A Meaningful Melee - Pastor J. D. Howell 11-23-2025

As a holy ghost titled a meaningful maylee, A meaningful melee.

How many of you know the definition of the word maylee?

All right? The word maylee.

Means a confused, close range fight involving multiple people, lacking organization,

a large, noisy crowd where people move in different directions

and fight, A meaningful melee. Brother Nathaniel, would you turn

to the Book of First Samuel. Well you read verse

number twenty through twenty four, chapter number seventeen, Brother Samuel, James,

chapter number one and verse number eight, Brother Jesse, Leviticus,

chapter number ten, verses number ten through twelve. Again our

co text this morning will be First Samuel, chapter number seventeen,

Versus number twenty through twenty four. Brother Samuel, you read

James chapter number one, in verse number eight, and also

Leviticus chapter number ten, verses number ten through twelve. I

want to preach a message the holy ghost titled a

meaningful Melee, Brother Nathaniel, would you read that? My brother

First Samuel seventeen twenty through twenty four and David arose

up early in the morning and left the sheep with

a keeper and took and win as Jesse had commanded him,

And he came to the trench as the host was

going forth to the fight, and shouted for the battle

for Israel. And the Philistines had put the battle in

a ray, army against army, And David left his carriage

in the hand of the keeper of the carriage, and

ran into the army, and came and saluted his brethren.

And as he talked with him, behold, there came up.

The champion of the Philistines of Gath, Goliath by name,

out of the armies of the Philistines, and spake according

to the same words. And David heard them. And all

the men of Israel, when they were when they saw

the man, fled from him and were sore. Read a

meaningful melee, Brother Samuel James, chapter number one, verse number eight.

The double minded man is unstable in all his.

Ways, Brother Jesse. Leviticus, chapter number ten, Verses number ten

through twelve.

And that you may put difference between holy and unholy,

and between unclean and clean, And that you may teach

the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord

had spoken.

Unto them by the hand of Moses.

And Moses spake unto Erin and unto Eliezer, and unto

Ithamar his sons that were left, take the meat of

the offering that remaineth of the offerings of the Lord

made by fire, and eat it without levin beside the altar,

for it is most.

Holy Amen concerning Leviticus ten and ten, which brother Jesse

just read to us. People today have lost sight of

the holiness of God. People today have lost sight of

the holiness of God, and few make an attempt at

making a distinction between the holy and the unholy. Again,

a few people making attempt at making a distinction between

the holy and the unholy. Let's stand for the reading

of our golden texts. First Kings, chapter number eighteen, verse

number twenty one. You guessed that we're back here this morning?

All right, the Bible said, And Elijah came unto all

the people and said, how long haughts ye between two opinions.

If the Lord be God, follow him, but if bel

then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

Two opposing forces clashed. There was a conflict, an open

clash between two opposing forces. A meaningful melee. Let's pray,

Heavenly Father, we love and we praise you. We think

for the opportunity to be in your house. We pray

that you would anoint this thy servant, set a guard

at my mouth, and help me to say the things

that you would have me to say, nothing more or less.

Annoint this thy precious people, whom you told them you

love him, Lord, and you love her, and you love them.

We pray God that you would help them to hear

what the spirit of God says unto the church. We pray,

let the sayings go below the shoulders, let them saturate

the soul and the spirit of these beds. We love

you so much God, May we receive this word gladly.

May we depart this place joyfully and not sorrowfully in

Jesus's name, And the church said amen.

Again.

Looking at verse number twenty one of First Kings, chapter

number eighteen, the Bible says that he answered, I'm sorry.

Verse number twenty one in Elijah came into all the

people and said, how long haughts ye between to opinions?

If the Lord be God, follow him, if bail, then

follow him. The people answered him not a word. And

I believe it is no secret at all that these

people were struggling the way they were because they were

double minded. Remember our co text, a double minded man

is unstable in all his ways. Our text is found

in an Old Testament book of the Holy Bible, the

Book of First Kings. This particular book of the Bible

is one that gives the readers some specific details and

information about the nation of Israel and her kings after

the passing or the loss of the Sweet Psalmist of Israel,

after the beloved King David had succumbed to death. Basically,

it's the story of Israel's decline, both naturally and spiritually.

There are people in your life whom used to serve

the Lord, and if you were to speak of them

this morning, after this morning service, you would say, I'm

not sure what happened to them, but at some point

they began to decline spiritually. They did not decline naturally,

but they decline spiritually. And I believe that we see

a declining spiritually in our world today. We know that

there are two forces at work, an evil force and

a righteous force, a good force and a bad force,

an angelic heavenly force and a satanic devilish force. And

we know that this all began when an opposing force

entered the Garden of Eden. How many of you are

familiar with the scriptural account of Lucifer walking into that

place of paradise. So even though two created beings whom

God dearly love were occupying a promised space, an opposing

force came inside of that garden where there.

