Try to Determine — Rolfe Barnard

The Evangelist and the New Testament Church

I have the honor to be the evangelist for this Church, have been for many years. It's interesting that much emphasis is being placed these days on what a Church is. One characteristic of a New Testament Church would be that it would have an evangelist, but most of us don't.

So I'm glad that every month I get a check from this Church, just like if I was a missionary in Africa or somewhere, and it helps me, and it helps them, and it would help your Church if you would just quit picking your texts that you like and begin to pay a little attention to the book.

We've had a Bible with us quite a while, but we don't pay great attention to it. It's always a joy to be in this pulpit. We've had a lot of battles here back in the old days, we've seen lots of water run under the bridges.

The Conference and Its Doctrinal Heritage

This is the 14th or 15th session of the first Church, I guess, in America to have an annual conference, basically around the book and foundation of E .W. Johnson. I get a lot of that stuff and work it over and fix it up so it's right, and I can get one of his papers and preach a year from it, and what he preaches in one message.

And I don't know, I thank God for him. And what that little one I told him done this last week, made a premonition out of it. I told him I was going to stand guard and hope that that little Jew didn't come over and conquer America before he got through this morning, in the next few days.

Brother Jackson, Coots, and these brethren here last preached here last year. It was in the morning and three at night. I never got so religious and all, I'll tell you what's the fact, anybody that hasn't got more sense than that ought to be shot, you know.

And I was the last speaker of the last time, and a certain preacher named LeMayhan got up. Two of them, a message all prepared, they're going to preach on why Christ died. And I had, of course, I had an Orthodox sermon, it's just three points, that's all you can have if you're going to be Orthodox.

And this fool Mayhan got up and preached. And I had to sit there while he was popping off, you know, and get me another message. And I called him a thief, perhaps I should call you one, Brother Johnson, just for word of exhortation.

Determining the Direction of the Sovereign Redeemer

There's a second chapter of where maybe this will be likely to knock, and if we could get one thing said, that'd be a compliment, that'd be greatly pleased, tremendous Bible message as a background or a foundation to stand on, brethren, with excellent, not debating, but declaring unto you, that with enticing words of man's wisdom, in the wisdom of his sovereignty to this day, challenging Brother Johnson, breaking out, socialize now, not seek to prove doctrine for doctrine's sake, something to be argued or proved, authority, we're happy that the most prophetic voices on the face of the earth today are coming from Catholic bishops, that the only people professing the name of Christ, that God's able to get in on what's being written, you think I'm crazy, it's the hospitals and the back alleys of our cities, put pepper on our pet doctrines, and see the priest in the church today, putting the gospel into practice, and meeting with him today, and speak through him, speak through Balaam, Jack Ashworth, he might speak through a Catholic priest, the prophetic statement anti-Christ is here, anti-Christ, a Christian, an evangelist, man's gifts shall make room for him, of the gifted ministries of the risen Lord, answer much of what I suggest that's been taught, that nobody's interested in, that especially we of the grace, message of being, and congratulated my business, try to find out if this statement I'm going to make is not so, suggested of course by Johnson Edwards and who he got it from, that the task of every generation of God's people is to determine the direction in which the sovereign redeemer is going in his day, not Calvin's day, not the day of the pure, whatever you use, he's been able to use it because he got them to focus their attention on those issues and relate their gospel to the paths of the gospel in their day, a state that can be made in trying to get to this foundation E .W. talked about, it hadn't been an easy battle, to be asleep as the path of the gospel, some 15 ,000 to go home could be a mama's little lamby boy, involved and standard in public gatherings such as this, home churches, that true God's mythic convention, one of his big businessmen members came to him not long ago, and said Pastor, I'm so tired of being inspired in the war, get involved, put salt on the beans and if they had it this year, I'm going to start a program, get involved in something, put this up, one of the southern Baptist states, southern Baptist papers said the other day, preachers and churches, preachers of this day, because they're afraid it would hurt our cooperative program, but you say amen to that and we bow to this gift.

