My Heart Is Fixed — Hans R. Waldvogel

God will not suffer you to be tempted above your ability, but it means he will, and he always has, suffered the children of God to be tempted, because that's the only way in which our hearts can be fixed.

A Fixed Heart Concerning Divine Healing

We have certain people in the church today, I mean in the church at large, who are fixed concerning divine healing. Elder Brooks was like that. He was fixed. And how did he get fixed? Well, he got fixed.

And Elder Brooks needed fixing when he came to know about divine healing. He was a big preacher. He knew everything, but he was sick unto death. He was really a sick man. He was 45 years old then. And he came to the meeting of Dr. Dowie in Chicago.

He'd heard about divine healing. So he came all the way from Ohio where he had a ministry to Chicago, and he sat there in his civilian clothes, and Dr. Dowie was firing away with all his gatling guns.

He was firing again. He had a sermon about drugs, doctors, and devils. I thought that was awfully radical until I read the sermon. And I said, well, that man's got something. Drugs, doctors, and devils.

It's a strange thing how people will trust in drugs, and they'll trust in doctors rather than trust in the Lord, who said, I am the Lord that healeth thee. Why does God say, I am the Lord? Unless you see a shingle.

Ich bin der Dr. Eisenbach. Rühr die Leute nach meiner Hand. As soon as you see a shingle, doctor. We have confidence somehow. Of course, I don't expect you and I wouldn't advise you to go to a doctor you can't have confidence in.

But God hangs out his shingle. He says, I am the Lord, and I heal thee. And not only heal thee, but I said to Jesus when I was sick, well, Lord, you must have wanted my sickness very badly or you wouldn't have taken it.

But he took it. He took my mumps. He took my measles. He took my sore toes. All your iniquities and all your diseases, that's in the Bible, and it's under that shingle, I am the Lord. And that was the teaching Dr. Dowie had.

And he preached away there, he said, all sicknesses of the devil. And that got under Mr. Brooks' collar. He didn't wear his dog collar that day, but he wore a collar just the same. And he said, how about the man that is born blind?

And that gave Dr. Dowie ammunition. He said, there you are, take the saloon keepers. It isn't a back-to-living church, but it's a preacher. They destroy the work of God. And then he handed it out to him for a half an hour.

He just kept aiming at Elder Brooks and giving it to him. I tell you, Elder Brooks got sore. He lost all the sanctification he ever thought he had. He did. He was so mad he could have jumped at Dr. Dowie.

But on second thought, he thought, well, I've been dishing it out myself. I might as well take it for a change. And he took it. And he went to Dr. Dowie's home in Chicago where they prayed for the sick.

But Dr. Dowie wouldn't pray for anybody who was using medicine or medical aid. He just wouldn't. He said, I can't pray the prayer of faith if you depend on that. And Elder Brooks' heart couldn't live.

It couldn't eat. All he could eat was milk with a little toast in it, salt. And then he had to have a pill with every meal. And now he came to this home and he was expected to sit down and eat his oatmeal and whatever was dished up.

And he couldn't. So he said he had a real fight on his hands. But he finally was convinced that Jesus Christ was the physician of his people. And he took that medicine and threw it away. And in 15 minutes he was healed.

Elder Brooks's Faith Tested Through Sickness

Mind you, of an incurable disease. Well you can read back the spread of life numbers about the fighting elder. And he was healed. And he got sick. He got so sick that he said, Lord. And he took a note that he'd never use medical means, never use a drop of medicine.

And he said, and if I die, I die in your hands. In other words, the responsibility is going to be yours. And listen, 45 years and he lived to be 98. And in the meantime he was tested many times. You can imagine how many tests the devil can bring up against the man inside of that long time.

But his heart was fixed. And that's what David's talking about. You don't know what Selah means, but I got a letter from a woman. I suspect she's a colored woman. Maybe she's in your assembly. I don't know.

Anyway, instead of saying Selah, she says, smile. Every little while she'll stop when she talks about her tests. And then she says, smile. I thought that was good. Maybe that's what David meant. Talks here about, say that one will swallow him up.

