HomeARC ML 1827
YOU MUST OBEY THE LEAST OF THESE COMMANDMENTS! DO 1827 26/12/83
--A Personal Talk on Our Family [EDITED: "Rules at Dad's Home"]!
[EDITED: "HomeARC note (10/98): The Charter states the Family's current policies, and the rights and responsibilities of members. See point 16, "Rights of Personnel in a Service Home.""]
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7. SO I'LL TELL YOU, THIS IS THE BIGGEST RESPONSIBILITY YOU HAVE EVER HAD, LIVING IN THIS HOME! You may think it's the greatest glory you ever had & the most wonderful thing that ever happened to you & you've heard lots of wonderful testimonies of what a wonderful thing it is to be here--well, it may be a wonderful thing but it is a terrible responsibility! We mean business & I'm not just joking! We're serious about these rules & anybody who breaks them, I don't care even if you do it in secret, God knows! He'll catch you & you'll suffer for it! You'll reap what you sow & you'll be sorry!
8. YOU SEE, WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ALL THE GOOD THINGS YOU'VE DONE. That's the trouble with life, hardly anybody remembers all the good you did, if you just made one mistake that's all they can remember & they'll never forget it & they always throw it up to you. I made a few--or they thought I made a few, anyhow--& some of them still haven't gotten over it. Some even quit us because they thought it was a mistake. They thought some of our new Letters were mistakes & some of our new doctrines were mistakes & our practices were mistakes--the trouble with them is that they were the mistakes & they were mistaken & they were wrong, just old bottles! They couldn't hold the new wine & so they perished by the way & have gone back, having loved this present World! (2Tim.4:10)
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11. REMEMBER TIM CONCERNED?--WELL, HE WASN'T VERY CONCERNED ABOUT [EDITED: "US"]! He went back to Rachel's crowd. I understand he's running some kind of a chicken farm now in Italy. Can you imagine? Somebody who could've had a crown & has had a place at the head of this Worldwide missionary group went back to a mess of chicken shit! God bless Peter, he was faithful & loyal & he came all the way! He got his crown. He didn't have to steal it, Tim gave it away! Think of it!--All over Rachel, of all the things! He was more loyal to Rachel than he was to us, & look where she went! When Tim left us we immediately moved because we didn't know how far he'd go. When people leave not according to our instructions or will or desire or as we think they should leave, but on their own or wilfully, we never know what they might do.
12. WHEN PEOPLE START GOING THEIR OWN WAY INSTEAD OF GOD'S WAY, YOU CAN'T TRUST THEM ANY MORE. When they start doing their own thing instead of what you tell them to do, you can't trust them any more. When they start breaking the rules & the customs & the advice & the instructions that I have given this Family, even over the tiniest littlest things because they thought perhaps they were bigshot leaders so they were exceptions to the rule, they didn't have to pay any attention to those little rules, you can't trust them any more. "Why, Dad doesn't mean me!" Jethro used to get up & say that to the whole bunch, "Well, you know Dad, he doesn't really mean that. He doesn't expect me or you to have to do things like that. He says drink only one or two cups of coffee a day"--he drank six--"But I don't have to keep that. After all, I'm one of the bigshot leaders, you know!"
13. WHEN YOU CAN'T KEEP THE TINIEST LITTLE "LEAST OF ALL THESE COMMANDMENTS" WE BEGIN TO WONDER ABOUT YOU & WORRY ABOUT YOU & NOT TRUST YOU TO KEEP THE BIG COMMANDMENTS. If you can't even keep the little ones, how can we trust you to keep the big ones? Do you understand what I'm talking about?--People who broke the little commandments & just brushed them aside, "Oh well, Dad doesn't mean me, he doesn't expect me to pay any attention to that. I don't have to do that! After all, I'm one of the upper crust, I'm the aristocracy, I'm the Royal Family," or "I'm one of the leaders of the Chain or I'm a LAS, or a DAS or a NO, & I don't have to keep those silly little rules!"
14. LET ME TELL YOU, IF I HAVE WRITTEN IT IN A LETTER & I HAVE TOLD YOU TO DO SO-&-SO & NOT TO DO SO-&-SO, I MEAN YOU, EVERY ONE OF YOU! Nobody here or there is too big a shot & too important a leader to not keep the least little rule that I have given the Family for you to keep, including coffee drinking, sun tanning or whatever it may be! If you break those rules you're apt to break any rules & you'll get further & further away. Pretty soon you'll think, "Well, that rule doesn't apply to me either, the other rule doesn't apply to me either, I don't have to do that either!"
15. I WANT TO TELL YOU, IT'S THOSE LITTLE FOXES THAT EAT THE VINES! (SoS.2:15) In the early days, Saul was head & shoulders above his brethren, a man of talents, big man, a man of ability, great leader, good organiser, a tremendous king, & God said to him, "When thou wast little in thine own sight, I did highly exalt thee." (1Sam.15:17) But the day came when Saul thought he could get along without obeying God's rules & without obeying God's Prophet, he could do it his way. He didn't have to listen to the Prophet, he didn't have to pay any attention to his rules & his orders--in this case his Letters--& he went ahead & did it his way.