Protestant Reformers and the Corruption of Christian Society

In the 18th century, Martin Luther and Calvin and those men, in their beginnings, those beginnings were made within a corrupted Christian society. Within a century, Protestants, after Calvin and those men and the Puritans, were forced to be on the defensive, preserving the purity of their faith and worship.

Attention on the word, but you do not hear a situation. There's Christian men that can be labeled, and Christians and church and place them, that as ever, you could taste salt in the bowels. When in physics, the Christianity's imperative would reveal that we are a very religious people, but that our religious life is largely a matter of gratification, seldom a sacrifice from God now.

For wherever ineffective chief end in life is to serve him. This describes us, we think of ourselves, because we've learned inherent in our affidavit to meditate on the sin of Calvin as anybody else. Coming zeal, no banners, neither preachers nor leaders in matter can be readily ignored.

Religious Self-Satisfaction and Christian Sacrifice

As I read a parody that they use out in the First Presbyterian Church in San Rafael, California, the parody, this afternoon you read the 149th and 150th song, great songs of psalms praised, and this peasant of this church is to be chanted after the solemn reading of the budget, and it speaks of our non-involvement.

Here's how. One that he hears over and over again, the song of the mighty with power and wealth, and the abundance of possessions whose tents have thick carpets and host of electronic servants, and who say, behold, we cannot give more.

We must feed our overfed children and buy overpowered cars and maintain our fantastic standards, though we don't care. Let's just get away with it. Of empty self-pity, not with ponderings and likenings of a god of wrath, judging his own children, who think they can live in a world of loneliness and lostness and hostility and horrible, devastating war, and not care.

Thanks unto him whose only rebuke, oh, give thanks unto him whose only rebuke is the silence of the devil to be praised, for he watches us decrease our giving. A beautiful stone shed through the narrow, nodding sarcasm of disillusioned youths, and he says, our God says nothing.

Even as we lust after the enchantments of much goods of possessions and pledge no echelon to our faith, even so does he permit us. But though he be silent, yet that he follow after us is repeated. There is the sound of nails and the flesh in the dark.

The Preacher’s Doubt and the Need for Spiritual Fruit

Quickly, not to know less than any preacher here. God, I don't know. Used to be. Especially like myself. You wonder under God if there's ever been the least bit of fruit. And I'm not being pious. I've seen so much of what I looked like was of God, and the devil tore it up in 15 minutes.

So I just don't know. Shooting in today. Myself, and for every young preacher that's had the guts. It isn't for young preachers. They make 10 million mistakes. Hard if they're heading in the right direction.

Amen. Would the apostle Paul. Eternity. And evangelical consciousness. They're being seized upon by powers that can do in them. But they cannot do. In the days that could have been improved. I get so sick of fundamentalism I want to vomit.

The Gospel Beyond Doctrinal Controversy

He's arguing about the virgin birth. The apostle Paul never paid any attention to it. He didn't have to. Because if you believe in. A baby born. He said Jesus Christ came into my cell last night. And every stone flashed like a ruby.

This has become the quest of my soul. To set our hearts on fire. We can't do it by fussing with each other. We already know so much. Preachers on that way. If we could get quick believing in the doctrine of the risen Lord.

Beginning with the Risen Lord

Of the. Preacher like every. Thought I could make. I can't. Stand there to say. That there never was a. And that that may. What we need. I said I'm not going to know anything. Determined I just mentioned it in the past.

He said this is a matter of settled conviction. And he was through with anything else. If we don't get started here in camp. Yeah. If we begin anywhere else. No. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. I have the time.

Addition. Subtraction. I have the time. Listen through Lord. What you doing around here. I found a statement. In five fifty minutes. As I get over here. This morning. Not lazy. Seed of my heart. In Europe.

Desperation for the Holy Spirit’s Demonstration

That we shall become. Desperate about the fact. That only the Holy Ghost.