O bless me now, my Savior, I
come to Thee Okay, go back to Genesis 17 with
me. Read one verse. The Lord just
told Abraham that Sarah would have a child. And in verse 18,
Abraham said unto God, O, that Ishmael might live before thee. Oh, that my wild, wayward son
or daughter might live before the Lord." Now, this is a message of great
hope, great hope for all sinners, all sinners and for all of those
with sinful children, wayward children. There is hope in the
Lord, for He is merciful, full of mercy. I love, and I think
I've been quoting this more than any other verse lately, the Lord
taketh pleasure in them that fear Him, and them that hope
in His mercy. He delights to show mercy, the
Scripture says. It gives Him great pleasure.
and delight to show mercy. But before we look at that verse,
let's go back and look at this and consider this. The Lord appeared
to Abram again. He already appeared to him. And
He appears to him again in verse 1. It says, "...the Lord appeared."
That means the Lord, He saw the Lord. He spoke with the Lord
in person. He appeared. An appearance means
that he sees him, right? The Lord. Look at the last, well,
the verse 22 says God went up from Abraham. Is that what it
says? So Abraham saw God. Right? That's what you read.
The Lord God appeared to Abraham. Who? Who's he talking to? The Lord Jesus Christ. who is
God manifest in the flesh, the only image of God, the fullness
of the Godhead bodily. Is there any doubt in your mind
that's who is speaking to Abraham? We labor this. I labor this. I keep stressing this because
it tells us who Christ is, doesn't it? The world does not believe
who he is. He is God. It said God went up
from him. And I say this over and over
again to us, remind us that it is a person that we believe and
trust and that we deal with, a person, not a doctrine. It's
a person. It's an actual living Lord and
Savior who is talking with. Did he not say, my sheep, hear
my voice? Did he? Is that a figure of speech?
No, it is not. And he told us, he showed us
right here, that he came and spoke to his servant. And he
still speaks, though it's not audibly, but he still speaks
very really and very personally to his people through his word,
confirming with them, like he did Abraham, the covenants ordered
in all things and should. And they need it. We have a person
that watches over us. We have a person that speaks
to us. And he said this, I am with you always, even under the
ends of the earth. Now that's great comfort, a person.
And so that's, we can't get, you can't get any real comfort
from a doctor, from a cold, dead doctor, but you can from a person. So we keep stressing that. Alright,
now the Lord appeared again to Abraham, Abraham, and he reminded
him, He came to him and reminded him of what? The same things
that he told him in the beginning. He didn't tell him anything new.
He came to Abraham with the same promises that he gave him when
he first revealed himself nearly, well, 24 years before this. The very same thing. He didn't
tell him anything different. They were exceeding great and
precious promises, such as, I'm your God. I've chosen you. I'm bringing you out. I'm going
to bless you. I have blessed you. Not going
to. I have blessed you. And you shall be blessed. And on and on he went with these
exceeding great and precious promises. He reminded Abraham
again And again and again and again, why does he do this? Because
that's what a father does. That's what a parent does. A
good teacher repeats him or her, his or herself. You have to. You have to, because we're slow
learners, aren't we? Children, that's what we are,
are slow to learn and very weak in the faith. We're slow to learn
and very weak in the faith, very slow to take Him at His word.
So He keeps telling us the same thing, reminding us, until it
finally sinks in. You know, God keeps telling me
that. Why don't I believe Him? We need reminding because we
soon forget. The Lord kept reminding Abraham
the same things as He does us, and it says that over and over
again in the Scripture today. I would bring these things to
your remembrance, Peter said, because we soon forget. The world
causes us to forget these things, our responsibilities, and all
these distractions, and then trials and troubles come along,
and then we often wonder, like David, are his mercies clean
gone? No. These trials actually are
the mercies of God. But you know, this is why we
forget so soon, and this is why we come here in the middle of
the week. This is becoming a very rare
thing. You know that to me on a Wednesday
night? Very few people think about doing this anymore. But the church everywhere, believers
everywhere that I know do, and we forget so soon. That's why
we come here in the middle of the week, because we need reminded
in three days, we'll forget. His mercy, like we're just like
the children of Israel. It said so many times through
Psalm 106. Go over there. Psalm 106. Go
over there with me. Psalm 106. So many times it said
that they remembered not. They forget. They soon forget.
