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The Awful Presence of God
David Wilkerson

David Wilkerson (1931 - 2011). American Pentecostal pastor, evangelist, and author born in Hammond, Indiana. Raised in a family of preachers, he was baptized with the Holy Spirit at eight and began preaching at 14. Ordained in 1952 after studying at Central Bible College, he pastored small churches in Pennsylvania. In 1958, moved by a Life Magazine article about New York gang violence, he started a street ministry, founding Teen Challenge to help addicts and troubled youth. His book "The Cross and the Switchblade," co-authored in 1962, became a bestseller, chronicling his work with gang members like Nicky Cruz. In 1987, he founded Times Square Church in New York City, serving a diverse congregation until his death. Wilkerson wrote over 30 books, including "The Vision," and was known for bold prophecies and a focus on holiness. Married to Gwen since 1953, they had four children. He died in a car accident in Texas. His ministry emphasized compassion for the lost and reliance on God. Wilkerson’s work transformed countless lives globally. His legacy endures through Teen Challenge and Times Square Church.
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Sermon Summary
In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the need for individuals to turn their attention towards God and His message. He uses the story of Moses and the burning bush as an example of how God tries to get our attention through signs and wonders. The preacher highlights how the devil becomes furious and tries to hinder God's work when a fire is ignited in people's hearts. Despite the challenges and burdens faced by the people, Moses continues to preach faith and hope, leading to God calling him out of the burning bush. The sermon encourages listeners to turn aside from their own preoccupations and take notice when God starts a fire in their lives.
Sermon Transcription
This message is one of the Times Square Pulpit Series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing to World Challenge PO Box 260, Lindale, Texas 75771 or calling 214-963-8626. None of these messages are copyrighted and you are welcome to make copies for free distribution to your friends. Presence of God. Now that word awful means dreadful, fearsome, great, and awesome. It's not awful in the bad connotation or anything that we connotate with that word awful. Not in a negative sense. The dreadful, fearsome, great, awesome presence of God. Let's pray. Jesus, I truly need you tonight. I need you to come and speak to my voice. I yield my body, mind, soul, and spirit to you. Lord, I believe you sanctified us to preach and to hear tonight. Lord, we need a word from heaven again. Lord, we're moving onto holy ground. We're moving into a cloud of your presence. We will never be the same, Lord, in the weeks to come. You're changing things. You're getting us ready for your coming, Jesus. We're in that last great moving of your Holy Spirit. The last of the last days. Lord, we thank you for having put it in the hearts of many who love you tonight to cancel everything and call a solemn assembly and came tonight. Lord, you will take care of their interest if they put yours first. Let there be no one regret that decision tonight. God, grip our hearts. Holy Spirit, speak your mind. Speak your word to our hearts. Lord, I can't do it in human flesh. I can't do it in my own strength. But, Holy Spirit, you've called a people to gather here tonight. You've gathered us to talk to us. Talk to me, Holy Ghost. Talk to this people, Holy Ghost. You prepare our hearts to receive it, Lord. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Jacob was touched by that holy dread, that awful presence of God. You remember, he laid down at night on a stone for a pillow. And he saw a ladder reaching into heaven. And at the top of the ladder, the Lord himself appeared. And a mighty voice rang out, I am the Lord. I'm the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob was in the mighty presence of God. There was a manifestation that night. He was so overwhelmed that it became known as Bethel from that day on. Jacob woke up trembling. The Bible says Jacob awakened out of sleep and said, Surely the Lord is in this place. I knew it not. He was afraid. He said, How dreadful is this place. Remember, this is an awful, dreadful, holy, awesome place. And he called it Bethel, the presence of God, the house of God. Daniel was touched by that awful dread, the presence of God. He said, I pray to the Lord my God, the great, the dreadful God. God said to Israel, Sanctify the Lord of hosts Himself. Let Him be your fear. Let Him, your God, be your dread. That Hebrew word is reverence, fear, terribleness. Let God grip your heart with His terrible holiness. We have become so familiar with God. Now, He is a loving Father. He calls us to come boldly to the throne of grace. But you see, we've made God to be one like ourselves. We've made Him to be a man of flesh and bone. God is the Spirit, high and holy. Yes, He's kind, He's good, He's merciful, He's loving kindness, He's all of that. And He's a loving Heavenly Father. But we have brought Him down and we call Him all kinds of slang names. We slang the Lord as if Abba Father, Daddy Father. That has nothing to do with the Greek or Hebrew. That has nothing to do. That means it's Father, Father. Holy dreadful Father. And we have made Him want out to be like ourselves. That's why we don't recognize His holiness. You say, Brother David, that's an Old Testament concept of God. That's a concept of fear. And Jesus came to shield us from that kind of thing. Well, let me remind you of John on the Isle of Patmos. When Jesus appeared among the seven candlesticks. That's the church. And He stood there. Remember, John knew this man. John used to lay his head on his breast. But now he appears he's got fire in his eyes. There's a two-edged sword coming out of his mouth. His feet are on fire. They're like brass, burning. And He said His couches did shine as the sun in its fullness. It was so dreadful. You can't look the sun in the face. You can't look at it. And John said, I fell as a dead man. And I'll tell you, when the fullness of God's presence begins to... If we had just a taste, if we had just a fraction of the fullness of His holiness and dread, nobody would be standing in this