David Hathaway

We should live as the early Apostles did: preach the Gospel, heal the sick. We are still writing the Acts of the Apostles today. People are distressed; there are earthquakes, changes in weather patterns, and wars; but these were all predicted by Jesus in Matthew 24. I am more concerned about preaching the Gospel and seeing people saved. This year, 2025, I'm celebrating 75 years in ministry. But I am not stopping. I don't believe in retiring, but ‘refiring' – I am always seeking a new Fire from God. We all need a renewed fire, but an ‘old-time' revival, we need a new power, but the ‘real' God. Will you be the one whom He will call again, through the fire of the Holy Spirit?

In today's episode David begins teaching on the Authority, Truth and Accuracy of the Bible: 'All my life I have believed in the Authority, Truth and Accuracy of the Bible. As a boy I learnt from my father, who was the General Superintendent of the Elim Churches, that 'All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works,'' (2 Timothy 3:16-17, KJV).

After you have suffered a little while, our God, who is full of kindness through Christ, will give you his eternal glory. He personally will come and pick you up, and set you firmly in place, and make you stronger than ever. To him be all power over all things, forever and ever. Amen. (1 Peter 5.10-22, TLB)

'Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.' (1 Peter 5.6-10, NIV)

I'm just back from Georgia where for 3 days we brought 1000 Adjarian Georgians together in an hotel ballroom in Batumi and I preached Jesus. Rarely have I experienced His actual Presence in our midst as in this large Conference Centre! When I prayed for the sick many miracles happened! Men, women, old and young eagerly came to the platform to share their amazing stories in front of all their friends and relatives! On the Saturday night, I laid hands on all 1000 people and, with a brief prayer, many were instantly healed! A crippled man walked without sticks, blind eyes opened, lame limbs were healed…

'To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ's sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watching over them – not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility towards one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud but shows favour to the humble.' (1 Peter 5.1-5, NIV)

The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore be earnest, thoughtful men of prayer. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love makes up for many of your faults. Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay for the night. God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God's many kinds of blessings. Are you called to preach? Then preach as though God himself were speaking through you. Are you called to help others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies so that God will be glorified through Jesus Christ—to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen. If you are suffering according to God's will, keep on doing what is right and trust yourself to the God who made you, for he will never fail you. (1 Peter 4.7-11, TLB)

At the beginning of May, something extraordinary happened in Batumi, Georgia. We gathered 1,000 Adjaran Georgians - Muslims by background - in a hotel ballroom for three unforgettable days. And there, David preached Jesus to them... not just as a prophet mentioned in the Koran as Isa Messih, but as the living Son of God, risen in power! Whilst in April, David arrived in Kazakhstan on his 93rd birthday, marking 75 years in ministry. Leaders from across the Almaty region came to be encouraged by a man who served through 30 years of Soviet persecution - and over 30 more in the turbulent years that followed. Still tireless, still passionate, David continues to inspire with a faith that never fades. For details on these missions trips visit our website: eurovision.org.uk

Husbands must be careful of your wives, being thoughtful of their needs and honouring them as the weaker sex. Remember that you and your wife are partners in receiving God's blessings, and if you don't treat her as you should, your prayers will not get ready answers. And now this word to all of you: You should be like one big happy family, full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds. Don't repay evil for evil. Don't snap back at those who say unkind things about you. Instead, pray for God's help for them, for we are to be kind to others, and God will bless us for it. If you want a happy, good life, keep control of your tongue, and guard your lips from telling lies. Turn away from evil and do good. Try to live in peace even if you must run after it to catch and hold it! For the Lord is watching his children, listening to their prayers; but the Lord's face is hard against those who do evil. Usually no one will hurt you for wanting to do good. But even if they should, you are to be envied, for God will reward you for it. Quietly trust yourself to Christ your Lord, and if anybody asks why you believe as you do, be ready to tell him, and do it in a gentle and respectful way. Do what is right; then if men speak against you, calling you evil names, they will become ashamed of themselves for falsely accusing you when you have only done what is good. Remember, if God wants you to suffer, it is better to suffer for doing good than for doing wrong! Christ also suffered. He died once for the sins of all us guilty sinners although he himself was innocent of any sin at any time, that he might bring us safely home to God. But though his body died, his spirit lived on, and it was in the spirit that he visited the spirits in prison and preached to them - spirits of those who, long before in the days of Noah, had refused to listen to God, though he waited patiently for them while Noah was building the ark. Yet only eight persons were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. (That, by the way, is what baptism pictures for us: In baptism we show that we have been saved from death and doom by the resurrection of Christ; not because our bodies are washed clean by the water but because in being baptised we are turning to God and asking him to cleanse our hearts from sin.) And now Christ is in heaven, sitting in the place of honor next to God the Father, with all the angels and powers of heaven bowing before him and obeying him. Since Christ suffered and underwent pain, you must have the same attitude he did; you must be ready to suffer, too. For remember, when your body suffers, sin loses its power,' (1 Peter 3.7-4.1, TLB)