They soon forgot. I was thinking about this the
other day. Moses was gone just 40 days. And you know what the people
were doing when he came back? In just 40 days' time, they became
like heathen, didn't they? And I feel like that after about
three days, don't you? How long would it be before we
fell into any and every sin and temptation? We need this. Absence
does not make the heart grow fonder. It's the opposite. It makes it grow colder. That's one of man's so-called
wise statements. It is not. What mercy it is for
the Lord to remind us over and over and over again. What mercy
that the Lord keeps reminding us so that we won't forget. He
won't forget. And He's making sure we won't. Look at Psalm 106, verse 43. Many times did he deliver them,
but they provoked him with their counsel and were brought low
for their iniquity. Nevertheless, he regarded their
affliction when he heard their cry, and he remembered for them
his covenant. They forgot, but he can't. The only thing it ever says that
God forgot about his people was what? They are iniquitous. He said, I will remember them
no more. He said, how can I forgive you
that you are engraved on the palm of my hand? He won't let
us forget it. What a mercy that is, huh? He
won't let us forget. And I had other verses, but go
back to the text. So Abraham is reminded again,
and upon hearing the same things from the Lord, these exceeding
great and precious promises, the Lord's covenant mercies,
Oh my. And you know the covenant of
grace that God made with our Lord Jesus Christ? I love to hear, and I love to
hear a man preach it over and over again, though I've heard
it a thousand times. Covenant mercies, how God made
Jesus Christ the surety of an everlasting covenant. Like Judah.
He said, if I don't bring him back, you hold me accountable.
That's where we first heard of assurity. Judah for Benjamin. Covenant mercy, our surety of
the covenant, who was our substitute, whose righteousness was imputed
to his people. And God, who by no means cleared
the guilty, says that because of Christ, every one of them
are not guilty. Wholly unblameable, unreprovable
in God's sight because of something Jesus Christ did. I love that.
Because I know. That it's not for righteousness
which I have done, that we have done, but it's according to His
mercy, His saving. It's because of righteousness
which Christ has done for us. It's His work. And I don't mind
giving Him all the glory. I'm just pleased to do so. All my sins were laid on Him.
All the iniquities of His people were laid on the Lord Jesus Christ.
And by His precious blood, He paid for every last one of those
sins. And God said this, God who cannot
lie, when I see the blood, I will pass over you. And the plague
will not come to your house because the blood is on your door. Christ
is my door, and the blood is on the door. On the mercy seat.
Oh my, that's the place where spirits blend, where we hold
fellowship together. The covenant mercies. That's
what David was talking about. Oh, God has made with me concerning
me an everlasting covenant ordered in all things. It gave me great
pleasure to say all that again. I hope it did you to hear it.
But so Abraham just heard again and reminded of the same things
from the Lord as you did. And I saw some of you smile.
I'm glad. Because it says, when Abraham
heard these things, verse 17, he fell on his face and he laughed.
