David Ravenhill passionately addresses the struggles of Christians with overpowering lust and sinful habits in his sermon 'Wild Donkeys.' He emphasizes the importance of recognizing the spirit of a wild donkey that drives individuals back to their sins, despite their desire for freedom. Ravenhill shares personal testimonies of individuals who have battled with sin and highlights the necessity of having a genuine fear of God to achieve true deliverance. He encourages the congregation to seek repentance and the fear of the Lord, assuring them that victory over sin is possible through faith in Jesus Christ. The message culminates in a call for those struggling with sin to come forward for prayer and deliverance.

Boy, excited about Bible school Thursday night. But do you understand that you can come at 6 o'clock and stay and get 3 hours of Bible study? My goodness. And I'll tell you what you get here with Thursday night, you're not going to get at any Bible school. Because I've been to Bible school and I've never heard courses like these ever. And we're very, very excited about it. We had over 600 enrolled the first time. I don't know what we're going to have this time. Not enrolled, but coming and attending. About 650, in fact, between all the classes. We expect to have a growing Bible school. The Lord's really blessing this and changing lives. And then Friday nights are powerful, power-packed. Presence of the Lord prayer meeting. Very, very excited about what God's doing in the prayer meetings. Hallelujah. God's been healing people. Dawn's wife had been sick. She's the beautiful young lady that's back there selling tapes. And Bob's wife, two little children had chicken pox. They're improving. And his wife is feeling better. And Gwen's been healed. She's here tonight. And everybody, God's been doing such a marvelous work in touching and healing. We're just very excited about that. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, this is such an important word that you put in my heart because we see so many people struggling with sin yet. Burdens, Lord, heavy, heavy burdens of sin. Lord, we pray that there be a deliverance tonight. Let the word come forth with unction anointing. We bind every principality and power of darkness and everything that would hinder the word of God tonight. Lord, the enemy tried all night to try to stop praises from coming, but he couldn't stop it. And he would like to stop the word, but he can't stop it. Lord, give his hearing ears. God, give me a freedom tonight to touch hearts. Send conviction, Lord, tonight. Holy Ghost conviction, I pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Wild donkeys. Now, this message tonight has to do with overpowering lust. It has to do with those lingering habits that keep coming back, and you can't seem to get the victory over them. And to tell you the truth, there are many, many thousands of Christians in this city that are waging a losing battle against their lust and against their habits. It's driving them, constantly driving them. You know there's a beloved evangelist who has just recently, we have heard of a burden of his heart, confessing that for many years he struggled under a burden of lust, and he couldn't shake it. And I knew for a fact, because he's a dear friend of mine, that he didn't sleep more than three or four hours a night. I told him once, in fact, how do you sleep with all the heavy debts that you have, millions of dollars? And he said, David, I don't sleep much more than three or four hours. And he'd said that a year ago. And I called him just the day before this hit the newspapers, and he said, now, David, you know why I didn't sleep. He said, I prayed for hours, I wept, I grieved, I felt the guilt and the burden, and I wept, and I fasted, and I prayed. And folks, I still love the man, and I believe there's forgiveness and healing. Love him with all my heart. And the battle was a losing battle for many years. A young lady wrote me a letter this week. She went to Bible school to try to kick her habit of drugs, and while she's in Bible school, her roommate, she discovered, was lesbian. And one night, she was seduced and gave in, and, in fact, became addicted to this lifestyle, and lived with such guilt and such shame. She despaired of life itself. In fact, she tried to kill herself, and went into the hospital. They rushed her to the hospital, and she was saved just in time. Came out angry that they brought her back. She wanted to die because of the heavy load of guilt and shame that was on her back. And in the process, this girl married her boyfriend. She'd lost her boyfriend. The lesbian girl married her boyfriend. And she said, well, at least that'll break the habit. At least I'm free now. But it wasn't free because the girl came back even after marriage, and I can't go into all the details, but she said, Mr. Wilkes, we just kept on going right through that marriage. And she said, I finally gave up. But one day, I went to a church, and I heard a message. And God's fear gripped my life. And her letter closed with saying, I've had victory for the last nine months. God has set me free. Now, here in Times Square Church, on at least three occasions, I've had men come to me, and I believe one or two of the other pastors have heard the same thing at least three times. Men have jumped up right during the middle of the service, and went over to 42nd Street and took in a porno movie right while we were having service. Got up, went out. At least two of those men came back weeping, broken, saying, Brother Dave, I don't know why I did it. I sat there hating it, but something picked me up and drove me right to it. I couldn't seem to help myself. I was driven, and they came back, and a few, two of them fell right on their face. One said, I just feel like taking my life. I feel so dirty. I feel so helpless. I feel so filthy. What terrible battles, losing battles are being fought. There are AIDS victims, many of them that come to this church near death, dying, but still holding onto their lust for homosexuality. Still sticking the dirty needle into their vein, and even though it's a dirty needle, even though they have AIDS, and at the verge of death, and still hating God, even though they know they're about to die. There was one, I told you about, a drug addict that came into Teen Challenge, but he reached the point of despair one day, laying in his little cot, he stuck the needle in his veins, and pulled out a whole syringe of blood, and sprayed on the ceiling, H-E-L-P, help, with his own blood. So despairing of the problem, so despairing of the habit that had gripped his life. If there is not, listen to me now, if there's not an absolute 100% victory over sin, then this Bible's a lie. Then everything we've been doing is a hoax, we might as well shut down the church, and never believe again in the gospel, everything we heard, everything we preached. If there's not 100% total victory over sin, every lust and every habit, if there's not absolute victory over it, then everything else that we've been doing and saying is a lie. We might as well all end it. But the truth is, there are millions of believers since the cross of Jesus Christ, that have experienced glorious, powerful victory. They are living above sin, they've laid down their lust, they've laid down their habits, they got the divine ultimatum from the Lord, they heard it and they laid it down. Homosexuality, lesbianism, alcoholism, drug addiction, every habit that you can name, they have been delivered. In fact, there are many people sitting in this church tonight, all around this place, here tonight. If I asked how many would stand, we'd have