Hear His Voice And Live

Carter Conlon, from the historic Times Square Church in New York City. He's calling your name and saying, come forth. Come out of the place where you are. Come out of the place where people have put you. Come out of the place of death. Come out of the place of listening to other voices. I have something I need to do through you.

Welcome and thank you for joining us for the weekly program, A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon. Jesus is calling your name. He is telling you to come forth. He has a special plan for you and you alone.

You will become a wonder to many. If only you would hear his voice and live. Let's join Carter now. Pastor Therese and I just returned from the Ukraine.

We're still a little bit under water. It was a long and a very grueling trip, but I don't know if I've ever seen more spiritual hunger anywhere in the world at any time. In Odessa, a city that was targeted just actually a few days ago again by missiles, we had special service just for the refugees. That's not for the Christian church, but for people who are not believers in Christ, particularly for the older, the very young and the widows and their children. And the church held it looked to be about a thousand to maybe twelve, thirteen hundred people. It was packed out and we were able to speak to them and tell them, we're not here to take advantage of you in your sorrow.

We're here to tell you, to comfort you, and we're here to tell you where strength can still be found in this world. And there was hundreds of people gave their lives to Christ publicly. It was just absolutely amazing to see that. And we thank God for it. And then after the service was over, the thousand or eleven hundred people filtered out and then there were gates.

There was a courtyard that was closed just for the sake of the people there. And there was at least another thousand waiting to get in for another service. It was just absolutely amazing. We saw the church packed out again and such gratitude, such thankfulness to those who would comfort them, including us in this prayer meeting. Many are receiving comfort from our prayers and we just thank God for that. And we saw that all over the country where we were. As Pastor Teresa said, a gathering of about a thousand teenagers and to see hundreds of them crying out to God like I've rarely seen.

I have seen it, but rarely seen it. Filled with the Holy Spirit, just absolutely called of God, touched of God. It was absolutely amazing. And to see the same thing with the pastors, the hundreds of pastors that came out and to see God touch them in the same way. It's a crisis moment for the country. And I'm so thankful for the Christian people there. They really are rising to the occasion.

It's admirable. You know, these pastors have stayed and the Christian people have stayed and they're giving of the little they have, they're giving most of what they do have, including their homes, their food, their clothing, their time, their comfort. It is truly amazing and challenging to see what the believers in Christ in this part of the world are doing. It's time for you and I to rise up to the challenge that we're facing.

We might not be facing a similar situation that they are, but there's no guarantee that that won't be our portion tomorrow. There's one man who's just insanely trying to take over the whole area and doesn't seem to mind to do harm to people. We have a devil that's over this world that is this of the same spirit, may I put it that way, that is trying to take over societies, trying to redefine everything, trying to eradicate everything godly out of society and trying to destroy families, children, lives, people, churches, everything. It's time now. It's time for the church to rise.

And I'm speaking to somebody. It's your time now. It's your time to rise. It's your time to give God glory. It's your time to let God glorify his name through your life.

This is your time. There's a moment where we just we get up and we go forward to the call of God. We don't go forward with any great. We don't have pedigrees.

We don't have degrees. We don't have even a history of faithfulness, but we hear the voice of God calling us. And that's all that matters.

It's his voice that matters. And we move towards the sound of the voice of God. And when we do, the touch of God comes on our lives and we are changed from the inside out. We are transformed by the power of God. We move into that calling that God has for each one of our lives. And without any hesitation, I'd say to you that calling is to bring glory to his name by giving you and I the ability to do things that we can't do in our own strength. Giving us a heart that we don't have for other people, giving us strength that is not our own, giving us a direction and a plan that we never thought we would ever be walking on. That's who God is.

That's what God does. But there is a moment where we respond. There's a moment and every one of us can point to that moment where we just in our hearts say, God, I'm in.

I'm in. David, before he was ever king, Samuel came to his house and said, God has appointed someone to do something that only can be done by the Spirit of God. And all that David had to do was yield himself to that horn of oil that Samuel brought into Jesse's house and let him pour that anointing on his head.

The rest is up to God. And of course, we know the story of David, the mighty battles that were won, the forgiveness that was his when he made mistakes, the strength of God that kept him on the right path, even when his path took a little bit of a deviation to the left or to the right. God was faithful to him. And we remember him as a conqueror today.

