Puppet or Prophet — Leonard Ravenhill

Puppet or Prophet — Leonard Ravenhill

I want to read from the Acts of the Apostles chapter 26. The Acts of the Apostles chapter 26. Reading from verse 13. At Middale King, I saw in the way light from heaven above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.

And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou, Lord?

And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest, but rise and stand upon my feet, for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose. Now listen to the purpose. To make thee a minister and a witness, both of these things which thou hast heard and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee, delivering thee from the people and from the Gentiles unto whom now I send thee.

Jesus’ Commission to Paul on the Damascus Road

To open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

Now without looking, who said that? Paul? No, Jesus said it. Jesus said it, Luke, one of the disciples recorded it, and Paul here repeated it. And the scripture says a threefold code is not easily broken.

So Jesus said it, Luke recorded it, and Paul the apostle repeated it. I remember a preacher we had in England, he was an oddball, preachers usually are. And he had a habit of talking with himself, to himself.

He said it was with himself, but other people said it was to himself. You couldn't tell the difference anyhow. He walked down the road, going away like this, you know. And somebody said to him one day, you're always talking to yourself.

Old friend, he said you need somebody sensible to talk to now and again. I thought it was a pretty good answer. But would you believe it, that some of the most intelligent men in America today are talking to a machine that has no ears to hear?

It's 200 million miles away on a planet called Mars, and they're talking to Viking number two and it has no ears to hear. It has no mouth, but it's talking back. It has no will, and so it has to do as it's told, and so every time they tell it to do something, it does something.

Now I don't care which way you measure that, it's a fantastic, amazing thing. I think somebody estimated that at least a million small parts in that machine, which was launched up there, I don't know how they got it there.

The sun's only 93 million miles away, and they've got it to, it actually traveled 220 million miles into space. And they told it where to set down, not go near the other part, you see. I think one's male and the other's female, and so they couldn't get on together.

So one is a thousand miles away from the other. The man in the street says, you know, the thing that troubles me today, in fact one of the great broadcasters said not long ago, the thing disturbs me that in America with all our wisdom, nobody can tell me what's going to happen in the next 10 years.

Nobody knows the future. Well, there's a lovely hymn, I don't know it too well, but the, I remember a phrase where the lady in England used to sing it, I don't know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.

The man in the street doesn't know what the future holds. He reads horoscopes. And blood stethoscopes are more dependable than horoscopes. But they read the horoscopes and they search crystal balls. They don't know what's going to happen tomorrow.

The Christian does, at least in part, because God has unveiled tomorrow to us. And you know, it struck me very forcibly that right now God is writing the last chapter of human history, as we know it. And to prove that, you go back to Viking.

Daniel’s Prophecy and the Increase of Knowledge

Well what's that got to do with it? Because it says in Daniel 12, that in the last days, men will rush to and fro in the earth. And this is a day of speed, and not only that, but knowledge will be increased.

Now it takes some knowledge, you can say what you like. There may be atheists that made it and fools, but it takes a lot of wisdom to get a thing together and project it in the sky and guide it to, what, 200 million miles and make it land where you tell it to land.

And right now they're speaking to it. And it's talking back. And if you think that's amazing, and it is, I want to tell you something. But away in a place called eternity, which may be 200 billion miles away, God is going to take a photograph of your heart this afternoon.

I remember lying in hospital when they were taking, I don't know what, electrocardiograms or something. And I could see something dancing up and down. They said, well that's your heart going up and down.

And it felt like it too. But there it was jumping. Do you know God will make an electrocardiogram, if I can use that phrase, of your heart this afternoon, and as you respond or fight against the spirit, it will all be on a graph there which someday He'll open up to you.

And not only you, but the eyes of everybody in eternity. That's why as Brother Joe was praying this afternoon, I was saying amen, because that word awes me. That word awe. That's why I've coveted that when you cross the threshold of this door, we won't be like any other house of God.

There'll be a sense of awe as we come in. This is holy God. I feel I want to kick my shoes off. God is in this place. Kicking your shoes off is symbolic of casting the dirt of the world outside and keeping the place holy.

It demands more than that physically, but that we discipline our minds and hearts to come in and listen so that God can get through to us. And this becomes an empty chamber of eternity. So that if you're to die right here and suddenly switch into eternity, you won't be surprised.

