And Isaiah said to King Hezekiah, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live (II Kings 20:1). King Hezekiah was not expecting a message of this kind; he still cherished plans for his life, works for the Lord. Walking uprightly before the Lord, Hezekiah had been a good king, righteous. Death had no place in his plans at all, but his Appointment came up. God was not trying to frighten Hezekiah, only to prepare him. God planned to take him home, and He sent Isaiah with the message.

The Reward of a Perfect Heart

Hezekiah turned his face to the wall, saying, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight (II Kings 20:3). Every time I read about Hezekiah I’m thrilled! Just think…a man is told to set his house in order because he is about to die. He begins talking to God, telling God that his heart has been perfect before Him. God honored his request to live.

If you are facing death, able to say honestly that you have walked before God with a perfect heart, you have said much. God would have refuted Hezekiah’s words had they not been true, but Hezekiah had walked before God in perfection. Every motive, every action was to please God. Although Hezekiah was not always perfect in human traits, his heart had at all times been perfect before God—how marvelous! God gave Hezekiah fifteen more years; but notice that God stated exactly how much time was left, a special miracle, an allotted time, an extension of his Appointed Hour. When Isaiah told Hezekiah about the fifteen years, Hezekiah asked, What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me (II Kings 20:8)? Hezekiah was given a miracle sign so he would know that it was the Lord who had spoken and not Isaiah alone.

Did You Think God Never Changed His Mind?

The addition of fifteen more years to Hezekiah’s life was not the first instance of man’s pleas influencing God to change His mind…and sometimes it was not for the best. Although it was not God’s plan, the Israelites wanted a king. Because of their insistence, God changed His mind and gave them a king. It was Israel’s downfall. God had wanted to be their King.

Always qualify your prayers with, “Lord, not my will but thine be done.” The Lord honors faith; if you pray for something in faith and keep holding on, that prayer can be answered even if it’s against God’s will. God Himself does not change, but prayer can alter situations. Many prayers have been answered against the divine will of God. When I pray for children, I may not always pray aloud for God’s will to be done because some parents are frightened by that; but in my heart I pray, “Lord, thy divine will be done.” God sees and knows the future. If a child will not love and serve God, it would be better for him to be taken to Heaven before the age of accountability. I do not want anyone to miss Heaven.

Even Children Trained Right Can Go Wrong

We cannot afford to love anything more than the divine will of God. Children who have received all the correct teaching in the world can still go wrong; many times it has happened. When the Bible tells us to train a child in the way he should go, and he will not depart from it, it doesn’t mean he will serve God. It means he will know right from wrong regardless of whether he chooses to live his life for God or the devil.

A minister, a marvelously devout man, saw an angel of the Lord in the form of a man appear to him, telling him he was going to die. Although in perfect health at the time, the minister was dead in a matter of weeks. There is no question in my mind that that man is in Heaven; but not long ago his son, trained in the Lord all his life, died with his salvation in serious question. Year after year the son had failed God; he was in-and-out, up-and-down with the Lord’s work. His arrogance greatly hindered the Lord in using him. Suddenly, there was his Appointment: he suffered a heart attack and died unexpectedly. How terrible if he did not go on to meet that fine, praying dad of his, a real man of God! The boy had been reared in the beautiful atmosphere of a home filled with the love of God, and yet that boy may not have made it to Heaven.

The Sealed Envelope

All of us will have to face the Appointment. If the date of your Appointment were sealed in an envelope and placed in front of you, what would you give to open it? Break that seal, and your Appointment date would be known. Think of it: the exact time and date your heart will stop beating are recorded! How much would you give?

The Lord knows exactly the length of time you have left; that envelope, impossible for you to open, is not sealed to Him. Your remaining time is measured; for some it may be just hours; others a day, a week, a month or more. Whatever the time, your Appointment is scheduled, and no man can escape, as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).

Not Much Time Left

The Rapture is almost upon us. Some saints of God have already gone on to Heaven, shaking their friends and loved ones into a greater zeal for the Lord, a desire to do more for Him, to reach out for the things of God. Eyes have been opened to the reality that soon their time could run out, too. Man is allotted such a short time on Earth; how can anyone afford to give the devil even one minute of that precious time? Relatively few people live to see seventy years, much less eighty; and many, many today have already lived longer than half their lifetimes. But we have a Rapture to look forward to; that appointed time is very nigh at hand. Today, many of those living in God’s divine will shall meet the Rapture Appointment. Oh, if we could only open that sealed envelope containing our Appointment to find the word: RAPTURE! What a thrill to learn we are scheduled for that glorious event!

