                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

                            The Nearness of God!

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By David Wilkerson
November 11, 1996
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          I want to share with you two verses from Helen
          Spurrell's original Hebrew text:

          "When designing pursuers approached me, who are far
          from thy law; then Thou, O Jehovah, wast near, with all
          thy faithful commandments..." (Psalm 119:150-151).

          There is a glorious truth in this passage that can
          change your life, bringing you peace and giving you
          rest beyond anything you have yet experienced. You see,
          once you understand the truth of God's constant
          nearness to you -- that he loves you and is continually
          near you -- all fear and anxiety must go!

          In this text, David sees the wicked coming closer and
          closer in an attempt to ruin and destroy him. He is
          saying, "Vile, corrupt, plotting sinners are gaining on
          me. They're all around me, and their power is mounting.
          They are bent on my total destruction!"

          We all have such an enemy -- the enemy of our souls,
          the devil. And he has always had one purpose in mind:
          to destroy God's work, and to seduce and discourage His
          people. Indeed, Satan uses all of his power and
          craftiness to cut Christians off from the favor and
          presence of the Lord. And that is exactly what he is
          trying to do right now in your life -- attempting to
          discourage you, seduce you, wipe you out!

          "...Come, and let us cut them off ...that the name of
          Israel may be no more in remembrance" (Psalm 83:4).

          The principalities and powers of darkness are always at
          work, designing and plotting our ruin. They're saying,
          "Let's destroy God's people. We'll make them no more
          than a passing memory!"

          The Edomites came to destroy Jerusalem with the war
          cry, "...Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation
          thereof" (Psalm 137:7).

          They were saying, "Cut the city down to its foundation.
          Level it, wipe it out -- take it down to the very
          ground!"

          Likewise today, Satan will not be satisfied until he
          sees the total ruin and downfall of every godly
          ministry, church and true lover of Jesus. The devil is
          not merely some cosmic jester or jokester, plotting and
          playing tricks on us just to make things difficult for
          us. His demonic spirits are not just imps who go around
          making life miserable.

          No -- Satan's purpose is much more serious than that!
          He is bent on the total destruction of the church of
          Jesus Christ. His one goal is to raze us, cut us down
          and leave nothing more than a memory.

          The devil was boldly blatant in this purpose even with
          Jesus. He tempted the son of God outright, urging him
          to turn against his own father and set up an earthly
          kingdom. What a liar -- what horrible thinking to take
          such boldly wicked steps! Yet Satan will try everything
          in his power to destroy all that is righteous and holy.
          And he never stops; he is always pursuing. There is
          always a design out of hell!

          You simply cannot ignore such a devil. Yet, please
          understand: I am not in any way glorifying Satan.
          Legally, he has been stripped of all his power. He
          can't damn anyone to hell by crossing the blood line
          that Jesus draws. But the fact remains, the devil has a
          hellish design for all Christians -- and he is at work
          in this world implementing it. If you don't believe
          that, you're already in trouble!

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             The Devil Is Encouraged by All His Past Victories!

                      -------------------------------

          In New York City, you can find the ruins of many
          ministries that started out with God's power and
          blessing. Satan has cut them down, leveling them to
          their very foundation!

          Consider Columbia University, founded as a college to
          train godly ministers. I have a book of sermons by the
          school's first president -- and it is full of
          Christ-centered preaching! The founders were holy men,
          full of Christ, burdened for a lost world. And they had
          a ministry that was blessed. Powerful holiness
          preaching poured from the school's pulpit.

          Today, Columbia is the devil's playground, a hotbed of
          humanism and decadence. God is but a distant memory on
          campus. The ruin of that institution has gone down to
          its very foundation!

          The same is true of Harvard, Yale and other
          universities nationwide. They were founded by men of
          God as training institutes for ministers of the gospel.
          Those schools once enjoyed great revivals -- but now
          humanism is in full control. They have become darkened,
          idolatrous institutions.

          New York City also once had many on-fire churches and
          powerfully effective ministries to the poor and
          downcast. But many of these have been brought down by
          Satan's designs and devices:

             * There once was a Presbyterian church that shook
               this city with its fiery preachers. The sanctuary
               was continually packed with God-seeking saints.
               Today, that church is a mausoleum -- a house of
               spiritual death!

             * Fifty years ago, pentecostal churches in Manhattan
               were packed throughout the week, boasting fiery
               preaching and lively orchestras. Those churches
               readily funded countless missions. But now many
               are dead -- vanished from memory!

             * Many ministries to the poor, alcoholics and drug
               addicts have become mere social agencies. These
               outreaches are no longer dependent on the Holy
               Ghost, but on government dollars. And they have
               turned from the Bible to psychiatry. The leaders
               are no longer on their knees, praying for people.
               Instead, they sit in their offices, with pencils
               poised and psychiatry books open. They've lost all
               their power and anointing. It's all gone!