Wives, fit in with your husbands' plans; for then if they refuse to listen when you talk to them about the Lord, they will be won by your respectful, pure behavior. Your godly lives will speak to them better than any words. Don't be concerned about the outward beauty that depends on jewelry, or beautiful clothes, or hair arrangement. Be beautiful inside, in your hearts, with the lasting charm of a gentle and quiet spirit that is so precious to God. That kind of deep beauty was seen in the saintly women of old, who trusted God and fitted in with their husbands' plans. (1 Peter 3.1-5, TLB)

Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God's slaves. Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honour the emperor. Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.' When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. ‘He himself bore our sins' in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; ‘by his wounds you have been healed.' For ‘you were like sheep going astray,' but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. (1 Peter 2.11-25, NIV)

For in Scripture it says: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.' Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,' and, ‘A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.' They stumble because they disobey the message – which is also what they were destined for. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God's slaves. (1 Peter 2.6-16, NIV)

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, the living Stone – rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him – you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.' (1 Peter 2.1-6, NIV.)

[Christ] was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God. Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. For, ‘All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures for ever.' And this is the word that was preached to you. (1 Peter 1.19-25, NIV)

'Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things. 'Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.' 'Since you call on a Father who judges each person's work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.' (1 Peter 1.10-19, NIV)

'Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire – may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.' (1 Peter 1.3-9, NIV)

In 1 Kings 18, after three years of drought and famine, the Lord speaks again to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” This is fascinating – Elijah now knows that rain is coming, but the exact timing hasn't been revealed. There are still key events that must unfold first. Elijah encounters Obadiah, Ahab's servant, who is out searching the land for any sign of water or grass in hopes of keeping some of the livestock alive. Elijah tells him to go inform Ahab that he is in the area. But Obadiah is afraid – he worries the Spirit of the Lord might whisk Elijah away again, and if Elijah disappears, Ahab will surely kill him in his fury. Still, Obadiah delivers the message, and in verse 17, Ahab and Elijah finally meet. Ahab accuses Elijah, saying, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?” It's ironic – this wicked, idolatrous king blames Elijah for the nation's suffering. But Elijah boldly responds: “I have not made trouble for Israel, but you and your father's family have. You have abandoned the Lord's commands and followed the Baals” (v18). What follows is one of the most dramatic moments in the Old Testament. Elijah calls for a challenge – he summons the prophets of Baal to prove once and for all who the true God is. He declares, “The God who answers by fire – He is God!” The prophets of Baal go first, preparing their altar and crying out to their god. They even cut themselves in desperation. But nothing happens—no fire, no voice, no response. Elijah mocks them, knowing full well their so-called gods are lifeless and powerless. Then it's Elijah's turn. He rebuilds the altar with stones, arranges the wood, places the sacrifice on it—and then does something extraordinary: he drenches everything with water. Not once, but with twelve barrels of water, until the sacrifice, the wood, and even the trench around the altar are soaked. It raises a good question – where did he even get all that water in the middle of a drought? But more importantly, Elijah sets the stage for an impossible miracle. And then he prays. As Elijah calls on the name of the Lord, fire falls from heaven – consuming not only the waterlogged sacrifice and wood, but even the stones and the water in the trench. It's a breathtaking, undeniable act of divine power. God answers, and there's no doubt left about who the real God is.

In 1 Kings 17, God instructed Elijah, “Go to a widow in Zarephath near Sidon – she will provide for you.” So Elijah obeyed. When he arrived, he saw the woman gathering sticks and said to her, “Please bring me some water – and a piece of bread as well.” She responded, “There's a severe famine in the land. I have almost nothing – just a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I'm gathering wood to bake one last meal for my son and me. After that, we expect to die.” Elijah said, “Don't be afraid. Go ahead and make the bread – but make a small cake for me first. Then prepare something for you and your son. For this is what the Lord says: The jar of flour will not run out, and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.” She did exactly as Elijah instructed, and just as God had promised, the flour never ran out, and the oil never failed. Day after day, in the middle of a drought and famine, her household was sustained. This is a powerful illustration of what happens when we trust God. While the world may be in chaos – scarcity all around – God's provision never fails. The flour represents physical sustenance, and the oil often symbolizes anointing. Neither ran dry because God's word stood firm. But the story doesn't end there. Before Elijah ever reached Mount Carmel and called down fire from heaven, the widow faced another crisis: her son fell gravely ill and died. In her grief, she cried out, thinking God was punishing her for past sins. Elijah took the lifeless boy, carried him to his own room, laid him on the bed, and stretched himself out over him three times. He cried out to the Lord, and God heard his prayer – the child came back to life.