16. LET ME TELL YOU, THAT'S ONE OF THE MOST HORRIBLE SONGS THAT FRANK SINATRA EVER MADE POPULAR, "I DID IT MY WAY!" That's like that poem "Invictus":
"My head is bloody but unbowed!
I am the captain of my fate,
The master of my soul!"
--And whoever wrote that went straight to Hell! That's where people go that have that attitude.--"I did it my way!" Okay, go ahead & do it your way & go to Hell! Because that's where you're going to go if you spend your life just doing it your way! And if you're saved & not going to Hell, at least you're going to have one Hell of a time on Earth! Because "the way of the transgressor is hard" (Pr.13:15), & you'll suffer for it, God's work will suffer for it, God's people will suffer for it & perhaps much that could have been done will not be done, it will be left undone. Because "this ye ought to have done & not to have left the other undone!" (Mt.23:23)
17. SO THE GREAT KING SAUL HAD TO BE REMOVED FROM HIS POST BECAUSE HE DISOBEYED TIME & TIME AGAIN. He'd always try to say he was sorry, "Well, at least honour me before the people. Come on, Prophet, come on Samuel. Come out here on the stage with me & honour me before the people, show them that you still recognise me as king!" (1Sam.15:30) So Samuel did for awhile. There wasn't anybody else, he had to. Saul was the only one who could keep the kingdom together at that time. But just as soon as God could find somebody else to take it over, he did, & Saul was out!
18. GOD WAS THROUGH WITH HIM, HE HAD TO TOSS HIM ON THE SCRAPHEAP OF HISTORY, AN UNUSABLE TOOL!--A brittle, unbending, unyielded tool who kept going his own way & kept going further & further astray till God had to choose just a little shepherd boy out of the field, a little nobody, nothing, to take his place. Then the Lord had to wait a few years until he got that kid trained & reared & grown up & even trained under the king himself, under that bad, wicked King Saul who even tried to kill him!--Why? Because he knew David was God's man & he knew he was going to take the throne & Saul confessed it several times. Because Saul went his own way instead of God's way.
19. AT FIRST HE JUST STARTED BREAKING THE LITTLE RULES, just the little things, you know, the things he thought weren't important after all. "Oh, so I spared a few cattle & I spared a few sheep & goats. The people persuaded me, after all." He comes in saying, "Behold, I have done the Will of the Lord" before the people & before Samuel the Prophet. And Samuel said, "Yes? Well, what then meaneth this lowing of the cattle & this bleating of the sheep in mine ears?" (1Sam.15:13,14)
20. YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE SOMEBODY IMPORTANT, A LEADER, WHOEVER YOU ARE, & YOU CLAIM TO HAVE DONE THE WILL OF GOD & A GREAT WORK LIKE SAUL DID, but why do I hear this lowing of the cattle & this bleating of the sheep of some of these little sins & little transgressions, these tiny little foxes eating the vines, sapping your strength, sapping your spirit, sapping your very soul because you have disobeyed the slightest, tiniest, littlest, least of all the rules!
21. DON'T THINK YOU'RE GOING TO GET AWAY WITH IT! IF I DON'T CATCH YOU OR ONE OF US CATCH YOU, GOD KNOWS ABOUT IT & HE'LL CATCH YOU, & YOU WILL PAY FOR IT! Sooner or later you will pay for it & you will reap what you have sowed.--And that means you, Faithy, & every last one of you, I'm talking to every one of you. Because when people begin to break the little rules, pretty soon there's no rule too big to break! "He that is unfaithful in that which is least will be unfaithful also in that which is much!" (Lk.16:10)
22. THERE HAVE BEEN PEOPLE WHO HAVE LIVED WITH US THAT WE FOUND OUT WE COULDN'T TRUST, & I would say almost every single move we have ever made, many of them at least, were caused by someone's unfaithfulness, some backslider's departure. [DELETED] And you'd better watch out, because when I move--& I'll be the first one to move--you may not only get left behind, but you may just plain get left out, if we can no longer trust you!
23. [DELETED] If you allow the Devil to get in in one little tiny thing, in the least disobedience to these rules we have laid down, it shows that you have a chink in your armour, a crack in the dyke. You've got a little place for the Devil to get in. And if you disobey the least of these commandments you are going to be guilty of all! God's Word says so: "He that shall break the least of these commandments is guilty of all." (Ja.2:10) "And he that shall break the least of these commandments & shall teach men so"--even if you're saved--He says, "shall be the least in the Kingdom of God." (Mt.5:19)
24. YOU'RE GOING TO BE SOMEWHERE DOWN IN THE BASEMENT SHINING SHOES OR WHATEVER, & LIVING IN SHAME & CONTEMPT, who knows, maybe for all eternity, forever ashamed, forever in the contempt of others who were faithful, because you were unfaithful & couldn't be trusted & you broke the little rules. Therefore God couldn't use you any more, we couldn't use you any more & it's a miracle of the salvation & redemption of Jesus Christ that you even got to Heaven, the mercy of God! So when people don't keep the rules, when people don't keep the least of these commandments, they can then become guilty of every single one of them & they can't be trusted to keep any!
