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The Cry of Sodom and Gomorrah (Kwasizabantu)
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 shares his personal testimony of being a former homosexual who was saved by the Lord. He expresses his concern and frustration with the acceptance and promotion of homosexuality in society, particularly referencing images of homosexuals kissing on the streets. The preacher also discusses the economic and societal consequences he believes are a result of this acceptance, including financial disasters and a lack of natural affection. He emphasizes the need for Christians to have a compassionate and saving attitude towards sinners, rather than a condemning one.
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I want to speak to you tonight about the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah. I'll be speaking primarily to pastors, the Bible school students, primarily to the pastors and those in full time ministry. But I'm sure God has something to say to all of us. I thank God for his spirit so evident in this compound. Truly, the Holy Spirit is here and God is being honored. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the work of the Holy Spirit. We thank you for those who love your word. You have not failed to speak to our hearts in these last days. Will you speak to my heart today? Oh Jesus, speak to our hearts. Let this service count for eternity. Lord, we should be changed by your word. So please come as we give our hearts and our ears and our minds to you. We're so hungry to hear from you. So speak words that I didn't even know about. Speak, oh God, for we humble ourselves before you. In Jesus' name, Amen. The Lord appeared to Abraham with two angels. We would call the appearance of the Lord a theophany. The two angels appeared as men, and evidently very handsome men. Because the whole homosexual community tried to go after a rape. But Abraham recognizes the Lord. And they were on a tragic mission. The Lord said to Abraham, The cry of the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah have come up to my ears. God said, I want a man's eye view. Folks, there is a cry to sin. A cry that only reaches the ear of God. Oh yes, we hear it, but we do not hear it as he hears it. And God said, Abraham, I'm going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. There were five cities involved. Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboim, and Zoar. God says, they have sinned so mightily, I'm going to destroy them. The Lord and the two angels started down the mountain toward Sodom. And the Bible says that Abraham stood before the Lord. Evidently the Lord dismissed or sent the angels on to Sodom. I hear three cries that come out of Sodom. There is the cry of vengeance. God saw the violence of the city during Noah's time. And he said, I am going to destroy the world because of violence. We see this happening again in the United States and around the world. The Bible calls it lawlessness. And this is the flashpoint of God's judgment. And we reach that point already in our society. Canada is far ahead of the rest of the world. They were the first to legalize homosexual marriages. We had 5,000 people lined up in San Francisco to get illegally married against our Constitution. Now that's amazing. Because they took one of our judges and took his license away. Because he had a granite little motto with the Ten Commandments. And they say that's unconstitutional. And took his license and he lost his judgeship. 5,000 homosexuals line up against the Constitution. Nobody stops them. 250,000 homosexuals march down 5th Avenue in New York City. They call it Gay Pride Day. Pride Day. There's lesbians on motorcycles naked. Flatbed trucks. Naked men. Pretending sexual acts right in public. Big signs. Jesus is gay. God is homosexual. May I tell you something? Let me tell you what is behind this. It's happened in Brazil this past week. A federal judge has gone against the Constitution legalizing gay marriages. It's happening all over the world suddenly. Why? If you know your Bible, God has made the church a type of the Bride of Christ. That's between Christ the man and church the woman. The Bride of Christ. Now how is the devil going to be able to destroy the authority of the Scripture? He's going to do it by having a whole generation believe The Bible is a lie. Where is the Bride of Christ? Because men are marrying men and women are marrying women. It's a direct attack on the typology of Christ and His Bride. I hope you can see it and understand it. I stood at a gay pride day in New York City. A group of Christians on the side. They had a sign, God loves gays. These homosexuals jumped out of the parade. Attacked those Christians. And tore up their signs. I had to run from them. I stand there weeping. Let me tell you why God was moving against Sodom. We have a term in the United States. It's a militant term. In your face. Take it or leave it. We will do it no matter what happens. Now in Sodom and Gomorrah. When they stayed in the closet. When it was underground. The cry had not yet been fulfilled. The cup of iniquity had not yet been filled. Even when the word spread. Even the angels heard the word. You can't sleep on the streets, the streets are unsafe. But it still wasn't the time for judgment. The time for judgment came. When the moment lawlessness broke out. And the homosexuals took the law into their own hands. And they tried to break in the house and attack and rape the angels. They said that's it. We came to investigate. It is hopelessly lawless now. And judgment was declared. You know when I saw pictures in the newspaper of all these homosexuals hugging and kissing on the streets. Something rose up in me. I said oh God. When will you rise up and justify your honor? I was thinking as David thought. Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? The wicked are boasting. They bless what God hates. They are proud saying we shall never be in adversity. They say in their hearts we shall never be moved. Their mouths are full of cursing. Deceit. They say in their hearts God has forgotten. He hideth his face. He does not see us. God will not judge us. That's all in chapter 10 of the 10th Psalm. But God said to David. I do see it. I know every mischief deed. And every sin. And I will deal with it. By my own hand. Now folks God has been warning. Drastic weather changes such as the world has never seen. Outbreaks of terror just as he prophesied. Nations and people rising against nations and people. I've been prophesying in the United States. That 1,000 fires are going to break out one day. I had a vision on 42nd Street in Times Square. They call it the crossroads of the world. And that vision has recurred time and again. I saw fires breaking out. Because of an economic collapse. Something happened. And I pictured the President of the United States. Sitting in the office. Surrounded by his cabinet. Ministers. He said how did it happen? How did the economy collapse overnight? Folks our major corporations are going bankrupt on every side. Multi-billion dollar corporations are going bankrupt. God predicts in his Bible. I will touch your basket of bread. And I will move against those who hire. He's talking about unemployment. He's talking about a financial disaster. And I saw this coming to New York. 1,000 fires. We had tanks on our streets. And folks I hate to see it coming. But sure as I stand here. The day is coming you will read and hear of this. And as sure as you heard of airplanes crashing into our skyscrapers. The whole world was weeping with us. God is going to judge our cities. And it's going to bring fear upon the whole earth. God never tries to scare his people. Because if you're under the blood of Jesus. And your trust is in the Lord. He said you will never beg for bread. And he will protect his people. And I don't face it with fear. But God is going to judge the sins of our nations. And especially America. And God said I will do it by my own hand. My own power. There's a second cry. That comes out of Sodom. First cry is the cry of vengeance. God must avenge sin. And he has been so merciful. He has sent evangelists and prophets. I get so weary of speaking and warning. I have a reputation in the United States. I'm called the doomsday preacher. And sometimes I say God I don't want to speak these words anymore. Because nobody wants to listen. Only a holy remnant can hear the sound. Oh but my friends the judgment of God is coming. The cry has reached the heavens. A cry far greater than Sodom and Gomorrah. And Billy Graham is right. He said if God does not judge America. If he does not judge this society. He has to apologize to Sodom. The second cry. Is the cry of Abraham. God said to Abraham. I'm going down to see it and I'm going to destroy it. And the Bible says. The men went towards Sodom. But Abraham stood before the Lord. And he drew near to the Lord. He withstood him. He stood in front of him. Right in front of Jehovah. And he began to intercede. And you know what that intercession was. Oh God. And what he's saying in essence. I know something about you God. I know you don't like to judge. You've called this your hard strange work. I know you don't like to judge. And he knew something about the coming Messiah. Jesus himself said of Abraham. Abraham saw my day and he rejoiced in it. He looked down in history. And he saw the cross. He saw the Messiah. He saw the full expression of the mercy of God's heart. And he says oh God. If there are just 50 people in the place will you spare it. The Lord said yes. He still withstands the Lord. And he intercedes. Lord if there are five less than that maybe just 45 will you save the place. The Lord said yes. Oh but father. Just 40. Yes. Hear me one more time. If there are 30. 