.  Living Hope Fellowship Church....Sermons by the Pastor 

REALITY

by Pastor Alton Carter, Pastor of Faith Tabernacle Full Gospel Church, Metropolis, IL. 03/14/10

1 Corinthians 13:11 says, “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”  The church of the Lord Jesus is full of children!  Some of us get our feelings hurt too easily.  We need to grow up and become men and women of God, and put away childish things.

A child’s attention is held only for a moment.  Then they get disinterested and go do something else.  God does not change, and if you don’t get it the first time, you will go back and do it again until you get it.  God always graduates His children.  If you have to go through the flood, He will take you through the flood.  If you must go through the furnace, He will take you through the furnace of fire.  I guarantee you it gets hot in there, but you will NOT burn up.  He will walk with you down the aisle as you go to get your diploma.  God is raising up great men and women. 

Even adults don’t always like what is best for them, but sometimes they will step out if they know they are going to get something good from it.  My children didn’t like carrots, collard greens, or peas, so I devised a scheme.  I filled a little spoon with syrup and set it to the side.  I would stick a spoonful of baby food in the child’s mouth and then quickly stick the syrup in there too!  It was bitter, but it was also sweet! 

Some of you don’t like the food that God has for you, but it will make you strong.  It will quicken you when you feel like you are dead on the inside.  Revelation 3:12 says, “Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.”

This world cannot ignore the significance of what you have to say about what goes on in this world.  Too many Christians do not know who they are and what God says about them.  However, your faith is going to be put to the test.  A few months ago the devil told me I was going to die, but the devil is a liar.  I am still here.  Some of you believe the devil’s lies over the Word of God!  Don’t be deceived.  God said you are the salt of the earth.  You are also the light of the world, not tail lights, but head lights. 

Saved folks have something to say.  The church of Jesus Christ should always do good, because Ephesians 2:10 says that we are, “. . . created in Christ Jesus unto good works. . . .”  Some people seem to have nothing but trouble.  They are having repercussions from bumping into all kinds of things.  Maybe they need to examine their headlights. 

Revelation 3:14 says, “. . . These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;”  What is there to debate?  God says sin is wrong, and He does not like it, and you are going to get hurt really bad if you do it.  If you are a Christian, how come you don’t believe what God says?  The Amen of God says in Verse 15-16, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.”

This is written to the church.  Lukewarm means to be half and half.  In the body of Christ, you are either hot or cold.  If you aren’t worried about the fire, you are in serious trouble.  Jesus said if you are lukewarm, half hearted, He will spit you out.  Your actions are not really motivated by the love of Christ.  If the opportunity ever presents itself for you to do something else, you will do something else. 

Revelation 3:17 says, “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched. . . .”  One symptom of being wretched is that you are easily wounded.  Put on the whole armor of God so you won’t get wounded.  Wretched also means you let things get on your nerves.  Wretched means to give up and quit; you set aside that which you have committed yourself to. 

Worldwide, 116,000 Christians died last year because of their faith in Jesus Christ.  We have discomforts, but most of us have not been persecuted.  James 1:8 says, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”  You are a wretched individual if you are ready to give up your salvation. 

Revelation 3:17 says people don’t know they are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind. . . .  The word poor there means destitute of discernment and wisdom.  They can’t tell the difference between good and evil.  Wretched also means to be unhappy and confounded; you don’t know what to do.  Many are destitute of the truth, but if you know the Truth, and you are born again by the Spirit of God, you know what to do. 

I went to hell twice in visions.  Hell is real, and it is so horrible that there are no words to describe it.  In 1988 I saw the lake of fire, and I saw people bouncing up and down in the flames, screaming and asking for help.  There is no help.  There is no life in hell.  The second time I saw hell was in 2001.  I saw demons I can’t describe, carrying and dragging people down a long, dark road that led to a huge cavern.  The doors were 50 to 60 feet tall.  One man turned and looked at me and said, Can you help me?  The devil said, There is no help for you, and he was drug along, screaming.  When he got to the doors, two other demons opened them.  I could see black flames.  The Bible speaks of the blackness of darkness.  There is no light in hell. 

Someone stood me up in a classroom once and asked me, “What is the worst thing you can tell a person?”  They were putting me on the spot as a Christian.  There were about 50 to 75 men there.  Without hesitation, the Holy Spirit said to tell them that when you tell somebody to go to hell, that is the worst thing you can tell them.  Every minute souls are being dragged into hell to remain there forever.  The church of Jesus Christ has a mandate from God to warn the wicked to stay away from hell.  When your life is over, the only thing that matters is what you have done for Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God.