Hour Of Decision - Untitled (1950s)

Heat. Heat. [Music] Greetings, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to another hour of decision. It's a privilege and a joy to come into your home again today to bring you a message that we trust will bring salvation to you and to your family. Today I'm going to speak on the subject of discovering God or rather God discovering us. But first, here's Cliff Bars and Beverly Shay with a word and a song. The other day while visiting in a home, I noticed one of the most lovely plaques I had seen in a long time. As I read the words of the plaque, which actually was a prayer, I couldn't help but think of the many housewives, the mothers and wives that I knew, and many other thousands across the land who day by day had found that in the tedious, mundane tasks of homemaking, Christ was the answer to their every need. The words of the poem went something like this. Lord of all pans and pots and things, since I've not time to be a saint by doing lovely things, or watching late with thee, or dreaming in the dawn light, or storming heaven's gates, make me a saint by getting meals and washing up the plates. Although I must have Martha's hands, I have a merry mind. And when I black the boots and shoes, thy sandals, Lord, I find. I think of how they trod the earth. What time I scrub the floor. Except this meditation, Lord, I haven't time for more. Warm all of the kitchen with thy love, and light it with thy peace. Forgive me all my worrying, and make my grumbling cease. Thou who did love to give men food in room or by the sea, accept this service that that I do, I do it unto [Music] thee. Just when I need him, Jesus is near. Just when I fall. just when I fear. Ready to help me. Ready to cheer. Just when I need him most. Just when I need him most. Just when I need him most. Jesus is near to comfort and cheer. Just when I need him most. Just when I need him. Jesus is strong. [Music] bearing my burdens all the day long. For all my sorrow, giving a song just when I need him [Music] most. Just when I need him most. Just when I need him, Jesus is near to comfort and cheer just when I need him. [Music] You know, I talked to a man the other day that told me that he'd been searching for God for 20 years and he hadn't found him. Some of you have been looking for God and you haven't discovered him. I talked to a man about three years ago that told me that he went to Iraq and he went to Iran. He went to India. He went to China. He went to Africa. He went all over the world searching for God. And he said, "You know, I never found him. I know some that are searching for God in the university, in the college, in the seminary. I know others that are searching for God in all sorts of rituals, all sorts of ritualistic performances. They're trying to find God. A book was written some time ago entitled The Hound of Heaven. Now, that may be couched in irreverent language, but it's true because God is searching for you rather than you searching for God. It's like going out and trying to discover the sun. Like taking a microscope or a telescope and saying on a beautiful sunshiny day, I'm going out today and see if I can find the sun. And so the man goes out looking for the sun and there it is all the time. And there are many of you, some of you at least, that have traveled all around the world. You've gone to the university. You've gone to the psychologist. You've gone to the psychiatrist. You're trying to find God and you haven't found him. And there he was right in your living room all the time searching for you. Now he wants to save you and he's searching for you right now. For example, God was searching for Adam in the Garden of Eden. God said, "Where are you? Where are you, Adam?" God was searching for Adam. And God was searching for Jacob all the time. He was searching for Jacob because And then God caught up with him and wrestled with him. And God was searching for Samuel. In the silent watches of the night, God called him Samuel. Samuel. And then God was searching for David. Up in the hills, God was looking for David all the time. And then God was looking for Paul. And God found him on the road to Damascus. And Paul fell down and was converted to Jesus Christ. And God is looking for you. Listen quietly just a moment. You'll hear the voice of God seeking, searching, looking for you. He wants to find you. He wants you to give yourself to him. He's right there in your living room or wherever you happen to be right now looking for you. And you know, man is always fleeing from God. Wherever you find man, he's fleeing from God. He's running from God. And one of the reasons that he's running from God is because he's sinful. The Bible teaches that when the light shines that the darkness does not understand it. And when the gospel of Jesus Christ is preached, man runs from it and he's at enmity against God because he's sinful. Men love darkness because their deeds are evil. And so man dwells in the darkness. And he runs and he flees from God and the idea of God. And he runs from the church. And he runs from the Bible. And he runs from all Christian and spiritual exercises. Why? He's a sinner. God says all have sinned. You're