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 Maintaining the Joy of the Lord-David Wilkerson

Maintaining the Joy of the Lord
by David Wilkerson



May 17, 2010



The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). At
the time these words were proclaimed, the Israelites had
just returned from captivity in Babylon. Under the
leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah, the people had rebuilt
Jerusalem's ruined walls. Now they set their sights on
reestablishing the temple and restoring the nation.

Nehemiah called a special meeting at the city's water gate
within Jerusalem's rebuilt walls. "All the people gathered
themselves together as one man into the street that was
before the water gate" (Nehemiah 8:1). Some scholars believe
this was a gathering of about 50,000 people.

First came the preaching of God's Word. Scripture says the
people were hungry to hear it: "They spake unto Ezra the
scribe to bring the book of the law of Moses... Ezra the
priest brought the law before the congregation both of men
and women, and all that could hear with understanding"
(8:1-2).

These people didn't need to have God's Word urged on them. A
consensus of hunger had developed among them. And they were
fully prepared to submit to the authority of God's Word,
wanting to be governed by it and to conform to its truth.

Amazingly, Ezra preached to the crowd for five or six hours,
"from the morning until midday" (8:3). Yet no one present
noticed the time passing. Instead, "The ears of all the
people were attentive unto the book of the law" (8:3).

What an incredible scene. I believe it would be hard to find
such an occurrence in the modern church. Yet true
restoration can never take place without this kind of
all-consuming hunger for God's Word.

Make no mistake, at that scene at the water gate in
Jerusalem there was no eloquent preaching. Ezra didn't
deliver a sensational sermon. Rather, he preached straight
from the Scriptures, reading for hours on end and explaining
the meaning. And as the people listened they grew excited.

At times Ezra was so overcome by what he read that he
stopped to "bless the Lord, the great God" (8:6). The glory
of the Lord came down powerfully and everyone raised their
hands in praise: "All the people answered, Amen, Amen, with
lifting up their hands" (8:6). In repentance and brokenness,
"they bowed their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their
faces to the ground" (8:6). Then they stood up to experience
more.

There was no manipulation from the pulpit, no dramatic
testimony. There wasn't even any music as yet. These people
simply had an ear to hear everything God said to them.

Beloved, I believe the Lord desires to move among his people
in the same way today. Yet the kind of reviving and
restoration we see happening to God's people in Nehemiah 8
requires a ministry and congregation as excited by the
Scriptures as Ezra was.

It also requires a people who are just as anxious to hear
God's Word and walk in it. Even the most fiery preacher
can't stir up a complacent congregation if they're not
hungry to hear God's truth.

The result of this powerful
preaching was a continuing
wave of brokenness among
the hearers.

A half-day of preaching wasn't enough for the hungry
Israelites. They wanted even more of God's Word. They formed
groups, with seventeen elders besides Ezra leading them in
Bible studies the rest of the day.

"(They) caused the people to understand the law...so they read
in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the
sense, and caused them to understand the reading"
(Nehemiah 8:7-8).

As the people grasped God's law they began to mourn over
their sin. "All the people wept when they heard the words of
the law" (8:9). Try to picture it: 50,000 people bowing to
the ground, mourning their transgressions in unison. Like a
hammer, God's Word had broken their pride, and their weeping
echoed over the hills for miles.

I ask you: Is this what an awakening is all about? Is it a
word so piercing that people are driven to their knees,
weeping and repenting before God? I have experienced such
holy gatherings myself. When I was a child, our family
attended "camp meetings" at the Living Waters Camp Ground in
Pennsylvania. Jesus' second coming was preached with such
power and authority that everyone was convinced Christ could
return any moment.

Yet as genuine as these manifestations were, none of these
things in themselves can draw sinners into God's house.
Imagine an unconverted person trying to bear up under life's
stresses, with marital problems, hurting and confused,
afraid his life has no meaning. Such a person is joyless,
with no hope. Nothing he tries satisfies his inner thirst.
It is the manifestation of the genuine joy of Jesus that
touches him in the midst of his pain and sorrow.

We have to understand: The water-gate revival in Jerusalem
wasn't for sinners. It was for the back-slidden children of
God. The Lord was trying to restore his people, to deliver
them from bondage and baptize them with joy to make them
strong. Indeed, the testimony he wants to bring forth in his
people is lasting, genuine joy. "The joy of the Lord is your
strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). This joy, which comes from true
repentance and trust in God's Word, brings strength to his
people and draws sinners into his house.

