Christ Calls His Church to Power - by Jim Tharp

‘But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey. And when they had entered, they went into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.’ (Acts 1:8-14)

The first chapter of the book of Acts is a call to the followers of Jesus to prepare for receiving the power of the Holy Spirit, which is to come upon those who will prepare for their baptism with the Holy Spirit. He wants them to know that it will be a time of waiting in prevailing prayer. Realizing their human weaknesses, Jesus instructs them that they are not to begin spreading His Gospel message until they are empowered to do so.

Jesus had been the perfect model for preparing His followers to spread His Gospel to the ends of the earth. John the Baptist introduced Jesus to the gathered crowds along the Jordan River, and at Jesus’ request, he baptized Him so that He could identify with sinners who were repenting and being baptized. Jesus Himself was filled with the Holy Spirit, even as He arose from the water. The Sinless Son of God, who had incarnately become the Son of Man, realized that He in His human role would need the power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish His mission. John the Baptist had told the crowds: “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matthew 3:11)
   

Several symbols are used for the Holy Spirit throughout the Bible to help us understand what He wants to do in and for and through us as His witnesses. But no symbol is more striking than that of fire! Jesus said, “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!” (Luke 12:49) Following His resurrection, He commanded His disciples and other followers to go back into Jerusalem and prepare for receiving the Holy Spirit. “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.” (Acts 2:1-6)

The Human Soul - By Jim Tharp

As a preacher of the Gospel, I want to write about an especially important subject today—THE HUMAN SOUL! I realize that this is a subject to which many people do not wish to give serious concern. In fact, the soul of man is not something that most philosophers want to discuss. And, unfortunately, it is a subject that many theologians are hesitant to address. So, as a preacher of the Gospel for 74 years, but now as an old man of 90, I feel the need to write about the importance of the human soul and its destiny. I could not afford to ignore this important subject while pastoring for 46 years and then evangelizing throughout the world for 27 more years. And now, since I am confined to printing the Gospel messages instead of preaching the Gospel, I cannot be silent on the importance of the human soul.

Please read and consider what our Lord Jesus Christ, who suffered and died to save our souls, had to say about the soul of man:

Mark 8:35-38: “For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

Matthew 10:28: “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

John 3:16-21: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

I want to stress this important truth: The soul of man is an internal spiritual gift by our Divine Creator. This fact speaks clearly and loudly to the importance of human life. The soul of man is a serious subject. We can see the seriousness of the soul when we realize that God foreknew the invasion Satan would make on Adam’s race and the tragic results. He knew that His own remedy for the salvation of fallen souls would have to be His sacrifice of His one-and-only righteous Son, who would become incarnate. The Son of God would become the Son of Man and suffer and pay the debt of any lost soul who would believe in Him, repent of sin, and become a true Christian believer. From the beginning, God decreed that the wages of sin would be death. And since all have sinned, death would come to all. But what a glorious destiny awaits the soul at death who has believed in the only plan of salvation through Jesus Christ; the heart ceases to beat and the brain dies, but the human soul’s consciousness shifts immediately from the cerebral to the celestial, adapting instantly to the soul’s eternal existence in heaven.

How important it is that every human soul hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ as described by the apostle Paul in Romans 1:16: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes..." 

Let us consider some of the things our Bible has to say to us who will give an account of our response to God’s loving provisions for our salvation. In Deuteronomy 4:9, Moses says: “Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren.” In this Old Testament passage, Moses is being faithful to the members of God’s chosen people, the Israelites, by instructing them to take precautions concerning their never-dying souls and urging their preparation for giving a good account to God in the day of judgment as to how they have obeyed His Word.

The God of Nations - By Jim Tharp

“God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made by hands. Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” (Acts 17:24-31)

I am praying that many more Americans will join me in prayer for a greater appreciation of God’s blessings on our nation over the past two and a half centuries. In the history of nations, there has never been another country that has been more blessed. Little wonder that we once sang “God Bless America!” And, now it is high time for us to plead “God, forgive us for our sins,” so that we can then sing with conviction, “God Bless America!”

Our Bible reminds us that God is the God of all nations. For almost two centuries most Americans were free to acknowledge openly the goodness of God in helping us remain unified, secure, progressive, and safe with law and order. It appeared back in those times that we were more careful to remember that our Creator warned against the dangers when nations forget their Creator and Redeemer. Those nations that forget are rapidly ripening for judgment.