house. Nobody. We would not even be able to stand. John, who knew Him well, said, I fell down as a dead man. Now, this church, Times Square Church, has been praying for manifestation of the presence of God. In this church, in our homes, and in our lives. And this past week, in my apartment, in our apartment, I started pleading, walking in the living room, praying, Oh God, send Your presence. Come down with such presence, such glory, that sinners would be slain and convicted of their sin, and the Christian would be convicted of their sloth, and You would revive us. And oh, I began to weep, and I began to groan in my spirit. And the Holy Spirit said, David, do you know what you're praying? Do you know what you're saying? And God began to speak to my heart that I really didn't know the consequences of praying that kind of prayer. Because we are not prepared. Bob said it this morning, we're not quite prepared to receive of the fullness of the Holy Spirit. But, you see, not everybody's going to respond to that. And it's a dreadful thing that happens. And God said, just wait a minute, let me begin to show you what that means if you follow that through. There's a cost to that, there's a price to be paid. Now listen, something sovereign is going on at Times Square Church. It's beyond us, it's an unearned sovereign work of God, we didn't do anything to deserve it. It's not because of us, the Bible says, the set time to bless Zion has come. The set time. Pastor Bob touched on that this morning. God has a set time for every movement, every awakening, everything He's done from the beginning of time. God has always had a clock. He said that Israel would be 430 years in captivity. 430 years to the day, the hour, the very hour. God moved with deliverance. But before He moved, He had all things in place. He had a man out in the desert prepared. He had Aaron, his brother, stirred. He had a priest in place. He had a people that had reached the end of themselves who were ready to hear a message of deliverance. They had come to the darkest hour in that furnace of fire. And God said time had come. It couldn't have happened 10 years before, it couldn't have happened 20 years before, because God had said it would be 430 years to the day. And at 430 years to the day, God had everything in place. Bob called it this morning the divine order. That's why he brought the message this morning from Pastor Phillips. To remind us of the divine order and the setting of His holy times. At the set time, God awakens this one from sleep. Remember Haggai said the people are going to say the time has not come. This is not the time for God to rebuild the house and restore the ruins. But Haggai, Zechariah, said this is the time. God has set a time and we are in it. Rise and build. See, God begins to awaken. He begins to stir hearts. God prepares vessels just before He begins to make His move. He puts people in strategic places. Just as He's put us in a strategic place right on Broadway, the crossroads of the world. The last hour, the last time. He's raised up pastors with a broken heart. He's brought together people who have a heart for Jesus. And if you can't begin to see the strategy of the Holy Spirit, there's something incredible that's happening. I'm not talking just about Times Square Church. It's happening in a number of other places. It's happening especially overseas. It's happening even in China where I talk. We've been praying about in and out of Mongolia. The New York Times today has a huge article. A long article about the number one thing in Mongolia right now. It's spreading. It's the thought of Mongolia to learn English. Now why do you suppose they're wanting to learn English? Everybody is learning English in in and out of Mongolia. Because there is no Bible printed yet in Mongolian language and there are Bibles in English. And God's putting everything in place. He's getting ready. His set time has come. When God called Moses, Moses said, I don't think it's a set time. They're down there to kill me. Pharaohs, they're waiting for me. I can't go. God came to him and said, All the men who sought to kill you are dead, Moses. God said the time has come. I've killed them all off. They're dead and gone. I've got everything in place. God went down. Can you imagine? Killed every one of those who remembered Moses. They're all dead and buried. They're gone. The Lord had set everything in order. When the set time came for God to deliver Israel out of Babylon, God had everything in place. He said 70 years. And that 70th year, Daniel had an urgency. Just something spoke to his heart. Go to Jeremiah. Get the book of Jeremiah. And he began to read. And he began to figure. And he said, it's it. It's it. This is the 70th year. And in that 70th year, God had everything in place. God had everything in place. Hallelujah. When God is delivering Israel out of Babylon, He's got Nehemiah in a strategic place. He's got the ear of the king. He's got prophets. Zechariah. He's got Haggai being stirred. Not Zechariah, but he's got Haggai stirred up. He's got Zerubbabel on his face. He's got Ezra the scribe set in in the Word. Knowing not what's going to happen, but God was preparing him to bring forth the Holy Word of God to those people returned. Everything was in place. And God's set time is always in the darkest hour of society. When it looks like everything is lost. When it looks like Satan has prevailed. Everything is falling apart. Folks, that's where God has to bring the church, has to bring society where nothing but God can do it. No one but God can do it. It has to be God. It has to be America. Beloved America has come to that place. Society has come to that place. This whole world is spinning out of control. But from the very beginning when that happens, that signifies. He said, when you see all these things begin to happen, one's heart's failing them for fear. Watching those things come on the earth. The time has come. Look up and rejoice because redemption is near. This is God's set time to awaken the remnant of this modern Babylon of New York City. He's been praying through us that we'd be a part of what He's doing. God is setting everything in order. Hallelujah. Now what happens when the set time comes? What happens? How do we know it's the set time? Beloved, my standing here or any of the pastors standing here saying, That doesn't make it happen. That doesn't make it. But there are certain things that we can look for, we can know. When you see these things, then you know. The first thing God does when He has sovereignly decided that He's going to move. He's going to work. A new work. First thing He does is build a Holy Ghost fire. He builds a fire. I want you to go to Exodus 3. We're going to stay in Exodus most of the time tonight. Beloved, I ask you to pray right now. The Holy Spirit will sink the word deep into your heart so that you and I are never the same again. In every message that comes forth now. Exodus, the third chapter. Beginning to read verse 1. Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law. The priest of Midian. And he led the flock to the back side of the desert. And came to the mountain of God even to Horeb. And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of the burning of a bush. And he looked. And behold the bush burned with fire. And the bush was not consumed. All right, look at me please. The set time had come for God to deliver Israel. But first thing God had to do was get the attention of Moses, his servant. He had to get attention of the leadership. He had to get attention of those who were called to lead the people out of darkness and bondage. God always begins by getting our attention. And how does he get our attention? He builds a fire. There's a burning takes place. I want you to get the picture please. Here's a man set along with God on the mountain of God. And suddenly, sovereignly, he didn't pray for that fire. He wasn't looking for that fire. And sovereignly a fire is set by God. God set that fire. It was the Holy Ghost. It was the Spirit of the Living God that came down. And God was about to set leadership apart. This leadership was going to lead the people out of Egypt into the Promised Land. That fire was put into Moses' bosom. That fire was taken. Now, beloved, Moses is standing there looking at that fire. And I'll tell you about that in just a minute. God says you're on holy ground. He had been there all the time, didn't know it was holy. It was only holy when God pronounced it holy. He said you're on holy ground. And I'm telling you folks, God is pronouncing that we are on holy ground. Truly on holy ground. Let me ask you a question. Has there been a stirring in your heart lately? Has there been a fire burning in your heart? You can't explain it. But there's a churning. There's a burning. There's a crying. You're saying, God, I want my family saved. God promised Israel, I'm going to take you out. Your husband, your wife, your children, all your animals, your cattle. You'll leave nothing behind. You're all going out, everything that belongs to you. God is trying to get our attention. He's saying you've been so wrapped up in your own affairs. You've been so wrapped up in your family affairs. You've been wrapped up in so much. I'm going to start a fire. Oh brother, sister, what you experience the taste of tonight is fire. It's a holy ghost fire. He's igniting in hearts. I know He's sure put it in my... God has my attention. Lord does He have my attention. Bible says, verse 3, that Moses said, I will now turn aside and see this great sight. Why the bush is not burned. Stop and look. Turn aside. I'll stop and I'll turn aside and I'll see what this is all about. Moses could have walked on. Most have been doing that for centuries. God is trying to get the attention of the church. He's trying to get the attention of congregations. He starts that fire. That fire will burn for two or three weeks. Few will stop and turn aside to see what it's all about. They're really not interested. They go their way. Moses could have walked on. But God would not let him. And He turned aside. That's exactly what we're going to see. How many on Thursday... How many Tuesday night turn aside? How many Thursday, Friday... How many turn aside from all of their own preoccupations? Now that doesn't mean you have to neglect your family, your business, your work. No. I'm telling you that when this fire burns, you better turn aside. You better take notice. God's trying to get your attention. Hallelujah. And when the Lord saw He turned aside... Look at the next verse 4. When the Lord saw that He turned aside to see, God called Him out of the midst of the boys and said, Moses! Moses! Can you imagine that? He turns aside. He just wants to see what the fire's all about. God's not going to talk to us until He turns aside. We're not going to hear from heaven until we turn aside. God put this on my heart and burned it in my heart. You've got to turn aside until my interests absolutely consume you. Until the world may think you're fanatic. That you live, eat, and sleep and talk Jesus. Some of us have talked sports. We talk material things. No, folks, when you see the fire, how do you talk about anything else? When you hear your name called Moses, Moses, you've got to go, I heard from God. I heard from heaven. God wants us to hear from heaven. He wants to bring a word right from the throne of God. I for one don't want to miss it. I've heard the cry. Look at verse 5. And He said, Draw not nigh, put off your shoes from off your feet, for the place where thou stand is His holy ground. And any Hebrew knew what that meant. It meant if you made a deal, if somebody wanted to redeem their land and you had an interest in it, you were giving up your rights to that land. You took off your right shoe and you gave it to that man. And you carried your other shoe and you walked barefooted from that scene. And Moses knew what that said. God said, give up all your rights. That's the opposite of what we hear in America today. We've heard nothing but our rights. We not only got shoes on, we polished them, we worked a whole factory of shoes. God said, take off your shoes. Your interests now are secondary. Mine are first. Take off your shoes, Moses. You're on holy, holy ground. Moreover, He said, I am the Lord God, Father Abraham, Isaac, the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face and he was afraid to look upon God. He went and said, Hi, Daddy. Hi, Daddy. He hid his face. He's a holy God. And this man was righteous and meek. And yet, like John, he fell like a dead man on his face. This was God. He was in the mighty presence of God. Hallelujah. Now, folks, I'm not putting people down who call God Daddy. Sometimes that's immaturity. Sometimes they're just not