25. YOU MAY BE GLAD YOU'RE HERE TONIGHT, BUT WITH EVERY TALK YOU HEAR LIKE THIS YOU MAY BE STARTING TO BE SORRY THAT YOU CAME, because as I told you the other night, this is the toughest outfit you ever worked in. We have the toughest rules & the toughest jobs & the toughest work & the hardest to do & the least recognition for it. [DELETED]
26. DO YOU KNOW WHAT JUDAS' JOB WAS? They didn't know where Jesus & the disciples hung out in the middle of the night when the crowds weren't around Him. They were afraid to arrest Him in broad daylight because He was always surrounded by mobs that might attack the police if they tried to arrest Him, so they had to sneak up on Him in the dark, in the middle of the night, the cowards! They were the High Priest's soldiers, not the Romans. It was the Temple guards who did it. But first they had to find out where He lived, where He spent His time, where He was at that hour of the night.
27. YOU MAY SAY, "OH BOY, THIS IS THE BEST JOB I EVER HELD! THIS IS THE HIGHEST & MIGHTIEST & THE MOST IMPORTANT, I'M ACTUALLY A MEMBER OF DAD'S OWN PERSONAL STAFF NOW! Well let me tell you, we're going to lean pretty hard on this staff, & I don't want to happen to you or to happen to me what happened to Israel. When God told them not to lean on the King of Egypt, He said, "He will be a staff that shall break in your hand & pierce your hand." (Isa.36:6)
28. I DON'T WANT TO LEAN ON YOU & FIND OUT YOU CAN'T TAKE IT UNDER THE STRESS & THE STRAIN & THE PRESSURE OF LIVING IN A HOME LIKE THIS under such pressure, primarily of security, also hard work, & also of keeping the strictest rules of any Home you ever lived in, & getting some of the toughest bawling-outs you may ever get!--Because I'm not afraid to give them to the top people no matter who they are, as some of you know, if you break the rules, or if you do something silly or stupid that could endanger our security. I don't want to lean on you as my staff & find out you break & pierce my hand!
29. YOU MAY FEEL, "THIS IS THE GREATEST JOB I EVER HAD, THE BEST JOB I EVER HAD, THE MOST WONDERFUL JOB I EVER HAD!"--AND IT PROBABLY IS!--Except that many people, thank God, go out from here to bigger jobs than this! My gardener & my maid are now helping run South America. We've had people go out from our Home to become leaders of nations & continents who once worked as just menials on our staff.--Because they got good training, they learned the hard way, they learned to be "faithful in that which was least" & then I knew I could trust them in "that which was much" & I sent'm out to do it.
30. WHEN I FOUND OUT I COULD TRUST'M AS A GARDENER, I SENT'M OUT TO WORK IN GOD'S GARDEN! When I could trust'm as a maid, I sent them out to be handmaiden to the Kingdom of God. If you stick & we learn we can trust you, it's more likely you'll go from here to some bigger job!
31. I'M SORRY TO HAVE TO GIVE YOU THESE TOUGH TALKS & WARNINGS BUT YOU NEED IT & this is the only way we're going to survive under these circumstances. [DELETED]
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33. THIS IS THE TOUGHEST JOB YOU'LL EVER HAVE. You're going to find out you're going to work harder than you ever worked & the rules are going to be tougher than you ever lived under before & the risks of security are going to be greater. If you fail, if you go back, if you don't keep the rules, if you decide, "Well, it's too much for me, I can't take it."--Well, if you go in a good spirit & we agree & maybe you go someplace else where you can work where you'll be happier, all right. Some people can't stand the confinement of [EDITED: "an office"] Colony.
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36. SOMETIMES I'VE ALMOST GOTTEN FED UP WITH IT & SAID, "I'M GETTING STIR-CRAZY! I'd like to get out of here & go someplace, do something, take a vacation, a change of scenery somewhere!" But after thinking better of it & murmuring & complaining a little bit, I think maybe that's why the Lord let me get so sick, I was just getting ready to take off. I was going to take a trip & go somewhere, anything to get out of here for awhile!
37. LOOK, WE HAVE EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING A HEART COULD DESIRE! [DELETED] We have a gorgeous house to live in, plenty to eat, comfortable bed, some of you even have your own room, you're doing what you like to do & working for the Lord, serving God & even in our household, & in some ways you have the best security you ever had. You don't have to worry about money any more except to help us pray it in. [DELETED]
38. I ALWAYS SAID, IF YOU REALLY WANT COMPLETE ABSOLUTE SECURITY, GO TO JAIL! They'll give you three square meals a day, furnish the clothes, room & board, everything, & you're protected from the outside World with steel bars & gates & doors, complete security! [DELETED]
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44. THIS IS THE MOST DANGEROUS, DELICATE JOB YOU EVER HAD IN THE MOST DANGEROUS PLACE YOU EVER LIVED! The Devil knows that you & I are the greatest threat to his kingdom in this World! The churches aren't doing him much harm, they're not battering at his gates, the gates of Hell, which wouldn't even prevail against them if they would, but he's battering at their gates & they're failing & falling! He's conquering them one after the other.