hundreds stand here tonight, that have been delivered from drugs, alcohol, sexual habits, lust of all kind, and they're sitting here tonight, not fighting their problem anymore, absolutely free from it, not going back playing over it anymore, they've been delivered from it. How did they get free? Were they some special favorites of God? Did God love them any more than He loves you? Not at all. Now, this is such a life and death matter, that God would not leave it foggy, He wouldn't leave it fuzzy. This is so important to those who are bound, God would make no mistake about it, He'd make it so simple that a child could understand it, He's not going to make it fuzzy, that only intellectuals or theologians can figure it out. That hit me today, when I was praying about this message, God said, it's not hidden, it's there, it's so a life and death matter, I'll make it plain and simple to anyone who hears it, wants to hear it. I'm going to read to you, don't turn there, Isaiah 35, 8. An exalted highway shall be there, it shall be called the highway of holiness, no impure shall walk therein, and he himself, the Lord, shall be with them, walking with them in the way, and the simple shall not go astray. The King James says, the wayfaring man, the fool, shall not err therein. In other words, the simplest person, those who have just a childlike understanding, have no problem of walking on the highway of holiness, if they've got open ears, if they really want to hear what God is saying, even the simplest Christian. Now, if you were to sit down tonight, and talk to numbers of the people in this church who've been delivered from these problems, and say, how did you get free? They would name repentance, they would talk to you about reading their Bibles, becoming so covered with this word of God, washed in the word of God, they would talk to you about a prayer life, they'd talk to you about Bible study, they'd talk to you about witnessing, they'd talk to you about many things, and that's fine, that's all a part of deliverance. But I want you to know that there are three things that happen in every Christian who's walking in deliverance. In fact, when you find a Christian fully delivered, walking completely in victory before the Lord, you'll find these three things at work in their life, and it's not just three things that happen one time, these are three ongoing principles that keep them in the victory. And I've really prayed about this, and I've asked God, I had been prepared to preach another message along the lines of getting out and finding your place in the body, such as Brother Bob preached this morning, and Gary preached, and Don, but Saturday morning, the Holy Spirit just got a hold of my heart, made it clear that there'd be people in this church tonight that needed to be delivered, and God really shook me, and I began to seek His face, and He began to show me very clearly that there's a spirit, here are the three things the Holy Spirit began to deal with me about. First of all, you've got to be delivered from the spirit of a wild donkey, the spirit of a wild donkey. We're going to the Word of God. Now, why don't you go to Jeremiah. Jeremiah, and we're going to stay a lot in Jeremiah tonight. Jeremiah, the second chapter. I'm reading from New American Standard, because it brings it out very, very clear. Jeremiah, the second chapter. You did bring your Bibles, didn't you? I said you brought your Bible, amen? You don't come to Times Square Church without your Bible. Some of you did, but next time you won't, will you? Jeremiah 2, verse 21, Jeremiah 2. Yet I planted you a choice vine, a completely faithful seed. How then have you turned yourself before me deep into the degenerate shoots of a foreign vine? Although you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your iniquity is before me, declares the Lord God. How can you say I'm not defiled, I've not gone after the bales? Look at your way in the valley. Know what you have done. You are a swift young camel entangling her ways. A what? A wild donkey accustomed to the wilderness that sniffs the wind in her passion. In the time of her heat, who can turn her away? All who seek her will not become weary. In her month they will find her. Look at me, please. This is a very profound thing that God is saying. God is speaking to Jeremiah, and he's asking his people this question. He's saying, look, you started out right, and I started you out right. I planted you as a pure vine. Everything was right when you gave your heart to me. You began right. You said you really wanted me, and that's what he's saying. And then he asks the question, how did you turn yourself into such a degenerate people? How did you become degenerate? How did you give yourself over to your lust? And God himself said that they started out with a love for him. In fact, the love was so exciting, it was like a courtship. Look at Jeremiah 2.2. Go back to Jeremiah 2, verse 2, chapter 2, verse 2. Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus says the Lord, I remember concerning you the devotion of your youth, the love of your betrothal. That's your courtship. You're following after me in the wilderness through a land not sown. Israel was holy to the Lord the first of his harvest. You said Israel's holy. You started holy. You started out with a desire for me. I remember the devotion of your youth, the love of your betrothal. You're following after me in the wilderness. Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits. In fact, all who touched him, evil came upon them, the scripture says. That's in Jeremiah 2.3. Now, look at me, please. We're talking about a people here now, about leaders and shepherds even. God's people, leaders and shepherds, evangelists, famous or not famous, who started outright in love with the Lord, mightily used of God, wonderfully guided by God through the dark wilderness on all sides. But God's people, according to the prophet, and God speaking through this prophet Jeremiah, he said they're doing a tragic thing to themselves. Look at verse 11, chapter 2, verse 11. They're doing it to themselves. Has a nation changed gods when they were not gods? But my people have changed their glory. There's a change coming over these people. For that which does not profit, be appalled, O heavens, at this, and shudder. Be very desolate, declares the Lord, for my people have committed two evils. They've forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, to hew for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. Is Israel a slave? Or is he a home-born servant? Why has he become a prey? The young lions now roar at him. They've roared loudly. They've made his land a waste. His cities have been destroyed without an inhabitant. Now look at verse 17. Have you not done this to yourself? Now who's doing this? Have you not done this to yourself by your forsaking the Lord your God when he led you in the way? Look at this. God's leading them. When did they forsake the Lord? Right while God was leading them. You've done this to yourself. I was leading you. I had my hand on you. But you're doing something to yourself, the Scripture says. Now look this way, please. He said, be appalled. And if you look at that word, it means be overcome with amazement. Shudder means to tremble and confulse with horror. Be very desolate means to be overcome with disbelief. And here's the picture. God is looking down on his people. And he's speaking to the heavens. He's speaking to the cherubim and the seraphim and all the created angels. He's talking to all the heavens. And he said, be appalled. He said, this is unbelievable what these people are doing. He said, it's beyond