running from God. You might not be conscious of it, but you are. Even in your searching for God, you're actually running from God because of your sins. There are certain things in your life that you say, "I will not give up. I cannot give up. I cannot turn from." And so God goes on searching for you. And then we run from God because we're afraid. And then we run from God also because of our own foolishness. We think we can hide from God. There's never been a man in the history of the entire universe that ever hid from God. God said, "If you make your bed in hell, I'll find you. You can't hide from God. You cannot run from God any more than you can run from your own shadow." And yet, you're still running, thinking that somehow you can hide. You're trying to hide those evil deeds that you've been doing. That thing you did in a parked automobile the other night. That thing that you did in the office, that lying and that cheating to make a better deal, that cheating in school, you thought you were getting away from it. You thought you were hiding from God. You weren't hiding. God had his eye on you all the time. And he's watching and he's recording and he's putting down every event in your life, every thought that you think, everything that you do, every word that you say. You cannot hide from God. And then I want to answer the question, why does God seek man? First of all, God seeks man because he loves man. Yes, God loves you. Whoever you are, whatever your circumstances, wherever you come from, God loves you. He proved his love when he sent his son, Jesus Christ, to die for you. The greatest demonstration of love the world has ever known was when Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins. Yes, God's proven his love. He loves you. You say, "But Billy, you don't know how wicked I am. You may be the harlot from Scarlet Street." God loves you. He says that his love goes to us even while we're yet sinners. And another reason that God is seeking man is because man needs God. Yes, you need God. You may not be conscious of it, but you do. You are not a complete man or a complete woman till you know God. And you can never know God without coming to Jesus Christ. Because Jesus said, "I'm the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father. No man cometh to God but by me." The only road to God is Christ. Christ pointed the way. Christ showed the way to God. You want to know what God looks like? Take a look at Jesus. Because Jesus was God. And then there's another reason why God is seeking you. God wants to save you. Because you're lost. God looked over the battlements of heaven and he saw the lost condition of man and he sent his son to die for you to save you. God loves you. You need him and he wants to save you from your sins. He wants to give you peace and joy and happiness. God is not a big bully running around with a stick in his hand. God is a loving, tender, benevolent heavenly father that wants to save you from your sins to give you a new life to supply all of your needs to be everything to you. And then last of all, God is going to find you. Ah yes. If God doesn't find you in this life, if you don't give yourself to him in this life, he'll find you in the future life at the judgment. You'll never hide from God there because God is going to find you. He's going to find you here when you come to him voluntarily or he's going to find you at the judgment and it'll be too late because the judgment of God will descend upon you. You say, "But Billy, what does all this mean to me? What am I to do?" You are to surrender your life and your heart to Jesus Christ. That's what you're to do. Give yourself to him right now. You can do it right in your living room. Wherever you are, you can say yes to Jesus Christ and it can all be settled. You say, "Well, Billy, is that all I have to do? Is it just a simple act of faith? Don't I have to work or don't I have to pay?" No, you don't have to pay a dime. You don't have to work a minute. All you have to do is give yourself voluntarily to Christ. He'll do all the rest. And the moment you do that, then you are born again. You become a new creature, a new creature in Christ Jesus. There are many people that say to me, "But Billy, I can't hold out." Ah, yes, you can hold out because Christ does the holding. You'll stand because Christ holds you. And now I'm going to ask you to pray. Bow your head and let me pray for you right now, will you? Our father and our God, we pray in the name of Jesus Christ that many of these that have watched the screen tonight might say yes to Christ and commit their lives and their hearts to him. Help them to realize that God is searching. A loving heavenly father wants to find them in Jesus name. Amen. [Music] I would love to tell you what I think of Jesus. Since I found in him a friend so kind and true, I would tell you how he changed my life completely. He did something that no other friend could do. No one ever cared for me like Jesus. There's no other friend. Oh, how much he cared for me. No one else could take the sin and darkness from [Music] me. Oh, how much he [Music] cared for me. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music]