Herb Reavis Jacksonville Baptist Church

well praise the Lord thank you so much for the privilege of being in this place tonight and these two messages have stirred my heart and the music has just lifted my soul I'm going to ask you to take your Bibles please and turn with me to the book of Judges in the Old Testament the book of Judges chapter 8 and I'm gonna begin to read in verse 1 judges chapter 8 and verse 1 a few years ago I was preaching a series of messages in our church from the book of Judges and when I brought this message the Spirit of God seemed to nudge my heart and tell me that I should preach this message in as many places as I possibly can and I've tried to honor that nudge so tonight I'm preaching on this subject high maintenance Christians high maintenance Christians from the book of Judges chapter 8 and verse 1 and the Bible says in judges chapter 8 and verse 1 now the men of ephraim said to him why have you done this to us but not calling us when you went to fight with the Midianites and they reprimanded him sharply so he said to them what have I done now in comparison with you it's not the gleaning of the grapes of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abbas air God has delivered into your hands the princes of Midian Oregon's Eve and what was I able to do in comparison with you then they're angry toward him subsided when he said that God put your words in my mouth thoughts in my mind I must decrease you must increase and may I bring the word under the anointing of the holy spirit in Jesus name I pray Lord amen one of the great heroes of the Bible is a man named Gideon I know he's a hero because he's listed in God's Hall of Heroes the book of Hebrews chapter 11 but he's an unlikely hero and he never saw himself as a hero we first find him in judge Chapter six he's threshing grain in the bottom of a winepress and as hiding down there because for seven years the Midianites had invaded the land taken the freshly harvested crops terrorized the people so for seven years the people in Israel had lived as prisoners in their own homes and in their own country for seven years they've been terrorized starved by the Midianites so he's in the bottom of that winepress trying to conserve and conceal what little food he's got left for his family and suddenly the angel of the Lord appears with him there in that wine press and says old Gideon you mighty man of Valor I believe Gideon probably looked around thought must be somebody else they're named Gideon I'm not a mighty man of Valor I'm scared to death I'm hiding down the bottom this winepress less those Midianites find out I got a little food and they take it from me but you see God doesn't see what you are God sees what you can be with the touch of His grace so the Lord convinced him that he's the man and then the Lord gave him the strangest army three hundred men whose sole qualification was not how they can handle a sword how they can throw a spear how they can hold a shield their sole qualification was how they drank water the ones who lapped up water out of their hand like a dog lap sip water they were the ones that were to go with him to battle against the Midianites and so he takes three three hundred men and they've got the strangest weapons they've got an earthen vessel and a lighted torch he tells them to put the consider the lighted torch in the vessel and conceal it and take a trumpet and follow him so here they go these three hundred men with these long tongues that lap up water like a dog laughs up water they've got an earthen vessel they've got the torch concealing it they've got their trumpet and they surround the enemy down there now you need to understand we got those 300 guys up in the mountain with Gideon and there's a hundred and thirty-five thousand battle-tested bloodthirsty Midianites down in the valley below and all of a sudden gideon takes his vessel and he breaks it and begins to wave that torch and all of the other do the same thing and then he takes that trip and he begins to blow that trumpet and then all those 300 men began to shout the sword of the Lord and Gideon well the Midianites are down there and they're awakened out of a sound sleep they run out and they see fire in all directions they hear shouting in all directions they hear stuff breaking in all directions they hear a trumpet blast in all direction they get disoriented they start running into each other they pull out there's their swords they start sticking each other they start killing each other and before the night is over a hundred and twenty thousand Midianites are dead on the ground and God's me and never fired a shot because we need to remember the battle belongs to the Lord there's 15 there's some of them that are getting away and so he sends word to the tribe of Ephraim they're coming your way cut them off at the pass and they do and they capture a couple of influential Midianites so when we come into Judges chapter 8 you'd think everybody happy you'd think it'd be time to have a testimony meeting you think everybody smiling everybody shaking hands everybody fellowship everybody singing victory in Jesus what's that I see though I see some folks elbowing their way to the front of the crowd they look mad their jaws are there blown out then the veins are popping on their neck and they're looking for Gideon they're looking for the pastor where's pastor Gideon where is it we need to talk to him and suddenly they confront get in and they're mad and this is what they say we're upset we're mad why did you wait until the end of the battle to call us into service why didn't you call us into battle when the battle began I called them high maintenance Christians they're in every church I believe the great obstacle of