45. BUT LET ME TELL YOU, HE'S AFRAID OF US & HE ATTACKS US ANY WAY HE CAN GET IN--into you or you or you or any little weak character or any little weak sister or anybody who's not 100% sold out--& loyal & faithful & diligent & spiritual & absolutely all-out for us, not only Jesus. We've had Christians work for us who were great Jesus People, they were all for the Lord, some of them right fresh out of good Fundamental Evangelical churches, wonderful Christians, but they couldn't take it & they soon left, went back, & we couldn't trust'm. [DELETED]
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47. LET ME TELL YOU, THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE GONE BACK HAVE FOUND THE WAY OF THE TRANSGRESSOR IS HARD! Even if they've gone back a little bit, even just left us saying, "Well, I couldn't quite get along with Dad, I couldn't stand those long night sessions, I couldn't take all those rules. [DELETED] I like to get out & witness & pray on the street corners & win souls! Isn't that what the Family's all about? After all, we can't do that here[DELETED]!"
48. IF THERE'S ANYTHING THE ARMY & THE MILITARY PROTECT, IT'S THEIR GENERALS & THEIR COMMANDERS-IN-CHIEF! [DELETED] And I've seen some of them that looked pretty dumb to me, & some of them have suffered for it too. Some top security men, top ambassadors & generals have virtually let everybody know where they lived, so along came a car when they were coming out of their gate & just mowed'm down! It's happened time & time again because their address was common knowledge. They let somebody know where they lived, had servants who betrayed them & shot'm down the minute they stepped outside the door or the gate or whatever.
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50. THEY COULDN'T FIND JESUS, THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHERE HE HUNG OUT IN THE DARK IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, so they had to bribe one of His Own disciples to lead'm there & show'm where He was hiding! "Judas, betrayest thou Me with a kiss?" Jesus said. (Lk.22:48) Imagine, he went up to Him & KISSED Him! That ought to be enough to make you swear off kissing! I've had people kiss me who I felt like were betrayers, & later they turned out to be. They could pretend to love me & kiss me & big smiles & everything's fine, but later on betrayed me! [DELETED]
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53. IT'S NOT QUITE SO EASY LIVING HERE AFTER ALL, IS IT? It's not going to be quite the ball you thought it was going to be, but much harder than you thought it was going to be!
54. THAT'S WHY SATAN POSSESSED ONE OF JESUS' OWN DISCIPLES, JUDAS, TO BETRAY JESUS, BECAUSE THAT WAS THE ONLY WAY HE COULD GET AT HIM. And when Jesus finally dismissed Judas, you know what it said, I told you, it didn't say that he became demon-possessed, it said that {\ul \i the} Devil entered into him! (Jn.13:27) And it uses a Greek word that is only used for Satan, capitalised, Diablo, the Devil! The Devil didn't leave that job to any little underling, any demon or even any fiendish archangel of his, he did that dirty job himself! He personally possessed Judas to do the job of betraying Jesus. And he will try to get into you every way he possibly can & do the same if he can if you don't look out! And I mean it!
55. YOU HAVE GOT TO BE DEEPLY ON YOUR GUARD IN THE LORD & IN THE WORD & IN SPIRIT OR HE COULD GET INTO YOU & DO THE SAME THING! You say, "What do you mean, Lord? Me? I'm saved! How could the Devil get into me?" He gets into a lot of people in unguarded moments! Any time you just let down your guard & for a minute you're off-guard or out of the spirit, disobedient, wilful, murmuring, complaining, sorry you came, just any little thing the Devil can use, he'll get in. He's waiting.
56. THANK GOD WE ARE SURROUNDED WITH A GREAT COMPANY OF ANGELS! Hallelujah! TYJ! (Tongues:) TYJ! PYL! Hallelujah! "Ye lie protected by My angels, & I have kept thy father through lo these many years!" Hallelujah! TYJ! PTL! Amen! TYL! I'll tell you, if it weren't for that, if it weren't for the Lord & His angels, we'd have been gone long ago! Because I want to warn you, that out beyond this circle of angels which are camped round about us here, there is an even bigger circle of devils & demons & Satan himself trying to get in!--Waiting for just one little opportunity, one little crack, one little bad thought, one little evil idea on your mind or heart, & that becomes his territory, that becomes his avenue to get into you!
57. YOU SAY, "HOW COULD THAT HAPPEN, DAD, WHEN WE'RE ALL CHRISTIANS, WE'RE ALL SAVED, WE ALL LOVE THE LORD!" Well, even Christians can disobey. Even Christians can have doubts & fears & do wrong things & make mistakes & disobey by thinking, "Oh well, this little thing or that little thing is not important!" I've quoted you a little verse my Mother used to quote so often:
"I digged a grave & laid therein
Its secret depths one secret sin.
I covered it o'er & knew full well
That night I sealed my soul in Hell!"
58. WE DON'T BELIEVE IN LOSING YOUR SALVATION, BUT IF YOU DON'T GET HELL HEREAFTER, IF YOU DO A THING LIKE THAT YOU'LL SUFFER HELL ON EARTH AS EVERY TRANSGRESSOR DOES!--And the worst kind of Hell, because you know better & you know you shouldn't have done it & you know you should have been more careful & you know the danger & the risk & the damage you could do if you don't keep your heart clean & pure & right with the Lord & every moment thinking & praying about the Lord & staying close to Jesus & keeping yourself in His hands & in His will! That's just how dangerous this is & how dangerous your job is & what a danger to me personally every single one of you is unless you stay close to the Lord & stay in His will & obedient & yielded & 100% loyal & faithful!