And then it says, smile. I smile at all my foes. Praise the Lord. And elder Brooks's heart was fixed. He told me how that, before that healing he had suffered was kidney stones. And he said he'd go to the doctor.

And the doctor put him in a hot bath. And that would expand the tubes and deliver him of his pain. And now he was in the faith home in Zion. And he had an awful attack of colic. It was terrible. He went to bed, but he couldn't rest of course.

And the Saints prayed for him, and prayed for him. And here he could smell the dinner. And it almost killed him just to smell it. And then God sent someone up to him into his bedroom and said, Elder Ickes to get up and come down for dinner and eat a good meal.

He told me this himself. Well he had learned to obey God. His heart was fixed. His heart was fixed on the Word of God. He got up, he dressed himself. He said with every step his pains lessened. And by the time he got down to the table, he had a ravenous hunger.

And he was healed. And time and time again that man was tested, really tested. One time his stomach troubles seemed to come back. And he couldn't eat. And again the Lord came to him after they had prayed for him and said, Now Mrs. Brooks is to fix a good Icke horse meal for Elder, and is to eat everything she puts before him.

So Mrs. Brooks was obedient and she fixed steak and mashed potatoes and what not. And put the plate before Elder Brooks and he sat down. And he forced himself to eat everything. But he was still as sick as he could be.

And there was a big lump of butter. He said that was the last thing that he could swallow. And he left that on his plate. He had eaten everything in obedience to the Word of the Lord. But here was that lump of butter.

And Mr. Mitchell came along and he said, Elder, you didn't obey God. God told you to eat everything that your wife puts before you. So he had to take a spoon and eat the butter. And when he had eaten it, it was perfectly healed.

Christ Dwelling Within and Working God's Will

Why? Because his heart was sick. How is my heart sick? Why, beloved, it came to pass. That's all. It came by the appointment of Jehovah and it'll go by the appointment of Jehovah and by his command. What does he say here?

Why, my soul is among lions, but he shall send from heaven. Did God do that? Listen, Jesus Christ says that you might believe in him whom he has sent. Father, did you send Jesus Christ to me? I should smile, not only as he did in Palestine, but today.

Oh, Jesus Christ has come to dwell within my heart and to make me perfect in every good work to do his will, working in me that which is well-pleasing in his sight. Oh, my heart is sick, thank God. Look what happened when God said to Adam and Eve, you mustn't eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil or you'll die.

Did they die? All of humanity died. Go to the battlefield today. You can't put your foot down anywhere, even in America, but you'll step on blood-soaked soil. Yes, because of this disobedience. And now God commands you and me to eat of the tree of life and live forever.

Hallelujah. It's God's command to repent, turn away and turn unto him, thank God. And talking about divine healing, he says, if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin. It means that this body is still a body made of dust.

What am I going to do? I'm tempted, I'm tested. But the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, did he raise him from the dead? He did. He raised him. That was not the end of his job. He's got a job to do in your body.

He does. He did a wonderful job when he raised Jesus from the dead. Triumphed over death and over the devil and over hell. He abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.

But that Spirit wasn't finished. Jesus said, I send the Spirit of my Father upon you. And what is he doing in my body? Well, smile. See love. Glory, glory, glory. Beloved, my heart must be fixed upon this foundation.

Jesus Christ has undertaken and he takes over. Thank God. And when he undertakes, everything is different. And how does he undertake? Not by giving you a shovel full of aspirin tablets when you're sick.

No, but by pouring his life-giving Spirit upon you. Oh, hallelujah. Now we know and we'll always be conscious of the fact that this body belongs to this earth. And someday we'll lay it aside, thank God.

But we'll also be conscious of the fact that within us lives Christ. I've had remarkable testimonies in my own body recently. Very remarkable, very wonderful. I don't talk about my illness or my feelings because it only stirs up trouble, makes things worse.

