Almighty God is not Surprised

 

Almighty God is Not Surprised!

 

GENE JACKSON

 

(Superintendent Tennessee District AOG, USA)

 

The twenty-first century has not taken an Al­mighty, omniscient God by surprise! He is in no way confounded or shocked by the scene of spiritual desolation prevalent in our society today.

 

There may be stagnation and staleness in the Assemblies of God here on earth, but there is an eternally fresh wind blowing at the Throne of God.

 

God knew there would come a generation known as the “baby boomers,” the “busters,” the “X’ers” and others for whom there is no particular moniker!

 

God is right where He has always been. We can still meet Him at the old address. He didn’t move without telling us where to find Him. He didn’t retire and decide to quit working. The Throne is in exactly the same location today as it was when I was a boy.

 

We are now in the process of trying to re-work the Assemblies of God in order to “keep up with the limes.” It’s like trying to put a more beautifully decorated saddle on a dead horse. Who cares how you decorate it or organize it, if it’s dead and can’t run?

 

Listen to me, there has never been a generation of the church that wasn’t in “a new day.” But, the Book never changes. God never moves. He stays eternally the same.

 

The address where we meet Him will be forever unchanged. It is an altar of prayer! If we don’t pray until we get right with God, forget the re­organization.

 

We have Power-point in our computers to enable us to get fancy in our singing and “current” in our preaching. But, let me tell you, if you don’t have power in your soul, Power-point in your projector is not going to be worth a hoot.

 

The dearth we are feeling in our Fellowship has nothing to do with organization or being “current” (whatever on earth that is). Our dearth is in the soul.

 

Holiness of life has been abandoned. We live like the world in our ambition. We dress like the world. We sit with the world in their amusements. We “do church” like the world wants us to. We are trying to be “seeker (read that “sinner”) friendly”.

 

Listen, you can’t rescue a drowning man if you drown with him. Getting in the lake with the world is not going to result in greater evangelism; it’s going to result in more dead churches!

 

If you want revival, a spiritual awakening, get out of the worldly attitudes. Get in the altar of prayer.

 

We have prayer meetings that are mostly singing little ditties, reciting a long list of needs, “sharing” with the circle around you a series of “prayer needs,” and finally a very few minutes on our knees.

 

Our Church is dying because we are not praying! God is still the same. The ‘Decade of Harvest’ died because we could not enrol our people in a promise to pray ten measly little minutes a day! Now, you tell me, how can God possibly bless if we do not communicate with Him?

 

I certainly believe we should take advantage of every form of technology to help us speed the Gospel to every man. We need to utilize radio and television. There is no sin in computerization.

 

But, just because you can now sing with the words projected on a screen, doesn’t mean you are worshipping God. You can worship while singing projected words, or you can worship while singing from a hymnal. It’s a matter of the heart. It is not our “over-organizing” that has killed the Spirit in our services. We have failed to truly seek the face of God until the fire falls!

 

The simple, honest truth is that we are not right with God! We are trying to win a spiritual battle with the armour of flesh. The devil doesn’t care how well-trained, how well equipped, or how sincere the flesh is. He will meet it and beat it. But, he can’t defeat the Holy Ghost.

 

We’ve got a growing group of preachers who waffle on the subject of initial physical evidence. Sonny boy, the thing that made the Pentecostal churches different and got us kicked out of mainline denominations was the Baptism in the Holy Ghost with the initial, physical evidence of speaking in other tongues.

 

We didn’t get the left foot of fellowship because we believed in the resurrection; it was the worldly fear of the Holy Ghost and fire that caused the controversy.

 

Nothing has changed today! The devil is still the very same enemy. God is still the very same Deity.

 

If we will get down to business at an altar of prayer and then get back to Pentecostal preaching, and a Spirit-filled lifestyle, God will still move in a mighty fashion.

 

Now, to tell you the truth, I’m surprised that we are still here. When I was a nineteen-year-old evangelist and I began to preach on the Rapture of the church, I thought we would have long since been out of here! In 1952, we didn’t dream we would ever see the end of the century!

 

However, God is not surprised! He knew all along we’d still be here to change the dates from nineteen to twenty! He knew there would come a time of ‘space-travel’ and medical marvels. God knew there would be high-speed living. He was, even then, fully aware of a computerized society.

 

He knew all about Little Leagues, professional sports (both in college and in major or minor leagues), and abominable entertainment. He knew there was coming a time when men would be lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God. He is not surprised by treachery, wantonness, lustful living, or sissy preachers who are afraid to get out of the house nicely dressed for fear someone will think they are not ‘with it.” God knew all about this day. He warned us of it.

 

God is not surprised that your preaching and teaching must compete with television, professional sports, and high-tech entertainment designed to cater to the lusts of a pleasure-driven society.

 

Yet, the Gospel He wrote is still the same. It applies to every generation. It applies to the entire world. If you preach the simple Truth, it will work anywhere. Not one thing of any importance has changed! Not a thing!

 

Sick people still die. Hurting people still need someone to help them. Sinners still go to a devil’s hell. Saints still die and go to God’s heaven. Without holiness, no man will see the Lord. Prayerlessness still brings lifelessness. Nope, nothing has changed.­

 

I’d like to hear of a special prayer meeting where people pray. Get down to business with God! Repent! Pray through to a fresh invasion of the Holy Ghost in your life! Pray in English until you simply can’t find the words to say, then let the Holy Ghost take over and begin to intercede for this lost land through you.

 

Have church when you have church. Get out of rock and roll and get into something that makes sense. There are some wonderful new songs, hymns, and choruses that are sane. You might have to search a while, but they are out there. Just keep looking.

 

The church has never been without composers who write new songs. We need to pray that God will raise up some saved, Holy Ghost-filled songwriters among us! Then we’ll have some new songs that make sense as to melody, rhythm, and lyrics!

 

We need to pray for God to raise up some powerful, passionate preachers among us. I’m about fed up with these new psychological “analysers” who can fix everything from your pocketbook to your love life, but they can’t point the way to the cross and wouldn’t have the foggiest idea how to give an effective altar call.

 

Let’s seek the Lord of the Harvest that He will send forth labourers into His harvest. The field is not ours; it is His. He knows the fields are white unto har­vest! He knows the times are right for a mighty out­pouring of the Holy Ghost. But, He will not violate His own Word to send such an outpouring.

 

It still begins with, “If my people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, (now there is a new idea, especially for some of these high-ego preachers), and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)

 

Nope, nothing important has really changed!

Almighty God Is Not Surprised!