evangelism today in our churches is not outside the church I believe it's inside the church I believe the great obstacle to revival is not outside the church it's inside the church we have the greatest technology today to employ evangelism we have some of the most cutting edge programs that the church has ever had and yet today we have these churches better run by these high maintenance Christians that wouldn't know God Almighty if they got hemmed up with him in a broom closet and you hit them over the head with the Bible as big as a ping-pong table that are grieving and quenching the Holy Ghost and driving churches down into an early grave I call them high maintenance Christians no man please don't point at people all right because that's we don't want to fight right here in the service I want you to notice three things about these high maintenance Christians first of all I want you to notice that their ego is not on the cross their ego is not on the cross verse one says now the men of ephraim said to him how dare you treat us like this how dare you call us into battle when the battle is over now I want to tell you a couple of things about these folks you you know their ego is not on the cross because they love position you need to understand the tribe of Ephraim was second only to the tribe of Judah in influence see Gideon's from some little backwater clan he's from some little backwater tribe but these folks are people who feel because of their position they have a greater voice and they should be treated differently than anybody else in the church they're in our churches today for instance there's some folks that that believe because of how much money they give how much money they give they should have a greater influence in the church now I'm going to tell you I believe in storehouse tithing and I believe if you tithe off a dollar that you've got just as much voice in the local church is if you were to tithe off one hundred and fifty thousand dollars and we got these Boss Hogg's in churches today now it's late I'm heading back to Jacksonville so I'm gonna unload the whole thing tonight we may never meet again we got all these Boss Hogg hogs that are holding churches hostage saying oh I don't like the way the church is going I don't like this decision you're making so I'm gonna withhold my tired listen now they may not be here tonight but they always send aspire to do a meeting like this just so they know what's going on so I want this to get back to them let me tell you the church is not at the mercy of any man listen I'm telling you tonight if god almighty has to have an ostrich jumped the fence at a zoo and put $100 bills in his beak and come through the front door of your church and lay him on this altar that's exactly what God's going to do we're not at the mercy of carnal men God is our supply and I want you to know the Lord is my shepherd and I shall not lack hallelujah taste something else some of these people feel like they got more position because of how long they've been in the church and they'll say no wait a minute I'll you'll need to hear my opinion I've been in this church for 50 years and why I've been in this church for 40 years I want to say something else that may seem radical to you I want you to know the level the ground is level at the foot of the cross and a person who has been in the church in full membership for 15 minutes it's got just as much influence and voice as somebody who's been in the church for 50 years there's no little group of folks that have some kind of seniority they get too rough shot run roughshod over everybody else and it's time that the people of God get down on their knees and pray down these satanic strongholds that are in our churches that are obstacles the Holy Ghost revival you say brother herb what should we do pray down a revival ask God to move in not to take sides but to take over and to manifest his glory and put life in that place a love position they take something else they they they express pride that shows me their egos not on the cross they're selfish they're like how could you treat us like this for the first time in 7 years everybody gets to eat for the first time in 7 years you get to keep you milk cow for the first time in 7 years you can leave the windows open and let the kids play in the front yard this is a hard lesson for some people to learn it's not all about you and it's not all about me it's all about Jesus Christ and it's all about other people it's not all about what I like and what I don't like and all about my opinion it is about loving Jesus Christ and exalting him and sing souls safe from Hell and through revival come to the church in the day in which we live I'll take something else they were mean they were mean Maya tells me their egos weren't on the cross the Bible says they reprimanded him sharply that means they chewed him out they gnawed on him they told him off you know I I don't I don't understand what what they're people just so perpetually uptight and mad in the church today I mean I'm a real flexible person I don't want to get mad I don't like to get mad but there's some folks that just stay mad and they get mad over stuff they they don't like it because you move that flower arrangement and and they don't like the way the church parking lot got striked and and they're upset because some of the ladies in the church have been complaining on the Wednesday night suppers that the paper plates which are cheap are leaking and you've always got somebody on the Finance Committee that feels like god is broke and they've been called to just squeeze it and hold it all together as long as they can and so we have to have a business meeting and somebody make a motion that we put together a committee from