You won't need any adjustments. That's the only way to live anyhow. Who's the richest man in the world? There isn't a rich man. The richest man in the world has as much as I have. You didn't know that.

Well wake up. Because the richest man in the world only has one beat of the heart. That's all he has. And he may be as rich as Croesus. He can't buy another one. You're suspended on something more more slender than the sword of Democles that hang over the heads of the ancients as they say.

From Pulpit Puppets to Pulpit Prophets

All right. I read this chapter with a great deal of interest this week. It's about preachers that I, next week, a week. Monday I'll be preaching to preachers and the week after. So will you pray for me?

They're the dullest people in the world to preach to. But anyhow. I got a little phrase. I'm going to greet them and say. Gentlemen I'm hoping that by the time I'm through, God will have changed some of you pulpit puppets into pulpit prophets.

I don't think they'll kiss me for that. But I'm going to say it anyhow. Because if I didn't have that ambition, I wouldn't go. The pulpits are full of puppets instead of prophets. If there's a scripture at all that a preacher ought to read every week, surely it is this amazing scripture.

You see it not many shows us the the turning point in the in the life of a man. It shows us the turning point in the history of the church and the history of the world. God doesn't go looking for committees or organizations.

He looks for a man. You women are naturally, if you're married, you want to bring forth. You want to bring to birth. You want a child. Well my prayer is that in my spiritual capacity, we may raise out of our fellowship some preachers, more than preachers, some prophets.

Maybe these little guys around or John or some of these others. Jay that's away or the other Randy that's away. I don't know where they are. But anyhow, they may be there, they may not. They may be the smaller one.

I don't know. Glenn's back with us. He's got a chance. He's a Lutheran. And there's, there's an opportunity for God to work. If there isn't, we, we should pack up I think. We're not here just to save our lives or promote our spirituality.

We're here to reproduce our kind in God. And under God a different kind. After all, you won't want anybody like yourself, would you? We're going to have somebody a bit taller and a bit stronger spiritually.

Paul’s Trials Before Authorities

Now, now, now Paul in this amazing acts, in the 26th chapter here, in the 24th chapter, back to the 22nd chapter. He's in trouble. Good preachers are always in trouble. They close the door on the temple on him.

Boy that must have been thrilling. He had to stand on the steps of the temple in order to defend himself. And next he's up before a group of the hierarchy of the church. And then he's before Felix. And then he's before Festus.

And now he's before Agrippa. The first king in Israel was a tall handsome man by the name of Saul. A very wonderful man. He was filled with the Holy Ghost and he prophesied. But he died a suicide. The last of the great kings is Agrippa.

That's why Paul appears to him and says, King Agrippa understand the start of the prophecy. I know you know the prophecy, so don't come that one. You've been versed in this. He didn't say that to Festus.

He didn't say that to the other kings. He says it to King Agrippa. Now this story has been told, how can you tell it differently? Well I think there are many ways of telling it differently. Paul was drunk when he went down the Damascus road.

You say, he doesn't say that. He sure does. Because it says in verse 11. I'll go back to verse 10. Which thing I did in Jerusalem and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests.

And when they were put to death. You see he has said previously in the same book. He says in the 22nd chapter verse 19. And I said Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat them in every synagogue. And them that believed on the.

You see this man is a bloody man. Now going to the next verse. Verse 11 of the 26th chapter. I punished them oft in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly mad against them.

It wasn't a fever. It wasn't just a fury. He was blind with rage. Exceedingly mad. Do you know what God did? God purified that madness. And turned it into a mad devotion to Jesus Christ. Because while he's still going on in this chapter.

Festus jumped up. He had no right to stand up. He was only a guest in the court of King Agrippa. But he listened to the apostles intoxicated now with God. Festus jumped up and he says there a little. In verse 24 as he thus spoke of himself.

Festus said with a loud voice. Pour thou out beside thyself much learning doth make thee mad. And he says I'm not mad most noble Festus. You see that same passion that he had to exterminate Christianity.

He says in that 10th verse. He had received authority from many of the chief priests. And he put people to death. I wonder why? What infuriated him? Why didn't he attack the Pharisee? Or pardon me the Sadducees.

He was a Pharisee. He was the son of a Pharisee. He makes that very clear. But why? Why does he suddenly become so intoxicated against the Christians? After all Paul was a very well-traveled man. He has a marvelous pedigree.