Was so much good.

The Creator himself looked upon the actions of himself, and

he declared every action to be good. So there were

wonderful forces at work, brother Samuel Starrett, but an opposition

developed in Lucifer, and literally it slivered into paradise.

And I look at the Bethel hole.

In his church this morning, and our Sunday school superintendent said,

there's a little over seventy people in this building. And

I know it's easy for an invisible Satanic force to

if you would slide in amongst our little place of paradise,

and it could be said, hey, pastor howell, there is

a snake in the garden. And so we know that

this book of First Kings talks about a land that

had been established by God, a land that David had

ruled over, a man that had a heart after God.

But it is now in national decline, both naturally and spiritually.

And so after watching the actions of wicked leaders and

kings of his day. The prophet Elijah has much to

say about backsliding. In fact, in his day and hour,

he had as much to say about backsliding amongst his

people as brother Thomas there does, concerning his people, meaning

those that proclaim to be the sons and the daughters

of God. And I believe that Elijah was okay in

having those and him being so concerned about people no

longer putting a distinction between the holy and the unholy,

the good and the bad, the righteous and the evil.

And so I want us to consider this morning the

same thing that Elijah was considering. Why is this nation

in a spiritual decline? What is going on? And when

you recognize and realize that that nation that has forsaken

and forsook God and forgotten God is in decline and

it is leading them to the pathway of hell, what

do you do? You humble yourself and you pray right,

you repent, you turn from your wicked ways, and then

the healing process, by the grace of God begins. And

there's no doubt in my mind, as a religious leader,

specifically as the prophet of power, the prophet of God,

that Elijah was hoping for better times and better days.

There's no doubt at all in my mind that the

nation of Israel had been thriving under the rulership of David,

both spiritually and naturally. During the reign of David, it

was a time of divine inspiration. The Word of God

was at liberty to go forth. Poems and songs were

being written, if you would. Brother Nathaniel was playing the guitar,

and his feet were as happy as his hands, and

the power of God was in the place. In the

days of Claude Eley, we hear about how the power

of God was in the place, you know, like it

is here at Bethel, when brother Jesse's feeling the anointing

and he's doing more than tickling the ivories and playing

skillfully unto the Lord. He's anointed and worshiping God on

that musical instrument. You know, it was times like these

when brother Philip feels the anoying of God and there's

a special anointed drumroll. In the days of David, poems

and songs were being written, and the song leader like

Sister Charity Howell, and the choir like the Bethel Choir,

were highly anointed, and the prophets, the preachers of God

were on fire, and the King's heart was tender towards

the Lord. And prophets like the prophet Nathan could rebuke

the King, and the King would receive gladly the words

of rebuke, and he would pray and say, creating me

a clean.

Heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

Oh, it was revival year after year during the reign

of David. But in the days of e lives of

concerning the nation of Israel, things are not going so

well for the people of God. Instead of loving God

with all their heart, they are divided, and this internal

and national division is part of their spiritual decline.

We know if there had.

Been division in the Upper Room, there would have been

no outpouring of the Holy Ghost amongst the believers. If

there had been division in the followers of Jesus Christ

during his earthly ministry, there would not be the wonderful

stories to teach our children of in the elementary Sunday

school class. If you look at our golden takest again

first Kings, chapter number eighteen and verse number twenty one,

the Bible said, and in such a time as this

Elijah came unto all the people. He is not only

addressing leadership and the false prophets of that hour. He's

addressing the nation of Israel. Because when people follow blind leaders,

they themselves become blind, and everybody ends up in that

spiritual ditch that is never satisfied. It desires to be

filled up each and every weekend. Although people go supposedly

to their specific certain houses of worship. And so Elijah

comes and appears before all the people, and he asked

them a question, how long halts ye between two opinions?

If the Lord Jehovah be God, follow him, but if bail,

then follow him.

And the people answered him not a word.

And Brother Jesse, the inspiration for this morning's message is

that latter part. And the people answered him not a word.

They were disinterested in conflict. They were not at all

interested in a meaning for melee. But the prophet Elijah

was ready for a spiritual showdown. In James chapter number one,

in verse number eight, the great Apostle James put it

this way, a double minded man is unstable in all

his ways. The prophet Elijah and the apostle James were

looking at people who were torn between two opposing forces. Recently,

as the senior pastor here, I told our preachers and

our singers to find a style and stick with it.

Not to be double minded, not to be divided in style,

not to be divided in purpose, not to be divided

in spirit.

I've always been troubled.

Even prior to my conversion, when I see those people

that don't know their identity, they don't know to whom

they belong. I've seen them identify with a rock and

roll freak crowd one week at school, and the next

week they were wearing cowboy boots and cowboy hats and

putting on big, flashy built buckles to identify with.