How appropriate that we once sang “God Bless America” with conviction and praise! I was privileged to express my appreciation to my friend Dr. Billy Graham for his courageous decision to bring our nation out to express more openly our gratitude to God for His blessings. Billy Graham and Pastor George MacPherson, the president’s pastor at that time, went to call on President Dwight Eisenhower. After praying with the president and for the nation, the two spiritual leaders suggested that a phrase should be added to our “Pledge of Allegiance”: “one nation under God!” President Eisenhower heartily agreed, and most people rejoiced when it was approved by Congress in 1954.

I began this message with the Apostle Paul’s message to the brilliant philosophers in Athens back in the first century. In his passion and effort to open a Christian influence in that prominent city, the apostle received a cold reception. Athens response at that time was like most of our prominent cities in America today—strong resistance to Christian faith. Paul was ridiculed. This great man of God with a giant intellect, a superb education, a mighty grasp of the truth, and a loving heart, was jeered right there in Athens as a “babbler,” a “braggart,” and “a fool!”

SPIRITUAL WARFARE - by Jim Tharp

One Sunday evening several years ago something happened in Russia that we all need to know about. Dr. David Jeremiah tells about this event in the Introduction of his book, “Spiritual Warfare.” Some believers were gathered secretly in a basement to worship the Lord. While they were singing a hymn, the door was suddenly thrown open by two Russian armed soldiers, who screamed these words: “Everyone not willing to die for their faith had better get out.” Some of the people began filtering out. After a few moments, one of the soldiers shouted: “This is your last chance! Turn against your faith in Christ or suffer the consequences.” Only a faithful few remained, huddled together as a soldier shut and locked the door and strode forward. The other soldier then said quietly, “Raise your hands, but raise them in praise to God. We are Christians, too. We just wanted to know who we could trust.” I am sure that those soldiers had never heard such shouts of joy and praise to the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am indebted to this great man of God, Dr. David Jeremiah, for the report of this amazing story. This pastor’s sermons and writings have meant so much to this preacher as I have read his books and listened to his great convicting Biblical sermons he has preached on the radio and over television for the past several decades.

The story above had a positive ending, but if you were faced with a similar situation where your faith was challenged and threatened, what would you do? I believe that we live in “the Last Days,” which Jesus and His apostles predicted. I know it is time to warn American Christians to awaken to the Holy Spirit’s call to SPIRITUAL WARFARE. What I am really concerned about is my discovery during the last 35 years: In my praying and fasting for the last three decades, I am convinced that the Church of Jesus Christ in America has never been weaker and our country has never been more wicked! As a pastor for 46 years and then as an evangelist for the last three decades, I have sought to urge Christians to join God’s armies for spiritual warfare. I do have some concerns that I wish to stress in this message today.

Our Bible tells us that we are at war! The Church is being called to a war in which we are wrestling against demonic powers and rulers of this present darkness. These invisible forces are trained and ruled by Satan to destroy our faith and rob us of the power that God has promised to release on His Spirit-filled believers for these final days of spiritual warfare. Christian brothers and sisters, let us read God’s call to war in Ephesians 6:10-18: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”

A CALL TO PRAYER - By Jim Tharp

Our Lord Jesus Christ came to earth as the Son of God, becoming the Son of Man, being born of a woman, taking on human flesh and blood to offer Himself in death on a cross, and sacrificing in death as the atoning Savior for anyone who would believe in Him as the Son of God risen from the dead.

Jesus Christ became incarnate in order to save lost souls. He alone was qualified to atone for our sins. Adam’s sinful disobedience in the Garden of Eden would cause the virus of sin in every one of his human offspring. But in John’s Gospel, chapter 3, verses 16-19 we read of God’s merciful plan of salvation: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”

After Jesus had suffered and died for our sins on the cross and had been resurrected, He spent 40 more days on earth proving that He had finished His earthly mission of preparing for the salvation of anyone who would believe in Him. When He was ready to ascend back into heaven, he met with 500 people who had already believed in Him. His final instruction to them was a serious command: GO BACK INTO THE CITY OF JERUSALEM AND PRAY FOR THE OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT UPON Y0U FOR THE POWER TO SPREAD HIS GOSPEL TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH, BEGINNING IN JERUSALEM (Acts 1:2-8).