belief. He said, shudder and tremble with me. God is saying to all the heavens, shudder, tremble, be appalled. You know what it says? Verse 12, be appalled, O heavens, at this. Shudder and be very desolate. That word desolate there means overcome with disbelief. Shudder and tremble, be amazed. He said, my bride-to-be is cheating on me. Those who once followed me with all their heart, they've forsaken me. Those who once were drinking from the fountain of life have turned to drink the dirty waters of the Nile and they're drinking from dirty cisterns or dirty wells. They're not wanting my precious word anymore. They've turned away from my word and they're drinking filth. Verse 17, have you not done this to yourself by forsaking the Lord your God when he led you in the way? Look at verse 18. But now, what are you doing on the road to Egypt to drink the waters of the Nile? Could you look this way, please? That's the question I ask some of you here right now that started right with the Lord. You really loved him. You wanted to go all the way. That's what you said. That's what you told God. And the Lord comes to you by the Holy Ghost and said, what are you doing now on the road back to Egypt? Egypt represents the world, represents what you came from. What are you doing going back there? What do you do drinking that dirty water from the Nile? What's happening to you? Why are you doing this to yourself? Why are you changing as you're doing it now? For no unexplainable reason, they gave themselves over to the passions of a prostitute. Look at verse 20. Verse 20, the passions of a prostitute. For long ago, it says, I broke. But if you look there, it says you. And in the original Hebrew, Helen Spirel, it says you. For long ago, you broke your yoke. You tore off your bonds. But you said, I will not serve. For on every high hill and under every green tree, you've lain down as a harlot. That's a prostitute. Listen to me. God is saying, yes. You've got to get this, please. Can you turn this way? God is saying to this people, yes. I do put a yoke on my people who are going to walk with me. I do give the bonds of commandment. I do this so the devil can't enslave you. These are promises. These are commandments. These are yokes that are light. They're easy, and they're meant for your protection. Yes, I make demands upon those who walk with me that run counter to their own lust. Yes, I insist that you renounce forever your sensual lust and your evil cravings. I demand crucifixion of all flesh. I demand mortification of everything. It's unlike me. Yes, I demand it. That's the word of God. Not what any preacher tells you otherwise. These are the commandments of the Lord. But you said, I will not serve God with this scripture. I will not serve God. So you broke through this yoke. You tore off all these commandments, these bonds, and you said, I will not serve like that. I can't serve God like that. I can't be under that kind of bondage. He said, now you have run. You're that wild donkey. You were corralled by my Holy Spirit, and I had a yoke on you, and you were plowing a fruitful road. But you didn't like the yoke of the Lord. You didn't want this, and you talked about freedom. You talked about wanting to be free, so you just went out like a wild donkey in the wilderness. And these people want to hold on to their sin, and yet they don't want to give up on God. Look at chapter 3, verse 1. God says, if a husband divorces his wife, and she goes from him and belongs to another man, will he still return to her? Will not that land be completely polluted? But you are a harlot with many lovers, yet you turn to me, declares the Lord. But you are a harlot with many lovers, yet you turn to me, the Scripture says. I want to show you the delusion that these people were under. And he's talking about God's people here. Listen to delusions. First of all, we are free to roam. Look at chapter 2, 31. Chapter 2, 31. O generation, heed the word of the Lord. Have I been a wilderness to Israel, or a land of thick darkness? Why do my people say, we are free to roam? We will come no more to thee. Again, I ask you to look this way. As soon as you read the Scripture, then look right back up. I'd like to look you right in the eye, even though I can't see you. Those bright lights. There's a preaching, a gospel in the country today about Christian freedom. We've got Christians all over America drinking now, and they call it freedom to drink, or freedom in the spirit. We're not bound anymore. That's the spirit of the wild donkey. That says, I will not serve like this. I don't want the yoke upon me. And everywhere we go now, we see people a little more inching further and further into the world, allowing things that five years ago would have made them blush. And now they're doing everything in the spirit of the wild donkeys upon them. The second delusion is that God can be forgotten days without number, but I can always go back to him, and he'll always be there waiting for me. After all, isn't that what the prodigal son did? He got up and went back, but folks, he was not a perpetual prodigal. And we've got perpetual prodigals who say, well, I can forget God days on end. In fact, that's what the scripture said. My people have forgotten me days without number. They go their own way, they do their own thing, and they say, well, he's always there waiting. I can always go back to the altar. That's what the prodigal story's all about, they say. No, it's not. The prodigal son came to the end himself, he went back to his father's house, and he never left it as far as I know. And then the third delusion is this. Well, it just came upon me, this sin, this lust. Homosexuals came on me when I was just a child. I hear homosexuals saying, I remember when I was two years old having this lust. Well, that's foolishness, absolute foolishness. There's nothing in the scripture to back that up whatsoever. Look at Jeremiah 2.35. Yet you say, I am innocent. Surely his anger is turned away from me. Behold, I will enter into judgment with you because you have said, I have not sinned. I'm not responsible. This came on me when I was a boy. This came on me, and I couldn't help it. And you know, the problem is, we've got Christians crying rivers of tears, and they're making this excuse. In fact, Malachi the prophet said, you cover my altar with your tears, and yet you cheat on your wives. You come and cover the altar with tears, you think because you cry and cry and cry, you can go back out and do what you please. And they cry rivers of tears. People who live in sin often, especially those that are in the ministry, become very sympathetic to others because they feel this grief of their own sin, their own weakness, and they often excuse sin in others. But it doesn't work with God. There are a lot of people who are living in sin who feel that God's appeased if they give God a lot of service, so you find them running all the time. They're busy, busy, busy, doing something for God all the time. They're trying to quiet the conscience, trying to make a deal with God. Now, this is the spirit of the wild donkey, and it's got to be broken. Jeremiah 2.24, I want you to look at it again. Jeremiah 2.24, a wild donkey accustomed to the wilderness that sniffs the wind in her passions in the time of her heat, who can turn her away? Now, look at me, but I have no trouble using biblical terms. The Bible here is talking about a donkey with heat, a heated passion. And what a vivid picture of a Christian who's still ruled by a secret passion. In the time of her heat, who can stop her? Read it again. In the time of her heat, who can turn her away? All who seek her will not become