He tells us that he was a citizen of no mean city. He claims again that he is of the tribe of Benjamin. And of the seed of Abraham. And he's of the finest stock. You see this man. He had upset rulers.

He had upset the town council. He had upset people in authority. And so they tried to pin something on him. And it says there in that 21st chapter. Verse 38 or verse 37. As Paul was led into the castle.

He said unto the chief captain. May I speak unto thee? Who said canst thou speak Greek? And at the end of the chapter you notice he's speaking Hebrew. That Egyptian which before these days made an uproar.

And led us out into the wilderness. Four thousand men that were murderers. I don't think we've a bunch like that. Except in jail right now. Four thousand men were murderers. And they're trying to pin it on to this man.

That he incited them. He's a man of such explosive disposition. He burns. He gets angry about things. You're the man that led the fourth out. Not four hundred. Four thousand murderers. And he said no sir I'm not that.

I'm a man who I'm a Jew of Tarsus. A city in Cilicia. A city of a citizen of no means city. And I beg you to help me. In these matters. Now he says in the first chapter of the letter to the Galatians.

And in verse 13. You've heard of my conversation in time past. In the Jews religion. How but beyond measure I persecuted the church of God. And wasted it. Now that's a way you hear on TV isn't it. There's a man we're going to waste him tonight.

You're going to waste him. You're going to destroy him. You're going to liquidate him. And I profited in the Jews religion above many of my equals. In my own nation. Being exceedingly zealous of the tradition of my fathers.

They're the same thing again. He burned you see. This man knows no half measures. He's a hundred percent for this. Or he's a hundred percent for that. He's going to liquidate this. He's going to destroy that.

And something disturbed him profoundly. He says in verse 15. When it pleased God who separated me from my mother's womb. And called me by his grace to reveal his son in me. He's talking now about Arthur he had been in Arabia.

You see the first thing God did was reveal himself to the apostle. And then he revealed himself in the apostle. And that made all the difference in the world. All right let me go back to the other chapter a minute.

More than a minute I guess. But 26th chapter here in Acts again. Here is the man going down this road to Damascus. Now he's on a missionary trip. Damascus is not in the country he belongs to. But you see something had happened.

The Persecutor Becomes the Preacher

What, what, what in the world suddenly ignited this man. To leave the security of the job he had. He was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. He was of the tribe of Benjamin. He's got every distinction a man could covet in those days.

And if he goes through with this bloody pact that he's made. He carries inside of his toga there. He has inside of his toga a deed which is signed by authority to say. You have every right to exterminate Christianity.

And instead of exterminating it, he experienced it. Isn't that like God to pull a trick like that? The persecutor became the preacher. The murderer became the missionary. He's going to Damascus. Why? And he's going to leave out such a bloody horrible mess there that history will recall it.

And God says brother you're not going there. You're going down around the world. Not with that blood on your skirts but with his blood in your heart. He says I hail many men and women to prison. I put them to death.

Do you know why, when I thought of that. I turned over and read this what it says in the sixth chapter of the revelation. Isn't it chapter six? Yeah. When he had opened the fifth seal I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God.

And you know what? I believe that every man that he put to death. Every drop of blood that spilled out of his body. Jesus counted it. And every hair that fell from his head. Jesus numbered it. And he thought got rid of them and Jesus says look I've got a filing cabinet under the altar of the prayers of the saints and they never die.

And I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll answer prayers that have blood on them before any other and the others. The blood of the martyr is the seed of the church. The only seed that God will honor is seed that has blood on it.

And Paul who was Saul at that time was going up the road and he was going to massacre those people. He had authority from the chief priests. I ask you again what was burning in his heart? I'll suggest two things to you.

I've read this story many times and never thought of them until just the other day. As a matter of fact I guess yesterday. You see the early church had been handed over to 12 disciples. Oh sure there were a few more went in the upper room.

But you know everybody didn't want the baptism of the spirit either. Jesus told 500 of them to wait. You know how many turned up? 120. What happened to the other 380? We don't even have that proportion today.

There's more people speaking in tongues but some are gossiping tongues and lying tongues and slandering tongues and a few genuine ones here and there but not so many. Well I'll tell you what happened.

The disciples had some blessing and the Lord said you know I've only partly fulfilled it. Here in the upper room your young men are going to see visions and your old men dream dreams. And this young fellow there called Stephen.