59. [DELETED] Well, I'll tell you, there's nobody the Devil or demons would rather possess than one of you, especially now that you're this close to me! We don't believe in complete demon-possession by the Devil's angels of any child of God, but I'll tell you, I've seen some saved children of God who love the Lord who have thrown some fits & done some tricks which only the Devil could have done through them! I believe Deborah is saved, but she is now working with our most dangerous, bitterest, most violent, evil enemies, cooperating with the [EDITED: "ACs"]!--Sponsored by them & going on their TV shows! You see, there's no limit to how far back you can go.
60. IF YOU DON'T GO ALL THE WAY WITH THE LORD, YOU'LL GO ALL THE WAY WITH THE DEVIL, EVEN IF YOU'RE SAVED!--He'll so deceive you because of your disobedience. If you don't believe the Truth & follow the Truth, then you will believe a lie & follow the lie to your damnation!--I don't mean Hell. "Damnation" is a word often interpreted to mean Hell, but it means "judgement," punishment, the rod of God with which He can clobber you [DELETED] if He has to, to protect His Work & His Kingdom! And I'll tell you, Deborah [DELETED] has resisted the Truth & joined our enemies!--Along with Jethro, Rachel & Timothy! Well, at least Timothy hasn't joined our enemies as far as I know, but what's the difference?
61. A LOT OF PEOPLE SAY, "WELL, I DON'T WANT TO STAY WITH YOU, DAD, I JUST CAN'T TAKE IT & I'M GOING TO GO BACK--BUT I'M NOT GOING TO GO TO THE DEVIL, I'M NOT GOING TO JOIN THE ENEMIES, I'LL JUST STAY NEUTRAL." Well, hardly any of them ever did. Once you go back, you go all the way & the enemy virtually forces you to join them. You either have to deny us & betray us, or they won't receive you. So as Peter said, once you leave, there's no place to go.--Not if you leave in the wrong spirit & the wrong attitude & the wrong way, there's no place else to go. You'll wind up on the wrong side, because that's the only place there is to go.
62. WE NEVER THOUGHT THAT DAVID HOYT WOULD GO BACK & IMMEDIATELY THE MINUTE HE LEFT US GO STRAIGHT INTO THE ARMS OF OUR ENEMIES!--As well as Deborah my own daughter, Jethro, Rachel, Timothy & God knows how many others! I said in a Letter recently that I think we've probably lost more people than we have left today, people who couldn't take Gideon's Army, who couldn't stand the strict discipline, the strict rules, the tough fight, the hard war. [DELETED] I'm sorry, but that's the way it is.
63. IF YOU STAY, YOU'RE GOING TO WANT TO SO BAD THAT IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW TOUGH IT IS, HOW HARD IT IS, HOW TIGHT IT IS, HOW CONFINING IT IS, YOU LOVE IT & YOU WANT IT MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS LIFE, TO SERVE THE LORD WHERE IT WILL COUNT THE MOST! You may not witness to a soul, you may not get out a piece of lit, but you are going to be responsible & have a share in almost every single piece of lit that is passed out & every soul that's witnessed to & every soul that is won by those who do! Because THIS is where it comes from! Right? ...
64. EVERY ARMY HAS TO HAVE A COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, EVERY ARMY HAS TO HAVE A LEADER. God always uses a man or a woman, & I've been amazed at how Maria has developed into a real commander & organiser & leader! God knew what He was doing when He chose me & when He chose her. Praise God!
65. SO THAT'S HOW SERIOUS YOUR JOB IS HERE & THAT'S HOW SERIOUS YOUR SITUATION IS HERE & [DELETED]'[EDITED: "we"] depend on you & your faithfulness & your loyalty & your obedience, strict obedience to every single rule without exception!
66. DON'T THINK YOU'RE SOME KIND OF AN EXCEPTION JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE SOME BIGSHOT LEADER or you've got such an important job that you think, "Well, I can get away with it, I'm so indispensable!" Nobody's indispensable, not if they don't obey, for you can't trust anybody who doesn't obey. You can't trust anybody who doesn't obey all the rules, every single one of the rules without exception! Amen? GBY!
67. GOD BLESS THESE PRECIOUS SOULS WHO TAKE CARE OF THE CHILDREN, THE UNSUNG HEROES OF THE REVOLUTION, THE CUSTODIANS OF THE FUTURE! That's your job, the future, & you've done a marvellous job! We have the best children I have ever seen in my life. We have the most spiritual children. We have the children the most full of the Word I've ever seen, even more than my first children. And boy, if they could get out there & witness, I know they'd witness like a house afire, & someday they will! That day will come, probably when I'm gone & they carry on with their mother. Praise God! The day will come. The day will come when there'll be no place to hide except in a few wildernesses perhaps with a few nations & peoples who might protect us.
