dying, decaying in their love for Jesus. You know what that word wax cold means? A reduction of temperature, degree by degree. A reduction. Evaporation. It's going to evaporate right out of their lives, just when they ought to be growing, expecting, and on fire.

They're going to start drifting away. Do you know there are going to be in these last days many deceivers? There are coming many false prophets, and many people are going to follow them. I'm going to read a couple of things to you.

For many deceivers are entered into the world now, and many shall follow their evil ways. And because of them, the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers who are going to subvert whole houses, teaching things they ought not to for the sake of money.

For the sake of money. They'll be talking about prosperity and money. I can't conceive how anyone in these last days can be talking about success and money or prosperity. We should be on our faces weeping before our holy God.

Satan is even now pouring out a flood of wickedness against God's people, trying to carry them away, the Bible says. I'm going to read you a scripture. Don't turn it. It's Revelation 12, 15. And the serpent cast out of his mouth waters a flood after the woman.

And this woman is the church. That he might cause her to be carried away with the flood. Carried away. Now, I'm going to talk to you in real love as a pastor. For you that attend Times Square Church, the first time I did this, I thundered at you, but I won't do it tonight.

Do you want to know the real reason? I believe that Christians who want to keep their love burning bright till Jesus comes ought to get rid of their television set. No clapping. Let me tell you the truth.

Let me tell you right out of my heart. I tell you with tears and brokenness. If I could just come into your house and sit down and just embrace you, and pray with you, and begin to open my heart to you, and let you feel the wrath of God that I feel against this thing.

Because God's so patient with His children, but then there comes a time where God says, Hey look, you know, you know that that's the flood gate. And behind it, the Bible says the devil's going to pour out of his own belly, out of his own mouth, a flood of wickedness.

You know, he's going to do that right through your TV set in your home. Because it's getting more vile, more wicked. Even the commercials are nudity. You can't even watch sports anymore without just polluting your minds.

And you know, I feel the Holy Spirit saying to me, David, why aren't my people seeing it? Why aren't they understanding that this thing is not innocent? That this thing has become wild and vicious and wicked.

And it's a flood gate, and every time they turn it on, they're opening the flood gate. And they stand a chance of being carried right away with the flood of filth. Be carried right away with it. Because all it's going to do is touch the love that you have for Jesus.

It's going to dampen, it's going to put a... Little by little, degree by degree, it will go down. You know, all I can do is tell you what I believe the Holy Spirit said to me. You can do with it what you want.

I'll love you just the same, but I tell you as a pastor, and I tell you it with brokenness in my heart, we're going to stand before the judgment seat of Jesus one day. We're going to answer for hearing the word of the Lord.

And I'm going to tell you, the time has come, and it's already here, that God is going to make it so clear that you're not going to be able to live a true overcoming life and hold on to these idols. You can't.

Because the devil has decided that he's going to come right into your home and blow you away and carry you away. I beseech you in the name of the Lord, one more time, because I have to stand before Holy God and answer.

I remember sitting with a well-known evangelist who recently was embarrassed. And he said, David, I've got cable in my home, and I was watching something, my little grandson, and I just saw how filthy it was, and I got so mad, I was going to take an axe and go just hit the cable.

You know my answer? Why don't you? I wish you'd had it. I wish it had been done. You know right now, God's dealing with some of you so sweetly and so loving about it, but one day is going to come, you're going to wonder why your love degree by degree gets cold, you come to church and get pumped up and get primed up.

Bob was preaching about it this morning. And then you wonder why all your prayers are hindered, you wonder why so many things go wrong, and yet you have an idol in your house. I don't care what anybody says, I'm calling it outright an idol.

It's an idol, it's a satanic idol. Now I know some of you may never come back again. I'll tell you what, I'm going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and I'll go home tonight saying, Lord, I want your people to accept your loving word.

I don't get any glory out of this. What good is it for me that you come and say I got rid of my television set? It's just to get rid of all the idols, it's to get rid of that floodgate out of your home so you can keep your eyes pure, and your eyes on Jesus, and it gives you more time to pray and seek the Lord.

Wouldn't it be awful? When that sudden destruction comes, that you're sitting there watching Dallas. Do you know what they're saying now? The writers of all these programs are competing with each other to see who can be the most wicked and vile.

They're bringing even incest in now. Right out of the pits of hell. Some of you dear saints look at me. Yes. And you're not going to do anything about it. You're going to say, I'm going to control it.

You try controlling the devil, playing games with him. No, you cast him out. You get away from it. I don't know why I'm lingering at this. I don't want to. I want to move on. But I feel God saying there's not going to be victory.

You're not going to be able to hold that love this midnight hour unless everything of Satan is gone out of your home, and your heart, and your life. Help me Jesus to move on now. This flood is coming.

Persevering Through Hard Sayings

Now, do you sit in this meeting tonight and ask yourself, and you say to yourself, like Peter, Lord Jesus, do others forsake you? I'll never forsake you. I love you with all my heart. My love will never grow cold.

I will not be like Peter and deny you three times. My love is growing. But do you know the Bible says many, many are going to grow cold in the love? Can you imagine yourself ever being one of these that he's talking about, Jesus is talking about?

Could you be one of those many who because sin abounds and you begin to get the spirit of the world in you? The lust keeps coming back and it's not dealt with. You won't lay down the idols. And all of this iniquity increases, increases, and it begins to vex your soul.

And then it starts cooling down your love. But the sad truth is many who have been delivered from sin, many who have been awakened by the Holy Ghost, you used to attend a dead church, now you're alive.

God's beginning to open the word to you. You're seeing revelation after revelation. Your heart's being stirred and awakened. You tell others what God's been doing for you. You say, oh, the Lord's helping me to grow.

I see things I've never seen. The only problem is the Bible says there are going to be many carried away with the spirit of this world. They're going to go after things. They're going to indulge in the plays of the world.

They're going to get sucked into the flood of filth. There are going to be some that say, I've come far enough. I can't take any more of this preaching of separation from the world. My goodness, aren't we to enjoy life?

Listen, I'll tell you who enjoys life more than anyone else. Those who have that quiet confidence in their security in Jesus. Those who are not trying to prove anything to anybody. They believe that Jesus has saved and healed them and blotted out their sins.

And they don't have to be up and down. They're not yo-yo Christians. They've got that quiet peace and confidence because they walk by faith. And they're tearing down their idols as God deals with them.

I've been getting some wonderful letters and notes from some of the saints here, the Christians in this church. They're saying, Brother David, thank you for your message last Sunday night on mercy and the confession of your heart that you felt you needed more mercy when you preached.

And we needed that kind of encouragement. But also remember that some of us have misinterpreted the word of God that's coming forward. And you can misinterpret what God is saying. And you can take it for hardness when it's not meant for hardness at all.

It's the love of Jesus Christ coming forth because He cares about His people. But many, I say it, Bob said it this morning, I say it again, some of you are not going to move on with God and let your love grow.

And I'll tell you why. Your love is going to grow cold by turning away from what you believe is a hard message, a hard word. You know, Jesus gathered His disciples together. This is near the time of His crucifixion.

And He said, unless you eat My body and drink My blood. He said, My body is meat, it's bread, and My blood is drink indeed. And what He's saying, He said, I want you to get all your source of life out of Me.

I want to be not first, I want to be everything to you. He demanded of all His disciples full surrender. He said, you don't walk with the world in Me. He said, you deny yourself, take up your cross and you follow Me.