Charlotte Seminar 5-25-00 Pm — George Warnock

The Father Glorified Through the Son

May God be glorified. May his name be exalted. He has been exalted far above all principality and power and might and every name that is named. But he is yet to be exalted in the hearts and lives of God's people in a way that we have never known.

When it thundered there, I was thinking of the time when Jesus was on earth and there was a great sound from heaven. When Jesus said, Father, glorify thy name. And there was a great rumbling from heaven and some heard it thunder.

Others said, oh, it was an angel speaking to him. The voice was very clear. Jesus prayed, Father, glorify thy name. He said, I have glorified it and I will glorify it again. And so we need to have our ears tuned into him that we will hear clearly what he is saying.

Not that it will just be so much thunder or noise. Not that we should just hear the voice of angels, though that would be good. But we want to hear that clear voice from heaven. I have glorified my name and I will do it again.

I will do it again. He glorified his name all the time Jesus was here on earth ministering. For everything that Jesus did or said or taught or worked, it was the Son yielding himself that the Father might speak through him, work through him and bring forth his mighty works through the Son.

And God was glorified. God's name was glorified. Because in all that he did through the Son, the glory went back to the Father. Everything he did or said or taught, all the works he did, brought glory to the Father.

Not to himself as the Messiah, as the Son of God on earth. But the Son was here to be the instrument through whom God would be glorified. And you'll notice, therefore, that Jesus was cautious to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

He did on a few occasions. I'm the Christ. But he was cautious because they were ready to receive a Messiah, a king who had power and authority to deal with the present situation, which was the occupation of their land by the Romans.

They hated that and they were waiting for a Messiah to come and deliver them. I know you're taught sometimes Jesus came to be the king of Israel and they rejected the king and so God turned to the Gentiles.

They never rejected the king. They rejected the man, the Son, who spoke the words of the Father. They tried to make him king on one occasion. After the multiplying of the loaves and the fishes, they got together and said, we're going to draft him.

He's not going to get out of this. He's the king and we know it. When Jesus heard about it, he went off in the mountain to be alone. Because he knew that they just had a carnal concept of the kingdom.

A king who would deliver their nation and fit in with their present program and enlarge it and beautify it still more. He came to be king all right. And when Pilate said, as Jesus did before him, his accusation was, Jesus, king of the Jews.

That was his accusation. Are you a king then? Are you a king? And finally he said, yes, I am a king. To this end was I born. And for this purpose I came into the earth to bear witness to the truth. You can only understand the nature of the kingship of Jesus.

He came into the earth to be king, yes, but to bear witness to the truth. To speak only those words that the Father gave him to speak. To do only the works that the Father gave him to do. Not because he was the king they were looking for.

Not because he was the Christ, the Messiah. But because he spoke the truth. That's why he wanted them to believe on him. Because he spoke truth. And if their hearts were after the truth, then they would receive him.

So they received Moses. Jesus said, well, if you really receive Moses, you'd receive me because he spoke of me. It's a rather sad thing that though God does send forth great and mighty ministry in the earth, in his church from time to time, very often the people do not really hear the true message that comes forth.

But rather they applaud and give applause and glory to the messenger. And God's prophets need to learn somehow. God helps his people everywhere to learn no matter what your ministry. That if God does not receive all the glory, he will not be satisfied with just giving him part of it and part of it to someone else.

He will not share his glory with another. And yet he shared his glory with his son. He gave all glory to Jesus. Simply because in giving it to Jesus, he was the vessel in the earth that God ordained and sent into the earth.

The son who would, in God putting his glory upon him, it came back to the Father. It never retained. He never retained it. He wouldn't retain that glory. Because he came to glorify the Father. Not only that, but he came to be a pattern.

The patterned son. The one who would be our example. Because the whole origin of evil came about. Because there was one who was bright with the glory of God, who stole that glory. Began to say, I will be like the Most High.

Light, Darkness, and the Origin of Evil

I will ascend into the heavens. I used to puzzle quite a bit about the origin of evil. Until one day I was writing one of my writings. Actually, when it came clearly. I know there's a teaching that God made the devil like he is, full of murder, hate, everything.