The ag crew.

And then a week after that they came into school

with hoodies on, looking like hip hop artists. When you

see somebody that cannot even settle on a dress style,

you're looking at somebody that halts between two opinions. And

you can see this prevalent in the independent, Holiness and

Pentecostal movements, that people are being pulled by opposing forces.

Could the church say.

A man the proper lives and nose there is an

evil force and a righteous force at work, and seemingly

the evil force is prevailing. There is a holy force

and an unholy force at work. Conceeemingly, the unholy force

is prevailing. I believe every person in this building will

agree that it is true today as it was then,

that we con sense the opposition and we can detect

these opposing forces. Last Sunday morning I preached along the

lines of Elijah fleeing for his life from the notorious

and wicked woman of Jezabel. And this morning we're putting

great emphasis on the fact that Elijah had put a

great distance between himself and a Hab and Jezebel. In fact,

according to my Bible, and according to the maps and

the charts in the back of my Bible, we could

ask make that Elijah traveled almost one hundred miles from

where a haven Jeszebel were to the hometown of Jezebel

in order to be used of God amongst a little widow,

in order for a widow of God to be used

on his behalf over one hundred miles away, a great

distance between a Hab and Elijah.

God is working.

Can I tell you sometimes you can put a distance

between you and the trouble in your life and God

can bless you and work in your life in a

wonderful way.

But then there.

Comes times when God orders that you confronted. And you know,

when God orders a confrontation, there is going to be

a meaningful melee. There is a reason for the squirmish.

There's a reason for the battle field. Oh, come on,

there's a reason for the choosing of sides.

And so we know that the wicked.

Woman Jessebel and her spineless coward of a husband a

Have are not at all excited about the arrival of Elijah,

other than the fact that they need him there in

order to make him pray again that it will rain again.

They knew that.

This undesired and unwelcome change to the nation, meaning the

suffering a time of droughting, came because of their idolatry

and their wickedness. But they turn it on Elijah, and

from their platform and from the mouths of their news heralds,

they go for saying that Elijah, it is the reason

that we're going through with this time of droughting. He's

the reason why we're suffering. He is the troubler of Israel.

I mean, if they live today, it have been on

every newspaper to been in the headlines that Elijah is

the reason for the drought, and God has let Elijah

know it is no longer time to flee, It is

no longer.

Time to live in a hideout. It is time now

to confront him and to hid it head on.

You see, Elijah is not a man that has double minded.

He serves God in spirit and in truth.

He speaks as the oracles of God concerning what God

has said. The concerning Jeszabela and her prophets, whom are

many four hundred prophets of Bell and four hundred and

fifty propets of the Grover vice versa. They are double

minded leaders they have and jezabel and their religious leaders

are of double minded. The lack of rain and the

drafting is not because of the man of God. It's

because of the divisiveness and their old spirit and the

unsettledness of their own spirit. You see, when it comes

to this showdown on caramel, Elijah is trying to make

it clear for everybody to see, your problem is that

you're refusing to come against the force of evil. I've

heard of certain people alive today that will celebrate Halloween

in order to appease the forces of evil, even though

they declare themselves to be the.

Children of God.

I've heard of so called section of correl Christian religion

that feels like it's okay to appease the devil a

little bitter or an evil force a little bit.

So as not to upset him while serving God. That

is to be double minded. Hoh, Come on now, and the.

Children of his is we are in such a state

of mind and such a place as this where they

feel like they can lift up one hand under Jehovah

and they can lift up their other hand.

On the bell.

It's how Lord, are so called Christians hard today? They

blessed God with one half of their tongue and curse

their brother with the other half of their turn. Come

on now, I've never seen it as it is us today,

when there's so many gossip goblins who were employed have

to rumor meal of Pentecostal churches. It is everywhere everywhere

you go. There's trouble on every hand. Everywhere you go.

The evangelists tell me they are in spiritual decline. I

know there's a few revivals here and there. Every evangelist

wants you to believe that there be a successful Every

evangelist want you to think hundreds got saved and hundreds were.

Filled with a holy ghost.

And every evangelist wants to make you think there was

a lot of fruit on the altars tree.

That I'm telling you it is not always the case.

And we need more than a snake or salesman than

an evangelist.

And we need.

More than a shoe salesman or us concessman in an evangelisa.

We need somebody that can walk inside up from a

church that calls it's up.

The Church of God, and detective there's in our.

Position in the building as an opposing farcer in the

building there and come in and hit it with Holy

Gus dynamite and blow I spear it up in the hell.

I'm telling you the spirit of fire, the spirit of Elijah,

the spirit of God.

He's not afraid of a meaning for melee.

So God lets Elijah know you know what. It was

a great hot out. Miracles were performed in the hot out.

