Isaiah 16:6 vividly describes what happens to a proud nation that falls under God’s judgment: “We have heard of the pride of Moab … of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath; but his lies shall not be so.” Throughout Scripture, the nation of Moab serves as a symbol representing all self-reliant people who turn their backs on God and fall under his judgment.
In biblical times, harvest was always a time of great celebration, yet after judgment fell on Moab, there were no shouts of “Harvest!” ringing through the streets. Any trace of joy in Moab became a thing of the past and a cloud of sadness and grief hung over the society.
Let’s consider the landscape in America today. What do you see and hear? Our proud, haughty nation has fallen under God’s divine wrath and there is a great deal of fear. When destruction hit the Twin Towers in New York City, the cry was, “This is going to change our nation forever,” and that was true. The innocence, joy and gladness that many Americans once knew are gone forever and will never be recaptured.
What we need to know is that Jesus Christ alone is the source of all joy. The Psalmist says of him, “God … has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions” (45:7). The oil mentioned in this psalm represents the Holy Spirit. The writer is saying, “Only those who press in to a closer walk with Jesus will obtain the joy of his Spirit.”
We who know Christ’s righteousness are not to live as those who are without hope. We have been blessed with both the love and the fear of God and he is saying to us, “The ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing” (Isaiah 51:11). In other words, “I’m going to have a people who return to me with trust, faith and confidence. They’ll take their eyes off their conditions and the calamities surrounding them and get back their song of joy.”
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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.