20. And by now he's on his face. Intercession. Oh God. Just 10. Yes. Now when you look at this humanly. It makes God Abraham to appear more merciful than God. God wants to destroy Abraham wants to save. No no no. God is rejoicing. Because he looks at Abraham on his face. He said I finally found a man. The only man. To stand in the gap. He was not praying for lot. He was not praying for lots family. Abraham had 318 men in his army. He could have gone anytime and pulled lot out of that city. When God told him he's going to destroy the city said give me one more day. Yes. I can wipe them out. At least let me bring lot out of the out of the city. Do you understand what Abraham's cry is. A cry that I have never made until God revealed this to me. He is pleading for homosexuals. He's pleading for rapists and murderers. If you find 10 righteous men. People. Will you spare the place. It really says the city. I asked a minister friend recently. When's the last time you prayed for homosexuals to be saved. The answer was. I don't remember ever praying. Because I was trying to ask myself the same question. Here's the answer that pastor gave me. If I knew it was scriptural. I would pray. I would pray for every homosexual I know. And I would pray for this whole community. I would pray for the wicked judges who are bringing this to pass. I would pray if I knew it was scriptural. I would pray. I have prayed for drug addicts. I've prayed for alcoholics. I've prayed for prostitutes. And I pray for the lost people. I've prayed for Zulus. I've prayed for tribes around the world. But when it comes to rapists and murderers and homosexuals. Forget it. We want people saved. Pray for my children. My backslidden children. Pray for my unsaved husband. Pray for my wife. And we pray for lost souls. But we put parameters on our prayers. We limit God. We say well the Bible says they're turned over to reprobate mines. I want to tell you that I've seen reprobate mines healed. I hear people say well there are enemies to the cross. So were you. The Bible says we were enemies. We were enemies to the Christ. It says in 2 Corinthians. No homosexual, no feminists. No feminist will ever enter the kingdom of God. He said adulterers and fornicators and men stealers. And effeminate means homosexuals and lesbians. But then he said this. That such were some of you. But you're saved. And you're sanctified. Through the blood of Jesus Christ. I had given up on homosexuals for years. You didn't expect this message to turn this way. Take a deep breath. I'm giving you Bible. I've been a street preacher for 50 years. There are now 500 drug centers all over the world. Siberia, all over the world. The worst sinners in the world on the face of the earth. But I have a homosexual that came into our church. My wife and I took him out for lunch. He says why do you limit the Lord? Why do you give up on the whole segment of society? He said I was a homosexual. I was captured by a group of crazy homosexual men. They made me a prisoner. They raped me and abused me. The Lord saved me. And homosexuals are being saved now. When I saw pictures of homosexuals kissing on the streets. Before God spoke to me. You know what always praying? Kill the judge. That's doing all this. Give him a heart attack. And Lord. Cause it to rain until all the streets are flooded in San Francisco. Lord stand up against this. Who will rise up for me against the workers of iniquity? Oh you remember Jesus called them vipers? Yet he wept over them and died for them. Nobody is named sin louder than I have in America. But let me tell you why they're drinking. You can't show me a homosexual. That after five years. Isn't an alcoholic. And I ask them why? Because there's a cry. There's a loneliness nobody else knows and understands. When they come into our church. I'm thinking of a whole row. Transvestites. Men dressed as women. They look like beautiful women. And what am I going to do? They can't be members. But they have a right to hear the gospel. They have a right to hear it from a man who loves God and loves them. In spite of their sin. I can hate their sins. But I have to love their persons. I ask God to forgive me. The Bible says they've given over to vile affections. They burn in their lust to their own kind. Fornicators, wicked. Without natural affection. Unmerciful. These are the kind of people Abraham is crying for. And pleading for now. Remember what the disciples said to Jesus? Lord they're not receiving you. Shall we call fire out of heaven and destroy them? Jesus said you don't know the spirit you have. That's not my spirit. I didn't come to condemn. I came to save. And I have to confess to you. I actually believed for years. There was no hope for some kinds of sinners. But I'm here to tell you. That the cross does not limit anybody. It does not limit you. May I tell you of the two worst sinners that I've ever heard of? Twenty years ago the United States was shaken. A devil possessed cult leader called Charlie Manson. The devil incarnate. In his cult. He would ask them to come and he would put his arms around them. And say you're going to be changed in a few moments. He transferred the demonic spirit into them. And he gave them what he called helter skelter. They called themselves the family. They said we are going to shake the United States. We're going to murder so many people. It's going to shake the nation. And we will take control. It's right out of the pits of hell. A young man by the name of Tex Watson. From Texas. Was sucked into the, drawn into that cult. Mr. Manson put his arms around him. He was changed from that day on. A spirit of murder came upon him. And Mr. Manson knew that he could cause him to do anything he said. Young women. Runaway girls. All a part of the family. One day they went into the home of a movie star. Young movie star. And Charles Manson demanded they kill everybody in the house. They took the movie star out. Tex Watson stabbed her to