He laughed. Did the Lord Jesus Christ ever
laugh when He was on the earth? Yes, I looked it up. And when
the Pharisees couldn't understand what the people were doing, and
the people were saying, Hosanna unto the King, and so forth,
And it says, at that time he rejoiced. The word is laughed. He said, I thank you, Father,
Heaven and Earth, that you have hidden these things from the
wise and the prudent and revealed them unto babe. Even so, Father,
it seemed good unto thyself. And Abraham, the same way, you
have revealed these things to me. But he fell on his face. The Lord looked to heaven. He
is the only one who can. But Abraham, a sinner, unworthy,
falls on his face and he laughs, a holy hilarity." Brother Griswold
once said, holy hilarity. I like that. Joy and rejoicing
over the good news the Lord just told him. Now, there is a time
Ecclesiastes said to weep. There is a time to laugh. There
is a time to mourn, it says, and there is a time to dance. And I believe and am sure that
that person who does not weep and does not mourn over their
sin, I don't mean one time, I mean again and again, doesn't know
God and hasn't heard the solemn sound. The solemn sound of the
gospel will make you mourn your sin. And at the same token, That
person who does not laugh, who does not dance before the ark,
like David did, concerning sins forgiven, iniquity pardoned,
they don't know God either. And they haven't heard the joyful
sound. When that prodigal came home, it said that the father
said, Kill the fatted calf. Bring forth the best robe. Put
a ring on his finger. Shoes on his feet. How do you
think he's saying this? Could he possibly not be smiling? No. And it says that there was
joy all around. The other son. says he came in
from the field and he heard music and dancing. They were dancing. And he heard music. And he said
he was angry. He was angry. You know, proof that the gospel
is gospel indeed, and the word means good news. Good news. Proof that the gospel is gospel
indeed, good news, is you can hear it again and again, same
old story, and you still joy and rejoice over it. That's how
you know. Most people, or some people,
hear the gospel like that seed that fall on a stony ground.
They spring up and for a time, but then they begin to want something
more, something new, something else. And they fall away, and
that sound, that's not enough for them. They've lost their
interest in that message. Not so with the people of Israel.
That same old story gives joy and rejoicing. You know, the
Lord gave an ominous warning to those who didn't mourn or
dance, didn't He? He warned the Ephesians. He said,
you've left your first love. He warned the Laodiceans of being
lukewarm. Well, Abraham wasn't. And he
rejoiced over the Lord's promises to him, covenant mercies to him,
and Sarah and a new son. I thought about this. The Lord
told him, he has a son, and he loves his son Ishmael. But the
Lord told him about a new son. He wasn't wanting another son,
I don't think, but the Lord told him about a new son, and it gave
him great joy to hear about a new birth, a miraculous birth. Can you think
of anything that gives us more joy than to hear that God has
given birth to someone new? Is there anything? You must be
awfully calloused if you don't smile. And I remember Sunday
announcing that Gabe baptized a man and his wife and just looking
in your faces and you were just smiling. It gives us great joy. Joy and rejoicing that the Lord
of new birth is nothing greater. Did you hear this? Did you hear
that? So and so son, the Lord saved them. Really? I've got
a picture. And I don't know why we took
this snapshot at that very time. But you and I were at Mountain
Lake with Bob and Rebecca. Huh? It was at Mountain Lake. I'm going to tell my story. It's
what old husbands and wives do. I'm 57. No, you're 58. No, I'm
57. I want to know how it goes. Anyway,
we were at Mountain Lake with Bob and Rebecca. And when we
told them about Hannah, our Hannah, confessing Christ in baptism.
And for some reason, we got a picture of them. We got that on a snapshot
of the two of them. That's how they both looked.
It was as if their own child. The Lord did it for their own
child. And the Lord just told Abraham of a new son to be born. And His blessings on Sarah. Oh,
this is going to rejoice Sarah, isn't it? Oh, she laughed. We're going to see that. When
the Lord told her the first time, she didn't believe it. She mocked.
And I believe that's when the Lord saved her. Because He rebuked her. You'll
see that in the next chapter. But then the Lord, He heard it
from her mouth, and she laughed. Oh, how she rejoiced. And how
we rejoice in what the Lord has done for us and what He has promised
us, don't we? How we rejoice over what the
Lord has done for our spouses, what the Lord has done for our
children perhaps, or the children of others, don't we? I can say
this with all my heart, that I have rejoiced over the years
to see your children, the Lord reveal Himself to your children,
as much or even more than my own. I mean that. I mean that. But then Abraham starts thinking
about Ishmael. And he says, and he cries, Oh,
that Ishmael, my wild son, might live before day. And he pours out his heart. to
the Savior of sinners to hear his prayer on behalf of his wayward
son. Now the Lord, and he sought to
be all of us, constantly, if not for our own
children, for the children of others. If you'd look around,
you'd see quite a few parents with wayward children. And we ought to be calling on
the Lord, O Lord, that so-and-so might live before thee. O Lord,
that so-and-so son or daughter. Now, the Lord warned him in chapter
16 that his son, in verse 12, would be a wild man. See that? In verse 12, he said, Your son
will be a wild man. His hand will be against every
man, and every man's hand against him. And he shall dwell in the
presence of all his brethren. But he'll be a wild one. Now,
this is certainly, obviously, a prophecy of Arabs, Arab people,
the Arab race and their violent tendencies. And we see that fulfilled,
don't we, today, very clearly. No one gets along with the Arabs.