If we obey the Word of God, what we have will not run dry until God fulfills every promise. There is a great responsibility on us to obey God; our obedience will affect unbelievers. If we as individuals, and collectively as the Church, are disobedient as King Ahab was in 1 Kings 16:33, then God's anger is roused. We are called to be 'salt and light'. Salt is a purifer and preserver; if the salt loses it's saltiness, it is of no use anymore. There is a danger today that the Church is abandoning the commands of the Lord to adjust to society; I cannot overemphasise this need to obey God's Word.  'Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” 'Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.” 'So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. Then the word of the Lord came to him: “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.” “As surely as the Lord your God lives,” she replied, “I don't have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.” 'Elijah said to her, “Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.'”' (1 Kings 17.1-14, NIV)  

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us – whatever we ask – we know that we have what we asked of him. If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life. I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death. I am not saying that you should pray about that. All wrongdoing is sin, and there is sin that does not lead to death. We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 John 5.13-21, NIV)

Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. This is the one who came by water and blood – Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony, but God's testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5.1-12, NIV)

The Spirit of Jesus, or the Spirit of Christ, sometimes referred to as the Spirit of God, is the Spirit we receive at conversion. Receiving the Holy Spirit is a totally seperate baptism. You can only receive the Holy Spirit after you have received Christ. The first Scripture I want to refer you to is from Romans 8, 'Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death,' (v1-2). In this passage it is clear that through Christ we receive the Spirit of Life, this is your conversion. In verses 9-11, Paul continues referring to the Spirit of Christ, 'You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.' Like Jesus, we must receive the Holy Spirit in order to be effective in ministry. The Holy Spirit is the empowerment. The reason I first received the Holy Spirit was because I knew I had to preach the Gospel – with lives changed, souls saved into the Kingdom!

No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: in this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. (1 John 4.12-19, NIV)

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognise the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood. Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. (1 John 4:4-12)  

Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognise the Spirit of God: every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (1 John 4.1-4, NIV)

What is it that pleases God? A young expert in the Jewish Law asked Jesus, “Which is the greatest commandment?” To which Jesus replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind, and love your neighbour as yourself.” Matthew 22:37-39. John put it like this in v23ff, “This is His Commandment, that we should believe on the Name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another as He commanded us. He who keeps God's Commandment, dwells in God and God in him. And this is how we know that He lives in us, by the Spirit He has given us.” This takes us back to Ch 2:28 when John writes, “Now my little children, abide in Christ so that when He shall appear, we may have confidence – certainty of our salvation – and not be ashamed before Him at His Coming.” It's how we are living. If we are living right, that gives us the confidence that we are pleasing God, and the certainty that when Jesus appears, we shall rise with Him and live with Him. Because, as John said, Ch 2:29, “If you know that Christ is righteous, then you know that everyone who does what is right is born of Him.” What a challenge we have! Remember, John was in prison, he suffered for Christ, he lived in exile in Patmos – and this is where Jesus gave him such a wonderful revelation of the Coming Kingdom of God. Oh, that God would give us great revelation of who we are in Him! God bless you!