the Committee on committees that would study the feasibility of how many cheat plates you can put together to have the same hold in power as a China paper plate which is too expensive and I just don't care about stuff like that y'all I mean I don't care about that stuff you know I'm tired getting mad about everything I was preaching in another state one night and and is this there that one night I've never been there so sometimes when I go someplace for the first time I tell a little icebreaker story just you know to kind of get everybody comfortable and I told this story just to break the ice about a board that wanted to kiss his girlfriend for the first time so he went to his pastor and said pastor can I kiss my girlfriend and the pastor said well son you need to pray and ask God so the boy early the next Sunday morning took his girlfriend by the hand they walked down the country lane to pray under the old oak tree and friend the old country church about whether or not they ought to kiss now what they didn't realize is for they got to that tree did kneel and pray a little freckle-faced Boyd got there early and he had crawled up in the top of that tree he was sitting in the top of that tree they couldn't see him but he could hear everything that was happening down there that young man took his girlfriend's hand in his when they got underneath that tree and they got down on their knees and he piously lifted up his voice to the top of that tree to the heavens and that young man said Lord Lord up above can I kiss the one I love and a voice answered email the top of the tree said sinner sinner down below hook her up and let her go so all I said is I'm just gonna pick her up and let her go and preach the word tonight so I preached the word and I'll never forget that night I preached to harvest message she was a harvest night when I gave the invitation people just began to come and get saved it's one of those I turned over the pastor and he continued the invitation people continue to get saved it was wonderful I just stood there in amazement but after the service I looked and I could tell a fella was coming at me and he was mad and when you've been in this a while there's a body language you can just tell and he was like jaws part in the water brother he was coming so I immediately began to review my sermon in my mind what did I say controversial tonight what did I say defend this guy and as he got closer and I'm just going to tell you his eyes were shaking sideways had teeth going every which way and about two quarts on his hair and he got right up in my face and he put his finger up in my face he said you offended me those teeth going everywhere and spitting you offended me they my eyes dancing back and forth I said aye sir what happened he said that story you told at the beginning that offended me he said you're advocating immorality among our students among our youth group encouraging our kids to go out and kiss and then he was getting really worked up and man them eyes was just bugging out and he really worked he said I'll have you know I've got a 19 year old daughter who has never been kissed by a boy and what I wanted to say she looks like you you're safe buddy I don't know anyone everything there's a lot you could say to these people you know what I'm saying let me tell you the fruit of the Spirit snot meanness and when your ego is on the cross if you hurt somebody if you crush somebody you're gonna you're gonna weep your way back to that person and say I'm sorry you cannot tell me that a person is walking in the Holy Spirit who habitually breaks the hearts of one soul after another their ego was not on the cross taste something else that were blind they were blind they didn't even realize this was a god thing and notice the Bible says in verse 1 the men of ephraim said why have you get in done this to us why have you done this to us it wasn't Gideon's idea he probably said you think this was my idea I was minding my own business I was down I was down the winepress scared to death I know I don't consider myself to be a hero you think look at those guys over there theme along saying that you think I pick those 300 guys you think I came up with this plan of vessels and torches and trumpets and that's another thing Gideon our son has had trumpet lessons for 12 years and you've never once let him play in church I want to tell you tonight my friend we're never going to have a revival we're never going to evangelize Florida we're never going to reach our communities until God moves into these sir churches and takes control and we get these egos on the cross and get flesh out of the way and let Jesus be himself through the Ministry of a local church I'm telling it's not going to happen unless there's a revival second thing I want you to notice about these high maintenance Christians I said there he goes not on the cross but here's the second thing I want you to notice their effort is not in the battle their effort is not in the battle now notice in verse 2 what they say this ridiculous thing about why didn't you call us to be at the first to the battle instead the last that he doesn't rebuke them he gives him a soft answer he doesn't say you bunch of big old babies he doesn't say you ought to be ashamed yourself he says to them what have I done in comparison with you what have I done now why is that he doesn't have time for this foolishness because if you going down in this chapter in verse 10 you find out there are 15,000 more Midianites on the loose and they can regroup the battle is still on they're still on a war footing the man of God says I don't have time to argue with you there's a battle to fight I'm not I'm not wasting my emotional energy on stuff that doesn't matter