Remember him as the king of Israel, the sweet psalmist of God. And so I want to challenge you. Don't resist the call of God.

The hour is very late and the need is very great. And we are in need of a strength that is not our own. The time to put away strategies and plans of man has now arrived. Thank God.

Thank God. This is what revival is all about. Revival is about people saying, yes, Lord. It's no deeper than that.

And don't try to make it deeper than that. It's just people like you and I that say, God, I'm in. I don't know what you want to do with my life, but I know you are God.

I know you created the heavens and the earth by the words of your mouth. And God, I am yielding my life to your purpose wherever it takes me, whatever it makes me into, whatever you give me to say. That is what my life is going to be all about. And I'm believing that I'm going to put a significant debt into the ranks of hell during the time that I live.

I'm believing that with all my heart. I don't come to a prayer meeting to waste my time or God's time. When I begin to pray, I should be growing in grace. There should be a deepening of faith in my heart. I should be moving more and more towards the call of God on my life. And I should have this increasing desire in my heart that says, God, glorify your name. When Jesus Christ went into the waters of baptism, he had one request. Father, glorify your name. And the scripture says a voice came from heaven. And God the Father said, I have glorified it and I will glorify it again.

And I believe that's the word to this generation now. I have sent revival to America in the past. I have raised people up out of the dust and ashes of nothing. I have given strength to the poor and those who knew they had no resource to do anything for the kingdom of God. And I will do it again. And my name will be glorified one more time, one more time, one more time before he comes to take us all home by the grace of almighty God. That's what this message is about. And that's what the call of God is for somebody.

Somebody is going to say yes. Psalm 29, a psalm of King David. Psalm 29, give to the Lord all you might he wants. Verse one, give to the Lord glory and strength. Give to the Lord the glory due to his name. Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. Now, David's not talking about something that we have to necessarily bring to God. We bring to him a heart that says, God, I want to glorify you.

I want my life to make a difference. See, this is what we're called to give to God. He does the rest through us. He brings glory to his own name.

In other words, give him the opportunity to show his glory one more time. May I put it that way if I could paraphrase verse one? David goes on to say in verse three, the voice of the Lord is over the waters. That means every trial, every other voice, every voice that's trying to tell you, you can't. You won't.

You never will be. The voice of the Lord is above these voices. God has the final say. God has the final word.

It's his voice that matters. The God of glory thunders. The Lord is over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful. The voice of the Lord is full of majesty.

That means royalty. That means of capability, of the ability to do things that only can be done by God himself. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars and the cedars represent those entrenched, long standing places in our lives. The voice of the Lord breaks addiction. The voice of the Lord breaks depression. The voice of the Lord brings us out of weakness and into strength.

The voice of the Lord opens prison doors and sets the prisoner free. The voice of the Lord heals us of wounds that might be so deep that only God himself can heal them. The voice of the Lord gives sight when we can't see a way forward. The voice of the Lord gives strength to believe that all things are possible through Jesus Christ. Yea, the Lord splinters the cedars of Lebanon, all of these obstacles that are in the way.

He makes them skip like a calf, Lebanon and Syrian like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord divides the flames of fire. That means trials, impossible places that we have to go through. Things that we think we'll never be able to get through in our own strength. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Those dry places, those seasons and times when we wonder what life is even all about.

When we just don't seem to see the reason for where we are. Then God's voice comes and just shakes the power of that place to bring us into despair. The voice of the Lord, verse 9, makes the deer give birth and strips the forest bare. And in his temple everyone says glory. Hallelujah. You know when you don't know what to say, just say glory. Glory, glory, glory to God. Glory. Everyone in his temple says glory.

Glory, glory. In other words, only God could have done this in my life. Only God could have made me into what I am. Only God could be giving me the song I'm singing.

Only God could be taking me where I'm going. Glory to the name of Jesus. All glory, all honor, all power, all praise and dominion belongs to him. The Lord sits enthroned at the flood.

The Lord sits as King forever. And we're seeing today the enemy coming in like a flood. And the Bible says when the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of God will raise up a standard against it. There's a point where God says enough. Enough of the confusion. Enough of the immorality. Enough of the evil prospering in this generation. Enough of the taking away the dignity of institutions like marriage. Enough of confusing our children and their schools. Enough. There's a point where God says enough. The Lord will give strength to his people and the Lord will bless his people with peace. This is who God is.