A miracle was performed for you in the valley over there,

in that haven. The ravens came in and they sustained

you when the brook dried up I moved on over

to the widow's house, and y'all had church. Oh how

the Lord blessed. But now it is time to confront

the opposition. Now it's time to confront the false accusation.

Now it's time to let it be. Know.

Really, who is the one that's troubling Israel.

I will tell you who's the troubler of independent and

holiness movements, Pentecostal movements.

Of all degree.

It is the plagiarist, somebody that's too sloppel and too

lazy to get on bending knee and to pray through

what they need to pray through, even if it means

praying through an opposing force. I don't care how they

explain it. I don't care how they get in behind.

It and support it.

Somebody can point it out and somebody we later compost

the picture of the preacher that was called out for

plagiarism in supportive him and act like it did not happen.

I want you to know, young people, and the Holiness

church preacher knows that it happened as much as you do.

And when you stay in your hideout and it becomes

a hangout rather than holy grounder, I'll tell you where

the holy ground is. It is no longer in the

hideout that become a hangout. And some of the would

rather hang out on the outskirts of the problems owner.

They'd rather stay in their comfort Zoner. And some of

them avoid issue, and some of them would appease the

devil rather than opposing the devil. I tell you there

comes a time when you confront the devil the apostle.

Paul said.

One time when Peter was trying to leave a well

scene between two forces, between the Gentiles and the Jews,

or Peter was allowing her to be a welded beader

or a seam a division. And Paul came in with

a holy ghost grinder and he ground that well bed

and he made it look like her one stainless steel,

powerless plaint.

And he was stood Peter to the face and.

He said, these gentile believers are the chilling of God

as much as the Jewish believer. I'm telling you I

don't like conflict as much as anybody else is.

But there comes a.

Timer when you know what to do and you take

a stand, and it may end up being a battle Stanza,

but you stand up nevertheless, you don't know what to do.

Having done all this, stand amen. It is so easy.

It is so easy to talk our head like an

ostrich when we sent a position. It is so easy

to run from trouble. It is so easy to avoid trouble.

I remember David basically said, I desire to be a peacekeeper.

And I believe not only was he a peacekeeper, he

was a peacemaker. He said, I speak on behalf of peace,

but when I speak, they are for war. I tell

you who the troubler is. Lucifer came into their little

piece of paradise. He is the troubler of Eden. I

tell you who was the troubler of the Kingdom of

Israel and Judah. Lucifer, He's the one that came into

the palace. And I'm telling your brother Jesse, it literally

chills my blood to think that Ahab and jessup bel

sat in the throne of.

David and had their way and their wishes just like

any and everybody else.

It's got power and pre eminence, does brother Nathaniel. They

were unbalanced and unchecked, but they were divided. I'm telling

you a have it's trying to worship Jehov he's got

profits tucked away his serving, Obadiah's hiding the mount, and

Sister Jesabel's wanting to kill them. The Bible set a

divided house will not stand. He ain't have you avoided

conflict with Jessabel? Didn't you why? Because she's so pretty?

She's from Sarah Phyth. Oh come on now, but even

Jesabel would know Sarah Path is nothing more than a

smelting pot, just a place where a lot.

Of different alloys are burned.

Oh, come on now, we don't need a melting pot

our religions in order to make of the heaven. What

we need is lee way, the truth, and thee life.

Jesus was not inclusive. Jesus said, I will not allow

you to have any other God between me and THEE.

I am the way. Jezebel doesn't like that.

She says, oh, oh, a haveb I don't really think

it hurt or harm anything at all to let some

of my prophets come in. You give them an it say,

become your ruler. Jezebel loved church as much as you do, Bethel.

You love church. It doesn't matter if we dismiss at

twelve or one forty five. You all love church. I'm

yet to have a single complaint in twenty years. I've

never heard a complaint, not a single complaint of being

long winded. I've never heard a single complaint of you

all being long winded concern and worship and praising the

Lord and praying and altar service, I have never heard

a complaint. You're to be commended. And Jezebel was the

same way. As long as she had it her way,

as long as her profits were the ones doing the preaching,

as long as it was her team and Ahab's team

of eight hundred and fifty, we'll be here all day

and we'll do whatever they say needs to be done.

If it's cut themselves, if it's trickery, if it's witchery,

if it's high dollar, whatever, we would do to do.

It to make something happen.

And that's where the church is today, with all of

these smoke machines fogging up, the saints.

Are wearing as though it's a quarter of hell. Oh,

come on, now, they're lights. Hey.

I remember being scared of the Neon Moon as a

little boy when Retrove pasted upon. But they brought to

the Neon Moon and hung it in the house of Tid.

I'm telling you here this morning, the.

House of Todd, there's no place at all for the

neon moon.