They don't get along with anybody. That's very clear. And his mockery
of Isaac, which we'll look at in a later chapter, is a very
clear picture. And it's an allegory that Paul
deals with in Galatians 4, of the law and grace, but also of
how everyone hates the Jew. Well, but this describes, you know,
this wild son describes every son of Adam by nature. This wild
son, Ishmael, describes every son of flesh. This boy was born
of an Egyptian woman, Hagar, who was an idolater, who was
a heathen. So was Abraham. His father was
a Gentile. Abraham was a wild man before
the Lord saved him. He was an idolater, 75 years
old. And his mother was an Egyptian
woman, a slave. So what else would you expect
him to be? And his hand, the Lord said his
hand, he'd be a wild man. His hand would be against every
man. That was me. This was me. This describes me.
You know, every colt born of a... every colt, the foal of
an ass, is wild until the Lord Jesus Christ gets on their back
and rides them. You remember that story? The Lord sent his disciples in to
get a coat, to fold an ass, to fulfill the scriptures, and Zechariah
and I said, go get that coat. And somebody said, nobody's ever
ridden that coat. You can't ride that coat. He
said, you watch me. He's the only one who can. And
he did that. Maybe that's a prophecy. I know
it is. He tamed me, I hope, I believe. And if your son or your daughter,
listen to this, if your son or daughter, and some in here have
children who are fine children, role models as
it were, as children, if they are, you thank the Lord for that.
You don't get the credit for that. If your son or your daughter
is not outwardly wild and rebellious, you thank God for that. It's
His restraining grace. One hundred percent His restraining
grace. If your child doesn't grow up
to be a murderer, a thief, a robber or whatever, a harlot, it's the
restraining grace of God Almighty. You know that's true, don't you?
Because they're our children. They know it so from experience.
And they are capable of doing anything. And don't be surprised
if they do. Because they come from us. And
do not look down. And you don't. I know your people
well, but we still got a lot of Pharisee in us. But whatever. Do not look down on or criticize
other parents who had wild and rebellious children. Abraham
had two sons. And one of them was, wow. Did
he train up Ishmael? Yes, he did. And as a matter
of fact, the Lord in chapter 18 commended him and said, I
know him, he'll train up his children. Right. Did he train
Ishmael? Yes, he did. How did he turn
out? Wow. You think Abraham blamed himself?
Sure he did. You know he did. I hadn't been
like I was in my youth, you know. And my son got wind of it, and
now he takes liberty. No, it's not his fault. And it's
not your fault. It's God's purpose. It's God's
purpose. If Isaac was a model child, Ishmael
was wavering. What was Abraham's hope for Isaac? God's mercy. What's his hope
for Ishmael? Same mercy. Listen. Listen. I've never made the connection.
In Romans 10, it says there's no difference between the Jew
and the Greek. But the same Lord over all is
rich under all them that call upon Him. Jew or Gentile. Rich in what? Mercy. He is merciful. He delights to
show mercy. He takes great pleasure in those
that hope in His mercy. Listen to this. Listen carefully
for your own great comfort. Listen, this is our Lord. He
says, Seek ye the Lord while he may be found. The Lord is
still being found. His gospel is being preached.
Call upon him while he's near. Let the wicked forsake his way.
It doesn't say how wicked. It doesn't say who it is. It
doesn't matter how bad. Let the wicked forsake his way,
the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord.
Return. He comes back. How many times
will he receive him? Every time. Let him return unto
the Lord. Listen to this. Listen. Listen.