I believe this deep, abiding joy is largely missing today. I
have heard Christians say, "We prayed down a revival in our
church." Yet this cannot happen by prayer alone. There can't
be any such awakening unless people hunger diligently for
God's Word. And they must wholly commit their lives to being
governed by the Scriptures. We simply can't obtain heaven's
joy until the pure Word has convicted us of our
backslidings.

When David disobeyed, he lost the joy of the Lord. That joy
could only be restored by true repentance. And David knew
this; so he prayed, "Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my
transgressions: and my sin is ever before me ...Purge me"
(Psalm 51:2-3, 7). David also prayed to regain what he'd
lost: "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation" (Psalm
51:12).

When God's Word is revered,
the result is an outpouring
of genuine "Jesus Joy."

Ezra told the crowds, in essence, "You have hungered for
God's Word and allowed it to work in your heart. You have
repented and mourned, and God is pleased. But now it is time
to rejoice. Take out your handkerchiefs and wipe away your
tears. It is a time for joy!"

The glory of the Lord fell on Israel, and the people spent
the next seven days rejoicing: "All the people went their
way to eat, and to drink...and to make great mirth, because
they had understood the words that were declared unto them"
(Nehemiah 8:12).

The Hebrew word for "mirth" here means "gladness,
happiness." This isn't just a good feeling, but a deep,
inner exuberance. It is clear to everyone around that this
wellspring of joy has come from heaven.

When we started Times Square Church in 1987, we quickly
realized we were pastoring in a modern-day Corinth, one of
the most carnal areas in the world. Therefore, we had to
preach a convicting message that would awaken hearts. When
we first opened our doors, our services were attended by
many Christians who worked in the entertainment industry on
stage, TV and film. Some had chosen to stay in careers that
clearly dishonored the Lord.

We wondered whether we could evangelize unsaved show people
if our own congregants were still involved in unsavory
aspects of the business. So we preached a message of
"separation," and the Lord began to deal with the people.
Many gave up lucrative careers in show business and God
blessed them marvelously. One former actor now pastors a
church in Israel.

We discovered that God had kept a godly remnant for himself
in Times Square, a people who loved his Word. In every
service the people sat like hungry birds, their mouths wide
open for food. Afterward, they took home sermon tapes to
listen to. Our church experienced a spirit of repentance, an
eagerness to obey and a readiness to conform to God's Word.

As we all came under the power and government of God's Word,
ministers and congregation alike, our services were filled
with more than tears of repentance. The sanctuary was filled
with sounds of victory, joy and gladness. There was great
rejoicing because we had begun to understand the great truth
of God's Word. People cried with joy when they began to see
who they were in Christ - that at the Cross all their sins
were judged, and that they were no longer under God's wrath.

To maintain the joy of the
Lord among his people Israel,
God called for an even deeper
work in the nation.

God had heard the Israelites' cry and he had shown mercy to
them. He had turned their mourning into mirth, allowing them
to shout and rejoice. And now he called them to gather for
yet another meeting. In short, if Israel's joy was to be
maintained - if it was not to be lost once again - God had
to dig a little deeper.

Certain areas of people's lives still weren't conformed to
his Word. Yet the Lord had allowed everyone to rejoice for a
season because he wanted them to know they were loved and
secure. Now, during this state of acceptance and joy, he
asked them all to commit to a greater separation from the
world.

God said to these joyful souls, "I am well pleased with you.
You have revered my Word, repenting of your sin, rejoicing
in my mercy and committing to obey me. Now it's time for you
to act on my love. I want you to separate yourselves wholly,
to break away completely from the worldly influences that
have crept into your hearts and homes."

The simple fact is, God's people can't go forward to
fullness in Christ if we don't increasingly separate
ourselves from the spirit of this world. If we're not
becoming more heavenly minded and less attached to worldly
pleasures surrounding us, we also will be drained of the joy
of our salvation. The sad truth is, many believers are
unable to enjoy their salvation because they neglect obeying
God's Word. Obedience to his Word is the place that blessing
and joy begin!

Israel didn't want to lose their great spirit of rejoicing.
So they assembled again to obey God on this matter: "The
seed of Israel separated themselves from all strangers, and
stood and confessed their sins" (Nehemiah 9:2).
"They...entered into a curse, and into an oath, to walk in
God's law...and that (they) would not give (their) daughters
unto the people of the land, nor take their daughters for
(their) sons" (10:29-30).

Note that Israel's circumstances and trials didn't change;
God changed them. Nehemiah reminded a rejoicing Israel of
how God had provided for their forefathers in the
wilderness. The Lord had poured out manifold mercies on
them. He had taught them by his Spirit and led them by the
cloud and the pillar of fire. He had supernaturally provided
them with manna and water. And, miraculously, he didn't
allow their clothes or shoes ever to wear out (see
Nehemiah 9:19-21).