          The devil has succeeded in bringing these once-godly
          works to ruin, right down to their foundations. And he
          is out to bring you to ruin as well! You may even feel
          the designing pursuers of Psalm 119:150 approaching you
          right now -- determined to cut you off and make your
          present walk with the Lord a mere memory.

          Not long ago, I was on the corner of 49th Street and
          8th Avenue, buying a newspaper, when two drug addicts
          walked up and said, "Hi, pastor!" They both were
          stoned.

          One of them put his arm around me, and I recognized
          him. I said, "Hey, you were at Timothy House, weren't
          you?" He answered, "Yes, for six months. But one day a
          friend and I walked out. My friend got busted
          yesterday. He may get five years."

          Then he turned and introduced me to the man with him.
          The man was president of the Suicide motorcycle gang in
          Brooklyn. This killer gang has been in the newspapers
          for its exploits. And now its leader said to me, "Mr.
          Wilkerson, I know you. My dad's a pentecostal
          preacher."

          The man from Timothy House began to cry. He fell
          against me and said, "I love you." Suddenly, I felt the
          great love of Jesus flow through me for these two men.
          And I said, "I love you too." The crying man said,
          "Pastor David, the devil's trying to kill me. He's
          trying to destroy me!"

          I told him, "You can pray with me right now. But if you
          don't want to do that, you know you can always go just
          down the street to our Upper Room, and they'll pray
          with you. You know where it is."

          Suddenly, the gang leader -- the preacher's son --
          began backing away. He said, "Hey, man, I'm out of
          here!"

          This man had demon powers all over him. I could sense
          it, and he knew it as well. Yet even as he tried to
          flee from God's presence, I felt Jesus reaching out to
          him with His awesome love.

          Right now I'd like to ask you: How is it that Jesus can
          show such love to those who shoot drugs and commit
          crimes, and yet you can say to yourself, "God couldn't
          possibly love me because I've failed Him!"

          You bet God loves you! If His river of love flowed
          through me for these two men, how much more does it
          flow toward you? How is it that you can offer grace to
          a world dying in its sin, and yet not offer it to
          yourself?

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                      There Are Times It Appears as If
               the Devil Is on the Verge of Gaining Victory!

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          The devil succeeded in binding the apostle Paul with
          chains and taking him to Rome to be murdered. But God
          intervened and delivered Paul! Satan also stirred up
          some Jews from Antioch, who railed against the apostle.
          They stoned him and then dragged him out of the city,
          thinking he was dead.

          Can you imagine the multitudes of demons looking on
          from the spirit-world -- laughing gleefully, counting
          the great preacher's last breaths, waiting to attend
          his funeral? Can you see Satan himself boasting, "We
          have cut him down, razed him to the ground, ruined him!
          Paul and his preaching soon will be just a memory. We
          have destroyed the gospel. The greatest enemy to us on
          the earth has been brought down!"

          "Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he
          [Paul] rose up, and came into the city: and the next
          day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe" (Acts 15:20).

          Paul was raised up immediately. And he marched right
          back into the city, his head held high. Can you imagine
          what those demons must have thought? They probably fled
          in all directions!

          Paul explained why God permits the devil to try us so
          severely: "But we had the sentence of death in
          ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but
          in God which raiseth the dead" (2 Corinthians 1:9).

          I believe Satan's most powerful weapon against God's
          people is temptation and lust that leads to sin. His
          purpose is to engulf believers in guilt, fear and
          condemnation -- to make them discouraged and downcast.
          And the more they love Jesus, the hotter and heavier
          their temptation will be!

          Perhaps you think the reason you are tempted so heavily
          is because you have an evil spirit. But when you love
          Jesus -- when he is the savior of your heart and Lord
          of your will -- you are a marked person in hell. And
          Satan will try to cut you down to the ground!

          You may be saying, "Brother Dave, I can feel those
          designing pursuers you're talking about. They're
          closing in on me. And Satan is wanting to ruin me, to
          cut me off from Jesus. He has put me in a lion's den --
          a fiery furnace of temptation!"

          David said, "...If it had not been the Lord who was on
          our side ...then they had swallowed us up quick, when
          their wrath was kindled against us" (Psalm 124:2-3).

          Let me warn you, especially if you are a new follower
          of Jesus Christ: It doesn't matter how holy, pure or
          spotless you feel, or how secure you think you are. You
          are not above being tempted! If you think you are
          untouchable, then watch out, lest you fall into great
          temptation and sin.

          Like Paul, I have no confidence in the flesh. Some of
          the godliest people I've known have failed God
          miserably. And I think of the awful temptation and
          failure of David, a man after God's heart.