Our Redemption Draweth Nigh

Elijah had an Appointment to be taken to Heaven in a chariot of fire. He knew about his Appointment. We know the season of our Rapture Appointment but not the exact time. Jesus said we would not walk in the night, that when we saw the end-time signs come to pass we should lift up our heads, our redemption draweth nigh. All around us we see the end-time signs which have been prophesied. Ezekiel, twenty-five hundred years ago, told what would be happening in our day; and those things are taking place now. How marvelous to live in such a day!

Angel’s Cross

What does your Appointment envelope contain? What is inside mine? I do not know. I only know that when the Lord carried me into a vision, soon after He took my wife Angel home, He showed me multitudes of souls Angel and I had won together. I saw the cross Angel had carried to the end of her journey; it was standing upright. Angel had not fallen beneath the load of it. According to His divine will, the Lord had taken her home. Yes, her cross was standing upright. In the vision, the Lord showed me someone else bent under the burden of his cross, surrounded by darkness. At first I didn’t know who the second person was—there was too much darkness—I only knew it was a human, striving beneath the load. Then the Lord said that it was me carrying my cross, and He showed me how much farther I have yet to go. My journey is a short one; and although I know I may go home by way of the grave, I believe that I will meet Christ in the air in the Rapture.

The Final Act

The Lord compared this ministry to a three-act play. He told me that when I buried Angel the curtain had gone up on Act III, the final act. I will never forget it; over and over I think about this final act. We are in it now, how marvelous! I’m on the stage of action for God; the curtain has risen for the last time. Act I was not easy; Act II was hard, and Act III will be the most difficult—and also the one with the greatest power of God poured out.

Visitations from the Lord

Later, after I had buried my precious Angel, I was in New York on business. I felt as though I were going mad with grief. Then one night when I was in my hotel room crying my heart out—just sobbing—the Lord came to me. He let me ask any question I wanted, and He gave me the answers. I think that was one of the rarest privileges I shall ever experience while here on Earth. The Lord came to me at such a crucial hour in my life. I do not know how long He remained, but He laid things out before me that I needed to know. It had been so very disturbing to me, thinking that perhaps I had involved Angel in more than she was able to handle. I had to know if Angel would have been able to stay had we not worked so hard. I felt I would rather not have built the Cathedral if it had cost Angel’s life—if it were not God’s divine will. Was that the reason for her death? The Lord let me know it was not, that He had planned her homegoing for years; He showed me a high mountain, representing the work that would have to be accomplished in this last and final hour, and He told me that Angel would not have been able to climb that mountain, that it was His divine will to take her when He did. She was not to be with me for my entire journey.

Angel was chosen by God to be my mate; we were born in the same year. As a child, Angel escaped the destruction of Satan several times. When she was about nine or ten years old, the Lord brought a vision to her in the form of a mighty ball of fire that lit the whole backyard. She thought a building behind the house was on fire; but there was no fire, just the presence of the Lord. God had dealt with both of us in our childhood in unusual ways.

We grew up living miles apart; and yet when the hour came, God brought us together. Our marriage was the divine will of God; from the time we were in our mothers’ wombs it had been planned that we would work for God.

God moved and directed us. For twelve years Angel traveled with me on evangelistic tours before we settled in Akron in 1954. For twelve years we had gone from one campaign to the next, many times taking only a night or two off between engagements for travel. We didn’t waste time; we won everyone we could for Jesus. I had no way of knowing how many we had won until the Lord took me into that vision showing the souls Angel had helped me win, souls we had won together. I was shocked to see the number, and I know when she got to Heaven Angel was amazed to hear the Lord tell her how many had been won. Perhaps God showed Angel the number of souls when He showed me; I don’t know. She had been in Heaven only a few days when I saw the vision. Angel didn’t feel she was a great worker for the Lord, but she indeed was one of His mighty warriors. Although she felt like the least of the least, Angel was a true servant of the living God; and His hand was upon her.

Multitudes with the Appointment

The vision didn’t stop with revealing the souls Angel and I had won. God showed me multitudes who were yet to be won, and He said I would have to go on without Angel. Those multitudes of people I saw in the vision all have an Appointment. Years ago, before Grace Cathedral was built, I was shown the souls waiting to be won through the television ministry. I saw myself on a stage, and as far north as the eye could behold I saw people—thousands more yet beyond, to the south, east and west. How could any minister ever reach so many people from one platform? There was darkness everywhere except on the platform. Since the television lights have been on the stage at Grace Cathedral, I have come to the conclusion that those lights, as well as the power of God, were illuminating the stage in my vision. Multitudes are now viewing the power of God on this stage. Multitudes without number have become aware of their Appointment.

Are You Ready?

Businessmen know the relentless panic-tinged pressure that comes when they’re not prepared for an appointment involving huge sums of money hanging in the balance. The entire responsibility rests on their shoulders. Knees trembling, doubt and insecurity in their hearts, they simply are unready. Preparation makes all the difference. When they’re ready they know exactly what to say; the homework is complete and with it the confidence that they have done all they could. You feel the same way when you know your Appointment with God will be successful.

Have You Kept the Faith?

The Bible tells us that it is appointed unto everyone to die. Paul, when his appointed time drew near, was secure. He wrote Timothy, saying, For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness (II Timothy 4:6-8). How marvelous! Are you one who will be just as thrilled and jubilant to meet the Lord as was Paul? Are you living for the Lord; do you have the same Holy Ghost in your life as Paul? Are you walking hand in hand with Jesus, walking without fear? When the battle is hard, do you desire to depart to be with the Lord? Your Appointment is not up. But when that time comes, you too can say, “Lord, I have finished my course!”

An Amazing Story

Some people know the time of their Appointment—not everyone but some…and if they are not ready—how terrible for them! I think of the Methodist preacher, a truly godly man whose children all were ready to meet the Lord except his sixteen-year-old daughter. No matter how hard he tried, he never had been able to reach her. Praying countless prayers for her, he said, “God won’t let her die without her being saved.” The minister and his daughter were both stricken with a disease. They lay dying in the home, the father in one room and the daughter in another. The father heard the reluctant words, “We hate to tell you this, but your daughter has just passed away.”

“Did she find the Lord; did she make a profession of faith?” the father asked.

“No, she never did,” came the sad answer.

“Then she’s not dead! If she didn’t tell you she was saved, she’s not dead!”

“But Brother, she IS gone.”

The minister kept insisting that God would not let his daughter die before she made things right with the Lord. “I prayed too many prayers to God for Him not to answer. He just won’t let my daughter die and go to hell!”

In those days, when someone died, the body was bathed and prepared in the home for burial. They took care of her body, laid her out. But several hours later—suddenly, to everyone’s astonishment—she opened her eyes, raised up and said, “Thank God I’m saved! I’m going to Heaven!” She fell back down, her eyes closed in final death. The minister went home to be with the Lord that same day, knowing the Lord had answered his prayers. I imagine he died with pure joy when he heard the news that his daughter wasn’t dead as they had thought and that she had told them she was saved. This is a true story of a man’s faith in his God, of how one man held on to God and refused to take no for answer.

Is the Devil Bidding for Your Soul?

Thousands of people have been held out of hell by prayer, by man’s holding on to God, saying, “He can’t die without God; I have prayed too many prayers, and God won’t let him go to hell. I’m holding on!” Boys and girls are being held out of hell right now because of a loving parent’s prayers. The devil is bidding for their souls; the Appointments are written, sealed from sight. Satan tries to get everyone he can away from the influence of God and God’s people, pulling them into the pleasures of this world. It takes a lot of God in your life to really serve God instead of running with the crowd. Most young people give little thought to death, yet thousands of them meet their Appointment each day. Were they saved?

Don’t Sell Your Birthright

I believe with all my heart that people will sell out to the devil minutes before the Rapture. Demons have increased on the face of the earth and are working harder than ever, oppressing minds in such a way that people give up, asking, “What’s the use?” Satan, knowing the Rapture is about to take place and that soon many people will be out of his reach, is throwing the book at us all. How horrible to give in to Lucifer at that time; how terrible the regrets of missing the Rapture will be! You will realize what you have done; like Esau of old you sold out, sold your birthright.

The Price Is Dear

We must pay dearly for God’s miracle power to be poured out. Never has it been poured out without a great price being paid.

Elijah endured much suffering, fought many battles of the mind in the service of God. He paid a great price for God’s miracle power. For three years King Ahab sought to take Elijah’s life. The trials Elijah experienced he will have to tell us himself when we meet him in Heaven. “Oh, God, it’s enough!” he cried.

Sometimes in despair and discouragement, we too ask for the Appointment. After Angel left I heard myself calling for it many times. Never did I think I would ask for it; for before Angel died I was so full of life that I couldn’t understand why anyone would not want to live. Dying was the farthest thing from my mind; my desire was to stay here working for the Lord, winning multitudes for Jesus. But when Angel went, my life went. I found myself again and again asking for the Appointment and yet knowing that I must not accept it; for it was not God’s will. I knew I must press on to win the lost at any cost; I heard their cries, and I saw multitudes in the visions. The Lord told me that if we fail, those multitudes would die and go to hell. No matter what, we cannot afford for that to happen.

Belshazzar Never Dreamed He Would Die That Night

How will you feel when your Appointment comes? I am ready for mine. Belshazzar was not. Belshazzar, the King of Babylon, set out a great feast for a thousand of his lords. He was ready for a frolicking good time—many are eager for that kind of an appointment. The kingdom was lit up; people donned their best finery, wore the most expensive jewelry money could buy. The banquet hall of King Belshazzar was a fabulous place that night. In that hour of festivity, the king was drunk with wine and his heart merry. Everything was his. Belshazzar thought he had the world in the palm of his hand. Do you see your life in Belshazzar’s; is your outlook the same as his? In preparing for his banquet Belshazzar never dreamed he would die that night, never imagined his life was about to be snuffed out or that the next time he was dressed it would be in funeral clothes, that his soul soon would be separated from his body.

Many are not conscious of their souls, much less of the soul’s importance. I read of a Swedish doctor who conducted experiments on dying people. He weighed bodies just before and just after their death in order to find if the soul had weight. His findings stated that after death the body is lighter. The weight loss was the same each time—three-fourths of an ounce. The Bible doesn’t say how much a soul weighs, but it does tell us the soul came from the breath of God. It’s alive and cannot die. In this final hour God is proving that man does indeed have a soul, and God is doing everything He can to get man to realize what condition that soul is in. The Rapture of the Church is about to take place.

Belshazzar didn’t take his soul into consideration; his concern was sensual pleasure. Some of you today walking the same path as Belshazzar are taking a grim chance. In the inner recesses of that soul are imprints of things you have done against God, acts you have tried to hide. Although everyone around you may be fooled, God knows. But, oh my God, when your Appointment comes and your sins have not been washed away in the blood of the Lamb, your soul will be condemned to eternal hell!

The Writing on the Wall

As Belshazzar’s Appointment drew near, a hand began to write on the wall. The Bible tells us he was so terrified that his knees smote against each other, his joints became loose. “Bring in the astrologers!” he cried. The answer to many people’s fears today? Astrologers.

Unfortunately, astrologers are no more beneficial to people now than they were to Belshazzar. The astrologers couldn’t read the writing on the wall because the Spirit of God wrote it. Astrology is of the devil. Belshazzar called in the magicians, but they couldn’t read it either. Then someone remembered Daniel. No one had thought to invite him to their party: but now that their boat was about to sink, they ran to the man of God. Daniel had been crying out to God: “Oh God, how much longer? All the sin in this place…how can my soul bear it?” A knock on the door…a frantic voice: “Daniel, Daniel! Come quick! The king wants you! Don’t take time to put on your cloak; the king doesn’t care how you look!” No, he didn’t; but an hour earlier, Daniel would have been thrown out of the assembly, fancy clothes or no. Now they wanted him. Daniel walked into the banquet hall, and his heart leaped within. The God he knew had written those words on the wall. Daniel read them to Belshazzar: God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it…Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting…Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians (Daniel 5:26-28). It was the end. The numbered days of the kingdom were finished.

God Has Numbered Your Days

When God comes to your last number, your Appointment will be up. Suddenly the seal to that Appointment is ripped open. Will you scream, “I don’t want to go! Wait a little longer”? Will you plead for more time to make things right in your life? It will be too late. So many times in the past you have wondered when your Appointment would be; now that you know, you’re not ready. Death broke that seal. “It can’t be time already!” you cry. “I’m still young! I have years ahead of me!” But you have no years, no weeks, not even hours or minutes. The Appointment is now. Your time is up. How tragic if, in the next moment, you lift up your eyes in hell!

The River of Life

The kingdom of Babylon, thought to be invincible, the kingdom whose walls were high and so thick that three chariots could run abreast on them, had a river flowing under the walls. It never occurred to the Babylonians that it could be turned from its course. That river meant life to them. So will your River of Life one day be cut off just as it was for King Belshazzar. Had the Babylonians not been so drunk with sin and pleasures, someone would have noticed that the waters of the river were lowering. Not until the river was completely drained and the enemy marched in over the riverbed, not until it was too late and the kingdom was about to be destroyed, did they notice. That night Belshazzar died.

One night you will die; the darkness is already closing in. Are you ready? Bow your head and say, “God, when will my Appointment be? God, how much time do I have?” Set your house in order, Child. The Spirit of the Lord is crying to every one of you to set your house in order; you’re going to die. You cannot stay here. The cemeteries remind you that everyone dies sooner or later. Aren’t those tombstones testimony that you, too, will die? Medical science can do its best for you, but when the Appointment comes, you must keep it; there is no way out.

Oh God, we stand at a crucial hour! Is sin of any kind in your heart? If so, what if you seal your destiny that way? For some, whatever you decide now will be final. Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die and not live. Either in Heaven or hell…your Appointment is set and sealed. As it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. Are you ready for it?