68. [DELETED] Well, I don't do this too often, I don't always even come to dinner. But this session was so important to impress upon you the importance of obeying & keeping every single rule, the jot & the tittle of these laws without a single infraction, without a single person thinking they're an exception of some kind on some little issue as minor as coffee drinking or wine drinking or swimming or tanning or whatever it may be!
69. YOU ARE NO EXCEPTION! NOBODY HERE'S AN EXCEPTION! I'M NOT AN EXCEPTION! I don't dare get away with anything, or the Lord will slap me down like He did this past month! I was about to take off prematurely on my own because I just wanted to go someplace to get out of it all for awhile & take a vacation. I kept threatening everybody I was going to take a vacation & I told you I was going to give you a vacation. I finally said, "Well, at least you can have Christmas Day off."--And some of you worked Christmas Day too!
70. I GUESS WE'LL TAKE OUR VACATION IN HEAVEN!--BECAUSE EVERY DAY IS SO PRECIOUS, EVERY HOUR IS SO PRECIOUS! I feel like if I don't get up & go to work, what am I going to do?--Waste time? Time is our most precious commodity, we don't have any time to waste. We've got to spend every minute doing what we have to do to try to get out as much as we can get out before we can't get out any more!
71. --AND YOU & YOU & YOU & YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE TO SEE THAT WE GET IT DONE, THAT YOU DO YOUR JOB, SO THAT NOTHING IS LEFT UNDONE & WE ARE FAITHFUL & DILIGENT TO DO WHAT THE LORD HAS ASKED US TO DO & that you make it possible & you help us do it, & you stay diligent & loyal & faithful & you don't let the cat out of the bag or one word out of your mouth that shouldn't go or one action that would endanger us in any way! Every one of you is contributing every moment to our security & to our Worldwide work, just by the job that you do here in this Home, & some of you who have to go out.
72. YOU SAY, "WELL DAD, I DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS GOING TO BE SO TOUGH! I've lived in [EDITED: "office"] Colonies but I've never lived in one this tough!" Well, it's because you're in the toughest one of all! [DELETED] Wait till you've been around here for awhile & you may wish you hadn't joined us! I don't think that would ever happen to you, Honey, you're part of me, thank the Lord. But I thought that of some people who disappointed me, betrayed us & went back, top leaders, my own flesh-&-blood, my own wife, my own daughter, even my own son Ho went astray for awhile. Thank God he repented & came back & repeated his first works, thank the Lord, came back to his first love. (Rev.2:4,5)
73. I THINK AARON WAS TOO GOOD FOR THIS WORLD SO THE LORD HAD TO TAKE HIM! Who was the man that walked so far with the Lord, the Lord finally told him it was too far to go back to his house, he might as well come Home with the Lord!--Enoch! That was certainly Aaron if you've ever seen anybody who walked with the Lord, & the Lord took him. He was too good for this World, really, & no doubt the Lord needed him over There to be more help to us. Many people have felt his presence & his help & I saw his face the other night, the first time I have in years! (Tongues.) TYL! "This I have done for thy father!" TYL! It's little things like that that are such an encouragement.
74. I CAN'T DO IT, I'M NOBODY, I'M NOTHING, ONLY THE LORD CAN DO IT! I can't keep you faithful, I can't make you obey no matter how hard I lay down the rules or try to enforce them. You have a free will, you're a free moral agent. God has given you the majesty of choice, & like everybody else & everything else in this World, He's given you the power to choose to do good or evil & you have to choose it. You have to be willing & want to obey & to keep the rules. You've got to feel that they're right & righteous & good & necessary & WANT to keep them.
75. IF YOU THINK ANY OF THEM ARE TOO HARD & "WELL, I DON'T HAVE TO KEEP THIS LITTLE ONE OR I DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT & THAT'S TOO MUCH," ETC., [DELETED] you had better watch out, because the Lord is going to hold you responsible & accountable & He knows your every thought & every word & every deed! And I warn you, I beg of you, not to break a single rule or it will be an avenue for the Devil to get in, & that's only the beginning & it will be worse from there on until you fail God & me & the Family & God only knows how much havoc you might wreak!
76. I KNOW I'VE KEPT YOU LATE, BUT THERE'S ONE NICE THING ABOUT THIS, WHEN I DO KEEP YOU UP LATE YOU CAN SLEEP IN AS LONG AS YOU WANT TO THE NEXT MORNING. Because, believe it or not, I am a little merciful. I'm really kindhearted sometimes. I'll make you work hard, expect you to work hard & be 100% loyal, diligent, faithful, hardworking, conscious of security & all the rest, but I try to not be too hard. At least I try to be as easy on you as I can be, & one thing I can let you do is sleep in the morning. You can sleep at least till 7 or 8 o'clock! I mean, who needs more than 7 or 8 hours sleep? It's only 12 o'clock! But you won't be going to bed immediately maybe, it takes a little time to get there & get undressed. It doesn't take much time for you nudes to get undressed, TTL! But I know you're tired & some of you got up early.
77. (TO JOSEPH:) I DON'T SEE HOW YOU STAND THESE LATE SESSIONS, SON! It doesn't matter, we tell him he can sleep in the morning, he doesn't sleep. He just gets up. It's a lifelong habit, 7 o'clock & he's up, turning out the lights, taking care of the doors & I can always count on him to be there. But on the sleep-in mornings at least once a week he does sleep in sometimes another whole hour or so. I really hope you will take the morning off.