learned. And God will bring them into that, I'm sure. I'm not putting people down. If you've used that expression, I'm not condemning you. Please. I have heard. Now, listen to this, please. Go on down. Verse 7. The Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt. I've heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters. For I know their sorrows and I've come down to deliver them out of it. I have heard the cry by reason of the taskmasters. Brethren, look at me, please. You can't tell me our Lord has not heard the cry of all the AIDS babies in this city, 10,000. You can't tell me he hasn't heard the cry of all these AIDS children that are 4 and 5 years old now. They're about to go into our schools with half a mind and half a brain. You can't tell me he hasn't heard the cry of mothers in the ghettos. You can't tell me he hasn't heard the cry of the poor. You can't tell me he hasn't heard the cry of the backslidden. God has heard the cry of his church also, hallelujah. I've heard the cry. The devil's afflicted your family long enough. The devil's afflicted you long enough. God said, I've heard the cry from heaven. The taskmaster has put the whip in the last of the back and I've seen it and I've heard it. I've come to stop it. Glory be to God. All right. First, God builds a fire to get our attention. He sees if we'll turn aside. And if we turn aside, he begins to speak to us clearly, his eternal purposes. All right. Secondly, what happens when God starts a fire? Simple enough, the devil gets furious and tries to put it out. The devil gets furious and tries to put it out. Moses, oh, he's heard from God now. He's been in his presence and this man is so sure of the message. And he comes, he appears on the scene in Egypt. He's preaching an outpouring of God's Spirit. He's preaching hope and faith and deliverance. He's preaching the mighty arm of God. Here are people beaten down and suddenly hope arises in their heart. And the message is, God has come to visit you. God told him, tell him, I've come to visit them. He gave them three, gave Moses three signs. One, of course, was to cast his rod down on the ground and it turned into a snake. And he grabbed it and it became a stick again, a rod. He reached his hand in the bosom, they didn't believe that sign. He reached his hand in the bosom, pulled it out, it became leprous, put it back in, it was clean. If that didn't work, he went down to the river and pulled out a cup of water and poured it out and it became blood. God was so vitally interested in getting his people to believe the set time had come. And that God had raised up leadership, God had brought forth a word and it was time. Moses is preaching victory. And God really backed, it was signs and wonders. I want you to look at this picture now. Here's Moses, going up and down through the children of Israel. And he's awakening the body of believers. The leadership is on fire, Aaron and Moses are so on fire. God is beginning to reveal himself. The word of deliverance has come. God is visiting his people now. And in the midst of the visitation, God gives a warning. He said, now, I'm going to deliver you. I'm going to visit the people. There's going to be a mighty, mighty deliverance. I'm going to send you to Pharaoh. Pharaoh represents the devil, you know that. Now, if you're from Egypt, if you're an Egyptian, remember these are Bible terms. We're not against Egyptians that are in our church here or any other Egyptian. But these are Bible types. In that time, Pharaoh clearly represents the power of the enemy. And the Lord came to Moses and said, I'm sending you to Pharaoh, and I'm going to deliver you from Pharaoh and Egypt. But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go except under compulsion. He's not going to let you go. Moses, you're in for a fight of your life. You're in for a war. You're in for a battle. It's going to take something special. It's going to take a divine compulsion. And, you know, I wish Moses had remembered that. He heard it, but he forgot it. Don't you and I forget it. Don't forget tonight. In fact, I'm going to say it one more time. If you're going to set your heart to seek God, if this church is going to have an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and He reveals His presence, the devil's not going to play dead. He's not going to lay down and play dead. You're going to start praying for your unsaved loved ones and your family, and Satan will not let them go without a fight. He's not going to lay down and pray dead. God said, yes, deliverance is coming. I'm going to bring you out. All that I promised you is going to happen. But the devil's going to become furious. Absolutely furious. We know who this is. That's the king of the abyss. That's the God of this world. Moses and Aaron go to Pharaoh. And they say, Pharaoh, let my people go, saith the Lord. I've heard people all over America in the churches saying, Delah, get your hands off my family. And that's scriptural. Just as scriptural as Moses standing before Pharaoh and saying, let my people go. Pharaoh says, who's the Lord that has to obey him? I will not let them go. I will not let them go. I ask you about your family, your children, your unsaved loved ones. God's promised you, hasn't he, that you will be saved in your household? Didn't he promise you that? You fast, you pray, you seek the face of God. And you travail. But I tell you, you have opened yourself to a great struggle and a great battle because you have absolutely infuriated hell. As long as you went along your merry way, inconsistent, half-hearted, as long as you went your way putting your own interests first, you never bothered hell or the devil. The devil could lay down in your living room and go to sleep. While you're watching Dallas. By the way, folks, the devil's not dumb. He can see what you're doing. He doesn't have to read your mind. He reads your set. He knows what's appealing to your heart. He knows what's gripping your heart. He sees where you go. He doesn't have to have access to your mind. He has access to your actions. He reads your actions. Your actions speak louder than your thoughts anyhow. Because they originate in your thought life. Things got worse, not better. Chapter 5. Go to chapter 5. I'm going to read a rather lengthy 7, 8, about 8 verses here. Chapter 5, verse 6. Now remember, this is after the message of deliverance