“Whoever is born of God doesn't commit sin, for the seed of Christ remains in him.” Something happens when we believe. We have a new nature, the nature of Christ. “Whoever is born again – into God's family – does not commit sin, because this new life, this seed of Jesus now lives in him – and we cannot sin, because we are born of God. V10, “In this the children of God are made manifest – revealed – and so are the children of the devil...” You can see the clear difference: those who are born of God and walk in the Spirit cannot sin, and those that are born of the devil are going to sin!  V10ff, “Whosever does not do what is right is not of God, neither he that does not love his brother. For this is the message we heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.” Love is of God! But Cain was ‘of the wicked one', he had the evil of Satan in him and slew his brother. Why? Because Cain recognised that his own works were not accepted by God, but his brother's were! Cain typifies the sinner, and Able typifies the believer who obeys God and is of Him. Cain hated Abel. So John writes, V13, “Don't be surprised my brothers if the world hates you!” It will! But, v14ff, “We know we have passed from death the life because we love the brethren. Whoever does not love his brother, abides in death. He who hates his brother – this is very strong – is a murderer like Cain, and no murderer has eternal life in him. This is how we know the Love of God, because He laid down His Life for us!” God in Christ laid down His Life for us. God, who is Life, could not physically die, but as Jesus said, “I am in the Father and the Father is in Me.” So when Jesus died, it was in fact as God in the flesh, dying on our behalf. Jesus and the Father are One. John continues, v16, “We ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons of God!” Can you imagine how great the Love of God is in calling us ‘sons of God'?! This is a tremendous gift, a demonstration of His unlimited Love!  But this is the downside: John says, the world doesn't know us – because the world doesn't recognise who God is! People of this world don't recognise us as children of God, though they may consider us to be ‘Christian' and ‘religious'. But the reality is, we are children of God. We are! We're born again as God's sons and daughters! This is who we are now, but, John says in v2, we don't know what we, one day, will be like… When Christ appears, we shall see Him, as He really is, and we shall be ‘like Him'! But what will this be is a mystery. In the beginning, in Genesis, God said, “Let US create man in Our Own Image”! And when the disciples asked Jesus, “Show us the Father”, He replied, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father!” Now, when Jesus comes back, we shall be ‘like Him'... I don't think this means we lose our individual appearance, but rather that our earthly bodies will be transformed to be like His Resurrection Body… Remember, Jesus was able to ‘appear in their midst' after His resurrection – without opening the doors! Because He was fully spirit, as well as flesh… So will we be.

You have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist – denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he promised us – eternal life. I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit – just as it has taught you, remain in him. And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you know that everyone who does what is right has been born of him. (1 John 2.20-29, NIV)

John writes, v17, “The world passes away, and the lust of it, but he that does the Will of God lives forever.” The whole message of the New Testament is of a new birth! That's what Jesus said to the rich Pharisee, Nicodemus, “You must be born again, from above!” We have to ‘die to the old'. Unfortunately, this is where Christian teaching is failing today, so many don't understand: WE HAVE TO DIE TO THE OLD AND BE BORN INTO THE NEW. Paul says the same in Romans 6:3-4, 8-9: “Aren't you aware that we who are baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into His death? We were buried with Him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the Glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life.” When you are baptised you are submerged/buried in water, into Christ's death, just as He was buried in the grave. And you come up out of the water into a new, eternal, resurrection life in Christ. Born again. By faith in Him. John is correcting a serious misunderstanding. We are no longer under the old law of sin and death with its religious rituals. V17, “the world has passed away…but he that does the Will of God will live forever!” And the Will of God is to believe in Christ Jesus, His Son whom He sent – John 6:29. Under the laws of Moses, under the Old Covenant, the gift of eternal life was closed to men. Genesis 3. But I am certain from Scripture, those who died under the Old Covenant looking forward to Messiah WILL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE IN HIM! Daniel 12:1-2. The gift is retrospective, I'm sure of it – they will have new life in the Kingdom, just as we will. 1 Thess 4:16-17 / Hebr 11:39-40 are clear: all those Heroes of the Old Testament, ‘having obtained a good report through faith, did not receive the Promise, but will be made perfect together with us, and together with us, will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air'.

John's First Letter was probably written when he was already towards the end of his life and begins in much the same way as His Gospel, saying in wonderment: “We declare to you the One who was from the Beginning, whom we heard, whom we saw with our own eyes, and touched with our hands! We are witnesses that HE is the Eternal Life that was in the Father – HE appeared to us – and we declare HIM to you so that your joy may be full!” John saw and touched the Son of God when HE was in the flesh! It changed his life forever. But Chapter Two of John's letter begins with a sense of danger, John is troubled: “My little children, I WRITE TO YOU THAT YOU SIN NOT.” He's possibly writing even as much as 100 years after the birth of Christ, so he's an old man – which entitles him to address his readers as ‘little children'… But maybe here he's also addressing some who are still ‘spiritually children'. What he says relates to anyone of us today, but in this case I am sensing John is writing particularly to Jewish people who had become followers of Christ; Jews, who when they believed, had accepted something that had been ‘hidden' from them in their Jewish Law/Scriptures, something so completely new to them, they are  now finding it hard to fully accept, and that is: JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD, HIS SACRIFICIAL DEATH HAS PAID THE FULL PRICE OF SIN!

“This is how we know we have come to know Him – IF we obey His Commands!” This is so important: if we know Jesus and the reality of being forgiven, then we need to demonstrate that by obedience to His Commands. Because John says in v4ff, “The man who says, ‘I know Jesus', but doesn't keep His Commandments, is a liar – this is a very strong statement – and the Truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, in him the LOVE of God is perfected. This is how we know we are in Him. Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.” It's not just the talk, you must walk the walk. V9ff, “He that says he is in the Light and hates his brother, is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother is in the Light and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. Whoever hates his brother is in darkness, and walks in darkness, and doesn't know where he is going because the darkness has blinded him”…  V12, John says, “I'm writing to you little children because your sins have been forgiven in Jesus' Name.” Walk as He walked. Amen.