Amen. How dare you challenge that boy?

You've got a backbone, you and so should you have one.

So Elijah put this great distance between him and they

having Jezebel on purpose. And last week I explained to

you why this is a notorist Jezebel. She knows I

can extinguish his life. Amen. And every prophetness that is false,

and every false prophet they want to extinguish the light

of every Elijah, everyone whom they say troubles Israel, everyone

that dare preach a little doctrine of sanctification, everyone that

dare preach a little doctrine of salvation. Somebody's told me

that one of my cousins recently turned sideways in their

assembly at God Church and said, he said, I'm tired

of some of you justifying your sin. I'm tired of

the way you've given your sin a name and the

way you pet it, and you want God to just

look past it and act like you're not sining. He said,

when you get saved the blood of Jesus cleanses you

from sin, and it gives you power to have victory

over sin.

They said, what's going on with him?

I said, probably about the same thing that went on

with me about thirty something years ago.

You start reading the Bible and.

You realize God said he would save his people from

their sin, and he was not going to let jesesbel

and Herle's remain in their sin. Shall we continue in

sin that grace may abound?

God forbid this day?

The showdown at Carmel is going to be a sactofication revival.

It's gonna be all for nothing. It's gonna be due

for die. Amen. Two opposing forces come together. There's a clash,

a meaning for melee.

There is always a reason.

For a man of God, a woman of God, a

child of God, or somebody standing up for the right.

The Gold City Quartet sings a song, it's one of

my favorites. It talks about standing up for the right.

What's the next lyric to that? There's no need of

standing up for the right unless you're gonna what stand

up against the wrong? There it is, Hey, Elijah was

not only gonna stand up, he was gonna stand against it.

And if you're not against something. I question whether or

not you're for good?

Are you all with me?

Because anybody that is for God is gonna naturally be

against something. We find that Adam should have been against

that evil force that came into Paradise. We find that

Elijah was justified because God commissioned him to stand against

a haveb in Jesabel, somebody said, well you shouldn't speak

up and out against some of this stuff that's going on.

Oh really, where did you find that? At him? The

word of God?

It's said, as much as life within, you live peaceably

with all men. Hey, but let me tell you something.

Do you abide peacefully with the man that plundered your

house the night before? Knowing good way, he's gonna come

back in your house and plunder it again. What's gonna happen?

Eventually your house is gonna be polluted. So what do

you do? You with stand the thief at the door.

You with stand the thief at the door. I'm not

telling you to push any individuals out of church. I'm

not telling you to push any individuals out of church.

I'm telling you you push them foul spirits out of

your way, just like God did this morning, I said, God,

I know this is an attack of the enemy keeping

me from preaching. Of these people you gave me, you

told me to feed your sheep. In three hours, I'll

be doing that, and I need your help.

And you know what he came by.

Because greater is he that is in us, that he

that is in the world. We shouldn't fear the opposition.

We shouldn't fear the opposing forces. That's what the Lord

told the prophets. Jeremione is Eco had said, don't consider

their countenance, don't look upon their expressions of malice, don't

look upon and that unless you get fearful in your spirit,

set you forehead like a flint, be focused. Amen, Praise

the Lord. Should I keep preaching or should we go

to the chicken house?

Amen?

Somebody said that man of God shouldn't ask that question.

If he's really annoyed, he'd keep preaching whether or not

they like it or not. But that's the same people

that want their preacher to preach twenty minutes. And then

because I preached for them for an hour, they said

I was long winded. I'm trying to tell you there

are evil forces at work. There are evil communicators, and

there are people that just run their mouth. Y'all know

what I call it, spiritual verbal diarrhea.

Amen.

The wickedness of Ahabing Jezebel had brought undesired and unwelcome

change to the nation. It was no longer nation as

it was under the leadership of David. And that's what

happens when you get these spiritual a habit Jezebel's in

the poolpit that no longer know how to put a

distinction between the holy and the unholy. It used to

be that you understood the platform had a spiritual line

on it, and there was a distinction. People that were

unsanctified did come up on the platform, not even after church.

They were afraid to come up on the platform. I

remember when people wouldn't even smoke in the church. You are, oh,

come on, that ain't been but about twenty years ago,

when the sinner who only come to church once a

year at Easter would walk across the street to have

a cigarette during the congregation of singing. But people today

won't say anything about that. They say, we live in

a different.

Day and hour. Oh no, we don't.

There's no new thing under the sun. The greatest wise

man ever lives at? Where are the Elijahs of God?

Where are the Elijahs of God? According to the double

minded leaders of false prophets, of lack of reign was

all because of Elijah, Ahaben Elijah or polar opposites.

Praise Lord.