nitpicking and that's what will kill your ministry if you let these kind of people suck the life out of you you say but brother herb what am I to do there's some things that a person who is a high maintenance Christian cannot stop you from doing they cannot stop you from cannot stop you from worshiping they cannot stop you from preaching they cannot stop you from sharing Christ with a lost and dying world they cannot stop you from exercising faith and they cannot stop you from laying hold of a holy God and praying down revival fires on your congregation they cannot stop you you these these e4 mites didn't get the big picture they didn't get and there's so many people like that in the church they don't get the big picture you know my my I've got three sins that are married I got grandkids now but as they became teenagers they begin to embrace a music now I'm dating myself but they they begin to embrace a music that I wasn't necessarily familiar with I mean you know I kind of grew up listening to the happy Goodman family and sister get but Ben still had about six feet of hair going straight up you know and let her hanky tucked in there when she got in the spirit she's sort of twitching a little bit you know and I in in Squire Parsons singing butyl in and out and I love all that my boys I'm dating myself but my boys came home and they were singing God's got a big big house and we're all gonna play football in the yard I could not find that in the Baptist Imanol anywhere and then one of the somebody came and said my oldest son said if you see Josh play the drums I said I didn't know the boy played the drums oh he's over in the youth service it's like he's got a hinge everywhere he's got a hinge in his elbows he's got a trap drum set he's beating the fire out of it and then in then and then my middle son he's playing a guitar and my youngest son he's playing a drum it's a box you sit on and he's beating that box and God's got a big house and we're all gonna play football in the yard and you know what I never got mad about that I was so grateful they were loving Jesus and serving him I went when the kids are in are young young people are or they got the service and they're just doing their thing man I want to tell you what I don't get uptight I'm glad they're not in the crack house I'm glad they're not out you know and out an adenosine somewhere they're in the house of God my son put a little praise band together they went all these churches holding revivals and and singing their music it was theologically sound and and but it was their kind of music and their style of music and my son he had a zebra rug you put down there put those drums man they were saying they went to this church I'm not gonna tell you on what side of Jacksonville it was on but it's dead as a stunt man it's dead and they went in there on a youth night and man they they rerd that thing up and and and and all of a sudden when they fired up their instruments and started singing their songs these two ladies in the back stood up stuck their fingers in their ears and marched out of the church you see in protest you see there's two women that didn't get it they didn't get it those young people were there hearing the gospel getting saved I want to be very boat tonight friend you've got to get over some of these hang-ups I mean is a lady in another Church in Jacksonville they start playing drums she said oh it's dude making me a nervous wreck I feel like they're beating on garbage cans on Sunday morning listen listen to me listen to me you're not gonna reach young people with Lawrence Welk and the chuck wagon game it ain't gonna happen so a man I like I like it oh man just sink it lift up Jesus praise Jesus man I love it all and you said well they sing a song I've never heard of the other Cyndi Kenny Chesney sing a song you've never heard of and you went to Walmart and you bought the CD so your wife could hear it as soon as you got home why do people get goofy when they come to church I don't get it well I got to get off that I can tell right now but I'm just telling you tonight I want I'm just telling you this I want to reach the next generation I'm open to reach the next generation I want them to I want to do whatever I can to reach young people at the gospel of Christ one time a kid came to our house and he had his bald cap on backwards in one of our Esther's how dare you come into the house of God with a bouquet I sent word don't do that they came to church don't you see the big picture he actually came to church I don't care if they wear their all kept around backwards I don't care if they have a bone through their nose red yellow brown black white I don't care come to North Jacksonville Baptist Church we want to tell you how to get saved I don't care I don't care where they dress the weirdest fashion of the young people and it's just about over but there's a couple of guys at the mall that hadn't got the memo is that thing where they wear their boxers down around their kneecaps and they wear their breeches down real low like that and don't take a picture put that in the witness hey listen have you no it's a really amazing they they they can keep their britches that far down belt buckles around their kneecap and they can move I believe there ought to be an Olympic event for that I mean that takes takes Talent I was preaching along that painting our church one time you know all the old military man I said something about those those those baggy britches and those those boxer shorts I said no wait a minute guys I said when you're 16 years old you wear your boxers up here and your belt buckles down here but when you get to be about 65 or 70 it reverses your boxers around your ankle and your belt buckles up here you got the