Likewise today, God has promised to pour out these same
mercies on his people. In the midst of our afflictions, we
must quietly go to God's Word and pray that the Holy Spirit
will write it on our hearts. That is how we begin to enter
his rest and peace.

Yet we can still choose to live in a wilderness as Israel
did. Nehemiah pointed out that Israel's forefathers had
ignored God's law: "They were disobedient, and rebelled
against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs...Yet many
years didst thou forbear them...yet they would not give ear"
(Nehemiah 9:26, 30).

Only the joy of the Lord supplies us with true strength. We
can talk about our ten- or twenty-year walk with Christ, but
if we're not trusting the Holy Spirit to quicken God's Word
to us, our joy will be short-lived. We must continually
hunger for his Word; that is where joy begins and continues.

How do we maintain the joy of the Lord? We do it the same
way we obtained his joy in the beginning: We love, honor
and hunger for his Word. And we continually walk in
obedience by the power of the Holy Spirit.

On a personal note, I found gladness and peace in my own
heart the day I claimed my position in Christ. It happened
when I fully believed that in Christ I could come boldly to
God's throne with assurance. I was no longer charged with
sin, with no wrath facing me. The judgment for my sins was
never to be on me again because God had already judged them
through his Son on the cross.

Today God's people have what the Old Testament saints could
not even conceive: a righteousness by faith alone and not by
works. Moreover, we have a blessed peace knowing that God no
longer imputes sin to us because we are in Christ. This is
the living Word of God; this is believing the Scriptures.
This is the hope that brings a believer into unspeakable
joy, peace and rest. And this joy is our daily strength, our
portion to face all our afflictions!

May our precious Lord bring you into this place of rest in
all your trials. And may his joy become your strength. Amen!



_______________________________________________
Copyright © 2008 - World Challenge, Inc.
P.O. Box 260, Lindale, Texas 75771, USA

 2010/6/3 22:52









 Re: Maintaining the Joy of the Lord-David Wilkerson


{eta} Nehemiah 8 is one of my favorite passages of Scripture.

Imagine all of this Just because of the Return to The Word of GOD!

Bless GOD.



Psa 56:4 In God I will praise His word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.

Psa 56:10 In God will I praise His word: in the LORD will I praise His word.

Psa 138:2 I will worship toward Thy holy temple, and praise Thy name for Thy lovingkindness and for Thy truth:
for Thou hast magnified Thy word above all Thy Name.

 2011/4/30 22:12









 Re: Maintaining the Joy of the Lord-David Wilkerson



"When God's Word is revered,
the result is an outpouring
of genuine "Jesus Joy.""


"We discovered that God had kept a godly remnant for himself
in Times Square, a people who loved his Word. In every
service the people sat like hungry birds, their mouths wide
open for food. Afterward, they took home sermon tapes to
listen to. Our church experienced a spirit of repentance, an
eagerness to obey and a readiness to conform to God's Word.

As we all came under the power and government of God's Word,
ministers and congregation alike, our services were filled
with more than tears of repentance. The sanctuary was filled
with sounds of victory, joy and gladness. There was great
rejoicing because we had begun to understand the great truth
of God's Word. People cried with joy when they began to see
who they were in Christ - that at the Cross all their sins
were judged, and that they were no longer under God's wrath."



THIS is The WORD of The LORD for His Church.

Unless we see what is happening in a message like this one - where HE and His Word is lifted higher than any other thought on earth - we'll not see this Victory that was seen in Nehemiah 8.


Unless His WORD is lifted as High as HE Himself lifts it - as seen in the Scriptures quoted in this last reply - we've missed it all.



WHO is this? ~

Isa 45:21 Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: Who hath declared this from ancient time? Who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD?
and "there is no GOD else beside Me";
a just GOD and a Saviour;
"there is none beside Me."
Isa 45:22 Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth:
for I am God, and "there is none else."
Isa 45:23 I have sworn by Myself, the Word is gone out of My Mouth in righteousness, and shall Not return,
That unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.
Isa 45:24 Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength:
even to Him shall men come;
and all that are incensed against Him shall be ashamed.



"The Saviour and The Scriptures"


Amen, and Amen!



 2011/5/10 14:17









 Re:



Listened to the Featured Sermon this morning - "A Call to Anguish".

Goes hand in hand with this OP - a much needed message.

 2011/5/11 8:06





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