Everyone understands these two men are at completely different ends

of the spectrum. It's kind of like brother Thomas Stare

at TD fakes. It's kind of like brother Aaron Wood

and Joel Ostein. They're at two different ends of the spectrum.

They are as different as day and night. How dare

you call out any names? Well, when everybody comes to

an agreement, a mutual agreement, that we should still be

sanctified people, that the call to Abraham is still true today,

to the spiritual descendants of Abraham, that we are called

to be a sanctified people.

Amen.

If you look at brother Buford Stags and Brother Amos Wood,

you'll see they are poor opposites. If you look at

David and Glyathe and Scripture, you'll see their polar opposites

as opposite as Bill Clinton and Donald Trump are. Nowadays,

it appears a hab is is okay with some gray

areas being in his life. That sounds like some holiness

of Pentecostal preachers to me. It appears to me that

a hab is okay with some gray areas being in

his life. He's okay with the idea of blurring the lines.

He's okay with praying to Jehovah and bell in the

same breath.

Are you all okay with that? You're okay with.

Listening to a little rock and roll music on the

way to work and then on the way home playing

the Happy Goodman's sweet Water and bitter can't flow out

of the same fountain, Oh, come on, fresh and salty

can't flow out of the same fountain. You're telling polar

opposites here on two completely different ends of the spectrum.

God told Elijah you gonna find a hab he wanted ay,

having Jess about to.

Meet Elijah on the mouth and Carmel, and.

They would need all the help that they could get,

because brother Jeremiah, we all know that when that enemy

force come against one of them great prophets, the Bible

said that the horizon and lit up with a great

host that was innumerable. And the old prophet told the

young prophet, said, look those that before us are greater

in number than those are in number that be against us.

And so, jezbel you better call every one of your

lip wristed a jelly worm, backboneer so called preachers to

the rally.

We're having Friday and not meeting.

Oh come on, now, I don't know what not of

the week it is, but you know what I'm talking about.

And in Walter, the man of God, Brother Jesse told

me recently. He said, Dad, I believe it's about time

you start visiting some.

Of these meetings.

He said, I believe the moment you walk in, the

vast majority of them are gonna say.

Oh my God, why is he here?

What does God have to say to the people of God.

I'll tell you what God has to say say. The

pication and holiness has never troubled the people of God.

Worldliness and compromiser trouble the people of God.

Amen, you know what, brother Jesse. There would be a conflict.

There would be a clash between these two opposing forces.

After they arrived on the mat, I meant to mount.

After they arrived at the mat, I meant to mount. Oh,

my God in Heaven help us. First King's eighteen twenty one,

said Elijah said to all the people, how long haltsy

between two opinions? I want to talk to the beth

of young people for a minute. Is it Jesus or

to the devil? Is it the way of the world

or the way of the Cross. Is it the way

of the Lord or the way of the devil. What

do you want your little piece of paradise? Do you

want to talk with a serpent or do you want

to talk with a master? How about on your mountain?

Do you want to have firefall out of heaven? Or

do you want to spend all night long trying to

make everybody think something's happening when nothing is happening. The

prophet took two bullocks and allowed them to pick their

own sounds, just like when Abraham took lot to two

different pieces of property, to opposing forces, two different options,

and Abraham said, the lot you pick, and preachers you

listen as me. If that spirit of the devil wherever

gets inside of you, and the spirit of rebellion and stubbornness,

it starts moving you and motivating you. If I ever

take you to my office and say listen, the world

before you. A church needs to be planting on every corner.

Pick your city. You need to know right then, Old God,

It's just like Abraham with Lot. He feels it'd be

more advantageous for me to leave than to stay. What

happened that day because there was so much conflict and

so much discord and disharmony between the herd men of

Lot and the hermit of Abraham, that Abraham hit it

head on that day and he said, we need to

make a decision today. Lot, you're gonna stay and be

associate pastor and youth pastor?

Are you gonna pack your bags and leave?

And I've heard about this division and the holiness of

Pentecostal churches. Hey, the Pentecostal churches includes Assemblies of God churches.

I've heard about this division that is not of God,

that is not of God, when the youth pastors undermining

the pastor and the pastor's undermining the youth pastor. I

like what one Assembly of God pastor said one time.

He said, when the church decided to sen your pastor

wasn't good enough for them. That told me I wasn't

good enough for them either, And I packed my bags

and left. Do we have that problem that Bethel know

we do not have division or discord or disharmony, but

it's one of the things that's going on in the

Pentecostal and Holiness movements, and it's a problem. We need

to ask them the question, how long do you halt

between two opinions? Is plagiarism wrong or is it not?

It's getting into pulpit and bragging as though our preachers

are better than everyone else.

Is it bragging a sin? Is it telling a lie

from a pulpit a sin? Is it boasting a sin?

It happened.