This is what God does. I have lived it so I'm not bringing to you a theory. I've walked this. I know what it's like to be in the wilderness. I know what it's like to have the cedars before you. I know what it's like to be wondering what the future is going to hold. I know what it's like to live in despair. I know what it's like to be wounded in heart.

It's not a theory with me. I have lived this. And it is an incredible way to live in Christ.

In John chapter 11, I'm going to finish with this. It was an impossible situation. A man was dead. And it don't get any more impossible than dead, right? I mean, when you're dead, it's an impossible place. I mean, not only are you dead, everyone around you is dead.

Like, you're not going anywhere in this place. And there are other voices in John chapter 11, just like we read about in Psalm 29. Remember, the Lord's voice is above the other voices. And the other voices are saying, so sad, too bad, wish God had been here. It's all over. It's not going to happen. Four days in the grave.

Stinks by now. And all these other things, if Lazarus could hear them, that would be an awful thing to be hearing about yourself. So there are other voices, but the voice of the Lord is stronger than this. Lazarus is in an entrenched place. Not only is he dead, everyone around him is dead. Nobody is going anywhere in the cemetery.

I'll tell you that right now. You go visit the local cemetery, and you go ten years from now, go visit again, and everybody is still in the same spot. Nobody has moved. Their names are still written on a piece of stone, and they're still there.

And so this is an entrenched place. This is the cedars that David talks about in Psalm 29. This is the impossible forest that nothing can be moved. It's an impossible place that Lazarus is in. There is nothing humanly possible that can be done for him in this place. He is there. He is without life.

And there are many obstacles, including a stone that probably weighed about ten tons, blocking his way out. And I don't know how somebody is feeling online. Maybe that's you. Maybe your voices all around you are telling you there's no hope for you.

Maybe voices that are family members or former friends, and maybe it's just voices inside your own head that are telling you it's all over. You're in an entrenched place. Not only are you dead, all your friends are dead. It's an impossible place. There's no life there. And there are so many obstacles, so many reasons that you've been told why you will never live again, that you'll never have a future, you'll never have a hope.

And people are even so bold to suggest that maybe you stink in one way or another, that you're never going to amount to anything. But suddenly, Jesus appears on the scene, and he says to one of the persons that is saying, he's been dead for four days, and he stinks by now. And he said, did I not tell you that if you would believe, you would see the glory of God?

What does everybody say in this temple? Glory. You would see God do what only God can do. Did I not tell you if you would believe, you would see the glory? Did I not tell you that if you would believe, you would see the glory? If Jesus Christ himself were standing in this pulpit, he would be saying the same thing. Did I not tell you that if you would believe, you would see the glory? You would see God do what only God can do. There would be something of God come into your life that would become a testimony to everyone around you of the reality that he lives. He lives.

He moves. He's willing to take us in our weakness and become our strength. And then they took away the stone, and Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, Father, I thank you that you've heard me. And I know that you always hear me, but because of the people who are standing by us said this, that they may believe that you have sent me. And when he had said these things, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

And I believe this is what God's doing in this generation. He's calling people by name now, by name, and he's saying, I don't know what your name is, Jack. I don't know what your name is.

He's calling your name and saying, come forth. Come out of the place where you are. Come out of the place where people have put you. Come out of the place of death. Come out of the place of listening to other voices. Come out of this place of impossibility.

I have something I need to do through you. I'm going to raise you from this place of death. I'm going to give you life, and you are going to become a wonder to many, and you're going to shout glory in the temple of God. Glory, glory, glory, glory, glory to God. Glory to God.

Hallelujah to the Lamb of God. Now it's interesting, and I've said it probably a hundred times over the course of my preaching, that only a dead man could hear his voice. Nobody else is listening. Nobody else believes that anything could be done, but suddenly the dead man hears him. Isn't that amazing? You know, if you're dead, you're actually ahead of those that are still alive, standing in the graveyard.

When you're in a place where you know only God could do this, and you're suddenly hearing his voice. Now, he can't add much to the picture. Do you understand? I think he's all wrapped up. When they buried somebody back then, they kind of wound them up with these cloths and stuck all kinds of spices on them, so he's not in a position to really add much to this equation. I think just his feet are out, and he probably had to come out something like this, but he did.