78. I TOLD A FEW OF YOU THAT IF YOU HAD TO DO THAT WORK ON CHRISTMAS, I WANTED YOU TO TAKE THE NEXT DAY OFF, BUT INSTEAD OF THAT YOU'RE WORKING ALL DAY TODAY! At least take the morning off, amen? That gives me a chance to do a lot of work & get a lot of work stacked up for you so that by the time you get up I can give you a full day's work to do tomorrow afternoon! (Maria: If he knows you're in bed asleep he won't bother you.) I won't bother you, I'll just stack it outside your door, that's all.
79. SO I HOPE THIS LITTLE TALK HAS HELPED YOU REALISE THE SERIOUSNESS OF OUR SITUATION, THE IMPORTANCE OF SECURITY, THE ABSOLUTE IMPERATIVENESS OF OBEDIENCE & THE DANGER OF DISOBEDIENCE, even the slightest little thing that you might not think is important, like an extra cup of coffee or an extra glass of wine, thinking, "Dad will never know the difference!" Don't break these rules! And watch what you say & what you do while on these grounds or going or coming, whatever you do, please be careful.
[DELETED]
81. (LOUD CAT NOISE:) ISN'T THAT LIKE THE DEVIL TO HAVE THAT CAT OUT THERE THROWING A FIT! I rebuke you, Devil, in Jesus' name! Amen! You know, the Devil can't stop us, but he sure tries to annoy us! So, thank You Lord!
82. I'M SORRY, BUT THIS IS THE TIGHTEST COLONY YOU EVER GOT INTO. [DELETED] [EDITED: "P"]lease, don't write [EDITED: "me"] long letters. As I said, don't even write me notes unless you have to & you feel you really need to. I've really appreciated all your notes & I think I've answered every one of them, haven't I? And God bless you for it & now I know you love me, that's enough said, you don't have to write me any more--unless it's your duty to write me such notes & we have business together somehow.
83. ONCE IN AWHILE IF YOU FEEL LIKE YOU REALLY HAVE TO WRITE ME A NOTE FOR SOME REASON, YOU'VE JUST GOTTA TELL ME SOMETHING, please write it on one of these little squares of paper on one side only & give it to somebody who has access & they will decide on whether it's important enough to give to me or not. But I cannot even read & answer too many notes of that size every day! I don't even have time to do it once a week. I'm sorry. You say, "I never lived with such a heartless, cold, hardhearted monster as Dad! I can't even write him nice long love letters every day!"
84. I'VE GOTTEN TO WHERE I HARDLY EVEN PUT INITIALS ON NOTES TO THE ONES I HAVE TO COMMUNICATE WITH EVERY DAY, that's part of my business & their business, we have to communicate about our pubs, etc. I keep abbreviating more all the time & we're probably getting down to where they wonder if I even still love'm! Well, I at least try to put "ILY" on it if nothing else, & my initial.
85. THERE'S ONE THING I DO REQUIRE ON ALL NOTES & COMMUNICATIONS & I will send it back to you to find out who & why if you don't put the date & the time & your signature! I want to know who wrote it, when you wrote it & I may even want to know why you wrote it if I can't find anything in there that justifies it!
86. GBY! WE'VE GOTTA QUIT. IT'S AFTER MIDNIGHT! THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE, BUT IT'S IMPORTANT--IT COULD MEAN OUR SALVATION OR OUR DISBANDING! It could mean the continuation of our work here or some serious work stoppage. [DELETED] Those are just part of our [DELETED] rules & I'll tell you the rest in a few other nights! PTL!
87. SO DO BE PRAYERFUL & ON YOUR GUARD & CAREFUL! You're [DELETED] fighting a dangerous war, & this Unit is under attack all the time without ceasing in some way, & you don't want to be the one who's the hole in the wall or the breach, do you? Stay close to the Lord in prayer & in the Word & in Jesus to keep you from straying in the slightest little thing. Amen? PTL? It's not so nice living here after all, huh? Pretty tough! But it has its compensations. It has its benefits, praise the Lord!
88. AMEN LORD, WE CAN'T DRAG THIS OUT ANY LONGER BUT WE'VE HAD TO TELL'M WHAT WE'VE TOLD'M TO IMPRESS ON THEM THE SERIOUSNESS OF IT & the danger of any laxity or digression which can become a transgression against even Thy laws, Lord, & endanger the work. Help them to keep these rules, help them to keep these laws, help them to be led of Thy Spirit every moment & to heed & mind the checks of Thy Spirit even on things that perhaps we haven't had time or a chance yet to tell them about, things that they must be very prayerful & careful about. Do bless & continue to keep us safely.
89. HELP THIS TALK NOT TO STRIKE FEAR INTO ANYONE'S HEART, BUT TO KNOW THAT AS LONG AS THEY STAY CLOSE TO YOU & IN YOU, IF THE BRANCH ABIDES IN THE VINE, THEN YOU'LL TAKE CARE OF IT & IT'LL BEAR FRUIT! They have nothing to worry about as long as they stay in the Vine, in Thy Word, in Thy Spirit, in Thy will, in Thy work & keeping the rules, in Thy Law. You'll keep them, Lord, if they'll keep what we've asked them to keep & You want them to keep. You'll keep them. So they have nothing to worry about or to fear, because as long as they obey, You will keep them. So bless & do keep them.