John in vv3-4 says the reason he is writing this letter is ‘so that we may have fellowship with him – that's John – and with the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, that our joy may be full'! He says, v5, “This is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: GOD IS LIGHT and in Him is no darkness at all!” Scripture says, in the Beginning God created the Heaven and the earth, and darkness was over the deep, and God said, “LET THERE BE LIGHT!” GOD IS LIGHT! That's why John says, “In Him there is no darkness!”  Now John warns in v6ff, “If we claim to have fellowship with Jesus but walk in darkness, we lie – and we don't live by the Truth! But if we walk in the Light, as He is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

We're going through very difficult times worldwide; it needs much prayer. It's even hard for us to look at the news. Why is there so much senseless violence and war? Satan is still in control, he's still prince of this world – and that's why God had to send His Son to die for us, to break the curse that's on us. Thankfully, those of us who have come to Christ know that Peace which the world so desperately needs. Our world needs Jesus! John's First Letter starts: “That which was from the Beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have touched, the Word of Life – this Life has appeared, and we have seen it and testify to it…” He's talking about Jesus!

When you trust God and act in faith, that's when God begins to cooperate with you and work with you! Aged 92, I've tried to be obedient to God's Word. I listen to Him through the Holy Spirit. Let God speak to you, instruct you, and bring vision and blessing into your life. From my teenage years I've lived by Isaiah 30:21, “YOU WILL HEAR A VOICE BEHIND YOU SAYING, “THIS IS THE WAY, WALK IN IT.”” I've always heard that Voice, saying, “Go this way, go that way; do this, do that.” Why? When I was 15, God called me, not to be an evangelist or a pastor, but to be a servant. A servant does what his master says.  I'm challenging you, be obedient to the Word of God, KNOW who God is and His Power in your life! THEN, He will answer and deliver you out of affliction and trial and problems! O God bless you. Amen.

We're facing enormous problems globally. Warfare in so many areas of the world. Unjust autocracies, rebellions, military governments. Economic hardship, poverty. Moses is saying to us, in the tribulations and trials – not in the comfort and the calm – if you call on God, He will answer you. When all these difficulties and problems come on you, even in the last days – and we are living in the last of the last days now – if you will call on the Lord your God AND BE OBEDIENT TO HIS VOICE – He will answer! I believe God is speaking to the world now through the circumstances in which we find ourselves. How? Sometimes He speaks through His prophets, but He reveals Himself and speaks to you and me through the Holy Spirit! When I hear the Voice of God, it's not God Himself in front of me, but revealed by the Holy Spirit. John 16:13-14; 1 Cor 2:9-14. The Holy Spirit, who is God and dwells in us, reveals the ‘deep things of God', the things He has prepared for those of us who love Him! We need to have THIS relationship with the Holy Spirit so that He CAN speak to us! He will lead us into ‘all Truth and reveal the things to come'. So often we are consumed with all our other issues and don't hear the Holy Spirit... 

God is speaking to me now, in our current chaos; I don't yet know the full response to it, but it's leading me to speak to you from Deuteronomy 4.29. God is saying through Moses, “If from where you are you will seek the Lord your God, you will find Him, if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” In so many countries, so many places, desperate people are crying out to God in prayer. How do we seek God, how do we pray? Do you go away alone, or pray with others? Do we need to be in a special, undisturbed sanctified atmosphere? But Moses says simply vv29-31, “If, from where you are, when you are in tribulation, when all these things are coming against you, even in the last days, if you will turn to the Lord and be obedient to His Voice – for the Lord Your God is a merciful God – He will not forsake you nor destroy you” – God will answer!

In Habakkuk Ch 3, the prophet admits, “O Lord, I've heard Your speech, and I was afraid.” Yes, when we look at the world, and we see that prophecy of violence and destruction is part of the preparation for the Kingdom of Christ, we are afraid at what we see, afraid of what's going on. But this is the key: Habakkuk continues his prayer, “O Lord revive Your Work, make Your Work known in the midst of the years and remember mercy…” The prophet is asking God to revive His Work, to bring back to life something that is dead – in the midst of violence! This is the vision God gave me up on the mountain this summer! A revival of God's Work in our days! This vision is for an ‘appointed time'! I believe we are living in the appointed time NOW! Yes, we're afraid, but Lord, revive Your Work in the midst of it! Christian, as we see the unfolding situation, this is how we should pray, “O God, revive Your Work! Raise up the spiritually dead, fill the Church with new Power!” This is why, aged 92, I'm fighting on, telling the young people everywhere, this is the time when God will fulfil the vision! And this is the vision: “Look at the nations, watch, be amazed! For I am going to do something in your days that you wouldn't even believe if you were told!” I take this very strongly. It's a challenge to me, in my life. God is going to do something in MY days, something amazing!