has raised hope in all the people. Everybody's excited. God has come to visit us. God's pouring out His Spirit. We have, our pastors heard from heaven. Our pastors have heard from heaven. Glory to God, revival's here. My whole family's going to be saved. God's going to answer prayer. Yes He is, but first this. Verse 6. And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, He shall no more give the people straw to make brick. From here on, let them go and gather straw from the cells. Now, they used the straw for two purposes. To bind the brick and also to put on the, so that the mud would not stick to the, what do you call, the frame. So it was very, very, very vital. He said, No more give the people straw to make brick. Verse 8. And the tail, or the quota, of the bricks which they will make from now on, you shall lay upon them. You will not diminish any thereof, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labor therein. And let them not regard vain words. The taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus said Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. Go ye, get your straw where you can find it. Let not aught of your works be diminished. So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt, together stubble instead of straw. This is the end of side 1. You may now turn the tape over to side 2. Look at me please. Moses is still going around preaching faith. He's preaching visitation from God. And the whip is cracking louder. The taskmaster is under order from their king. Put it to them. Whip them. Beat them. Let more work be laid upon them. The people begin to cry. They begin to weep. Under the heavy burden, the scripture says, they begin to moan and groan. Moses and Aaron are coming out of Pharaoh's palace. They had just been in again, saying, Let my people go. And the elders of Israel, the princes of the leaders, they've just been beat. And they're standing before Moses and saying, Moses, what did you hear? Is there any word? And I'm sure Moses and Aaron had to shake their head no. Look with me now. Verse 21, chapter 5. Chapter 5, verse 20. They met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, or coming out of the palace, as they came forth from Pharaoh. And they said unto them, The Lord look upon you. In other words, the Lord judge you, gentlemen. The Lord judge you, Moses and Aaron. Judge you, because you have made our savor to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh. In the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand, and to slay us. Look at me, please. You know what they're saying? Ever since you came, talking about responsibility and visitation. Ever since you started that, it's gone from bad to worse. We've been in a battle. We can't take any more of this. The cost is too high. The cost is too high. Things are getting worse. It's been that way from the cross. It's been that way, even from the time of Moses on, from Abraham, it's always been that. Every time God has moved, the devil's reacted. He has reacted. I thought, a week ago, in one of their services, about warning this congregation. If you're going to seek the Lord with all your heart, you've got to be afraid. You don't be afraid, because greater is he in us than he that's in the world. You don't have to be afraid. You're never in any danger. These are all smoke screens of the enemy. But there is pain when you pray for your unsaved loved ones, and you feel like you've touched God. And then you see them getting worse, rather than getting better. You see more rebellion. You see more resistance to the Holy Ghost than you've ever seen. While you're standing there with a promise in your heart. Is that making sense to somebody? And I'll tell you what. The scriptures say, they hearken not to Moses for anguish of spirit, and their cruel bondage. They were absolutely, I can't handle this. Oh, we're going to hear a lot of that. When God really begins to move, this is too much for me. This is beyond me. Some of you that sat here tonight didn't understand the little bit of rain. We had just a shower here tonight. Compared to what God's got in store. I mean, there's a shower. The Bible says when the fullness of his presence comes on the greater measure, the very house shakes. God shakes the house. This is the house. He's going to shake every house in his place. Moses, all of this praying. All this talk about a great visitation from God. All it's doing is stirring up the devil. Well, that has to happen. You know, even Moses lost heart. I wish Moses had remembered what God told him. Pharaoh's not going to let you go without compulsion. He should have been prepared. He should have gone to the people and said, Well, God warned me that this is going to happen. But hold on, victory's coming. This is just a test. Testing, testing, testing. Look at verse, chapter 5, verse 22. And Moses returned unto the Lord and said, Lord, why have you so evil and treated this people? Why did you send me? Ever since I started talking visitation in your name, he's done evil to this people, neither have you delivered thy people at all. Oh, I'm glad I didn't say that. Could you say that? As low as you are, as... I couldn't say that. Well, maybe in my heart I have, I don't know. I think maybe I have sometimes. I wouldn't say it publicly. But he said, Oh God, why did you put a fire on me? Why have I been shut in with you? Why all of this? Because God, everything's so... There's no sign of deliverance anywhere. Anywhere. You have not delivered a single soul. Not one of these Egyptians have... Not one of these Israelites have been delivered. We're still here in bondage. It's getting darker. The enemy is seeming to get stronger. Pharaoh has the upper hand. God, where are you? Well, God was there. God has such tender mercies, doesn't he? He was so merciful on his servant. Hallelujah. But God is warning us tonight. God's warning us. Are you going to hear it right now in your heart? He's not going to let them go until he's forced. You know what my Bible says in the New Testament? Be sober. Be vigilant. Because your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion is walking about, seeking whom he may devour. You know, Jesus kept saying, I told you so. I told you so. I forewarned you. Or as I said, you're going to be persecuted. And the Lord has always warned us to be ready for the battle. Hallelujah. But he's wanting