90. GIVE US ALL A GOOD NIGHT'S REST & SAFEKEEPING, LORD. Thank You for the precious ones that watch & wait & care for our security. Continue to protect us, Lord, & help us get out the work that we need to do before it's too late. Help us, Lord, to get as much done as we can before You have to let the floodgates of evil go in order to finish the End. Help us, Lord, to finish Thy work first, in Jesus' name.
91. THANK YOU FOR HEALING US, THANK YOU FOR HEALING THE ONES YOU'RE GOING TO HEAL HERE WHO ARE NOT YET HEALED. Bless them as they partake of communion & as they pray, Lord, & as those who need prayer are dealt with & laid hands on to be delivered from whatever afflictions they may have. We ask Thee, Lord, in Jesus' name.
92. (CHILD SNEEZES.) PUT SOMETHING ON HER QUICKLY, WILL YOU? You folks must watch the children closer, that's another danger point! Don't let the Devil get in by any little sickness or carelessness or chill or laziness about draughts or whatever. Help them, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen, as we pray Thy prayer: (Prays the Lord's Prayer.) "May the words of my mouth & the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength & my Redeemer!"--And our actions as well, Lord. (Prays "Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep.") In Jesus' name.
93. BLESS THEM ALL, LORD, & KEEP THEM ALL CLOSE TO YOU, JESUS, & IN THY WILL & THY SERVICE, & HAPPY & FULFILLED IN THEIR PLACE & IN THEIR JOB, feeling satisfied they're doing their best for You, Jesus, in Jesus' name. Amen! PTL! Hallelujah! TYJ! (Sings:)
"I am Thine, O Lord, I have heard Thy Voice,
And it told Thy Love to me.
But I long to rise in the arms of faith
And be closer drawn to Thee!
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To the cross where Thou hast died.
Draw me nearer, nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To Thy precious bleeding side!"
94. NOW YOU'RE GOING TO KNOW WHAT THE LORD MEANT BY "IF ANYONE WOULD COME AFTER ME, LET HIM TAKE UP HIS CROSS & FOLLOW ME!" (Mt.16:24) Amen? You may have thought this job was a reward, but you may find it's your cross. [DELETED] This can prove to be your cross as some have already found it to be, but I think you're going to find that the cross leads to the crown! Praise God!--If you'll bear it & carry it gladly & cheerfully for the glory of God! PTL? Amen? TYJ! God bless you all!
95. IT'S 12:15, YOU OUGHT TO BE IN BED BY 12:30, & REMEMBER, AFTER THESE LATE NIGHT SESSIONS, WHISPER! Don't start a lot of loud talking like after church. Remember how they used to let go & sound like bedlam & Babylon itself after the sermon? Here it's late, the neighbours have been in bed for two hours already, so please be quiet. [DELETED]
96. AND I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU'D EVEN WHISPER IN THE DAYTIME! Some of you get out there & talk pretty loud sometimes, especially with big booming voices, & you don't realise that I can hear every word. My window is right above you & even if shut I can hear you & you distract my attention from my work, you interrupt me & sometimes I want to know, "What's going on out there?" I'll frequently go to my door, as some of you know, & say, "What's going on? What's the big racket? Who stumbled over the barrel? What happened? Why are they talking so loud? Is there some stranger at the gate?"
97. I'M VERY SENSITIVE TO SOUNDS & TO EVERY LITTLE DISTRACTION OR INTERRUPTION WHEN I'M CONCENTRATING & DOING THE LORD'S WORK & trying to read & edit or correct a Letter, & if you get out there & think, "Oh, I'm outside the house & nobody can hear me" & yell loudly to each other, I'm not the only one that's going to hear you, the neighbours are going to hear you too & wonder, "What's going on over there? They must have quite a mob! This is quite a long Christmas party!"--Especially if you get out there & do more than whisper at this time of night. Don't bang doors, don't tromp around & make noises & let the doors slam or whatever, be quiet.
98. [DELETED] You may have some things to learn you never learned before, & I sure hope you learn'm because I want you to stay & I hope you can stay as long as possible. PTL!--Because we need you & you need to do the will of God. Amen? We need you & you need the job, to serve the Lord, & the World needs us all. The Lord needs us most of all, so for God's sake, please try to please Him! Amen? As the little girl said, "And Lord, please take care of Yourself, because if anything happened to You, we'd all be sunk!"
99. I CAN'T TAKE TIME TO KISS & HUG YOU ALL SO I'LL JUST BLOW YOU KISSES! Good night, God bless you! I'd love to squeeze you & kiss you & hug you, but you need to go straight to bed. If you accidentally happen to be on my way to my room & you need it that bad, well, I'll give you a little bit on the way! PTL! I never saw such children, they are good soldiers, that's for sure! GB'm! TYJ! GBAK us all, in Jesus' name, amen!
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family