And he will have mercy on him. Not might. He will have mercy
upon him. And to our God, return to him.
Abundantly pardoned. Like the prodigal, throw a party. And he goes on to say, and I
remember years ago I used to, I did make the connection of
these following verses to that. The Lord was talking about his
abundant mercy. And he said, my thoughts are
not your thoughts. You're not this merciful. But
he says, as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways
higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than this way.
You're just not this merciful. You won't do this. But I do,
and I just delight to do it. Mercy. I wish I had believed that, you
know. Not just for myself, but for others. I wish I was more
like those two preachers were talking. One of them said to his brother,
he said, Brother Law, I believe the man was Henry Law was his
name. He said, Brother Law, did you
hear that the Lord saved old Joe Brown down the street? That wicked fellow, Joe Brown,
the Lord saved him. And he said, Brother Law, I'll
never despair of the Lord saving anybody since He saved old Joe
Brown. And Brother Law said, Brother,
he said, I'll never despair of the Lord saving anybody since
He saved me. If you know yourself, you're
honest, you'll admit that, won't you? Now, Abraham did not ask
the Lord, oh, that Ishmael might live a long life. He did not
say, oh, that Ishmael might be rich. Oh, that Ishmael might
prosper. Oh, that Ishmael might be successful
in this world. Oh, that Ishmael might marry
well and have children and settle down and have me grandchildren. That is not what he said. And the Lord God delights to
hear a prayer like this, because this is the one thing He'd want. He said, let it be, oh, that
Ishmael might live before Thee, might acknowledge Thee, might
think on Thee, might call on Thee, Be conscious of thee, and
call upon you as the God whom he sinned against, the God in
whose hands his breath is all his way, that he might think
on thee, that he might look to thee, that he might live a life
of faith looking to thee, that he might walk with thee like
thee, that he might abide with you, that you might be in him
and he in you. Oh, that Israel might live before
thee. What does the scripture say?
He that hath the Son hath life. Christ said, I am the way, the
truth, and the life. And he that hath not the Son
hath not life. It doesn't matter how rich they
are, what they know, or how successful they are. If they don't have
Christ, they're dead, and they're going to die like a dog. So we
don't ask the Lord for riches for our children. We don't ask
the Lord We do want them to marry well. Yes, we do. We want them
to settle down. We want them to have children.
But that's not what we want most, is it? Our hearts cry, and constant
cry, that Abraham is old, that our sons and daughters might
live before thee. Whatever they do in this world,
whatever their occupation is, whatever they have, whether it
be much or little, Oh, that they might know Christ. Because if
they have Him, they have it all, and they don't need much else,
do they? Huh? Okay, now. I told you it's going
to be a great comfort. I hope it has been already. What's
Ishmael's name mean? Look at chapter 16. Now, this
is what God told her to name him. The angel of the Lord said
in verse 11, chapter 16, verse 11, Behold, thou art with child,
and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael, because
the Lord hath heard thy affliction. His name means God shall hear. Now, do you think he's going
to mock Hagar? God is not mocked if He doesn't
mock. I'm not pulling a rabbit out of the hat here. I'm just
reading according to God's Word. If you think He's going to mock
Abraham who cries unto the Lord, there's one thing needful for
His wavered son. The Lord said in Isaiah, He said,
When they call, I'll hear them. And He said, You name that boy,
God shall hear. Is there hope for an Ishmael?
Oh my, what is it that God shall hear? He delights to hear. Yes, he was wild. Yes, he mocked
Isaac. What boy in here has not stood
by and mocked some innocent child? Is there a man in here who did
not as a child mock another boy? Maybe a sibling. I'd love to
ask Stephen if he ever did the same thing. I know my brothers
did, my older brothers. They... You need to do something
about Danny. But he, I'm telling you, he...
He abused me and I didn't deserve it. No, seriously. What boy, what man in here did
not just was not a wild child as a child. Boys, you know, we
sing these little ditties, you know. Boys are made of snails
and tail. And it's true. It's worse. Mothers of sons,
are they not? And that's what Ishmael did.