God couldn't do that. It's impossible. He who is full of total light, in him is no darkness at all. He cannot lie. We're told that he made Satan a liar and a thief and a murderer. God can't lie. He can make a liar and the creator of all lies.

But he said, I'm going to be like the Most High. He cut himself off from light. And he dwelled in darkness. Still a little light outside. If we turn off these lights, there'd still be a little glimmer of light in here.

But with all total darkness outside, we have light here. Turn off the switch, we're in darkness. Where'd it come from? Did it start coming in the windows? No, it's the absence of light. Darkness is simply the absence of light.

Evil is simply the absence of God. Hatred is the absence of love. Every weapon that Satan has is the absence of light and darkness and truth. That's why we're told to walk in light. That's our victory.

Walking in light. Walking in truth. Walking in goodness. Overcoming evil with good. So with this room in total darkness, I want to drive out the darkness. Turn on the light. In him is light and there is no darkness at all.

There's none in him. So even when he casts his shadow, does God cast his shadow? Well, I think the psalmist says under his shadow we have made our refuge. God being total light, the shadow of God upon his people is a shadow of light.

And when we see that, it gives us a whole new concept of this matter of good and evil and how to overcome the evil. I mean all through church history. Those who profess to have the truth would rise up in arms to, oh, destroy the heretics or whatever.

Come against us with weapons of hate and revenge. It's unthinkable, but it's happening. In the Reformation, God gave a great light. Nations aligned themselves with that light. But there was so much politics mixed with religion that they went to war one nation against another because one was Protestant and the other Catholic and tried to destroy one another in the name of God.

It is just walking in the light that is in Christ Jesus using the weapons of darkness and hate and cruelty and murder to propagate the Gospel. I told one of the Reformers, and it's sad. I don't want to even mention his name.

He fought in battle and was found dead with a clenched sword in his hand. We're not condemning those men who did bring the great light. We're just saying, God, bring us to the fullness of light where there be no darkness at all.

You say, well, of course, you start talking that way. You're getting into perfection and you know nobody can come to that. I know we can. But God can bring us to it. Jesus said that the light of the body is the eye.

Therefore, I be single, pure, unto Him, devoted to Him, seeing Him only. Whatever it means by being single. My whole body shall be full of light. And one of the Gospels says having no part dark. No part dark.

The true light of God wants to drive out all darkness. Not just enough so people can say, well, of course, as long as we're in this earth, we've got to have a little sin. We couldn't exist here unless we had a little.

I remember way back, Sunday School days, one preacher said, well, if we come to perfection, God would have to take us somewhere. I don't know why people come up with things like that. And heaven, oh yeah, it would be perfect love in heaven.

But not down here. There couldn't be anything else but perfect love up there. It's down here that we need that perfect love. This world of hate and sin and malice and wickedness and all kinds of covetousness.

You name it, it's all realms of darkness. It's all realms of darkness. All that which is contrary to the light. Opposite to the light. This is where God wants the light to shine. In this world of darkness.

The Kingdom of God Within His People

So you say, yeah, we're doing our best to get the message out that Jesus is the light of the world. Let me tell you, Jesus is not here yet, now. And he said, as long as I'm with you, I'm the light of the world.

And as he was about to go away, he said, you're the light of the world. He went away not to leave the world in darkness, but to make the light more brilliant than when he was here. For he came to bring about the redemption of man.

And having accomplished the work of the cross, having finished the work of the cross, God was able to receive them back. No more reason for him staying here, having accomplished the work of the cross.

They were hoping he'd set up this kingdom. For though he had told them clearly, they couldn't really understand it or receive it. And from that day till this, men have not been able to receive it. That the kingdom of God came to set up is a kingdom in the hearts of his people where grace might reign through righteousness, that just as sin reigns unto death, so the grace of God and his people might reign in life by Christ Jesus.

And that reigning as kings simply means having total authority over all the realms of darkness. You say, yeah, what this world needs I know. And that will happen somewhere we know. It's so difficult for God's people to believe that that kingdom we're talking about and the kingdom that Jesus talked about cometh not with observation, for lo, it is within you.