It happened when one of our holiness preachers getting a

pullpit and called out men of this world whom they

listen to and whom they borrow or plagiarize their message.

Y'all heard me.

They borrow or play drive their messes. I didn't say

their messages. I said their missuses. You'll get that tomorrow morning.

Preach against T. D. Jay's just because they don't want

to be to listen to him, because when they do,

they'll hear they barred. I meant stole his message, because

when you do it like they did it, you can't

return it. When you preach it and use it like

you want it. My God, I'm gonna practice self control

and self restraint right here. I expect nothing less of cowards, spineless,

jelly worm backbone preachers than to decide to just remain silent.

And you know what, in these United States, you have

a right to remain silent if you're guilty, But if

you're not guilty, you have no problem speaking up as

saying I ain't done that, and I ain't gonna do that,

and you shouldn't be doing that. Amen. Amen. They won't

put this one on repeat. And if they steal this

one like they've done others, they can have it, but

they won't say that part. And you know what, brother Sterrett,

Elijah did the same thing Abraham did. He said, boys,

just go ahead and pick out the best bullock, and

I know them false prophets. After they got done looking

over their sacrifice. And then Elijah said, cut that thing

up in pieces, like brother Nathaniel did.

That little deer.

Cut that thing up in some pieces, and dropped that

thing on that altar, that thing you call an altar.

Nowadays they don't even have altars in their churches. But

you dropped that thing on what you call an altar,

and then you ask a fireball to fall out of sky.

And Elijah said, when that fireball falls out of the sky,

then the one that said it will declare to be God.

And they worked on it, and they had their praising

worship teams, they had their mins on their drama teams.

It's gonna come into Independent holding his churches. Before you

know it, the stone.

Was rolled away. That's o the Devil.

A circus act in the church is of the devil

clowns running the churches of the Devil. Twenty some years ago,

I preached against the tank top wearing power team coming

into Pentecostal churches. And I'm telling you it's coming in

to Independent holding his churches, slowly but surely. But what

I'm looking for is a God that answers by fire.

And until we have a meaningful melee, you won't hear

from the God that answers by fire. You ever heard

Mom and Dad say, it ain't gonna get better till

we have a come to Jesus meeting. And they want revival,

and they're cutting their arms, and they're cutting their wrists,

and they're cutting their legs and trying to have revival

and God standing there with his arms folded, saying, You're

not gonna have revival until you humble yourself, turn from

your wicked ways, and then I'll send healing reign.

I said. Then after that he will send healing brain.

Of course, nothing happened at the altar of Jesseebel's prophets.

Of course, there's nobody being healed. Of course, there's nobody

being saved and sactified and holy ghost feel where messages

of truth are not preached. But you listen to the

prayer of Elijah, brother Philip, he sounded to me like

he's talking to somebody has a relationship with Hear me, O, Lord,

hear me that this people may know that thou art

to Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart

back again. That's what they need. That's what this message

is about. Right here this morning. Turn your heart back

to God. And when you turn your heart back to God,

you will have no problem at all seeking the Lord.

And when you seek him, you will when you knock

on that door, he will open. And when you ask

him for fire to fall, the fire will fall, and

at the end everybody would occur.

The Lord he is God, the Lord, He is God.

Let's stand sweet Jesus. A double minded man is unstable

in all his ways. David and glythe to opposing forces,

and David accepted Golia's challenge. Literally, David pushed back and

what sister faith Ropecap told us, I realized contemporary Christian

music somehow for me it violated my spirit. And for me,

she said, it was in opposition to what God was

trying to do in my life. I'm not surprised. Conflict

an open clash between two opposing forces. Get the imagery.

Imagine Ahab and Elijah walking toward one another. Imagine their expressions,

Consider the looks on their faces. Was there eye to

eye contact? I felt like Elijah was looking for eye

to eye contact, but I feel like Ahab.

Didn't want the squamish malee.

A confused, close range fight involving multiple people lacking organization.

It sounds to me like them crazy false prophets running

around trying to make something happen. Bring the smoke machine

into the church. Then we can entertain people that like

to watch clowns. A large, noisy crowd where people move

in different directions and fight. It sounds to me like

both sides of the Valley of e Law where the

Israelites and the Philistines were gathered. And I'm going to

say this again. Our cotext Leviticus ten ten talked about

there should be a difference between the holy and the unholy,

Brother Jesse, There's never been a time that I've been

ashamed to be an ambassador of holiness unto God.

I don't want to be in.

A phariseical spirit. I don't feel like I've ever had

a phariseical spirit. I don't ever feel like I've been

holier than now. I feel like I show people the

love of God. Have we been misrepresented?

Yes?