If you can talk to people that have faith, that's okay. But usually people, they say, oh my. And they make it worse. You've got to be careful. I tell you, you've got to be careful. You can't fool with this thing.

Divine Healing and the Life of Christ Within

God didn't fool either, but oh, thank God. My heart is fixed. Dr. Simpson, likewise, was sick unto death. Doctors told him he should quit preaching. He had a very weak heart. He said he couldn't climb three steps without that heart kicking and complaining.

But he found out that Jesus Christ was health and life. And he went out into the forest. He tells himself, and he swore before God, he said, as sure as I'm going to meet you in that judgment day at that judgment seat, so surely I take you now to be the life of my body.

And I promise never to use medical means. Now I don't advise anybody to do that. But these men had faith, and they were fixed. Praise the Lord. And Dr. Simpson not only was healed, he said his body was still weak, but Christ rose up within him and lived within him.

He said formerly to preach one sermon a week was a heavy job. And now preach 15, 20 times a week and wrote for papers and for books. He said he never had to rewrite the page. It just flowed from that fountain.

What does Jesus say? He that believeth in me, as the scripture says, oh, this is what fixes your heart, Christ. Everything else is a wobbly foundation. If you trust your own faith or your own zeal, you've got a wobbly, you've got a broken foundation.

But Christ is the rock unto whom coming as unto a living stone. Ye also, as living stones, are built up a habitation of God through the spirit. What does it mean? He lifts the beggar from the dunghill.

He has to get off of that dunghill. He's got to quit eating worms, whether woolly worms or smooth worms. And he's got to move into the palace of the king and wear a crown and reign over a kingdom. Terrible.

When I sat behind the minister in Germany, he was saying, oh, if we only had. I said we have. If we only could. I said we can. If we only did. I said we for goodness sake, where do you live? He that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God.

Is that a rock? Is that a foundation? Smile. Oh, praise the Lord. My heart is fixed, O God. That's what made David a man after God's own heart. And I like to see these boys here and these children. These children are growing up for Jesus Christ.

A Church Fixed in Christ and Ready to Overcome

And God must have a church that's fixed. He must have sons and daughters that are fixed. Satan will never move into the pit until he has to. And you and I have to tell him where he belongs. Thank God.

And we can make room for Jesus Christ to come in all his majesty, in all his power, in all his redeeming love, in all his resurrection life and take hold of these bodies. And one of these days he'll come when the trumpet sounds and close us upon with immortality.

Oh, wonderful sound. My heart is fixed, O God. My heart is fixed. Oh, but listen, it's easy in this meeting to say that. But when you're tested, when you go through the valley, when you're really in a real temptation, then I will sing and give praise.

That's really wonderful. That's the time to sing. That is the time to sing. Glory to God. Awake up, my glory. This word glory means your tongue. Get your tongue moving for God. Awake, psaltery and heart.

Praising God in the Midst of Testing

Last night I was a little bit stumped after a wonderful meeting to hear people hollering outside. I said, cut their heads off and they'll still be talking 15 minutes after that, but they won't make that noise.

Here in the meeting, I don't bet, but I bet you they didn't open their mouths to say hallelujah. But as soon as they get outside, they can yell. Awake up, my glory. That's what my glory is for, my tongue, to glorify my God.

And oh, what a blessing, what a contact I have when I praise the Lord. How many times we've been healed when in the worst testing we praise the Lord. One of the greatest, most wonderful healings I've had was in Switzerland.

I'd been suffering for years with a real painful fissure somehow in my body. And I didn't pray much about it because I knew the Lord would heal me. But when it came to the worst, the Holy Ghost just rose up within me and I laughed in the Holy Ghost and it was gone.

That's 30 years ago and it's been gone ever since. Wonder of wonders, beloved. My heart's fixed. Let's fix our hearts this morning. No, let God fix our hearts. I myself will awake early. I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people.

I will sing unto thee among the nations. For thy mercy is great unto the heavens and thy truth unto the clouds. Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let thy glory be above all the earth.