us to hold steady and give him our confidence during that time. Hallelujah. Well, let's go a little deeper here. You want to go a little deeper? Before God is going to go full speed ahead, he's going to test us. There's going to be satanic harassment on all sides. But I'll tell you what, you know what the secret is? The secret is going into the cloud more often. Staying closer to Jesus. Let it drive you to the Lord. Let it drive you to the mount of God. God called Moses to the mountain, and he took him into a cloud of glory, and for six days, God said nothing to him. Would you skip over, real quickly, Exodus 24. I want to show it to you. Exodus 24. I'm not going to preach too much longer, but hold on for just a few moments. Exodus 24. Verse 15. And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud covered the mount. And the glory of the Lord abode upon Mount Sinai. And the cloud covered it six days. And the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. And Moses went into the midst of the cloud. Beloved, hear me please. This man, God calls him, said, Moses, come on up. Come on up closer. Come to me. They're already in the wilderness by now. But God is still calling. All through Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, you hear these words. And God said to Moses, Come up. Come up to the mount. Come up to meet me. And you hear this reply. Folks, that's what I want. I want to hear God keep calling me. And when you feel the urgency to pray, go into the closet. That's God saying, Come on up to the mount. Come on into the cloud. And let it be said of you and me. And he went up. And she went up. Even later you hear, even after all the revelations he's got, Moses one day cries out, It's not been enough. It's not been enough. Folks, that brings me to my last and final point tonight. When this glory of the Lord, the presence of God, falls upon a house, many will remain untouched. Many will remain untouched. Bob hit on this very strong this morning. And I want to back up that message right now. What happens when the glory and the presence of Jesus is manifest in the house? First of all, those who love the Lord, those who are repentant, those who are righteous before the Lord, fall down in worship. They fall down and tremble before Holy God. And purge themselves and cry, Oh God, cleanse me. There's a great cleansing comes. And with it, a hunger for more of his presence. An insatiable appetite. You find Moses, even though he'd gone up and gone up and gone up, he finally says, Oh God, show me your presence. Show me yourself. And God takes him up and reveals himself to this man. This man is always crying, More! More! That's the cry of a holy people. More! I'll tell you what, if God shook this house and we had a revival for a year, you'd still be crying, More! More! Because I don't believe we'll ever understand or comprehend the fullness of Jesus while we're here on earth. As much as God can pour on us, we'll still not comprehend but a fraction of it. Hallelujah. We'll have all eternity to see it and hear it. Glory to God. Let me show you a people before I close. Let me show you a people who saw the glory of God. The scripture says that God called Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and all the 70 elders up to the mountain. And the scripture says, they saw the God of Israel, they saw him as clear as the sky itself. You'll find, don't turn to Exodus 14. 10. Here's what they saw. The sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire at the top of the mountain in the eyes of the children of Israel. Look at me please. Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the 70 elders see God. They eat in his presence. They tremble because the mountain shook. It was awesome, it was dreadful. 40 days later, they're backslidden. 40 days later, Aaron is building, creating and carving a golden calf. Nadab and Abihu's crowned in the elders. Other than a few Levites who later stood with Moses. Moses rose up to play, and to dance, and to sing, and to eat, and to drink. You say, how can that happen? That's incredible, that's frightful. That people could be in the awesome presence of God. See God eating in his presence. And God said, I talked to you, and you saw that you did not die. And 40 days later, they're backslidden. Brother and sister, don't take that lightly. That seed is in all of us. That seed, we are bent on backsliding. We will have people that can sit through the awesome moving of the Holy Spirit. God can shake thousands of people. They can see people slain by the very presence and power of Jesus. They can have such a revelation. They'll sit under the Word of God that pierces to the marrow of the bone. But because they have a divided heart, and the Bible said their hearts are set on mischief. There's one little mischievous thing, there's an idol. And an idol, you don't need any more explanation for idolatry than this. An idol is anything that hinders God from moving in your life. Anything. It's anything that grieves the Holy Spirit so that he cannot bring you into the cloud. And the Bible says there are going to be many just like these who had mischief in their heart. They had stiff necks. He said they had been set in their own ways. And when God's Spirit comes, that's the time to set for God. Set yourself to seek Him with all your heart. If God's beginning to answer pray, pray more. If the devil's coming in like a flood, pray more. The secret is to pray on, pray on, pray on. I'll tell you what, the time to pray is when the glory's come down and all your prayers are being answered. That's the time to pray more than ever. Well, I'm getting too excited. Let me just calm down a little bit here. You see, the very moment they're backsliding, God's on the mountain with His man laying out plans for their good and their welfare. And that's the tragedy. Many of you that hear this tonight, God's going to manifest Himself one way or another. You're going to be exposed to it. You'll be a part of it perhaps. But that's a frightening thing. The people did sit down to eat and drink and rose up to play. What a terrible thing. Now, you say, oh, they're not like me. Let me explain to you what these people have been through. The scripture says, all the people answered together, all that the Lord has spoken we will do. That was what they told God. They said, Lord, everything you do. They told Moses, you