Man he was something. He's the youngest deacon in the church. And he was an evangelist and a deacon. That's a good combination. And that little fellow maybe wasn't 20 years of age and he got filled with the Holy Ghost.

Isn't that something? Let me read a little bit of his biography for you. It's genuine. Stephen full of faith and power did great wonders and miracles among the people. And so all the synagogue of the Libertines and Cyrenians and Alexandrians and them of Cilicia from where Paul actually came rose up in arms against him.

So as I told you the other night when Caleb and Joshua gave a good report the vote against them was six hundred thousand to two. That's a pretty heavy vote. Carter's hoping it won't come his way. But anyhow six hundred thousand to two.

And the two men that told the truth got stoned. The others got out. At least they wanted to stone them. Now here's a young man and all that he has is maybe 18 or 19 years of age. I'm sure he wasn't older.

But he's had an experience with God. He's had a revelation from God. He's had visions from God. He has prophecies from God. He has miraculous powers from God. And as Robert Murray McShane said a holy God, pardon me, a holy man is a terrible weapon in the hands of God.

That's why God fights, that's why the devil and people fight holiness. They don't fight gifts. They don't fight miracles. They fight holiness. Why? Because a holy man, a purge man, a pure man, a God intoxicated man is a terrible man.

And so they all ganged up on the little fellow. Oh boy that's a chapter you must read it for yourself. Stephen made his defense. Have you noticed it's the longest chapter in the Acts of the Apostles? He's got 60 verses.

Stephen’s Holy Witness and Martyrdom

Good friend of mine, he did a lot of time. And he has the longest chapter in the whole of the Acts of the Apostles. And he makes a superlative defense. You talk about church history. He starts with Moses and he talks about Abraham.

He talks about the successive manifestations of God. Right down to this very hour. And you know what they did? They got madder and madder and they gnashed on him with their teeth. And somebody says listen, bad enough having an Apostles like that.

They're getting old. But this young man, he's going to tear the whole structure of Judaism down. This man's going to set the world on fire. Hey come on get your coat off and let's stone him to death. Hey fella see, watch my coat will you?

And they laid their clothes at the feet of a brilliant, wonderful, straight-A student in every language he knew and everything else. And his name was Saul who afterwards to become Paul. They laid, and Paul was there.

He was watching a young man whose face was not only handsome, it was holy. He was transfigured. A radiance came from another world upon him. And somebody says, well I'll tell you what I'll do. I'll knock his right eye out.

Let me have a shot at that. Oh you missed it. You broke his jaw. Well let me try. No you hit his left eye. I want to try the right eye. Well see if you can knock his nose out. See if you can break his rib.

They decided to dismember him with rocks. Well that's not too pleasant to death. And instead of recanting, or asking for better treatment, or saying, and you call yourselves holy men. You know what he did?

He just radiated God. He did exactly like his master did. As he was dying with his last breath. He says, Father forgive them. They don't understand what they're doing. And his face radiated the holiness of God.

And you know what it did? It shone like a beacon into the heart of that man called Saul. It made him more angry. I'm convinced that that pursued him. Because years afterwards he recited. When they laid the clothes at my feet.

And I looked up at that young man. I thought, what in the world is he dying for? I wouldn't die for Judaism like that. Nobody else died like that. I think that was number one thing that provoked him. Number one thorn in his flesh if you like.

Well what else could upset him? I'm sure the progress of the church. He never thought it would get on the way it got on. Because these weren't real evangelists here. Because none of them had a mailing list.

But they did their best. They just depended on the Lord. And somehow the Lord saw them through. They didn't beg. They were shut up to God. And the church, the more they persecuted it. The more it grew.

They were scattered abroad. It's like having a fire. And when we were kids, some kids would say. When we lived on the edge of Sherwood Forest in England. And sometimes the boys would make a fire. And somebody say, hey we'll have to go.

Come on let's get rid of it. And one boy kick it. And then you start a dozen more fires. You say, that's not the way you put a fire. Get something and saturate it. But they scattered the Christians. And all they did was scatter light.

And scatter life. And scatter power. And they went everywhere jubilant. But they were counted worthy to suffer. Boy that's a new one isn't it. Oh you thought I'd say suffer. No suffer. Didn't say they were counted worthy to go to a supper.