The important thing I want to bring to you is this: Habakkuk, the prophet says in Ch 2:1, “I will stand at my watch and look to see what HE – God – will say to me, and what I shall answer!” This is a challenge to us who know the Lord, to be in prayer, to be watching, waiting to hear and to know what the Lord is showing us for the future! Because in v2ff, the Lord answers, “Write the vision, make it plain and run with it! The vision is for an appointed time! It will not fail!”  God is in control of everything that is happening. He knows the future. He has set the times and seasons. He knew in advance, before He created the world, what would happen today. That's why the Bible, speaking about Jesus, tells us that before sin entered the world, God had already prepared the answer! Because Jesus is described as the ‘Lamb slain before the world began' – the sacrifice for our future sin! 

Opening my Bible one morning this summer I was struck how God explains – in the Old Testament – the days that we are living in now! It was in Habakkuk. I was quite shocked when I read Ch 1 – it's a description of how things are today!  ‘This is the burden which Habakkuk the prophet received' – and this is his complaint – “How long O Lord must I call for help and You do not listen? Or cry out to You of violence, but You do not save? Why do You make me look at injustice, why do You tolerate wrong?! Destruction and violence are before me, strife and conflict abound…”' This describes much of the world right now! So many nations simultaneously are facing violence, stress, civil unrest, war… Even in Britain this August, violence on the streets… The same in Europe. As I write in Summer 2024, the Russian terror war against Ukraine continues. The Bangladeshi Prime Minister, a woman, had to flee by helicopter to escape the violence in her country. There's war between Israel and the Palestinians. Changes of government everywhere… In v5, God answers the prophet, ‘“Look at the nations, watch – and be utterly amazed! For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told!”'

‘The Gospel of Christ is the Power of God' (Romans 1:16). Evangelism should be part of our spiritual walk with God. If I ask you what are the essentials for every Christian, especially new converts, to do, you would quickly tell me – pray every day – read the Word every day – join a real live church. Water baptism and so on would quickly follow, along with serving God, fellowship with the saints and of course to be filled with the Spirit. I would add to this, evangelise – but not the way so many think of evangelism or evangelists. The Gospel is simply the good news. Your first responsibility after conversion is to spread the wonderful news of what God has done for you!  Acts 2:22-36 describes how Jesus was approved of God through the miracles, wonders, and signs that God performed through Him. The Power in the Gospel is indelibly linked with the miraculous. Throughout Jesus' ministry in the Gospels, and then with the disciples in the book of Acts, we read that it was the miracles which was the evidence of the message they preached. In 1994 I was preaching in Khabarovsk, Siberia. The Crusade on the Saturday night saw us under a powerful anointing of the Holy Spirit, and many hundreds crowded into the open-air of the football stadium as the praise and worship team ministered. Then when I made the appeal almost every person came forward, so many, that surely everyone who had come into that stadium, lonely, lost, without faith or hope, and without Christ, found Him that night. Their hopelessness and despair had changed into the glory of the reality of knowing Him who loved us with a dying and undying love.

I see the Power of the Gospel in action – and I want you to understand the effectiveness of true conversion! Our faith is in God through Jesus Christ, and in the authority of His Word. Our Gospel has unlimited power to completely deliver and change men! Until you have such an absolute, powerful experience in your own life – that there is no uncertainty, no hesitation that there is one way only, one price, one salvation, complete and life-changing – you cannot demonstrate Christ to the unbelievers! When you yourself have this absolute experience of total salvation in your own life – then this is the demonstration of the Power of the Gospel! 'For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes,' (Romans 1.16, NIV). In December 1959, I held evangelism in Dewsbury. The local newspaper, the Dewsbury Reporter, published the following report under the headline, ‘REVIVAL CAMPAIGN CLAIMS SUCCESESS': ‘Some astonishing results were obtained at the meeting on Monday of the Revival and Divine healing campaign run by Rev David G Hathaway and his team in Dewsbury Town Hall. At this meeting which I attended (writes our representative) a girl of twelve claimed the restoration of the sight of one eye which had been blind from the age of two, an elderly woman who could not before raise her arm waved it shakily above her head, an elderly man whose arm was permanently crooked straightened his arm in the meeting, and several others of the dozen subjects of the healing session claimed the loss of pain or at least some improvement in their condition. Long before the time of the meeting the Exchange Hall was filling up and by the time the meeting started the hall was comfortably filled. One of the main items of the campaign was a stirring address in a cheerful but determined and emphatic vein given by Mr Hathaway. In his address Mr Hathaway promised that in the crusade, “we shall hold services and pray for the sick and hope that God will pour out His power for us.” Following the address was prayer with a background of piano music, during which time Mr Hathaway exhorted people to make a decision for Christ by raising their hands. It was said that on Sunday out of 300 people present 170 responses had been made. When those who had made a decision had been instructed on what to do to carry out their decision, the healing campaign began, when about a dozen people presented themselves for healing. Mr Hathaway inquired the trouble of each person and then, placing his hands on the person, Mr Hathaway prayed fervently, the congregation joining in silent prayer. As each person described an improvement the congregation was informed. Mr Hathaway said after the meeting that all names and addresses of people healed are taken and the cases followed.' 