Has people accused us, I mean to Bethel Holness Church

of being fanatical? Yes, and they will because they are

an opposing force. They are on the opposite end of

the spectrum. And I'm going to say this again. People

today have lost sight of the holiness of God, and

few are willing to make an attempt at making a

distinction between holy and unholy things. And I want to

ask you right now, how long are you going to

fight that battle? We've all heard it said everybody has

a chink in their armor. Brother Jesse, you're the inspiration

for this message. Last night, while we were all talking,

brother Jesse said something he's heard his dad's for years.

Brother Jesse said, every person has their goliath. Every person

faces their own giant. And he said, every person knows

the name of that giant, and they know the battle

that ensues, and they know the threats of that giant.

And here's what he said. It's important that they don't

be possessed of that giant, that they fight it. And

Brother Jesse said, when will they kill it? And this

sermon started brewing and started boiling. There's young people in

every church, whether nominal, independent, organized, Holiness, Assembly God, Church

of God, Presbyterian. Look, there's young people in every church

that needs to kill their giant. Sister Faith road Cap,

there's gonna be people come to you and say, there's

no way that was a personal giant in your life,

because it's not in my life. But you need to

look at them and see do they change with the seasons?

Do their styles change? Are they like a reed blown

in the wind. I'm gonna tell you something, If thick

rim glasses come in style tomorrow, I won't be buying

a pair. I'd rather let this message be preached on

the level of an intellect rather than me stooping down

and having the name things. But I can see it

as a pastor in an independent Holness church when people's

been listening to IBC choir too much because they start

wanting to do their hairstyles differently.

Than what they've been doing it.

And I'm telling you, you can look at the people

of an independent Holness church or of churches, and you

can tell go back to the first part of this message.

They're a cowboy one week, they're a hip hop artist

the next Christian, and next then they look like a lawyer.

Then they look like a judge.

Then they're walking around and they're.

Like a read.

You see, brother Howell, besides wearing dungarees, I'll look like

I do right now.

When are you gonna grow up?

And when are you gonna put away these childish things?

When are you gonna grow up? And when are you

gonna put away childish things? There's things right now God's

dealing with you about. One of my uncles told me.

He said, the hardest battle he ever fought was stolen

the TV out. He said, when God led him by

the Church of God, God dealt with him about watching television. Well,

I'm not surprised because I remember Granny Clampet making inappropriate

jokes about Ellie May Clampet and Sister Wood when I

watched The Hillbillies. It was before I got saved in

the eighties. They were reruns from the sixties, and I

have a very good memory. People that know me know

I remember Granny Clampet telling Jed Clampet that Ellie May

was wearing the garments of a man when she walked

in and breeches. And for those that like to what

do you call that check? What's that called? Fact check me?

Fact check me, Jack. I remember Granny Clampet saying Eli

May Clampet was wearing the garments of a man.

That was in the sixties.

The scriptwriter of the Beverly Hillbillies said that, and Granny

was wearing a skirt. I'm telling you there will be

a distinction, but between male and female, and genders, and

the holy and unholy, and the righteous and unrighteous. And

I don't have to look like a Hell's angel to

preach to bicker boys. And I'm telling all of my

preacher brethren, my contemporaries, and my preacher brethren of both

sides of the spectrum. The church would fare a whole

lot better if we come to this agreement. We need

to be righteous, and we need to be holy as

He is holy through Him, not of our own righteousness,

which is us filthy rags, but of His righteousness. But

we ought to resemble a child of God. And I

want to get personal with some young people at Bethel.

Can there be a meaningful melee right here this morning

where you deal with it once and for all. God

forbid that somebody habitually partakes and grows sin.

But could there.

Be a meaningful melee today where once and for all

you slay your giant brother Jesse, would you come to

the piano please, Brother brother Nathaniel, would you just obey

the Lord in song this morning? I want us to

bow our heads, close our eyes. I know God dealt

with me to preach along these lines, and I know

there's somebody you don't realize. The snake has slithered into

your little piece of paradise, and he's got in your mind.

And you change with the seasons. My wife's decore in

our house changes with the seasons. But the child of

God don't change with the seasons, and the Word of

God doesn't change with the seasons. And I'm going to

tell you some of you parents that wait until altar

service to start looking on your phone and start finding

inspiration and start writing in your note. But even some

of you kids, you do that at the house when

the Holy Ghost is moving. You need to pray so

that you could be changed and stop fighting these same battles.

That's what these altar services are for. And some of

you don't even realize there's an opposing force opposing you,

and it's all but destroyed you.

I'm going to say it again.

If thick rimmed glasses come in style tomorrow, I wouldn't know,

brother chip Roy, If white sold bottom of shoes comes

in style tomorrow, I wouldn't know, because we're not watching

the world.

And if you'll conquer.

In the name of Jesus by his mind and by

his power and by his spirit and march forth victoriously

over sin, today you can look back and say, thank God,

I destroyed the enemy of my soul.