odorant stains on your your belt it all levels out so listen listen to the churches area old folks young folks in between folks it's about souls it's about reaching people with the gospel it's not about us and we've got to do whatever it takes to take the gospel that does not change to a lost and dying world until him Jesus a just don't get it listen pastor right down the road for me it's talking to us one day and he said you know last Sunday had two people get saved many he said I thought man you know in heaven when one soul gets saved angels are shouting I bet you two folks get saved in one service they're doing cartwheels wouldn't you think done hallelujah haven't to me he said two people got saved and he said and when I stamped the back shaking hands he said a woman grabbed me and said it was so cold in there so just deflated me she just doesn't get it you know what that really that's the big issue in churches today the temperature I read these blogs and stuff they're all arguing about the next you know what is the big crisis in southern this life is everything theology it's about the temperature inside the church when listen and I've got the answer when LifeWay finds out that I have the answer to the great crisis in Southern Baptists life which is the temperature in the church I'm going places folks I'm telling you you're going to be going through the life way bookstore it'll say the temperature control life by her brevis there'll be the prayer of temperature controller I'm tell I'll be on that go couch on TBN man testify to millions of people afghans keychains I'm going all the way with this thing man when I was preaching this sermon I told our church I said you know what what is all this thing I mean you know they won't just come out and say it was a little cool in there they always come out and say what are you trying to do preacher you're trying to freeze us to death we're not gonna buy a new freezer for our house we're just gonna bring the meat down there the church and hanging on the wall I said to our folks I said I can't please my wife with the temperature at home do you people actually think I can make all you happy I put the thermostat one and when I'm walking away there her hand comes around the corner she's putting about in our automobile I can't so we're gonna come into a church we've got people you know sitting at different places spotlights and we're gonna make everybody happy and I just told him I said in some of you sweet ladies are going through the change of life having hot flashes and I can't tell from one minute to the next what temperature you're gonna be so I'm just telling you I'm not telling you to save this I don't wanna get you in trouble I'm just telling you what I told our craft I don't care anything about the temperature here's the solution dress in layers put it on and peel it off as the Lord leads I don't care about the tip are you listening listen I don't care about the temperature inside the church I care about the temperature in a red hot hail where sinners are going to burn forever that's what I'm concerned about their ego their ego was not on the cross their effort was not in the battle but here's the third thing I want you to notice about these high-maintenance Christians their eyes were not on the Lord now I want to show you how self focused they were it's really pathetic it's sad verse 3 says that Gideon says to them God has delivered into your hands the princess of Midian orbán's Eve and what was I able to do in comparison with you now it says then their anger toward him subsided when he said that he never answered their question the question was why did you wait to call us till the end but he knew what they really wanted their ego strokes their name in a bulletin a pat on the back they wanted to feel important so he gave them what they wanted and they were so self focused when he bragged on them and said man you're a bigger shot than I am it says then alright now we now you understand this isn't that sad so the world's going to hell we have the gospel of Jesus Christ and God wants to save souls and instead of going out telling a lost world that Jesus Saves we're spending our time in our local churches sitting around majoring on minors trying to pet a bunch of people that pout trying to satisfy a bunch of people that are walking not in the spirit but in the flesh one one Knights in our church I've been there now I'm in my 23rd year of pastoring that church and one night a few years ago after the evening service just preached my heart out all day long and pastors you know how when you just you give it your best all day long at the end of the day on Sunday it's like when Jesus that woman touched the hem of his garment he felt something go out of him I know it's his healing power but also you give of yourself when you Minister the Word of God and so man I was heading for the house I was walking down the hall and I was welcomed by the place where I fellowship hall was at the time and I heard something going on in there and I thought they sounds like a sunday-school departments having a fellowship so I paused I thought should have go in and be pastoral and shake a few hands or just head for the house I was heading for the park Lima car was just right out to the parking lot I decided to hang a left and go in and be pastoral shake a few hands big mistake I know more got in there than a fella and I've never seen this side of him a fellow stood up and pointed to me and the door and said I need to talk to you outside now and I could tell he was mad and as I walked back outside I thought 15 minutes man 20 minutes at the most if I hadn't a hunger left I'd have been home in my short pants my t-shirt with a dot dr. pepper watching a re-run of Andy