The Apostle Paul said: “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ.” (Romans 1.16). Why are we not ashamed of the Gospel? Because it is the greatest demonstration of the power of God on earth! – It is the power to deliver everyone who has faith to believe! What changes nations is not some new teaching or doctrine. No, it is the simplicity of God's Word, the power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Today we are in danger of underestimating the power of God, and that's why Paul said, “I'm not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because it is the power of God!”

Jesus said in John 14:12, “If you believe in Me, you will do the SAME Works I do, and GREATER Works, because I go to My Father. And whatsoever you ask in My Name, I WILL DO IT!” Jesus promises to answer your prayer Himself. Why? In order to glorify the Father through YOU. Prayer is not some formality, wishful thinking, or empty repetition. Jesus said, “WHATSOEVER you ask in My Name, I WILL DO IT!” Ask Jesus, ask the Father in His Name. Why do people pray to Mary and the saints? Scripture says they are ‘asleep in Christ', waiting for the bodily Resurrection, when the dead whose names are written in the Book of Life shall rise first, and we who are alive shall be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air! Daniel 12:2; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-17. But at this moment in time, Jesus alone is alive bodily in Heaven, the Firstfruits of the dead. 1 Corinthians 20. He alone is able to answer your prayer. Hebrews 7:25.  It is a direct relationship with Jesus that you need – approach Him in absolute confidence for the answer! Your strong dynamic prayer will avail, it will work! That mountain in your life will move! Jesus said, “Have faith in God. For truly I say to you, that whosoever shall say to this mountain, be removed and cast into the sea, and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he says shall come to pass, he shall have whatsoever he says. Therefore I tell you, what things soever you desire, when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you shall have them.” Mark 11:22-24. Be specific. Be strong. Pray with faith. God will answer you.

James 5:16 says the ‘effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails.' This is the forceful, powerful prayer of an ‘ordinary' righteous man! It works! The original Greek New Testament has two words for power: energeo and dunamis. Our praying HAS to be strong! It must generate effective energy like a dynamo and like dynamite – an explosive that, when placed against a wall, does not waste its energy on the air, but pushes the hard obstacle down! In coal mining they use it to blast tunnels through solid rock! James is giving us a powerful description of what prayer should be like! It should have an objective, either to generate energy like a dynamo, or like dynamite, to break and remove the obstacle! This is how I see and use prayer in my ministry, and why I see so many unusual miracles. This does not mean that my ordinary, everyday prayer for my family and daily circumstances changes, no. But this is my fighting, overcoming, face-to-face-with-God call for Power! That's when the miracles happen!

There is not just a ‘need of prayer', but there's a need for great power in prayer! Power, when we pray! I'm very specific when I pray, I bring very specific questions – and I get very strong answers.  I find it interesting in the Bible that when God was dealing with people, so many times He would meet them on the mountain – like He did with Moses on Mount Sinai and Elijah on Mount Carmel and Horeb. Even Jesus would come away from His disciples and go up the mountain to pray to His Father. I like to go 10,000 feet, 3000 metres, up the mountains – that's high! However, I can't honestly say that you are physically nearer to God the higher you go… He's Spirit, He's not ‘up there'! But I enjoy these special times of prayer. I used to go to the mountains once a year, but now I go twice a year – to Switzerland in the winter and to Austria in the summer. But whether on the mountain or in the valley, I need special times of prayer. And all my life, when I've come to the Lord in prayer with very strong objectives, I've received powerful and unusual answers! 