He did mock him. Mama's boy. Or something like
that. I've done the same. Done the
same. And the Lord did tell Abraham
to cast him out. He left home. He kicked him out of the house. My brother ran away from
home when he was 16 years old. My parents didn't see him for
one month. They had no idea where he was, whether he was alive
or dead. Well, you're talking about tough.
Was that tough on Abraham? Some of you have been through
it. Had to tell him to get out. Can you imagine? I can't. I haven't been through that.
I cannot imagine. But it happens doesn't it? It
still happens doesn't it? Well, you remember the prodigal,
don't you? Look at chapter 21. Go over there
to chapter 21. Chapter 21, and we'll look at
this again, but you have to see it with this story because it's
wonderful. This is when Hagar and Ishmael
were cast out. They were about to die. And they were as low, they were
as good as dead, like our sons and daughters that don't know
the Lord, or whoever. And you remember Hager left her
son, who was about 14 at this time, and he was so weak that
he had to lie down there in the desert, and she left him under
a shrub. I remember another child being
left in some bull rushes, don't you? Did the Lord leave him alone? No, he did not. And it says in
verse... She couldn't bear to see him
die, and we can't either. We don't want to see him die. The
Lord is merciful. He heard her, but look at this,
verse 17. It says, God heard the voice
of the Lamb. Is that what it's saying? Is
that what it's saying? God heard the voice of the lad.
Ishmael was crying. Ishmael, a 14-year-old boy, was
saying, Lord, please save me. God heard him. That's what his
name means. And look at down verse 20. It
says, God was with the lad. You know who else it says this
about? Joseph. It says this very few times,
but it says it about the choice men of God. God was with him. He said, Perjy, you can't prove
it. Ishmael was saved. I'm just hoping that he was.
How about you? What's wrong with that? Huh? What's wrong with that? Huh?
You know, the next time you hear about Ishmael? The next time
you hear about Ishmael. And you know, Abraham gave everything
to Isaac. He didn't give one dime to Ishmael.
And it's all an allegory. It's all a picture. It's all
a type. We're joined in Isaac, the son of promise, through Christ
and all of that. But he didn't give one dime to
Ishmael. But the next time you hear of Ishmael, he's with Isaac. And they're buried in Abraham.
Both of them together. They're not at odds. They're
two brothers together carrying their father's casket. Doesn't
sound like brothers at odds, does it? At all. Did the Lord save him? Well,
look over chapter 25. And this is that story, chapter
25, verse 8 and 9. And I want you to read carefully. Chapter 25, verse 8 and 9. Then
Abraham gave up the ghost and died in a good old age, an old
man full of years, and was gathered to his people. Know what it said? Gathered to his people. Or he
don't. And his sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave.
Did Ishmael love his dad? He had to. I've known sons that
have not attended their father's funeral or their mother's funeral.
Haven't you? Well, he did. He loved him. Abraham
loved him. Well, Isaac and Ishmael buried
him. Now, look down at verse 17. These are the years of the
life of Ishmael. 130 years, 70 years. He gave
up the ghost and died and was gathered to his people. You
say, but it says that so often. I choose to believe that the
Lord had mercy on this wild and wildest of the wild. That gives
me hope. Did the Lord save him? I don't
know. If the Lord did, wonderful. If He did not, blessed be the
name of the Lord. Right? But the point I'm trying
to make, and I don't care who takes issue with me, let them
go ahead on sermon, audio, wherever. I don't care. I'm just reading
what God's Word says. But what I'm trying to do is
show you this from God's Word. What's wrong with believing that
the Lord would take great mercy, have great mercy on and save
the wildest of the wild? the most hopeless of the hopeless.