Griffith than them and I got to go out of here and get chewed out that's what I was saying in my heart so I go out there and I stand and he gets in my face and he says the leadership of the Sunday School has asked our class to move to another classroom and I thought in my heart god forbid god forbid god forbid that any Baptist cooperate with visionary leadership that wants to maximize the potential of their facilities to reach more dooms sinners with the gospel god forbid that's what I was saying in my heart I looked at this guy and then he said this he said if y'all make us move to another classroom I will not be back to Sunday school and you know what I did just kind of like giddy and I gave him a soft answer I said let me check into it and you know what I went home I went home whipped I went home whipped now what I'm getting ready to say I'm not it's not a joke it's really not a joke it's not for laughing I went home just whipped he went home and he died I got to church the next morning and they said brother so-and-so died last night I said well wait I talked to him just before I left they said on his sleep last night natural causes he died and I I'll never forget thinking I could seem in my mind if y'all make us move to another Sunday School room I'll never be back until this day he hasn't and I thought about the judgment seat of Christ friend when his believers will stand to give an account of the way we've used our gifts our talents and our time and resources for the Lord can you imagine standing there and the Lord saying sir before we hand out crowns here at the judgment seat of Christ I want to ask you a question what's the last thing you did on earth before you died well lord could we talk about the next let's know what's what's the last and he's going to be looking in the face of Jesus Christ who was inconvenienced by leaving his home in heaven to do whatever it takes to come down and die on an old rugged cross that's a little more intense than moving down and our conditioned hallway to another room what's the last thing you did well Lord I gotta admit the last thing I did on earth is I chewed my preacher out and then I died I just want to say this and then we're gonna pray we're never going to have a revival in our churches big or small whatever never going to have a revival spiritual awakening in our churches never gonna happen until we get some people on their knees saying I can't speak for anybody else in the church but this is one Christian who does not have to have their way it's not about me I want to see revival in our church and Oh God I want to see a harvest of souls I want us to bow our heads and close our eyes for the Tim I'm going to ask if you just play something softly on the keyboard and I want us to River at least stand to our feet this will take just a moment but you know tonight you came to this place and you've never been saved and even though I preached mainly to Christians the Lord drew you here tonight and if you were to die right now you're not sure you'd go to heaven I was preaching this message one time in Pensacola Florida and when I gave the invitation a tall young man came down and took the pastor by the hand and said I want to get saved I thought about it after that night you know you've been looking around and you've been watching these Christians in this place tonight laughing you seen smiles and what you're thinking about is you've tried it Jack Daniels crack cocaine meth one failed relationship lust pornography some false religious system or just doing the best you can and you're coming up empty and you're saying these people have something I've been searching what is it it's not in it it's a person and his name is Jesus Christ and he brings great joy to the soul of those he saves and if you'd like to get saved tonight with our heads bowed and eyes closed if you believe you died on the cross for you was buried in a tomb she had his blood to pay your sin-debt and you believe he was raised from the dead to give you life if you'll pray this prayer a meaning with all your hearts God reads minds and hearts you don't have to say that loud he'll meet you right where you are whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord you say Oh God in heaven I pray now you'll give me anointing as I lead these people in this prayer of repentance in faith our heads are bowed eyes are closed pray after me silently Lord I know I'm a sinner and I know that my sins will send me to hell but Jesus right now the best I know how I'm saying I believe you died for me shed your blood for me we raised from the dead to give me life and I'm asking you Jesus to come into my heart and save me save my soul Jesus forgive me of all my sins save my soul Jesus now if you meant that with all your heart the Bible says if we confess the Lord before men he'll confess us before the Father I'm going to ask some of these pastors from this association you guys would just come and stand down here and we'll sort out church membership later we won't talk to you now about getting saved but if you say I just prayed that prayer I just prayed that prayer and I really tonight want to make sure I understand the gospel would you come and take one of these men by the hand and just say I I just want to make sure that when I die go to heaven that's the first part of the invitation now I'm not going to tarry long but I want to give one more altar call tonight

Channel: Bethlehem Baptist Church Bonifay Florida

Views: 14,291

Rating: 4.8730159 out of 5

Keywords: Herb Reavis Jacksonville Baptist Church, First Baptist Church (Building), Jacksonville (City/Town/Village), Baptists (Religion)

Id: drolx0oL4iY

Length: 38min 37sec (2317 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 10 2014