They were counted worthy to suffer. For his name's sake. And they said we must be in the apostolic succession. We're privileged even to suffer like this. And so one thing that goads him is that radiance.

I sleep at night. I can see that young man dying there. He's all bloody. And he's sinking to the ground. And his face is radiant. Well if it quit there I wouldn't have mattered. Do you know what he said just before he died?

I can see Jesus standing. You see he not only made people excited. He got Jesus excited. Because Jesus stood up. And he'd been sitting until then. That's what the scripture says. He was sitting at the right.

And he says what that little fellow's going to do exactly what I said. Follow in my steps. Do no sin. Suffer. Take reviling. Take opposition. Take everything else. Man he's doing it. There's hope. And Jesus says come on.

Waiting for you. Oh man wouldn't that be wonderful. And you know I kind of feel that fellow was right. I mean he couldn't have been dreaming. Man alive when the sun is bashing your head with rocks. You can't dream.

And it couldn't be with his ordinary eyes. He was seeing because it's too far away. But he says I see Jesus. There he is at the right hand of the father. Oh and it's so glorious. Jesus I'm coming. He says all right come on.

He says receive my spirit. He says that's it. You see it's not how long you live that matters. It's how you live. And this youngster not 20 years of age had finished his course. And he shot an arrow in the heart of a man who was never going to get out of it.

When I get ahead and I'm going to prove that to you. I'm going to ask him to tell you. Sometimes in prison he could see the face of the young man that was slaughtered. Sometimes when he was downcast he could hear a voice saying Jesus I can see you.

Receive my spirit. And a voice said yes come out. And Paul says well if he can make it I can make it. And you know you and I have enough records in the book. Apart from anything else to guarantee we don't get discouraged.

But somehow I don't know it manages to get in. Sometimes all right. Being exceedingly mad I went to Damascus with authority and commission. Verse 12 and 26. At midday O king I saw in the way a light from heaven above the brightness of the sun.

Encountering Jesus’ Radiance

Isn't that glorious. You know Jesus is so radiant he made the sun look gray that morning. Midday sun in the Middle East. Have you ever seen it? Man I remember looking up once in Australia. The sun looked so big and it was so hot and so beautiful.

Remember once doing that in Texas of all places. And when you see the sun at midday and Jesus was so bright the sun looked dark. Oh brother. Do you wonder the city we're going to has no need of the sun.

Praise God. No bills to pay. No cheating on the bills you know. When they double the cost of it they're liars. Dirty thieves they are. God will catch up with them. There when they get to hell where there are no lights at all.

They wish they hadn't cheated on us. But that's too late for them. We'll be up there where there's no darkness anyhow. A light above the brightness of the noonday sun. That must have thrilled him to death.

Do you think so? Hey I want to tell you something. Do you know this chapter's got truths that are brighter than all the brightness of human philosophy. What about all those things I listed for you. To open the eyes of the blind.

Man that's better than anything anybody's written outside of the word of God. King Agrippa said almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. That's a flash of lightning from eternity on the pagan heart of a wicked wretched man.

You see this man had done what so many people have done. Out of those individuals and nations. He reckoned on everybody except God. He said if anybody challenges me I've got a certificate in here from the high priest himself.

Signed there sealed and settled. And anybody stops me I don't care whether there's a Roman or who he is I say read that. See I can kill who I want as long as he's a Christian. I've got the right to do it.

And I've got a bunch of men with me. Well it so happens that somebody nobody can manipulate. And it's certainly wonderful to me anyhow that that that Jesus came. And that he stood up and he appeared unto Stephen.

But you know he did better than that. He slipped off his throne and stood in front of this man on the road. That must have shocked him. That's what he says. Oh my God can take us down a peg or two. Or does he take all the pegs?

He comes out of the city. I think he rode on a horseback. He wasn't going to walk all the way up there. Man that's an awful long way to Damascus. And he comes out with pomp and he comes out with authority.

And he has his robe and he has his signet ring to say that he's a Pharisee of the Pharisees. And he has everything that's needed for a most successful wonderful marvellous trip. And suddenly like that he meets the Lord.

Well I don't know where his certificate of membership went. But I know where his eyesight went. The Lord took it. Not good having a certificate when you can't read it. The Lord took everything. And the mighty man came out of the city with pomp and circus.