          David was sorely tempted, fell into adultery, lied and
          murdered an innocent man. I'm sure that when the
          prophet Nathan exposed him, Satan was convinced David
          was down for the count. He expected this man to throw
          up his hands and say, "What's the use? I have disgraced
          God! I have sinned against the light, committed the
          very sins I've preached against. God can never use me
          now. My heart is too black. I've been overpowered by
          sin!"

          Yet how wrong Satan was! Listen to David's cries after
          he repented: "The Lord hath chastened me sore: but he
          hath not given me over unto death"(Psalm 118:18). David
          said, "I was tempted and tried -- but God would not
          turn me over to Satan's power!"

          Dear saint, if the devil comes at you with powerful
          temptations, it is not always because your heart is
          wicked. He could be attacking you because you have
          turned to the Lord! He's bringing fiery trials of lust
          and temptation against you to try to destroy your
          faith.

          "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery
          trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing
          happened unto you" (1 Peter 4:12).

          "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is
          common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer
          you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with
          the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may
          be able to bear it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

          There is nothing strange at all about what is happening
          to you. Yet you may be discouraged because the enemy
          has come against you like a flood. The attack could be
          through temptation, lust, marriage problems, a
          financial crisis. And you may be saying to yourself,
          "Here I am trying to serve the Lord, doing my best to
          love him and be faithful to him. But things just keep
          getting worse. Is there something wrong with me? Why
          can't I get out of this hole? Why do my problems keep
          piling up?"

          I urge you to look to your right, to your left, in
          front of you, behind you: Everybody is going through
          something! Behind the smiles of your dear brothers and
          sisters in Christ are many tears. They are hurting with
          trials you know nothing about. No, you are not alone in
          your suffering -- and your trial is not some strange,
          unusual circumstance. What you are going through is
          common to multitudes!

          Now, let me give you the good part of this message.
          Here is the glorious news:

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                 The Devil Is Not as Anxious to Destroy You
                         as God Is to Deliver You!

                      -------------------------------

          God is more prepared to keep his promises to you than
          the devil is to ruin you. Indeed, the nearer the enemy
          comes to you, the Lord is all the nearer!

          "When designing pursuers approached me, who are far
          from thy law; then Thou, O Jehovah, wast near, with all
          thy faithful commandments..."(Psalm 119:150-151,
          Spurrell). David said, in other words, "God, if my
          enemies are drawing so near to destroy me, You must be
          all the nearer in my time of need!"

          The Hebrew word for near in this verse connotes
          "defense." It means, in essence, "I am near you to
          defend you." God says he is especially near to defend
          the downcast and brokenhearted:

             * "For thus saith the high and lofty One that
               inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell
               in the high and holy place, with him also that is
               of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the
               spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of
               the contrite ones" (Isaiah 57:15).

             * "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken
               heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit"
               (Psalm 34:18).

          Are you a child of God? Does the Lord Jesus live in
          you? God says he is near to you in your anguish! Here
          is his promise to you:

          "...I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine. When
          thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee;
          and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:
          when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be
          burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

          "For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy
          Saviour... Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou
          hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore
          will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. Fear
          not: for I am with thee..." (Isaiah 43:1-5).

          David saw God as holding him "...by my right hand"
          (Psalm 73:23). He said, "God not only is near me, but
          he is walking with me, hand in hand, through this whole
          mess. Let all my enemies come after me. I've got my
          hand in the father's!"

          Moreover, David said God talked to him, giving him
          counsel and guidance: "Thou shalt guide me with thy
          counsel..." (verse 24).

          Many dear Christians tell me true stories of incredible
          hardships -- problems that keep piling up,
          discouragements that keep coming at them. Humanly
          speaking, they all seem to be impossible situations.
          And my heart goes out to every believer who experiences
          such trials.

          But every Christian has to be convinced that he or she
          is precious, loved -- and that God is near! In fact,
          the nearer the enemy comes, the more faithful God is to
          reveal his nearness -- and the more tightly he will
          hold his precious child's hand!

          "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in
          trouble" (Psalm 46:1). The root word for trouble here
          is "a tight place." Are you in a tight place? Read
          God's promise to get you out of that tight place:

             * "The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the
               name of the God of Jacob defend thee; send thee
               help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out
               of Zion" (Psalm 20:1-2).

             * "I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou
               hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my
               soul in adversities; and hast not shut me up into
               the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a
               large room. Have mercy upon me, O Lord, for I am
               in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea,
               my soul and my belly" (Psalm 31:7-9).

             * "Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast
               laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast
               wrought for them that trust in thee before the
               sons of men! Thou shalt hide them in the secret of
               thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt
               keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife
               of tongues.