Jesus was Himself a Man of prayer. As the Son of God, having become the Son of Man, He felt the need of prayer. As God, He answers prayer; as Man, He prayed. While on earth He found places to pray—in homes, synagogues, mountain tops, and open fields. As an example for His disciples, He was devoted to His Heavenly Father and expressed His love and worship for Him in prayer. He often prayed alone, but He also often prayed with His disciples. Once, when they heard Jesus praying and realized that He always got answers to His prayers, they cried out, “Lord, teach us to pray... “(Luke 11:1)

Jesus taught them to pray, but He assured them that His promise to send the Holy Spirit upon them for power to live the Christian life would be answered as they prayed. And, we read in Acts chapters 1 and 2 how those disciples finally got around to obeying that call to prayer. In Acts 2:4, we have the account of the 120 believers who obeyed and prayed for 10 days: “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit...” 

After that Pentecostal outpouring of the Holy Spirit on believers, the early church learned to pray in power. As we read throughout the book of Acts, we learn how the power of prayer spread the Gospel with such power that hundreds of thousands were drawn to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

Knowing that Satan would seek to defeat His followers by seeking to keep them from prayer, Jesus not only taught them to pray, but He also inspired His apostles to urge Christians to “pray without ceasing.” (I Thessalonians 5:17) Satan fears the prayers of Christian believers more than anything else in the church’s warfare against evil. He seeks to prevent prayer because it is the most powerful weapon the Christian has in spiritual warfare. The apostle Paul was inspired to write in Ephesians 6:10-13 how to prepare for this invisible warfare: “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

The church has been at warfare for many centuries. God continues to call His church to be prepared for even more serious warfare in the last days. Satan has from the beginning of the Church Age sought to prevent lost souls from hearing the Gospel. In II Corinthians 4:3-5 we read: “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake.”
The spiritual conflict of the ages grows more violent as civilization moves closer to the end of the Church Age. Behind the horrible signs of our times there rages this invisible war. The sweeping changes spiritually, politically, morally, socially, and economically are but symptoms of what Alexander Solzhenitsyn called “a fight of cosmic proportions.” And then Solzhenitsyn went on to add, “the forces of evil are already believing they are nearing their final offensive.”

Prayer is our most powerful weapon against the bold evil conditions of our times. But the kind of praying that will win the war we are fighting will have to be anointed, inspired, and enlightened by the Holy Spirit, as we read in Ephesians 6:17-18: “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints...”

In closing this message, I want to share what I have personally learned in my last 35 years of praying in the power of the Holy Spirit: (1) The Holy Spirit ENLIGHTENS OUR MINDS for understanding how to pray the will of God, (2) The Holy Spirit EMPOWERS OUR WILL TO FAST AND PRAY without fainting, and (3) The Holy Spirit EMBOLDENS OUR FAITH TO BELIEVE that we will receive what we are praying for!

Believe me, brothers and sisters in Christ, God is calling out more and more believers to take seriously the lateness of the hour. He wants us to ask for fresh fillings of the Holy Spirit to prepare His church and the world for the greatest spiritual awakening in the history of His church! When we pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, we are not shadow boxing; we are putting to flight the demonic forces of evil that are invading our nation and robbing believers of their faith. God is blowing reveille for a mighty invasion against the evil forces of our day that seek to destroy our nation. God is calling His Spirit-anointed prayer warriors to plead for His opening of the heavens on our nation with conviction of sin that will bring repentance and faith for a glorious spiritual awakening! This is God’s plan for preparing our nation and the whole world for the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This writer’s prayer is: PLEASE, HOLY SPIRIT, GIVE MILLIONS OF YOUR BELIEVERS HERE IN AMERICA AN EAR TO HEAR YOUR CALL TO GET A FRESH FILLING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT AND TO DEVOTE THEMSELVES TO YOUR PLAN TO SAVE OUR NATION AND TOUCH THE WORLD WITH THE GOSPEL BEFORE THE END COMES!

