What do I mean by a great awakening? I’m talking about what Paul describes as a revelation and enlightenment: “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power” (Ephesians 1:17-19).
Paul was telling the Ephesians, “I pray that God will give you a fresh revelation, that he’ll open your eyes to the calling he’s given you. I’m asking him to give you new understanding about your inheritance, the riches in Christ that belong to you. There is a mighty power God wants to unleash in you. It’s the same power that was in Jesus. Yes, the same power that is in the enthroned Christ in heaven is in you right now.”
According to Paul, “[God’s mighty power] which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,” is the same “exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe” (1:20, 19). For this reason, Paul exhorts, “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
How are we to examine ourselves? We do it by measuring ourselves against the awesome promises of God. We’re to ask ourselves: “Do I draw on Christ’s resources to resist the devil? Do I access his power to overcome sin? Do I live continually in the joy, peace and rest Jesus has promised to every believer without exception?”
Your personal “great awakening” comes the day you look at your life and cry out, “There has to be more to life in Christ than this. All my plans have unraveled, all my dreams have been shattered. I’m living as a slave to my fears and fleshly lusts. But I can’t do it any longer.
“I know the Lord has called me to more than this defeated life. And I won’t be a hypocrite. Oh, God, is there actually a place where you’ll supply me with strength to live victoriously? Are you really willing to make me more than a conqueror in my trials? Is it true you’ve provided a place of perfect peace for me in the midst of my battles?
“Is it really possible for me to have continual intimacy with you? Is it true I don’t have to slide into apathy anymore or struggle to please you? Is there actually a place of rest in you where I’ll never again need revival, because my faith remains steadfast?”
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David Wilkerson (1931 – 2011)
Founder of Times Square Church in New York City with over 100 different languages spoken in the congregation. Wilkerson wrote many powerful books such as: The Vision and Cross and the Switchblade. His ministry was prophetic as God called him to be a watchman to the Church in North America. He gave clear messages on repentance to the Church.Wilkerson also founded Teen Challenge where there are hundreds of centres for Christ-centered drug recovery and addiction recovery. He also organized and spoke at pastors gatherings in many countries where he gave prophetic strong messages to encourage pastors and leaders.
Recommends these books by David Wilkerson:
The Vision and Beyond, Prophecies Fulfilled and Still to Come by David Wilkerson
Knowing God by Name: Names of God That Bring Hope and Healing by David Wilkerson
God's Plan to Protect His People in the Coming Depression by David Wilkerson
David Wilkerson is an American Christian evangelist, most well-known for his book The Cross and the Switchblade. He is also the founder of Times Square Church in New York, an interdenominational church.
Wilkerson is well-known for these early years of his ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in New York City in the 1950s and 1960s. He co-authored a book about his work with the New York drug addicts, The Cross and the Switchblade, which became a best-seller, selling over 50 million copies in over thirty languages since it was published in 1963. The book was included among the 100 most important Christian books of the 20th century.
For over four decades, Wilkerson's ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. He has authored over 30 books.
David Wilkerson is the founder and president of World Challenge, Inc., a nonprofit organization incorporated on September 22, 1971. Reverend Wilkerson, the author of over thirty inspirational books, is perhaps best known for his early days of ministry to young drug addicts and gang members in Manhattan, the Bronx, and Brooklyn. His story is told in The Cross and the Switchblade, a book he co-authored which became a best-seller. (The story has been read by over 50 million people in some thirty languages and 150 countries since 1963. In 1969, a motion picture of the same title was released.)
For over four decades, Reverend Wilkerson's evangelistic ministry has included preaching, teaching and writing. Throughout that time a distinctive characteristic of his work has been his direct efforts to reach the neediest members of the population with help for both body and soul. Even now, the almost 70 year-old minister often goes out alone or sometimes with an assistant to walk through the streets of New York City, along Broadway and Eighth Avenue or down 42nd Street and nearby "Crack Alley" on 41st Street. His mission is always to seek out the lost, the disoriented, and the addicted , to tell them of the power of the risen Christ to set them free.
David Wilkerson, born in Hammond, Indiana on May 19, 1931, was married in 1953 to Gwen Carosso. The Wilkersons' two sons are ministers, and their two daughters are married to ministers. They have 11 grandchildren. The Wilkersons served small pastorates in Scottsdale and Philipsburg, Pennsylvania, until Reverend Wilkerson saw a photograph in Life magazine of several New York City teenagers charged with murder. Moved with compassion he was drawn to the city in February 1959. It was at that time he began his street ministry to what one writer called "desperate, bewildered, addicted, often violent youth.