“YOU will do the SAME works and GREATER, NOW!” We're facing things today that Jesus didn't face, but our future is secured, Jesus said, “I will go and come again” - preach the Gospel of the Coming Kingdom. The troubles we see are the prophesied signs of the end. We need to win our families for Christ. Preach the Gospel; the Great Commission is not yet fulfilled; we have a Gospel of conversion, new life, everlasting life (John 3.16). There are so many religions, but only Jesus offers life. Look at the Word of God, not at the world. It is so easy to say you love the Lord, much like Peter did in John 13.37, but our love must be demonstrated. For those whose love has dimmed, even though Peter denied Christ, He was the first to speak on the Day of Pentecost, winning 3000 souls.

“Whatever you ask in My Name, I will do it.” The purpose of Pentecost in the Church is so that we will do the same works Jesus did. He is our intercessor, living in Heaven, praying for us, so that whatever we ask in His Name, He will do it, this is so that the Father will be glorified through the Son.  These are the days of the harvest. Jesus told the parable of the Wedding Feast. There were so many empty places, the servants were instructed to go to the highways and byways. One of the lessons we learn from this story is that so few believers will be ready, that we must compel the sinners into the Kingdom. 

'Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in Me. My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.' (John 14:1-4, NIV.) The whole world is shaking, whether that is political division in UK, USA, Europe and elsewhere, or the wars in Ukraine and now Israel; we are living in turmoil. I believe we are closer to the return of Christ than many imagine. Jesus opens chapter 14 saying, "Let not your heart be troubled - believe in Me - I'm going to prepare a place for you."  Peter, only in the previous chapter had said, "Lord, why can't I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You." We all must lay down our lives for the call of Christ; to follow Him is to take up the cross. Taking up our cross is identification with Christ in His suffering and resurrection. It's not half-hearted commitment; it is full surrender in discipleship. It's the decision to live our lives as 'crucified with Christ'.

If you study the Acts of the Apostles, you see that Pentecost was not a one-off experience for a select few. It was for ALL who would believe. When Philip the deacon went to Samaria in Acts 8, he preached Christ with miracles following, and all who believed were baptised in water – but the Holy Spirit had not fallen on any of them. When Peter and John heard this, they came down from Jerusalem to lay hands on the new believers so that they would receive the Holy Spirit also. This was such a clear event, so powerful, that Simon the sorcerer offered Peter money to get this same gift of laying hands on people... Peter rebuked him saying, “Your money perish with you!”  Later in Acts 18:24-19:6, we find a man called Apollos, ‘mighty in the Scriptures', who was preaching Christ ‘accurately', but only knew the ‘baptism of John' – water baptism – he had not received the Holy Spirit. Priscilla and Aquila, friends of Paul, seeing this, explained the way more fully to him. But when later Paul came, he found some who presumably had come to Christ through Apollos' earlier teaching. He asks them, “Have you received the Holy Spirit since you believed?” The answer: no. So Paul laid hands on them and they received. You see, when you receive Christ, you must also then receive the Holy Spirit – with evidence following. Peter said in Acts 2:38-39, you must repent, be converted, be baptised in water in the Name of Jesus – and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit… This gift is for ALL whom God shall call.  The job of the early Church was to preach Christ and the Resurrection of the dead, that the Messiah had come, had lived, had died and been raised to life as prophesied in Scripture! Jesus was seen alive for 40 days before He ascended into Heaven. Paul tells us He was seen by more than 500 brothers and sisters at one time! 1 Corinthians 15:6. The fact is, I believe if we want the Power of God today, if we want to see the Holy Spirit move, we've got to get back to live and preach what they lived and preached in the early church: Christ and the Resurrection – confirmed by signs and wonders following.

From the moment I received the Holy Spirit, I believed I had to live as Paul, Peter, John, Philip and the others did in the Acts of the Apostles. And I'm not just saying this, but I demonstrated it, as I'm speaking to you now, I'm 92 and next year, I'll be celebrating 75 years of full-time ministry. The Power and Authority I have is through the Holy Spirit. I take and use that Power. I have Authority. Why? Because I have received the Pentecost experience myself. After my Dad spoke with me about the importance of the Holy Spirit, aged 14, I was praying and seeking for some time, a year, before I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. But when I did, immediately it transformed my experience – I led my teacher to Christ and two classmates went on to become preachers! Aged 15, God called me to give Him everything and live for Him alone! Aged 18 I went to Bible College, and after only 3 months was asked to pastor a church! I was the only student pastoring a church, full-time, the whole time I was in college! How could I do it? Not because of what I was learning in Bible College – it was what I received from the Holy Spirit! And though I was only a student, so many members of my congregation received the Holy Spirit whilst I was there, that my Dad said, I saw more receive the Holy Spirit in those 2 years, than he had in his whole life!