What's wrong with that? I know some people that love
to believe that. And that's who I'm giving some
hope here. I know this. God is merciful. He's more merciful
than man. And those who would take issue
with this are not as merciful as God. So why not believe God
and not them? And God does not give an account
of His matters to any man. Listen. Listen to me. and how I wish some other people
were here right now, but they're not. That thief on the cross, have
you ever thought about this? This was a revelation to me. That
thief on the cross had a conversation with the Lord Jesus Christ, the
two of them. There were thousands of people there. How many people
heard that conversation? Maybe four or five. You know,
there's a lot going on, you know. Maybe somebody at the foot of
the cross, and that was it. Most everyone there believed
that thief died and went to hell. Are you hearing me? Most everyone there believed
that thief died and went to hell, because he was a bad man. No
doubt about that, he was a bad man. But the Lord Jesus Christ,
in His dying breath, said to the worst of sinners on this
earth, you're going to be with me in glory. Can He do that again? Has he done it again? We don't
know that he hadn't done that thousands upon thousands of times.
Do we? And his brother, both her brothers
went to prison. The Lord mercifully took her
mother, who loved her sons just like every mother does, mercifully
took her Do you think cancer dying of cancer at 54 years old
would be a mercy? But it was. Not only did she
go to be with the Lord, but the Lord spared her from the evil
days to come. Because she had two sons in prison
at the same time. And it killed Mendes' dad. It just killed him. Killed him. Didn't it? Can you imagine? And the youngest son was homeless.
He went homeless. Folks, I can't enter into that.
And Eddie went down looking for him one time. Well, he got put back in jail. A vagrant. Homeless. Put back
in jail. And because of an injury that
he had when he was young, doing something real foolish.
He was wild. He was wild. He was wild, wasn't
he, man? He was wild. He was an Ishmael. And because
of an injury he had, a head injury, he had seizures. He was in a
coma for a month. We went there to visit him. Imagine
what that did to the parent. Coma for a month. Joyce did live
to see that. At any rate, because of this
injury he had to his head, he suffered from seizures. Well,
he had one of those seizures while he was in prison this last
time, and they found him dead in his bunk. And lo and behold, he had his Bible open inside the
bed. Can the Lord? Is not His Word His power? It's not the preacher. It's the
Word, Mrs. Powell. The seed song. You've got to hear the Gospel.
You've got to hear the Word. Nobody's saved apart from the
Word. We're born again by the Word, incorruptible seed. This
is the Word which by the Gospel is preached unto you. You've
got to hear the Gospel. Can God plant that seed? And at a time
when you don't know about it? And if God doesn't give an account
of His matters? Can He? That ought to give everybody
hope. That ought to give everybody
hope. Oh, my. The seed is sown. God is able
to quicken. And He will. You know, He did
it to me. And you just don't want to know
what I was like. But the Lord did it for me. I distinctly
remember that word that I heard I preached all my life growing
up. One day, buddy, it was like the
Lord spoke to me out loud. It was His Word. It wasn't a
sign. It wasn't a vision. I was reading something and quoting
God's Word. And I've told you about it before,
the words of our Lord from the cross. And it was just like an
error in my heart. It was. And that was life at
the beginning. Because words is power. God gets
the glory. He doesn't give an account of His power. He doesn't
answer to any man. He can save whom He will. Didn't
He not say that? I will show mercy on whom I will
show mercy. I will be gracious to whom I
will be gracious. And He loves to show that grace. And He loves to show that mercy.
So we're going to keep calling on Him. Keep hoping as long as
there are Gospels preached. Keep hoping that the Lord will
say some more Ishmael. Oh, that might live before you. All right,
stand with me. Our Lord, how we take great hope,
have great hope in your mercy. All our hope is in Your mercy
for us and for our children. Thou art merciful, gracious,
slow to anger, ready to pardon, ready to pardon every sinner
that comes to You through Christ. Oh, Lord, let us believe that
for us and for our children. Give us a burden, and we believe
You have. We hear our brethren constantly calling unto You for
mercy on our children. And Lord, I believe, we believe
that you are merciful. So you must, you will, you will
show mercy to some. And we ask, Lord, if it can be
in thy will that you would be merciful to our own. For your
glory and honor, we'll praise you with song and dance. We do
this to the praise of the glory of your grace. It's in Christ's
name we ask these things. I'm here tonight. Amen. You're
dismissed.