weary. In her month, they will find her. And you know what that's saying? When this thing comes upon you, and you start chasing after, and you follow that heat of passion, it comes on you suddenly. The Bible said those who are looking for you won't even have to chase you. They're going to find you. They won't have to run and become weary. They've been waiting for you. They've been waiting for that moment to hit. This wild donkey spit it. It happened to an Episcopal priest in Texas who came to see me once. Weeping. Very well known at the time in the charismatic movement. He said, David, when I was in seminary, I got involved in homosexuality. And I fought it all through seminary. And I thought I had the victory, and I got married. But he said it would come upon me out of nowhere after two years suddenly. That passion would hit me. And I would fight it until I couldn't fight it anymore. And I'd get up and go to the nearest bus station and make a connection with anybody. And I'd go back to my pulpit. And he came to see me because just the Sunday before he was standing in his large church, and he was preaching. When that spirit of the wild donkey hit him, and that heat came, and it hit him so overwhelmed, it just came all over him. He closed the meeting down as quickly as he could and ran to the nearest bus station and connected with a filthy man off the street. Found out, of course, the man never did have victory in his life. Had never had the victory. All he did was try to suppress the passion. Never had had victory his whole lifetime. In fact, to my knowledge, he's not in America now, but to my knowledge, he never did get the victory. Every time I saw him after that, even though I prayed with him, he'd avoid me. That spirit of the wild donkey strikes those who are living in secret affairs. Here's a man who's in love with someone else. He's married or she's married, and they're having an affair. And suddenly, the spirit of the Lord begins to deal, and he or she says to the lover, no more, that's it. God's going to judge us if we go on like this. God's exposing sin everywhere now, and we're going to be next if it goes on. We're going to lose everything. This is it. That's it. Goodbye forever. Until the time of the month comes, the heat of the passion, and the spirit of the wild donkey strikes again. And then suddenly, he runs out of the house. He calls her. They fall into each other's arms, and they're at it again. Forget exposure. Forget the judgment of God. Nothing. Who can stop her when she's in heat, the Bible says? Who can stop it? Driven by this lust. And then comes the shame and the hopelessness. Jeremiah 2, 25 and 26, look at it. Keep your feet from being unshod, and your throat from thirst. But you said it's hopeless. No, I've loved strangers, and after them, I will walk. And how many times I've heard it, and there are some of you here listening to me right now, you've already come to this place, you say it's no use. I've tried everything. I just can't give this up. It's been with me so long, I can't give it up. It's hopeless. You know what it says? No, but you said it's hopeless. No, I've loved strangers, and after them, I'm going to walk. Look at verse, yes, that's verse 25. In verse, Jeremiah 3, look at Jeremiah 3. Turn over to Jeremiah 3, verse 25. Here's what happens. The spear of the wild donkey strikes, goes back to the lust, and then let us lie down, verse 25, 3, 20, let us lie down in our shame, and let our humiliation cover us, for we have sinned against the Lord our God. We and our fathers, since our youth, even to this day, and we've not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God. All right, look at me, please. Here's the turning point, and if you don't get this, I can't, you won't be able to hear the rest of the message. Here's the turning point. When you've given in to your sin, and that wild donkey spirit's driven you back to your lust, whatever it may be, you're going to do one of two things. You either harden your heart, and give yourself over to this hardness. In fact, Jeremiah 3, 3 is where you'll come to. Therefore, the showers have been withheld, and there's been no spring rain, and you've had a harlot's forehead, and you refuse to be ashamed. A harlot's forehead is a hard heart, and in fact, you'll find it in Romans, called giving over to your sin. You'll give yourself over to your sin. Homosex is called coming out of the closet. You'll come out of the closet, and you won't care anymore. I had a pastor tell me that he watched his wife drive away down, out the driveway with a man in the church, even though he stood there weeping, and the two children stood there weeping. She walked right on out. She didn't care about the children. She didn't care about anything else, because she was driven now by her lust. And that's the turning point. You do that, or you'll cry out, Oh God, break this spirit in me once and for all. The wild donkey spirit of lust exists, because there's no fear of God in them. There is no fear of God in them. I want you to go to Jeremiah 2.19. Jeremiah 2.19. Now we're going to find out why people are still bound and can't seem to get free. Jeremiah 2.19. Your own wickedness will correct you, and your apostasies will reprove you. Know therefore and see that it's evil and bitter for you to forsake the Lord your God, and the dread of me is not in you, declares the Lord God of hosts. Do you understand that? He said your wickedness is going to catch up with you. Your apostasies are going to reprove you, and that's called the divine ultimatum. Hey, listen to me. There's not a man or woman who walks with God honestly, or trying to walk with God honestly, who if you continue in your sin, there comes a day when you get, I call it the divine ultimatum, when God comes to you and says, All right, I've been patient with you. I've been loving with you. I've covered your tracks. I've done everything to help you. We've counseled with many, many who went on, and then God comes one day and says, That's it. That's it, and he makes you know. I've talked to two evangelists who said, Dave, you're right. I heard you preach that. They were in my audience when they heard that divine ultimatum. I heard it years ago in my life, and it wasn't adultery, but there was a spirit, and God was saying, You continue like that, David, and it's all over. I'll take my anointing from you, and I knew that if I didn't have victory in my life on this one thing, I knew it. God says, I'll take my hand from you. I can't continue with you, and I knew God made me know, and I thank God for that day. He put his fear in my heart. By the fear of the Lord, people depart from iniquity, the Scripture says. Go look at Jeremiah. Go to Jeremiah 5. Verse 21. Hear this, O foolish and senseless people who have eyes but see not, ears but hear not. Do you not fear me, declares the Lord? Do you not tremble in my presence? Skip down to verse 23. But this people has a stubborn, rebellious heart. They've turned aside and departed. They do not say in their heart, let us now fear the Lord our God. They don't say, let us fear the Lord our God. I want you to go to Jeremiah 32. Jeremiah 32. We're staying a lot in Jeremiah tonight, but I want the word to come like a hammer and just reveal to us. Jeremiah 32, verse 40. Just one verse I want you to see. Jeremiah 32, verse 40. Do you tremble at the word of God? And I will make, verse 40, I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them to do them good. I will put the fear of me in their hearts. So what? So that they will not turn away from me. They'll not go to their sins. They'll not turn away from me. I'm going to put my fear in them so that