They led him back. Hey go steady. Remember I'm blind. Where are we now? Oh we're nearly at the street. Cold street. Hey careful. Traffic's heavy there isn't it? Can you see the proud man going up? Can you see him coming back humiliated to the dust?

They took me by the hand. They led me on the way. Doesn't sound as though he's going to turn the world upside down now does it? He says verse 14 when we were all fallen to the earth. Well that's nice.

The Lord hit the whole lot of them so they get at one share anyhow. And I heard a voice speaking and saying unto me in the Hebrew tongue. Saul, Saul why persecutest thou the church? No? Not even in the Amplified?

Not even in the Dead Bible? The Living Bible? Why persecutest thou who? He thought he was going to persecute. He wasn't persecuting the church. He was persecuting Jesus. He wasn't merely hurting people.

He was hurting Jesus. The church is his body. If you tread on the toe of a believer. And I don't mean that just offending them. If you hurt a believer you hurt Christ. By the same token if you gossip about a believer and hurt them.

You hurt him before you hurt them. If you do some substandard Christian trick. If I say to you thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy. Oh I wouldn't take the name of Jesus on my lips. Listen the last time you did a mean trick.

A non-Christian trick. You took his name in vain. Somebody said is that Christianity? Therefore you smeared his name. You took his name in vain. You did a bad business deed. You told a lie. You told a half-truth.

You took his name in vain. I said who art thou? Lord and he said I am Jesus whom thou persecutors. Now listen to this. I've merely got to the text. But rise and stand upon my feet. Isn't that nice? Stand upon my feet.

And you just keep this in your little mind Paul. Because you're going to travel an awful long way. That on the Damascus road. Just as when you remember. You've heard the story about a man that went into the temple one day.

And doing what the priest only did once in his life. And when he got to the altar. Zechariah said who art thou? And he said I'm Gabriel. Well you remember. Moses met me in the bush. And Isaiah saw me in a vision.

And I remember I once wrestled with a man on a mountain. A prayer meeting with Jacob. And today you have the pleasure of meeting Gabriel on the road. It would be wonderful if he said that. But he doesn't.

I'm Jesus. Now you don't know how he felt when he said that. He must have said Lord let me drop dead right here. Well I'm after the whole gang of your family to put them to death. And you come in my way.

He said I am Jesus. You know I'm glad he didn't meet a preacher on that road. We may never have heard of Paul after that. If he'd met a preacher but he didn't meet. Oh too many of us meet the preacher.

He met Jesus. I'm glad nobody slipped him four laws to read you know. Or gave him a tract. That would have been the end of him. He'd have backslidden right away. You can't you you you and I you can't register that any more than you could register if you sat on a volcano.

You couldn't register that could you? You'd be gone. Can you think of every nerve every sinew every fiber every thought of his mind. This man is versed in vast knowledge. He knew the prophets had said that one day a virgin should be with child.

He knew and I think this is haunting him. Not only did he see the face of that man but he knew that man that I think he had seen. Now I can't prove this it's a suggestion. I think it's a pretty healthy one.

That the rich young ruler that ran after Jesus was Saul in his early days. Because later he said I have seen Christ face to face. I've reason to believe that somewhere he heard Jesus preach and saw Jesus do miracles.

And he said in his heart this must be the Messiah the son of God. But I didn't go forward there and and accept him. I'm the most distinguished student Gamaliel ever had. I'm going to be greater than Hillel.

I'm going to be greater than Gamaliel. And the whole of Jewry will collapse if I yield my life to him. But let me tell you brother if God's got a target. If he's got a sticker on you you can go the next five years.

But he'll get you at the end anyhow. You know he never missed his target. If you didn't you better learn it this afternoon. He'll pursue if you go to 10 different countries. Finally he'll get you. Finally he'll get out of you what he wants.

It may break your heart to do it. May break your life to do it. You don't expect me a Pharisee of the Pharisees. A ruler of the Jews with all my distinctions. The tribe of Abraham, Benjamin and the seed of Abraham.

And the most learned scholar to yield. But I'll tell you what. I'm convinced that he has seen Jesus do miracles. Even raising the dead. And it disturbed this man in his heart of hearts. I have appeared to thee.

I think he must have felt Lord don't please don't repeat that. If you do my mind will snap and all my nerves. I'll be in an institution the rest of them. You're the one that appeared to Abraham and said I'm the greater.