It's the work God does in the hearts of his people. Oh, don't spiritualize the kingdom. Would you, God? He'd send forth a word that would cause all truth to be spiritualized. It's the breath of heaven.

You want to carnalize it, don't you? God wants to spiritualize truth because he brings forth a spiritual people in the earth. Because the natural mind receives what is not the things of the Spirit of God.

For they are foolishness unto him. Neither can he know them because they are discerned spiritually. How hopeless we are. How helpless we are to receive truth, to receive any knowledge concerning the kingdom of God in our darkened condition.

And so he came to bring a light. The kingdom of life and of light and of truth and of righteousness. First of all, he had to deal with the sin of man. And he did that at the cross. And having finished the work, he went back to the Father to rule and reign from that heavenly throne.

He could have ruled and reigned on earth. But God said, no. Not enough that you have dominion over Caesar and the kings of the earth. I appoint you to have dominion over all those principalities and powers in heavenly places.

Christ's Victory Through the Cross

And so having learned obedience by the things which he suffered and having gone to the cross in that final act of obedience to the Father, he finished the work on earth, died on the cross, and there on the cross overcame all the powers of darkness by the blood of His cross.

Overcoming them by His cross. Making a show of principalities and powers. Openly, Paul says. Making a show of them openly. He didn't overcome Satan and sin and death and darkness and sickness at the resurrection.

He did it at the cross. Because he had overcome at the cross, it was impossible that death could keep him captive. God raised him from the dead. And Paul tells us that through death that He destroyed him that had the power of death.

That is the devil. I read where Satan overcame Jesus at the cross and He triumphed at the resurrection. Overcame Satan at the cross. He hung there with nails in His hand. Totally overcome it seems. God was overshadowing that lamb because He went there in obedience to the will of the Father.

God overshadowed that wonderful sacrifice by His own Spirit making it to be a sacrifice for sin. The Spirit of God was there overshadowing that sacrifice. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer that sanctify unto the cleanness of the flesh Paul says, the blood of bulls and goats sanctified the people because it was a sacrifice in type.

We know that the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sin, Paul says, but it was a typical sacrifice. And God accepted it in view of the sacrifice of the cross. And Jesus got to the cross simply by walking in obedience and being the light in the midst of a world of darkness.

Because that's how God found His way at the cross. He walked in the light. And because He walked in the light, darkness came against Him. Darkness confronted Him. It came into collision. It did the cross.

Life and death came into collision. It happened even before the cross. That was the final collision between life and death, light and darkness, truth and error, love and hatred. And what brought about His cross was the fact that that light that He was, that life that He was, began to be manifested even in His earthly ministry.

Lazarus and the Manifestation of Resurrection Life

Oh, He had raised one or two from the dead. He healed a lot of the sick. And they were thrilled about all His wonderful miracles. And they knew He'd make an ideal king. But when in obedience to the Father He left Galilee and went back to Judea.

Remember, He had run away from them because they were persecuting Him. And a couple of times they picked up stones to stone Him and He hid Himself. And so it's assumed, well, finally they caught up with Him at the cross.

Oh, no. He just evaded every attempt to destroy Him because His life was going to be one that He would give. No man would take it from Him. He was there in Galilee and the word came about the sickness of Lazarus.

One whom He loved. He sent a message to him. Please come down. Your friend Lazarus is sick. When Jesus got the message He stayed two more days where He was. They were His friends. He loved them. And He stayed four days too long as far as they were concerned.

He stayed two more days after He got the message. By the time He got back four days had gone by and Lazarus had lain in the tomb for four days until even His flesh had become corrupt. And then Jesus said, Now let us go back to Judea.

Our friend Lazarus is sleepless. I go to wake him out of his sleep. Oh, they said, that's good. If he's sleeping now he'll get rest. No, Jesus said, Lazarus is dead. And I'm glad for your sake that I was not there.

You don't understand some of the mysterious things Jesus said. I'm glad I wasn't there. Think of the pressure that would be put upon Him to heal that man from friends He loved. But they said, Don't you remember, Lord, how they persecuted us when we were there?