go hear from God. You see, when you can't stand the glory, you tell Moses to go and hear from God. We got people running everywhere to get a message from the man of God. You know why? Because they can't stand to be in the glory and His presence themselves. They have to hide their face because something there that has the heart. You don't need a Moses, you have a Christ. You don't need a human being, you have the living Son of God. He invites you to come to the throne of God, be exposed before the holiness of God. And He'll speak to your heart and He'll give you the direction you need. All the people answered together, all that God said, we'll do it. God says they were sanctified. He said, sanctify these people this day, 1910. The Bible says, and they all trembled in the camp before the Lord. They had heard God's audible voice. They had seen Him. They had talked with Him. They'd been sanctified. They had made promises to God. And now they rise up. Sanctified people turn away because of a divided heart. Look at chapter 5 in Deuteronomy. Quickly please, go to Deuteronomy 5. I'm coming to a close. I'm not going to rush it, I just want you to see this. Verse 28, Deuteronomy 5. Moses is now recounting. He's recounting this. He's going back over, reminding of that very thing when they said, we'll do everything God told us to do. Verse 28, And the Lord heard the voice of your words when you spoke unto Him. And the Lord said unto me, I've heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken unto thee. They have well said all that they have spoken. He said, all the words are right. Every word's right. Oh, that there was such a heart in them. That they would fear me. And keep all my commandments always. That it might be well with them and with their children. Look at me folks. God said, you have the right words. Oh, that you had a heart. Oh, that your heart was with me. You speak well, but where is your heart? It's not with me. Look at me please. My last, my last statement here. In New Testament language. The Lord, those who turn aside to their mischief in their own interest. The Lord said, He will remove their candlestick. I'm not going to go there, but I'm just going to read to you. From Revelation 2.5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen. Repent, and do your first works. Or else, I will come to you quickly. And I will remove your candlestick out of its place. Except you repent. You know what that means? God said, I'm calling out a people. This is my day. The set time has come. And I will come to bring repentance and healing. He said, I'm bringing you back to your first love. But He said, if you will not repent, if you will not give it all to me. He said, I'm going to remove your candlestick. That's your witness. That's your testimony. You'll become those virgins. You're part of that virgin company. Who lose the oil, and the lamp goes out. And God said, I'm going to pour out my spirit. I'm going to do a new work, but you have no part in it. I wanted you to have a part. I wanted to use you. I wanted to bless you. I had called you, but you turned aside to your idol. You rose up to eat and drink and play. He said, now I'm going to remove your candlestick. I'm going to take away your witness. You have no part in witnessing to me. You have no part in being a channel of the Holy Ghost. No, because your heart is not with me. I'm going to remove your candlestick. He's done that with many churches. He's taken away the candlestick. He's taken away the witness. And what's left is nothing but a weak, shallow, frail, worthless thing. God said, I'll remove your candlestick. Oh, I forgot something. Remember I told you, I always give you the good? Exodus 6. Back to Exodus. For sure, this is it. Remember what Moses said? You've not delivered at all? What's the next thing God tells him? He didn't say, shame on you. Then the Lord said unto me, Moses, now shalt thou see what I'll do to Pharaoh. For with a strong hand shall he let them go. With a strong hand shall he drive them out of his hand. And God spake unto Moses and said unto him, I am the Lord. Hallelujah. Now you'll see what I'm going to do. Brethren, look at me please. We're about to see that very thing. God says, alright, you've seen the devil take the upper hand. Now watch me work. Watch what I do. Watch what I can do. I'm the Lord. Watch me. Hallelujah. Glory be to God. The scripture says, and he called, this is Pharaoh. This is after God sent all the plagues. And he called for Moses and Aaron by night. Remember the firstborn had been killed. And in the middle of the night, he sends for Moses and Aaron. Middle of the night. Urgent. Get Moses. Get Aaron. Get him here. And they come before Pharaoh. And he called for Moses and Aaron by night and said, rise up. Get out from among my people. Go serve the Lord. That's exactly what's going to happen. God's going to come down and overpower the work of the devil in your home, in your family. And God in the middle of the night. God will do it maybe in the middle of the night. The devil's going to say, I've been harassed enough by those prayers of those people at Times Square Church. Go serve God. Go serve God. Get out. We're not just crying out to the heavens. We're not just crying out to God. We're bombarding hell. We're praying against the devil. We're praying against principalities and powers of darkness. Hallelujah. Glory to God. God says, watch what I do. God's about to do something to New York, folks. Hallelujah. God's going to work a work that we've never seen. Nobody has ever seen. I remember the day. There's a brother in this church, Brother Joe Shukert. We walked in. We didn't know. We weren't in here. There was a play going in here. And I thought to myself, God, it's impossible. It's impossible. Brother Shukert looked at me and said, Brother David, this is it. This is it. And I thought to myself, yeah, this is it. Sure. God had put faith in our brother's heart. And a number of people began to pray. We're in here not by accident. We're on Broadway not by accident. We're at the crossroads of the world not by accident. You're not here by accident. God's not stirring you up by accident. There's a divine purpose and a plan. Hallelujah. And I tell you, in spite of all the harassment of the devil, there's only so much he can do. We just keep on praying. You don't have to be afraid of him. You don't have to worry. But when the harassment comes, you say, uh-uh. That's a sure sign I'm touching God. I've touched heaven. The devil's mad. Hallelujah. God is answering. Stand, please. Let's stand. Stand. The first evidence that God is at work is that the devil's mad at you and harasses everything around you. But thank God he's at work. Thank God he's at work. Oh, bless be the name of our God, who has all power, all authority, and all might and majesty. His name is above every name. His name is to be glorified. He is high and lifted up. He's high and lifted up. He's high and lifted up. Lifted up. He's worthy to be praised. Oh, he's high and lifted up. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he's high and lifted up. And he's worthy to be praised. He's high and lifted up. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the king of kings. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the king of kings. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the lord of lords. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the lord of lords. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the prince of peace. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is the prince of peace. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is high and lifted up. And he's worthy to be praised. Oh, he is high and lifted up. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. His name is Jesus. Jesus. And he's worthy to be praised. Jesus. Hallelujah. Praise you, Jesus. Hallelujah. Beloved, while I was standing here just now, the Holy Spirit spoke clear to my heart to give an invitation right now for people in the balcony here on the main floor who have bitterness or hatred in your heart or anything that's blocking the moving of the Holy Spirit in your life. Anything that's blocking you from coming in to the great work that God wants to do. I'm speaking clear. The Lord made it clear. Hatred. Is there somebody you're bitter against? There's even hate. There's some people here tonight with hate in your heart against somebody. You've got to get that out. And bitterness. Or you can't be a part of what God wants to do. If there's anything. If you have an idol in your heart. Or there's some mischief in your heart. There's just some hold on your heart. You want that broken. You may be here tonight all so backslidden. Cold. And you got near the fire tonight. You've been touching fire tonight. And God says, I want to revive you. I want to make you a part of what I'm about to do. Get out of your seat. And come here right now. As we sing, we are standing on holy ground. Up in the balcony. Go to the exits now. Either side. And come down. The Holy Ghost is here. God's going to set you on fire. Hallelujah. God's going to set your soul on fire. God's going to bring you back to his holiness. We are standing on holy ground. And I know that there are angels on high. Let us praise Jesus Christ. We are standing in his presence on holy ground. We are standing on holy ground. And I know that there are angels on high. Let us praise Jesus Christ. We are standing in his presence on holy ground. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Beloved, if you came in here tonight, and your heart's been cold, or you've just been drifting, that's so dangerous. Yet the love of Jesus is manifest in this house tonight. The love of Jesus is manifested. And he manifests himself for a purpose, and that's to draw you, to woo you. Will you not open your heart? Maybe you've not felt like coming forward, but right where you're standing, make that consecration to him right now. Say, Jesus, set my heart on fire. Don't let me drift away. God, touch me tonight. Let's do that right now. God, touch me tonight. You that have come up, raise your hands and say, God, touch me. Touch me with fire from heaven. Lift up your hands and say, God, touch me. Put fire in my soul tonight. God, heal me. Touch me with fire from heaven. Lord, do that right now. Bring fire. Bring fire. God, stir and break and melt hearts. Stir and break and melt hearts nightly by your Spirit. Oh, Jesus, do it, I pray. You that have come forward, look this way, please. I'm going to ask the Holy Spirit to grip you. I mean, get a hold on you. More than any time in your life. Maybe some of you have never had that. But I want you to breathe that and pray, Oh, God, I want you to get a hold of me. God said, I'll not let you go. I'll hold you. But I'll tell you something, God will get your attention and He'll call you, but you have to respond. The call is sovereign, but the response is human. You have to respond to Him and say, Jesus, my part is to turn away from everything and give it all to You. Bow your heads, please, and pray this. Hey, listen to me, please. This prayer is not going to mean anything unless your heart is in it. Unless deep in your heart, the Holy Spirit is having His way and you're praying it from the innermost part of your being. Pray this with me. Jesus, from deep inside me, I cry out, touch me, heal me, forgive me, cleanse me. I want to give everything. Holy Ghost, get hold of me. Get a good grip on me. I want You, Jesus. I want You to be everything in my life. This is the conclusion of the tape.
The Awful Presence of God
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David Wilkerson (1931 - 2011). American Pentecostal pastor, evangelist, and author born in Hammond, Indiana. Raised in a family of preachers, he was baptized with the Holy Spirit at eight and began preaching at 14. Ordained in 1952 after studying at Central Bible College, he pastored small churches in Pennsylvania. In 1958, moved by a Life Magazine article about New York gang violence, he started a street ministry, founding Teen Challenge to help addicts and troubled youth. His book "The Cross and the Switchblade," co-authored in 1962, became a bestseller, chronicling his work with gang members like Nicky Cruz. In 1987, he founded Times Square Church in New York City, serving a diverse congregation until his death. Wilkerson wrote over 30 books, including "The Vision," and was known for bold prophecies and a focus on holiness. Married to Gwen since 1953, they had four children. He died in a car accident in Texas. His ministry emphasized compassion for the lost and reliance on God. Wilkerson’s work transformed countless lives globally. His legacy endures through Teen Challenge and Times Square Church.