they will not be turned away from me. Now, I'm going to read to you another verse. Don't go there, but I'm reading Isaiah 8, 13 and 14. He, God, shall be your fear. He shall be your dread. Then he shall become your sanctuary. He'll become your sanctuary. He'll protect you. He'll bring you into a place of protection once the fear of God has fully gripped your heart. Now, the dread of God, as I see it, is based on two fears. Now, folks, I have these two fears in me, and I don't ever want these two fears to ever leave me. I want them until Jesus comes into my dying day. Now, I'm going to go over these two fears with you, and this is really the heart of my message. First of all, there's the fear of missing heaven. The fear of missing heaven. Now, there's been all kinds of tapes and records and talks about visions of heaven. People have claimed to have died and gone to heaven. They've seen it. Or people have had visions, and they come back, and they talk about the wide boulevards, the angelic choirs. Most of them talk about mansions and gold streets. I heard one talk about gold flowers. Who wants a gold flower? I think it would be horrible, everything gold. I'd rather smell it. I'd rather touch it. I'd rather it be alive. Gold flowers. I've never had much time for any of that. Because to me, heaven can only be explained in two words. With Him. With Him. That's the only definition of heaven as far as I'm concerned. Jesus prayed, Father, I desire that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am in order that they may behold my glory. That's heaven. To be with Him. To behold His glory. Now, when I speak of the fear of missing heaven, I speak of the fear of not spending eternity with Jesus. In other words, to be cast out of His presence. To never again be near Him in eternity. And I want you to know, this is the one shared joy of everybody that's living in victory. I know this as sure as I stand here. If God brought you out of sin, if you're sitting here now sanctified and walking in the power of the Lord, there's one thing you share with everyone like you. Everybody that's living is an overcomer. The one thing that's shared is this desire to depart and be with the Lord. This is the great heart cry of Paul the apostle. He said, for me to live is Christ, but to die is gain. Did I hear somebody say God was going to kill him? And I'm not putting our dear brother down. But that grieved my heart more than anything else I've heard by any evangelist on the face of the earth. God's going to kill me if I don't get eight million dollars. I believe all heaven wept. I believe heaven wept because Paul said, for me to live is Christ, but to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which to choose. I am torn between the two. Having a desire to depart and be with Christ, for this is much better. Yet to remain is more necessary for your sake. There's a series called 20 Centuries of Great Preaching put out by Word. And one of the great sermons is called the expulsive power of a new affection. It's a great sermon and many preachers have preached it as if it was their own. I've heard it preached by a number of preachers under different titles, but it's called the expulsive power of a new affection. And the premise is this. If you want to get rid of an old affection, you bring in a stronger one and expulse it, get it out of your life. In other words, a new love that's stronger drives out the old love. And I want you to know something. People who have a new Jerusalem state of mind, who are living not for this world but for eternity, do you understand what I'm saying? The affection for Jesus is supposed to drive out every other world of the affection. I don't know about you, but I have a desire right now to go and be with the Lord. I've heard people say, well, no, this is all the heaven you get. It's right here on earth. We're going to take dominion, we're going to bring Jesus from glory down here. Well, I want to tell you, I'll tell you, all you dominion people, you can have it, you can take it. I'll throw in my apartment, you can have my Honda, you can have it all. My Bible says it's all going to burn. There's a new heaven, there's a new earth that's coming. They call us escapists. They say, you're trying to escape. No, I'm just quoting Paul. I have a desire to be with the Lord. How can you be a Christian? How can you love Jesus without wanting to be with Him? Glory be to God. The one dread of those living in victory, the one dread is that I could be cast away from His presence. I so love Him now, and I'm going to have Him all through eternity. And I'll tell you what's glorious about eternity. When you get to heaven, it's not going to be a static ecstasy. Now, when you get there and suddenly there's a burst of glory. No, you know that all through eternity, there's going to be an ever-increasing knowledge of the Lord. You're going to be learning all through eternity. There'll be more and more of His love, more joy, endless joy. There'll be no end of the glory, no end of the joy. It goes on and on, gets better and better and better. It's ever-increasing. God's going to be teaching us about the glory of Jesus and about His heavens, about redemption. And in all of eternity, we'll never learn it all. It'll just keep coming. And you know what's going to be glorious? There's going to be an ever-increasing knowledge of being set free from sin. An ever-increasing knowledge that you can never die. An ever-increasing knowledge that you're with Him for eternity. Glory to God. And they want to take dominion over this little earth. Oh, brother, we've got a whole universe out there He's giving us. Hallelujah. Let us lay aside every weight and the sin which does so easily entangle us. And let us run with patience the race that's set before us. Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame. It's the joy that's set before me that sets me free from the lust of this world. I don't want to lose glory. I don't want to lose the presence of Jesus. That's all glory to God. How many of you have entered into the joy that's set before you? Isn't that what gives you the glory? Isn't that the things of the world begin to lose their charm? And then you look at this foolish little thing, that spirit of the wild donkey that's offering you ten minutes of pleasure. What's that compared to the joy set before you? You endure it because of the joy set before you. Hallelujah. Glory to God. I better move on or I'm going to get stuck right there. Secondly, the fear of an eternal hell. And I'm going to preach about hell now. I've heard it said, we don't serve God because we fear hell. We serve Him only because we love Him. Well, here's one preacher that serves God because he loves Him and because I fear hell. And why do I fear hell? Because Jesus told me to. I'm going to show it to you. I'm reading to you Luke 12, 4 and 5. Just listen to it. I say unto you, my friends, this is Jesus speaking to His friends. I say unto you, my friends, be not afraid of them who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do to you. But I will forewarn you whom you shall fear. Fear Him, which after you have killed has power to cast into hell. Yes, unto you fear Him. You say, oh, we don't serve God out of fear. I do. I have love. Oh, the love that's in my heart for Jesus, yes. And because I love Him, I obey Him. But I have this dread of a holy God who means every word He says. I'll tell you what. The church of Jesus Christ would be walking in righteousness. The fear of God would be in the church if every preacher in America would just preach hell as good as Jesus did. If they just preached it as often as Jesus preached it. Jesus talked about eternal damnation. He talked about fire, unquenchable fire. He talked about weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Jesus preached it. You serpents, Jesus said. You generation of vipers. How can you escape the damnation of hell? You know we've got about three seminaries in New York City. If they were sitting here, if the teachers of those seminaries including, is it Union Theological Seminary? Name anyone you want here in this city, even some of the evangelicals. If they were sitting here tonight and I started this on hell, now they could endure maybe missing heaven. A little bit I did there, but I'll tell you what. I start on hell, they'd get up and walk out on me. They would walk out and they'd sneer. They'd stick their nose up and walk out and say, He's a fool. Because nothing, nothing grinds more on a back-slidden theologian than somebody preaching on hell. Paul warned us in 2 Thessalonians 1-7, listen to it. When the Lord Jesus Christ shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel. And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from the glorious power. Now I want to show you something tonight. The rich man died and went to hell. And there was a great gulf and he could look into Abraham's bosom and he could see Lazarus. And he called it a place of torment. In fact, he prayed, all I want is that Lazarus would dip his finger, get this now, his finger. He didn't even ask for a drink. Just dip his finger in some water and put it on the tip of my tongue to cool my tongue because of my torments. Just touch the tip of my tongue. He could look across and see the cool waters. He could see the peace and the rest and the joy. And he was in torments, the scripture says. Revelation, in fact, I used to preach a message on hell. I may yet preach it sometime, but I'm preaching just a part of it tonight. But, you know, I used to believe that, you know, the only torment in hell was the memory. And I'll be talking about what I call instant replay in just a moment and what's going to be going on in hell. But he said, I'm tormented in this flame. But don't God begin to deal with me and make it very clear. No, it's not just their memory. There's a cup of wrath. There's a wine of wrath. And I'm going to make the disobedient and the wicked drink it. And I'll read it to you. Revelation 14, don't turn to Revelation 14 10. They will drink of the wine of the wrath of God and they shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever and they will have no rest night or day. Now, tormented in the presence of the angels and of the Lamb of God. And that began to hit me today as I was meditating and praying. It just hit me so hard. In the very presence of God, what it means that they're going to be in these torments and they're going to be able to see into the very presence of God and see all the holy angels and see all the redeemed and the host of heaven and the glories that they could have had and all that had been awaiting them and the vision of what has been lost. It was called by the apostle missing the mark. And suddenly missing the mark takes on a new meaning. Look what I miss. Look at the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Look at the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Look at the joy, the everlasting joy. Look at the fulfillment. Look at the peace and the glory of heaven and the world to come and to realize that they'll never touch it in the very presence. In other words, beholding the presence of the Lord. Beholding the angels of heaven. And the Bible says they're going to burn in fire and this is the inquensible burning of the lust. Folks, there are people living right now in the face of this earth who are already in this kind of hell. Moses Berg, who is the founder of the children of God, his daughter got saved. The children of God had at least 5,000 members at one time. He used to be one of our associates in a way, one of our teen child's ministries in California. Children of God went into apostasy. They went into all kinds of foolishness and sin. They went into harlotry. This man became evil. Moses Berg began to send out newsletters that were nothing but pornography. He wound up, his daughter told me this face to face, he wound up in his later years, he's still living, understand, at least someone, many believe he's still living somewhere, maybe in Sweden, but he wound up making movies of child pornography. And she said, David, my father, he lives in a trail, the last I saw him, and he's like a wild lion. He just paces back and forth, no rest, night and day, back and forth, and he's consumed with his lust, and nothing satisfies him now, nothing such. He's back and forth like a caged animal, just like this, like a caged, he's in hell, and that's exactly what hell's going to be. That's a part of the torment of hell, that those lusts that you carried while you were in life are going to be enraged, they're never going to be satisfied, and you're going to have that rage, and it's going to increase and increase, and never be satisfied, and the Bible says there'll be no rest, night and day. Self-abusers are the same way. They abuse their bodies until finally, night and day, no rest, like the one that some of our people saw down on the Lower East Side, a self-abuser of his body, totally demon-possessed, and laying there, hitting his head against the doorstoop, and bleeding in the back, cursing, four-letter words, just standing there, laying there all night, banging his head, cursing. His lusts still driving him, but he's in hell. The torment of hell includes the worm that never dies. Where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched, Mark 9, 44. And brother, sister, that's, I believe, the knowing conscience. It's the memory that never lets go, all through eternity. It's not a vision of hell, but the Lord let me understand one day what it's probably going to be like for those who are damned. Peter said, knowing the terror of the Lord, we persuade men. Knowing the terror of the Lord, and I've seen something of the terror, and I would to God that I could stand here and produce in you the fear of God, but it won't produce the fear of God unless you hear in the Spirit, unless your ear is open. It'll only turn you off, but if your heart is open tonight, I want you, I want you to understand tonight that the fear of God includes this fear, the dreaded fear of the righteous judgments of a holy God. Can you imagine what it's going to be like for this person with the wild donkey spirit who has never had the fear of God, doesn't want the fear of God? And I'm going to tell you right now, I'm going to tell you right out, if you're still living under this bondage of lust, you have never had the fear of God in your heart yet, and that should be your prayer. Oh, God, put your fear in my heart, and it's more than just an awe of the majesty of God. That's a part of it. No, it's something, it grips your heart that says, I serve a God who's holy. He loves me, and he loves me so much, and he's patient, he's everlastingly kind. He's long-suffering. Yes, he's all of that, but he's also a just and holy God. And there comes a time when you say, Lord, that's it. I can't give it up. And here's the man who sat in Times Square Church, and he wakes up in hell. First, you know, he goes to the judgment seat. I don't even know what it's going to be like to be bound hand and foot. I don't know what it's like to be cast into outer darkness. That's evidently a channel, outer darkness, passage to hell. I don't know what it's like to be, I can't even conceive in my mind what it'd be like for someone who used to be close to Jesus and knew his presence, and turned away, rejected every offer of his love, chased after their wild donkey spirit, and cast out in this channel of outer darkness and going further and further away from the presence of the Lord and the light of his glory and presence dimming until finally he's gone. And suddenly to be face to face, to be numbered first of all at the judgment seat. You know what it's going to be like to be numbered with transgressors? Jesus couldn't stand it, that he was numbered with transgressors. That was the grief of the cross, to be numbered with transgressors. His holy, pure soul to be numbered with transgressors, to very touch it. Can you imagine what it's going to be like for people to stand before the great white throne judgment next to all the killers, the mass murderers, all the ungodly men of all ages, to stand there and you're there numbered with the transgressors? And your name is called? You're told depart from me, you work of iniquity? Bind him hand and foot and cast him into everlasting darkness and to be to be cast by the angels into that passage and to stand up to end in a eternal hell face to face with Satan. And to have him touch, even to touch or reach out to you and say you're mine, eternally mine. My mind can't conceive it. But there's a worm that never dies, the conscience. The same mind that you're thinking with now is the same mind you'll have the moment you were there. It's not another mind, it's your mind. This mind, this spirit of yours will not die, it's eternal. That worm will never die, it twists and turns all through eternity. And to wake up and for a man or a woman to say, I'm in hell. I am in hell. This is eternal. Not another message, not another choir, not another scripture verse, nothing righteous, nothing holy, nothing pure. And the only reason God doesn't blow up the whole earth right now, the only reason there isn't anarchy is because the church is here, because the Holy Spirit is here and I can't imagine what it would be like when God takes the Holy Spirit. Can't imagine what it would be like. Can you imagine what hell would be like if the Holy Spirit's just holding it together now and it's the Holy Spirit in us. But for a man to wake up in hell, no wonder there's weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. This man says I'm lost, I'm eternally lost and Jesus says weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, why? Because I believe, I believe the first, time will be no more so time is not a measurement. You know, just as sure as there's an ever increasing knowledge of redemption in heaven, I believe in hell there's an ever increasing knowledge that I'm, of damnation, of lostness. It suddenly increases. I am lost and it will never end. I am lost, it will never change. If you could even say a thousand years from now would change, you might be able to endure it but it will never change. It's eternal. It's a circle, it won't end. And there's gonna be an ever increasing knowledge that you're damned. An ever increasing knowledge that you've turned down every promise of God. You've rejected everything that he said, sinner. An ever increasing terror. And then, I call it instant replay. Can you imagine what it's like for a man to be at the end of himself absolutely terror stricken, weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth and suddenly he wakes up and the lights are turned on and he's back at Times Square Church and sitting and I'm preaching again because, see, the words that we preach on the anointing of the Holy Spirit are eternal. They never fall to the ground. I don't know about anybody else, but I believe they're gonna be preaching all through eternity in hell to no avail. Oh, every sermon's gonna be replayed and played over and over again. Every scripture you've ever heard, every song you've ever heard. And this man wakes up and suddenly this is the worm turning. He suddenly, because the mind, he wants so bad to believe he's not damned and suddenly he wakes up and he's back in church and the lights are on, everything looks normal. And he wipes the sweat from his brow and he says, I must have been dreaming. And he pinches himself and he feels the pain, I'm still alive. Do you think he's gonna sit in his seat? Where would he be? He'd be running. He'd be on his face. He'd be having his hands raised to heaven. Oh God, have mercy on me. And just as he's about to feel the comfort and say, there's a chance. I must have had a nightmare. Somebody put something in my drink. Something happened. I thought I was in hell. I saw the devil. I was at the judgment seat. I'm alive, there's still a chance. Jesus, and he can't even get the words out and he's back. All goes dark. He wakes up, he's still in hell. Can you imagine the terror? And the worm turns again and this time he's at home. The lights go on and he's sitting in his house with his wife and they're watching Billy Graham on television or something. And he says, oh God, please this time, don't let it be a mirage, don't let it be a dream. And his wife's walking in the room with a cup of coffee and she says, honey, you look pale. See, in his mind he's replaying something he once lived. He's replaying an opportunity he once had because he was there and he's reliving it. And she says, you look pale. He says, honey, quick, come touch me. Takes his little girl in his arms and squeezes her. She feels alive and he drinks the coffee, feels the heat, he feels the warmth of it and he says, tell me I'm alive. Honey, I'm going crazy. I go in and out of time and space and eternity. I've been to the judgment seat. I've seen God. I've been through darkness. I've had the devil touch me. I stood before transgressors. I've been to hell and back. Tell me I'm alive. She said, everything's all right. You're alive. Do you think he'd sit there long? He'd be on his face saying, oh God. And this time he says, don't let it fade. And just as he's about to say Jesus, it begins to fade. Not again. No. But he wakes up in hell. And can you imagine having to replay that? But from now on he knows it's hell. And he plays it and replays it. All three times he says, no, not again. I don't want to go back. I don't want to hear it. But God says, no. In the presence of God and all the holy angels. It's not a joke. Playing with God and playing with sin is not a joke. It's life and death. It's your eternal soul. And until that grips you, until you can sit in this meeting right now and that grips you tonight with everything that's in you, this is eternal. I'll tell you what. I want to give you before I close. I'm going to close. Hallelujah. Brother, sister. I live with a fear of a holy God. Oh, I love him. And I know he loves me. And he joys over me. And I thank him for the day he gave me a divine ultimatum. And his fear drove me to the cross. I said, Jesus, take it all. And I thank him for the victory. I can stand before you tonight and look at you now and say I have victory. I thank him for the past years of victory that he's given to me. And if you want to know where the victory is, you ask Gwen. And if you want to know about it, you ask me. I can tell you what her life is. I'm not boasting in that. But some of you have not been taking this serious. Some of you are still smoking pot. Some of you are still drinking. You know, and I say this lovingly. I've seen women come to this church. You've been coming here for about five months. And I say it lovingly, but I wonder if you even own a dress. You come in your tight trousers. No clapping, nothing. And I say this in love. Even dance before the Lord. But I'm telling you one thing. If you bring attention to your body, you're going to stand before God and answer for it. And if you don't have a dress, you come to us and we'll buy you one. I think you come to the house of God, you come as a woman, you come in a dress. And I say it lovingly. If you don't have it, that's understandable. And I mean it. If you don't have it, you come, we'll buy you one. You don't come to church as a fashion show. I've been to churches where people come in late and pray down to show off. Folks, we're going to stand before God. We're going to stand before a judgment seat. It's not a joke. I have to give you this one verse. Holy Spirit just told me I need to do it. He who believes in him will not be disappointed. That's Romans 9.33. This is a matter of faith. You say, how do I get victory, Brother David? You're going to get it through faith. You're going to believe that the Holy Ghost talked to you tonight. He put his fear in your heart. If you don't have it, pray for it. And then you come to the altar and say, by faith tonight, I believe God loves me. I want his fear. And I want to be delivered. And I'm going to be delivered by trusting what God said. He said, ask and you shall receive. And I believe that with all my... You can ask for the fear of God. You can have his holy fear in your heart and be delivered before this night is over and walk in absolute glorious freedom. Do you want to be free? Up on the balcony here on the main floor. Just come down. Wait a minute. Wait before anybody comes. Yes. Have you turned your back on the Lord? Have you backslidden? Are you not where you should be with God? Have you grown cold? Or have you not even been saved? Or you've run from God? You're not right with the Lord? And you came tonight. Somebody brought you? Do you want Jesus tonight with all your heart? Do you feel the tug and pull of the Holy Spirit? Why don't you get up out of your seat and come and meet me here right now. Up in the balcony here on the main floor. Backslider. Those who have turned away from the Lord. You say, Brother Wilkinson, I feel the Holy Spirit call me tonight. Come and stand here right now before anyone else. Before we pray for those with habits or lust. Up in the balcony. Go down the stairs and just come and stand right here now. Say, Brother Dave, I'm coming home. I'm coming back. Coming back. I need Jesus tonight. I need Him with all my heart. Up in the balcony. Just go down the exits. Down the stairs and come down either aisle. Hallelujah. How many of you have the fear of the Lord in your heart? Raise your hand. Oh, it's a wonderful thing. It's not a dreaded thing. It's a wonderful thing to have the fear of God in your heart. The righteous fear of God. Brother, is this your first time here? Have you been running from the Lord? Jesus, touch Him. Save Him tonight. Convict Him. Turn Him around. Jesus, touch Him. Hallelujah. Come on. Come on over this way, please. Come on over this way. Don't be afraid to cry, honey. It's all right. Come on. Just wait for a moment. Have you been here before? To the church? That's the Holy Spirit. He just broke in you, my dear. Are you related? Okay. Friend, give me your hand. Just give me your hand. Don't be afraid. Lord Jesus, take the fear out of her heart. Lord, she's just paralyzed with fear. Now, turn that fear, Lord, into repentance. Hallelujah. Lord, touch her heart. Let her know that you're going to come and set her free tonight. Glory to Jesus. Hallelujah. Now, I'm going to open the altar right now. For those who are bound by lust or habits, I'm not going to ask what it is. Nobody's going to know. You have to get up and come down here for deliverance. Do it now, please. Upstairs, downstairs. This is the night to be free. Don't walk out of this church carrying a habit or a lust. Don't take it out. Nobody needs to know what it is. My, there ought to be a lot of you walking down this aisle now, but don't come until the Spirit draws you. If the Spirit draws you, say, Brother Dave, I do want to be free. I do want to be free. I want to be free. You don't have to scream at him, son. He hears you. Up in the balcony. That's it. Just go to the middle there and come down. Oh, he cleanses. If you believe him, tonight he cleanses and sets you free. White. Sing it. Everybody came forward. Look this way, please. Look this way, please. Just listen for a moment. If you came up here tonight, you've been running from the Lord, or your back's lit in your heart, you've not been saved, I want you to know that there's love for you tonight. There's deliverance for you, but you've got to believe what he says. He that believeth, he that trusteth, shall not be disappointed. You know, God won't disappoint you. Son, what is it that's... You realize that God's up there after all. Thanks, God. I just love. I realize that God is there. I realize money really stinks. Sorry. Really stinks. I realize you don't need money to live happily, because I used to have money, and I never was happy. Now I don't have money. I don't care about money. I just care about my girl, God, and me. Bless you. Lord, Jesus changed his life. Changed his life tonight. Lord, help him to understand what's happening at this altar tonight. Amen. All right, listen. Will you trust him? He said, if he that believes, he that trusts in the Lord, shall not be disappointed. Will you let him have your faith? Will you trust him that he'll set you free? He can break every chain that binds you. It can happen right here tonight. Do you believe that, brother? Is that why you came up? What's that? I heard your word this morning about cocaine. I had a crack habit, and tonight, and I was thinking about leaving the program Teen Challenge, you know, a message hit me this morning. Tonight, I've been thinking about leaving so I can see my girl and maybe some other lustful thoughts, and your message came right on money again. Lord, Jesus set him free from that tonight. Lord, set his heart to believe you for deliverance, Lord. Complete deliverance. Hallelujah. Lord, set him free. Don't ever let crack touch him again, Lord. Set him free from this bondage. I want every one of you who came up here, raise both hands to heaven. Raise your hands. I want you to pray this with faith right now. Pray it right out loud with faith. Dear Jesus, you have the power to set me free. I come to you with all my heart. I give you my sins, and I say to you, I'm sorry, I repent, and I want to be free. I don't want this burden. I give you my faith. I believe you have the power to set me free. In Jesus' name, I claim my freedom because I give you my heart, and I give you all my sins, and I'm going to walk as a new person starting right now. If you believe Jesus hears prayer, and he heard your prayer, just thank him right out loud. Lord Jesus, I thank you for hearing and answering. Break the chains that bind now. Raise your hands and ask him to set you free. Lord, take the chains that bind me and set me free. Call on his name right now, Lord Jesus. I believe you to set me free. Give me a new mind. Take this mind habit. Break this mind habit. Break this lust. Break this chain. Put your fear in my heart, Jesus, right now. The fear of the Lord right now. Thank you, Jesus. Say it, Lord. Give me your fear. Give me your holy fear. Put it in my heart and put a love in my heart that I would love you, Jesus, so that I would not sin against you. Let everybody stand, please. Let everybody stand in the presence of the Lord. Let's sing, Oh, the blood of Jesus. I want the whole congregation to raise their hands. Let's believe the Lord for cleansing waves of faith to come on this congregation that Jesus can break every chain that binds everyone in this house tonight. Thank him for it. Rejoice in it as we sing it.