death. Went in the room and stabbed everybody. Then he took them out in the yard. Turned them over. And kept stabbing and stabbing and stabbing. At the trial. They were on two or three murder sprees. They were given life imprisonment with no parole. Tex Watson had to be kept in isolation. They would have killed him in prison. For almost ten years. Tex Watson. Tex Watson lived in agony. Because suddenly he realized what he had done. But some Christian prisoners. Some young men joined together. Fasting and praying for this boy. They gave him a new testament. He began to study it. And the Lord saved him. Filled him with the Holy Spirit. A few years later. I'm preaching in a California jail. It's full of prisoners. Chaplain walks in. Young man smiling carrying his Bibles with him. He's my assistant. Tex Watson. A murderer. A rapist. A reprobate. My Bible says. Jesus saves to the uttermost. May I tell you of another killer? This shook New York City. 22 years ago. A Jewish boy David Berkowitz. He had a name the devil gave to him he said. The son of Sam. He would kill prisoners. Prostitutes. He would hear demons wailing like dogs in the middle of the night. Crying for blood. When he heard the cry. Walked the streets. Find a prostitute and kill her. I don't ever remember how many. But I was in the city at the time. And the city was terrorized. The streets were unsafe. They finally caught him. And David was sent to prison. Sentenced to 365 years. No hope of parole. For 10 years. He's in prison isolated. Once every two weeks. He's allowed to walk for 15 minutes in the courtyard. Probably the most hated man in New York's history. He was a Jew. Jewish. Never knew nothing about Jesus. Full of Satan. Murder. Rape. He would go back to the spot where he killed prostitutes. He would look at the blood still remaining. And have another encounter with lust. But you see there was a young man praying for this boy in prison. A saved prisoner. And he saw him walking in the courtyard. The Lord said go down. He walked beside him. Put a hand on his shoulder. Said David. Jesus loves you and he wants to forgive you. And he gave him a new testament. David goes in isolation again and starts reading. David got saved and full of the spirit of God. And right now. Just before I came here. The day before I left to come here. I had my secretary turn on his website. He preaches like no man I've ever heard preach. He has revelation like I have never seen. He blesses my soul. You can get his website. He preaches all over the world through the prison. What I'm trying to say. There's a cry of Abraham. God spare the wicked. He didn't want to spare Sodom to give them more time to practice their homosexuality. He's thinking oh God. Send a prophet. I know my nephew hasn't been a witness. Oh God allow me time to go. Let all of my family who knows you go with me. There was a cry of mercy. There was one more cry in Sodom. The cry of lot. The angels had to drag him out. And outside of the city. The angel said run to the mountains. Spare your life run. He says oh no. That's dangerous up there. Let me go to little town Zohar. You see this is his cry. I will not be saved. I will be killed. Spare me. He didn't even mention his wife. He said send me to Zohar. And I will be saved. This is the cry of millions in the church. Oh Jesus. Make me holy. Keep me pure. And get me out of here. Rapture me. Take me. He knows they're all going to die. Every friend he's ever made. He knows they're going into eternity. They're going to hell. And all he wants. The only obligation he feels. The only thing God expects of me. Is to stay clean. Free of abomination. Not to be vile like my neighbors. And get me out. And many Christians. Don't pray for their families. Oh God keep me clean. I want no tribulation. I want Jesus to come. Take me out of this mess. I believe in an instant coming of Christ. But I have a mother come backstage in my church. Pray for my son he's in prison. Drug addict. I said tell me sister. In the last 30 days how many hours have you prayed? How many tears have you wept for your son? She bowed her head. She said oh you don't understand I have two jobs. I have no time to pray. I said neither do I. You have no time for your son. And you want me to pray? There are people here that have unsafe children. And you sit for hours and laugh in front of a TV set. And you watch filth that's out of hell. And you say oh Jesus keep me holy. I look for the coming of the Lord. I don't want to hear it anymore. Because I don't see the anguish. I don't see the tears. I see thousands and thousands of Christians. The cry of lot. Get me safe. Get me out of this. No burden of the Lord. I'm here in this pulpit. Because my father. And my mother. Wept every day for me. And all the family. I still hear my mother's cry. God save David. He's saved now. And if he's not going to serve you. Take him home. Scared me to death. But I'm here. My mother had the burden. What a shame. What a shame in the eyes of God. God didn't call me as a pastor. Just to babysit Christians. And try to keep them safe until Jesus comes. Until Jesus comes.
The Cry of Sodom and Gomorrah (Kwasizabantu)
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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.