That was his part. Then the next thing Jesus says is, loose him and let him go, and let him go. It's not just loose him, let him go. In other words, he's going somewhere, so get the bandages off, get the grave clothes off of this guy, and let him go. Hallelujah. Let him go.

Let him go. The next time we see Lazarus, he's sitting at the table with Jesus, and the scripture says, people are coming to that table, not because of Jesus, but because of Lazarus. It's amazing. Jesus is there, but it's this man who was raised from the dead that is drawing them to the place where Jesus is. That's your part. God will raise you up and draw others to where Jesus is because of what he has done in your life. Hallelujah. That's the gospel of Jesus Christ. As Pastor Teresa quite often says, the gospel we preach is about dead men living. Thank God.

Thank God. God is calling somebody by name because you're needed. There's a testimony that's needed of God's glory again. We've had enough theories about God. I'm done with the theories. I don't know about you, but I'm done with the theories.

We need to know that he really does live, that he does have power, that he can raise people out of the grave, that he does have a plan and a purpose for every life, that he can break the chains of addiction, that he can open the prison doors, that he can heal the bruised in heart, that he can give us sight and strength that is not our own as God's, that he can give us giftings of the Holy Spirit and abilities to do things that we can never do in our own strength. But in order for this to happen in your life, you've got to get up and get out of the grave. That's your part. Get up and get out. Just get up and get out.

I don't know. Maybe you're laying on your bed and listening to this. Get up and get out.

Maybe you're in your car, just symbolically get up and get out of your car. Do something. Move towards the voice of God. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. It's too late for just religion.

It's too late for just games. There are people out there that need the testimony of God in your life. They need to hear you shouting glory in the house of God.

They need to hear you giving praise to God for what he has done in your life. It's time. It's time to hear his voice and live.

Hallelujah. It's time. It's time.

Folks, listen to me. America is in trouble. We're in huge trouble. I don't know if we have another 10 years.

I don't know as a nation how much time we have. We're in deep, deep trouble. We are offending a holy God now. We've moved into the fields of the fatherless. He himself said, don't do that because if you do, I will rise up and contend for them. One of the ways that God will contend by his grace, before his judgment, is that he will raise up a people that will display his glory once again. There'll be no more argument about the reality of God. Who's going to argue with Lazarus? Hallelujah. When Lazarus said, hey man, I was dead, man, I was dead. Hallelujah. How do you argue theology with a man like that?

I was D-E-A-D, dead in the grave, and here I am by the grace of almighty God. Who's going to argue with that? Come on now.

Come on now. That's what we need again in this generation. We need dead people to live. We need weak people to stand in the strength of God.

The fool is to be speaking with a wisdom that God only can give. That's revival, folks. That's what revival is.

Revival is the people of God respond one more time. And I've got a story because I was dead, you see, and God raised me in his mercy. I was a man full of selfishness and hate and told I would never amount to anything, and one day I heard his voice.

It's that simple. No resume, no history of faithfulness, nothing to give him, but I heard him. I heard him call me. It was in my heart. It was deeper than an audible voice.

It was deeper. It was because I remember standing in the back of the church, and when the altar call was given, I remember thinking, oh, God, you can't mean me. That was the first thing that came to my mind.

You got to be kidding. You must be desperate in your kingdom to be calling me, and now I shout glory. Lord, would you help the men and women that you're calling? Would you help us to say yes? The addicted, the depressed, the lady in Ottawa that wrote in says, I don't even want to pray.

I don't want to live. Would you help her? Would you help us to say yes? The pastors that are listening, would you help them to say yes and begin to preach from heaven? God, the children, the teenagers, Lord, it's time for the church to rise now.

It's time for you to do the work that only you can do. Father, glorify your name. He's not looking for the strong, and he's not looking for the wise or the noble or the mighty. When you look in the Bible, he starts with the foolish and goes down to nothing. I'm looking for the foolish. I'm looking for the weak. I'm looking for the despised. I'm looking for those that are nothing, that I may bring glory to my name again.

So if you're in that category, you qualify. That was me, to bring glory to his name one more time. Thank you for joining us this week for A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon from Times Square Church in New York City. For more information, log on to tsc.nyc. That's tsc.nyc. You can count on a powerful message each week on A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon.