I HATE SERMONS BUT THIS IS THE BEST I’VE EVER HEARD
‘Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”’ Daniel 3:24–25
I can’t remember the first time I met Oral Roberts but I do remember several instances very distinctly. One of those times was when he preached his infamous sermon The Fourth Man. The other time was visiting him at his house in Newport Beach with my dad and him praying for me. Both times are forever etched in my soul but for now, I’ll share about the time when he preached at my dad’s church.
At the time, Oral was pretty old. But, he was still traveling and doing some speaking. Yes, he was the one who’s claim to fame was seed-faith giving. Many love him for it and many hate him for it. That’s the road of a distinguished leader, take it or leave it.
My mom and dad used to have week long summer conferences. They were called, Faith Week. And, to be honest, we could probably use a Faith Week around the world right now (canni get an amen).
During this week long conference, speakers from around the world would fly in and on one of these occasions — Oral Roberts showed up. For us, a little church in Tinley Park, Illinois — it was a big deal. The modern wizard of Faith was turning up — we were all pumped.
He was a bit frail but when he got up to speak this mf’er went HAM! I don’t care what side of the coin you were on about seed faith, Oral Roberts and all that 💩 — this dude spit fire 🔥. There was no denying he could still bring it at his old age.
To this day, and I am not a huge “sermon” fan — but it’s got to be one of the top sermons I’ve ever heard IN MY F’N LIFE. It’s so good — I’m going to give you some of the drip 💧 below.
But first — let me tell you a bit more about HOW it impacted me.
As you will read below, Oral doesn’t give you the standard “Daniel and his buddies get thrown in the fire for disobeying the King’s orders.” Everyone knows that — that’s not really a big deal.
Plus, how the F does Daniel getting thrown in the fire apply to us? I mean c’mon, who the f out there is not bowing down to idols? And yah sure, you can give all sorts of metaphors of fire. The fire being persecution, your workplace, teammates, church life or basically anything that opposes you.
Yah, I get it — easy, that’s not a great sermon. At least to me it’s not. It’s a story for kids.
Here is a bit of Oral’s sermon for you to read. I’ll also include a link to watch this dude go Ham. If you haven’t heard him preach this — the dude does it without f’n notes. What a beast.
Lastly, I want to give mad love and respect to Oral and his family. They forged the future whether you like it or not. It was an honor to know him, shake his hands and have him lay his hands on me. Still to this day my dad has a pair of Oral’s shoes as a memorial of his greatness in his office.
What a legend. Thank you Oral &Evelyn. My life is better because of your sacrifice.
(Sermon starts here)
Who is this Fourth Man?
- In Genesis He is the Seed of the Woman. In Exodus He is the Passover Lamb.
- In Leviticus He is our High Priest.
- In Numbers He is the Pillar of Cloud by day and the Pillar of Fire by night.
- In Deuteronomy He is the Prophet like unto Moses. In Joshua He is the Captain of our Salvation.
- In Judges He is our judge and Lawgiver. In Ruth He is our Kinsman-Redeemer.
- In 1 and 2 Samuel He is our Trusted Prophet.
- In Kings and Chronicles He is our Reigning King. In Ezra He is our Faithful Scribe.
- In Nehemiah He is the Rebuilder of the Broken Down Walls of human life.
- In Esther He is our Mordecai.
- In Job He is our Ever-Living Redeemer: “For I know my Redeemer liveth.”
Who is this Fourth Man?
- In Psalms He is our Shepherd.
- In Proverbs and Ecclesiastes He is our Wisdom.
- In the Song of Solomon He is our Lover and Bridegroom. In Isaiah He is the Prince of Peace.
- In Jeremiah He is the Righteous Branch.
- In Lamentations He is our Weeping Prophet.
- In Ezekiel He is the Wonderful Four-Faced Man.
- And in Daniel He is the Fourth Man in “Life’s Fiery Furnaces.”
Who is this Fourth Man?
- In Hosea He is the Faithful Husband, “Forever married to the backslider.”
- In Joel He is the Baptizer with the Holy Ghost and Fire. In Amos He is our Burden-Bearer.
- In Obadiah He is the Mighty to Save.
- In Jonah He is our great Foreign Missionary.
- In Micah He is the Messenger of Beautiful Feet. In Nahum He is the Avenger of God’s Elect.
- In Habakkuk He is God’s Evangelist, crying, “Revive thy work in the midst of the years.”
- In Zephaniah He is our Savior.
- In Haggai He is the Restorer of God’s Lost Heritage.
- In Zechariah He is the Fountain Opened in the House of David for sin and uncleanness.
- In Malachi He is the Sun of Righteousness, rising with healing in His wings.
Who is this Fourth Man?
- In Matthew He is the Messiah.
- In Mark He is the Wonder-Worker. In Luke He is the Son of Man.
- In John He is the Son of God. In Acts He is the Holy Ghost. In Romans He is our justifier.
- In 1 and 2 Corinthians He is our Sanctifier.
- In Galatians He is the Redeemer from the curse of the Law. In Ephesians He is the Christ of Unsearchable Riches.
- In Philippians He is the God Who Supplies All Our Needs. In Colossians He is the Fullness of the Godhead Bodily. In 1 and 2 Thessalonians He is our Soon-Coming King.
- In 1 and 2 Timothy He is our Mediator Between God and Man.
- In Titus he is our Faithful Pastor.
- In Philemon He is the Friend That Sticketh Closer than a Brother.
Who is this Fourth Man?
- In Hebrews He is the Blood of the Everlasting Covenant.
- In James He is our Great Physician, for “the prayer of faith shall save the sick.”
- In I and 2 Peter He is our Chief Shepherd, who soon shall appear with a crown of unfading glory. In 1, 2, and 3 John He is Love.
- In Jude He is the Lord Coming with Ten Thousands of His Saints.
- And in Revelation He is the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS!
Who is this Fourth Man?
- He is Abel’s Sacrifice, Noah’s Rainbow, Abraham’s Ram, Isaac’s Wells, Jacob’s Sceptre, Moses’ Rod, Joshua’s Sun and Moon that stood still, Elijah’s Mantle, Elisha’s Staff, Gideon’s Fleece, Samuel’s Horn of Oil, David’s Slingshot, Isaiah’s Fig Poultice, Hezekiah’s Sundial, Daniel’s Visions, Amos’ Burden, and Malachi’s Sun of Righteousness.
Who is this Fourth Man?
- He is Peter’s Shadow, Stephen’s Signs and Wonders, Paul’s Handkerchiefs and Aprons, and John’s Pearly White City.
Who is this Fourth Man?
- He is a Father to the Orphan, Husband to the Widow, to the traveler in the night He is the Bright and Morning Star; to those who walk in the lonesome valley He is the Lily of the Valley, the Rose of Sharon, and Honey in the Rock.
- He is the Brightness of God’s Glory, the Express Image of His Person, the King of Glory, the Pearl of Great Price, the Rock in a Weary Land, the Cup that Runneth Over, the Rod and Staff that comfort. And the government of our lives is upon His shoulders.
Who is this Fourth Man?
- He is Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of the living God! My Savior! My Companion! My Lord and King!