Jesus said, If a man walks in the daytime, he will not stumble. If he walks in the daylight, he will not stumble. Let's go back. Jesus never walked in the darkness. He walked in the daylight of the Father's will and heart and mind and presence.

He walked in the daylight all the way to the cross. He went back there knowing that the Father was leading Him to the place of sacrifice. He raised a man from the dead. He manifested the life and the resurrection before He went to the cross and before He Himself was raised from the dead.

He manifested resurrection and life. That's what He was. The sisters of Lazarus said, If you'd only been here, our brother would not have died. Jesus said, He'll rise again. Oh, yes and no. He'll rise again in the resurrection of the last day.

He said, I am the resurrection and the life. He said, Believe in me, though you are dead, yet shall you live. And he that liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believeth thou this? Oh, yes, we believe.

He was a great prophet that used to come into the world. He believed this. And you know the story. He went there and called the dead man back to life. I mean, He'd raised dead men before, but here was a man whose flesh had gone into corruption.

And when the scribes and Pharisees heard about it, they got together and they said, Don't you see how we prevail in nothing? The world we've gone after. If we let him thus alone, everybody will believe in him and the Romans will come and take away our place and our nation.

And from that time, they began to counsel how to get rid of him. You think when God begins to manifest resurrection life once again in the earth, and He's doing it in measure even now. You've heard about this man that goes to Mexico and raises people from the dead.

For He is the resurrection and the life. You think it's going to turn the hearts of the people to repentance? When Jesus raised a man to life who had been dead four days and his flesh had gone into corruption, that was the incident that brought about the judgment to crucify.

What are we going to do? He's performing all these miracles. If we leave him alone, we're going to lose this place and this nation. We'll lose our temple. We'll lose the little freedom we got if we let him alone.

Caiaphas, the high priest, because of his office, because of his office, he prophesied. You know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient that one man should die for the nation and that the whole nation perish not.

In this faking out of himself of being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for that nation. Not only that, but that He would bring together the children of God that were scattered abroad.

And godly priests. Hatred against Christ. So you see, we know these things, but somehow still, if a man's a prophet, oh, he's something super. If he's a miracle worker, you know. If he can do wonderful works, you know, he's held up there on a pedestal.

God can take an unholy priest with murder in his heart and give him words of prophecy. He can take a Balaam in the Old Testament, a worshiper of false gods, and give him true prophecy. He can take that ass upon which Balaam rode and give him words of truth and reproof to the man who rode him.

It didn't change his heart from a donkey to that of a man. And it didn't change the hearts of these sinners to the hearts of righteous ones. God brings us to the place where we'll understand and know that and approve of those things that are excellent.

The More Excellent Way of Love

There's a more excellent way that the Lord sets before us. We don't pursue it too much because we don't know God well enough to know how wonderful it is to be a people walking in perfect love. We just don't realize, can't imagine that there's anything too marvelous than that.

It'd be nice to do that, of course, but having to realize that God is love and when we come to that place and we abide in God and God abides in us and His fullness and His love is perfected in us. That's all God needs to change this old world from one of wickedness to one of truth and righteousness.

Apostles won't do it. Prophets won't do it. Teachers won't do it. What are they there for then? A very specific purpose. The perfecting of God's saints to encourage them to give them words of truth. Give them a living hope.

Give them grace that they might walk in the ways of the Lord until we come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God and to a perfect man and to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

Until we come to that. I hope it won't be too long before God will hide away the fivefold ministry as we call it. We need it. Oh, yes, I know we need it. The time comes and the world doesn't need it anymore.

Like Moses and Elijah, I'll just hide them away in the cloud that Jesus alone might be seen and glorified and magnified in the congregation of the people and in the earth. That's what the Holy Spirit is here for dwelling in you and I.

It might be a temple of the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit is the One Whom God sent when Jesus ascended to take everything that's in Jesus and make it known to His church. He'll take of Mine and show it unto you.

He will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you. Jesus said, I will come to you. Jesus came again on the day of Pentecost in the Spirit of truth. He said the Spirit of truth is with you and now He shall be in you.