THE CHRISTIANS CALL TO MINISTRY - by Jim Tharp

In Chapter 5 of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus and His disciples, have left the multitudes. He felt the need to bring them together to hear what He expected of every true believer; He wanted every believer to become a disciple who would reach out to others with the good news of God’s love. He knew that He Himself had been sent by His Heavenly Father to sacrifice His life by dying on an old rugged cross to pay the sin debt of anyone who would believe in Him as the Son of God risen from the dead. This good news He called it the Gospel, “the power of God to salvation.” (Romans 1:16)

In Chapters 5 through 7 of Matthew we have The Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus laid out for His appointed disciples their first lessons in training to spread the good news of the Gospel. Beginning in Matthew 5, verses 13-24, Jesus made it clear that ministry is the responsibility of every believer—those present at that time before His death and resurrection and all of us who have believed in Him throughout this entire church age. The ministry of the Gospel is not confined to bishops, pastors, teachers, and elders in the church; every believer is called to be a disciple. All Christians are to share their faith in such a way as to multiply the number throughout the human race who will respond to the Holy Spirit’s conviction of sin, of righteousness, and of the judgment as they hear the gospel.

I urge my Christian readers to join me in taking seriously the two symbols Jesus used to describe the influence that our personal testimony of the gospel is to have on our non-Christian cultures. Notice what we are called to be and to do as we read the verses of command in Matthew 5:13-16 where Jesus says we are to be SALT and LIGHT. “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

SALT. As we know, salt has at least two important uses—for flavoring and for preserving. I grew up in Arkansas and how well I remember how important salt was to flavoring and preserving our food since we planted gardens and raised most of our own food. We did not have electricity in our part of Arkansas country until 1948. However, we were glad when a truck would come to deliver ice once a week down a country road about two miles from our home back on the edge of a prairie. Either my father or I would hook our mule to a cart and go out to meet the ice truck so that we could buy two or three blocks of ice to bring back home. We would bury the ice in a prepared place in the ground, and that ice would last for nearly a week. This ice preserved our milk, meat, and other foods and kept them from spoiling. This we did for years! Then in 1948 we were blessed with that new and marvelous power of electricity.

But we still needed SALT! Foods like oatmeal, gravy, and other kinds of foods can be unpalatable without salt. Like our Tharp family, most families ate their meals at home. Being the oldest son, I was responsible for riding my bicycle to the country store about 3 miles from our home to purchase groceries and other items. I would fill the large baskets on the front and back of that bicycle with several items, which nearly always included SALT.

Our family raised chickens, hogs, and cattle. In the early part of winter, my father would butcher hogs, as well as some wild game like turkey, wild hogs, and deer. My father had built a large smokehouse in which he prepared chicken, pork, beef, and wild game by flavoring and preserving them with SALT to prevent them from spoiling, even after getting electricity. Yes, SALT both flavors and preserves!

Jesus said Christians are the SALT of the earth. Let us pray for the Holy Spirit’s anointing and power for the wisdom and courage to share the good news of the Gospel. Thus, we would be helping lost souls prepare for eternal life.

LIGHT. In John 8:12, Jesus declares to His disciples, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.” He wants us to know that He is Himself the LIGHT of the world. Let us realize that here Christ is declaring that just as the moon reflects the light of the sun onto the darkened side of the earth, so we believers in Jesus are to reflect Jesus as the LIGHT of life. We should realize that we are to go all out as ones who have been born anew, enlightened and empowered by the Holy Spirit, and called to a very important ministry of witnessing to our world.

Perilous Times - by Jim Tharp

I want to write about something that Jesus warned would happen near the end of the church age. He is warning the whole world—saints and sinners, believers and unbelievers. As a God of love, He is not willing that any should perish. He has provided for our complete eternal safety if we respond to His provisions found in the Scriptures—“the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)

The warning that Jesus gave concerning the perilous times that would come at the end of the church age came out of His love for us and in telling us how to prepare in our response to His gospel. Hear this important warning as recorded in II Timothy 3:1-5: “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!”

The apostle Paul was no longer a free man when he gave these words of warning. He who had written most of the epistles in our New Testament is now writing his last words before he will be dragged out of prison to face a brutal death sentence of decapitation by the wicked emperor of Rome, Nero. I have been down in that old Mammertine Prison. I was warned that it was still just as dark, dreary, and dreadful as it was on the day they came for Paul. 

But I think we should hear the very last words that the apostle Paul would ever write just before he left that prison. Written to his dear spiritual son Timothy, here is his final testimony: “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” (II Timothy 4:1-8)