          "Blessed be the Lord: for he hath shewed me his
          marvelous kindness in a strong city. For I said in my
          haste, I am cut off from before thine eyes: neverthless
          thou heardest the voice of my supplications when I
          cried unto thee. O love the Lord, all ye his saints:
          for the Lord preserveth the faithful, and plentifully
          rewardeth the proud doer.

          "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your
          heart, all ye that hope in the Lord" (verses 19-24).

                      -------------------------------

                  If You Can Believe That God Is Near You,
                   You Must Believe He Will Act for You!

                      -------------------------------

          Do you think the Lord is going to sit by passively and
          let the devil do to you what he pleases? If God didn't
          act on your behalf when you needed him, He would be
          nothing more than the false god Baal!

          Elijah had a showdown with the prophets of Baal at
          Mount Carmel, where an altar was built. The test was:
          "The God who answers prayer today will be God!" Elijah
          prayed that fire would fall down supernaturally on the
          sacrifice he laid on the altar. And that is exactly
          what happened.

          But before that, the prophets of Baal danced from
          morning till noon, crying, begging, pleading with their
          god to answer. "...But there was no voice, nor any that
          answered..." (1 Kings 18:26).

          Elijah mocked those false prophets: "...Cry aloud: for
          he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing,
          or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and
          must be awaked" (verse 27). Elijah was saying, "Where
          is your god? Is he on vacation? Is he sleeping? He must
          be out walking somewhere."

          We would have to make the same mockery of God if he did
          not answer when we cry! You see, his honor is at stake
          when we pray -- and he will not be mocked for not
          answering! The Bible says of him: "He will not suffer
          thy foot to be moved...he that keepeth Israel shall
          neither slumber nor sleep" (Psalm 121:3-4). Our God is
          awake at all times. And he is attentive to our every
          need!

          In closing, I have a word from the Lord for many who
          read this message: There is a powerful promise in God's
          word that you must lay hold of right now. I believe
          that if you act on this promise from him, you'll
          witness a great, new kind of victory in your life.

          The promise is: "Draw nigh to God, and he will draw
          nigh to you...." (James 4:8). But now you must read the
          rest of the verse: "...Cleanse your hands, ye sinners;
          and purify your hearts, ye double minded" (same verse).

          This is a great promise of victory over all sin. Yet
          you cannot produce this victory yourself. You can't
          cleanse your own hands or purify your own heart. No --
          James is saying, "If you want clean hands and a pure
          heart -- if you want victory over guilt, temptation and
          every evil pursuer coming against you -- you must draw
          near to God and believe he is near you!"

          It all hinges on the nearness of God! Simply draw near
          to him. Believe he is near you. And he will take care
          of all the enemies in your flesh!

          You may ask, "But how do I draw near to God?" The
          answer is a very simple, childlike thing: Simply go to
          the Lord and talk to him -- anytime, anywhere, all day
          long. In the shower, on the way to work, on the job,
          everywhere -- talk to him, drawing near in full
          assurance of faith.

          Years ago I worked with the late Kathryn Kuhlman. That
          dear woman of God used to work seventeen hours a day. I
          often wondered, "When does she ever have time to shut
          herself into her secret closet and pray?"

          Then I realized -- she always seemed to be muttering to
          herself. She was praying! She prayed as she drove her
          car, as she rode in elevators. Everywhere she went, she
          always talked to the Lord.

          One day she told me, "David, the Bible says to pray
          without ceasing. I talk to the Lord all day. He's just
          as real to me as you are. I don't have to run somewhere
          to try to get in tune with him, because we talk all the
          time. We're friends."

          And, dear saint, God is always there for you as well! I
          believe in secret-closet praying. But your secret
          closet can be on the subway, in your car -- anywhere
          you shut yourself in with Him.

          Here is what God promises you, if you will practice
          drawing near to him all day long:

          "Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them
          also that hate him flee before him. As smoke is driven
          away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the
          fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.

          "But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before
          God: yea, let them exceedingly rejoice. Sing unto God,
          sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon
          the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him"
          (Psalm 68:1-4).

          Talk to God -- practice his nearness -- and he will do
          all these things for you! He will scatter your enemies.
          He will drive away all demonic pursuers. And you will
          know the grip of his hand at all times. Hallelujah!

          ---
          Used with permission granted by World Challenge, P. O.
          Box 260, Lindale, TX 75771, USA.

          This material is solely for personal use and is not to
          be posted publicly on other web pages. The Lorain
          County Free-Net Chapel holds exclusive rights from
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          on its web page. You are free to download, copy, print
          and distribute this material, so long as you do not
          post it on a different Internet site. You may, however,
          link this site to reference these messages.

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