Divide in His people to lead us into all truth, into light and to righteousness that God might rekindle the light that was here when Jesus was here, but that it might shine more brilliantly than when Jesus was here.

The Glory of the Church Reflecting Christ

Oh, you say that we in the earth would have a light still greater than what Jesus revealed when He was here? Oh, I quote it almost everywhere I go. Prophet Isaiah saw that day when the moon, which speaks of the church, has no light at all, but it reflects the glory of the sun which is full of light, emanates light.

He said the time is coming when the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun. People don't like that thought that we're going to be like Jesus. They think it's blasphemy. God gave all glory to Jesus because when He gave all glory to Jesus, He went back to the Father, and the Father was glorified.

His name was magnified. And Jesus said, Father, glorify Thy name. And He says, I've done it. Now do it again. Do it again. Oh, I know He's done it again in small measure in every day of church history.

That prophet has yet to be fulfilled. The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun. And the light of the sun shall be sevenfold as the light of seven days. And the day when the Lord bindeth up the breach of His people and healeth the stroke of their wound.

He didn't need to stay here because He had a great work to perform in the heavens. He says, Father, I've finished the work that Thou gavest me to do. Now, Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was.

I have manifested Thy name unto those whom Thou has given me. And they've received my words. Now, Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own self. He was glorified in the heavenly glory promising His disciples that when that happened He would send the Spirit of Truth who lived and walked with them these three and a half years.

He sent forth that Spirit of Truth again back into the earth to abide in His people in the temple that He would build in the earth refilled with His glory. Not to show forth the glory of the church, but to show forth the beauty of the Lord.

God brings us to the place that David came to when he said, One thing have I desired of Thee. That one thing will I seek after that I might dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. And the teaching of the body of Christ has been beautiful.

Oh, so many wonderful truths have come forth concerning the building of the body of Christ, the building of His church. God would put His glory upon His people the same glory that was on Jesus. So often we and God's ministers have tried to retain that glory for themselves as Lucifer did.

I want to have my own light. I want to have my own glory. And so the church has gone into darkness over and over again many times. And once again, God would shine forth with His light. And He's going to bind up the breach of His people and heal the stroke of their wound.

And when He does that, this temple will be so pure and so holy that the light of the church will be as bright as Jesus. And Jesus will be seven times brighter because the glory that God gives us is only so that it might read down to the glory of God.

Humility Before the Glory of God

Jesus knew that. He did many wonderful things and they would try to get Him to become their king because of the wonderful power He had. He said, I didn't do it really. It was the Father that did it through me.

Give Him the glory. And that's what angered them because He came in the Father's name. Let another come in His own name. And Jesus said, the world will receive Him. I don't care whether He's a movie star or a scientist or a preacher or a politician.

He comes in His own name with His own agenda, with His own wisdom, with His own knowledge, His own charismatic glory, be it spiritual or natural. People laud Him and lift Him up and He becomes a great hero in the minds of the people.

But Jesus came in such a way that everything He did and said in those wonderful works always honors the Father. Oh, now you didn't do it, eh? No, the Father did it, Jesus said. Now you're making yourself equal with God.

Let a man come in His own name, His own power, His own resources, His own talents, and the world and the church will look upon Him. I didn't quote that Scripture fully, but we sang it completely. One thing have I desired of the Lord, that one thing will I seek after.

That I might dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple. God hasten the day when we'll gather together and see the glory of the Lord and men and women, little children will be talking about the beauty of Jesus and the glory of our God.

Those things happen in days of real revival when God is magnified. Oh, so often. Somehow that old human ego comes back. Begins to steal some of that glory. And the people go for it. Don't blame the ministers that fall and accuse them.

Ask God to search our hearts. If God's people would stop lauding them and lifting them up and exalting them, they wouldn't fall. Yet God I know is going to raise up some powerful ministry in this end time.

Powerful ministry. But they're going to have not only the beauty of Jesus shining forth, but they're going to have the wisdom, the grace and the humility of Jesus that in what they do and say and how they react to the applause of men will be their safeguard.

Jesus went away to the mountains to be alone when they wanted to crown Him king. And as God begins to put His glory upon His people, it always happens that the carnal will want to exalt and lift them up.

God give wisdom and grace to His ministers everywhere to know how somehow to redirect the gaze of God's people from themselves, yes, from their heroes in the church, yes, from great leaders in the church, redirect their vision by working in their hearts and lives till they say, I come here.

I came here to see the beauty of Jesus and to inquire in His temple. Instead of coming to a prayer meeting to tell God what you want and insisting you get it, how about coming and inquiring? God, what do you want?

Inquiring in His temple. I feel perhaps that's enough for tonight. Dear Heavenly Father, I thank You, Lord. Lord, I thank You for Your people. Lord Jesus, You said You were going to have a church spot or a wrinkle or blemish or any such thing.

We believe You're doing it, Lord. Yet I know, Lord, many of Your people have gone through sorrows and trials and tests to the point sometimes of wondering if God is there, if God sees, or if He cares.

I pray that You'll sustain and strengthen and encourage Your people, Lord, and cause them to lift up their eyes and see that You are leading them, Lord, but that You must remove from our lives every area where the tempter might come and take a stand and spoil the beautiful work that You are seeking to bring forth.

Grant, Lord, that You will work in our hearts such grace and humility and righteousness and truth that we will be able to say as Your beloved Son said, not in arrogance, not in pride, but in humility and in truth, Prince of this world, come and find nothing in me.

We know we're not there, Lord. We know that sometimes the Prince of darkness comes and He finds a place to take a foothold. But God, continue to work grace and truth in Your people. Not of our working but of Yours for this sanctifying work we pray for, Lord, is not something we can produce.

It's something You produce. But oftentimes You do it through trial and testing and tribulations of many kinds to the point where we might think we're being consumed and overcome and we've lost out or God doesn't like us anymore.

We have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin as the Son of God did. We've forgotten the exhortation that speaketh unto us as unto sons. My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord.

For faint and honored reproved of Him for whom the Lord loveth, He chastens and scourges every son whom He receiveth. We want to be Your sons, Lord, in truth and in action. The way we walk and the way we think, the way we conduct our business even in the natural world.

Continue that great work in Your people, Lord, to make us sons after the image of Jesus who died and ascended to heaven that we might be like Him by the ministration of His Spirit in our lives that we too might walk on the pathway that He walked.

For Thou art the way, the truth, and the life. Over all of Your people, Lord, we pray even these two or three days that we gather together, Lord, I pray that You would cause our hearts to be fixed on You, Lord Jesus.

And as we gather together, may it be unto You changes and transfigures by Your glorious presence. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Praise God. Praise God.

Seeking the Burden of the Lord

The Lord is preparing a table for us for three days. I kind of feel like we have the hors d 'oeuvres here tonight. God's kind of just spread some things out for us like a little foretaste. God's spreading a table.

This third feast. The trumpet event. The call. The trumpet. When you come in in the morning, as quickly as we can, let's kind of gather here and just get our hearts tuned in and start inquiring of the Lord.

We heard that tonight. What do you want, Lord? What is your burden? What is your burden? A lot of people want their burden to be taken away. I don't want my burden to be taken away. I started walking this way about 20 years ago.

God started opening my eyes. He gave me a vision. He let me start seeing a little bit of what He's seeing. He gave me a burden like that. I was telling Brother Warnock over at the house the other day we were singing some choruses.

He gave me a little chorus. Maybe we'll sing it one time during these meetings. He gave me a more perfect vision one day. Dear Lord, You let me see, Lord, what You see. And yet with that vision, a burden You gave.

And that burden sanctifies me. Don't take my burden. Don't take it away. Don't take it, Lord. Let it stay. Bring me, dear Lord, on my face before Thee, but don't take my burden away. That's coming in the morning.

Inquiring of the Lord. What's your burden, Lord? What's your burden, Holy Spirit, for Your people? What do You want to say? Get tuned in and get ready. I'm so glad to see so many of you tonight. I don't want somebody to dismiss us.