                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

                     Freedom From All Fear and Worry!

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By David Wilkerson
December 25, 1989
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          Jesus predicted that the last days win be a time of
          unprecedented fear. His very words were: "Upon the
          earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and
          the waves roaring, mens' hearts failing them for fear,
          and for looking after those things which are coming on
          the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken"
          (Luke 21:25-26).

          Jesus also gave strong warnings about what else shall
          come: "Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom
          against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and
          pestilence's. and earthquakes... all these are the
          beginning of sorrows. [Men] shall betray one another,
          and shall hate one another.

          And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive
          many... iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall
          wax cold... then shall be great tribulation, such as
          was not since the beginning of the world to this time,
          no, nor ever shall be. For there shall arise false
          Christ's, and false prophets, and shall show great
          signs and wonders... watch therefore, for ye know not
          what hour your Lord doth come" (Matthew 24).

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                              Causes of Fear

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          Today the whole world -- saved and unsaved alike -- is
          witnessing the birth pangs of the end times. Adding to
          the fear and worry is the very real possibility that
          the American and other world economies will collapse --
          and a new world monetary system will come forth! (1992
          is the year proposed to form a united States of Europe
          -- and this plan is rapidly being carried out, with far
          less resistance than anyone ever imagined.)

          No one appears more fearful and worried about this
          forthcoming disaster than Wall Street, the bankers and
          the money manipulators in this world! All over the
          globe, from Japan to Australia, England. Switzerland,
          Germany and the United States -- there is a cloud of
          terrible fear that the good times are over.

          We Americans can't even imagine what it will be like to
          sacrifice and do without. We are nowhere near being
          ready for this, Millions of Christians live each day in
          the constant fear they will lose their jobs, homes,
          cars -- that a sudden financial calamity will devastate
          them! Have you noticed the sudden unpredictability and
          changes in the weather. There has been an Incredible
          number of calamities: hurricanes, tornadoes,
          earthquakes, tragic accidents. In the last five years.
          we have seen an incredible acceleration in these
          disasters. We can't understand it all -- things are
          happening so fast!

          Commenting on these recent events, a newspaper
          columnist asked, "Is God chastising us?" Another
          wondered, "Is God trying to get our attention?" Still
          another postulated, "The gods are angry!"

          In just this past year we have seen the world turned
          upside down. The Berlin Wall is now full of holes!
          Hungary, Poland and now Czechoslovakia have thrown out
          the Communists! Gorbachev actually seems to be pushing
          democracy! Castro must be shivering In his boots!

          Australia is on the edge of bankruptcy; El Salvador is
          shaking; Mexico is on the brink of a social revolutions
          and China is a giant that is awakening out of a
          thousand-year slumber! The Pentagon proposed slashing
          the budget by $180 billion. Defense is America's
          biggest business, and nothing could cause more fear and
          worry for defense contractors than talk of peace!

          Dare I remind you of the AIDS plague, the crack
          epidemic and the near-collapse of our hospital system?
          It seems impossible to curb crime in our schools,
          subways and streets. Society has gone mad! The times
          are fearful and perplexing because everybody knows that
          things can only get worse. No one seems to have any
          solutions!

          Consider how fast movies and TV have become vile and
          corrupt. I am told that next year the public will see
          full nudity on soap operas! European television carries
          X-rated shows. Now Israel, for the first time in her
          history, has pornographic magazines on the news-stands.
          Man's lust has become a raging fire! Where will it all
          end?

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                             Much New Knowledge
                        Is Causing Fear and Grief!

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          The Bible says, "in much wisdom is much grief: and he
          that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow"
          (Ecclesiastes 1:18).

          Beloved, I simply did not want to know eggs could kill
          me, through cholesterol or salmonella poisoning! During
          years of blissful ignorance I ate bacon and eggs
          without fear. Now I can't even look at an egg without
          thinking, "You killer! You're going to clot and poison
          me!" Such sorrow in this knowledge!

          Then, just as I began cutting back on cholesterol
          intake, I read that certain kinds of cholesterol were
          actually good for me! I tried eating a little oat bran,
          some muffins and fruit-fiber cereals -- yet now I'm
          told they're not all they've been hyped up to be. Sugar
          has been termed a killer, so we are advised to use
          substitutes: but then we're informed the substitutes
          cause cancer in rats!

          Now it seems antacids contain aluminum and are
          considered a cause of Alzheimer's disease! Beef has
          cancer-causing hormone additives! Chicken can contain
          salmonella poisoning; fish have iodine; and apples are
          dangerous because of a cancer-causing spray! For years
          the experts cried out against junk food, saying it was
          dangerous, but now a few "experts" tell me they're full
          of nutrients!

          I'm becoming afraid to open the refrigerator! It's as
          if the cold fingers of death reach out saying
          "Preservatives! Cholesterol! Chemicals! Substitutes!
          Additives! We're all here!" We never needed to have all
          this "wonderful" knowledge. Honestly, it only adds to
          the fear and worry piled upon us!

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                           Living Without Fear.

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          While walking up a country road in New Jersey recently,
          I had a good talk with my Lord. I cried, "Lord, I can't
          live with fear and worry of all kinds. I want to face
          whatever the future holds with rest, joy and simple
          trust! I want total freedom from all fear and worry!"

          The Holy Spirit quickened me: "The key to freedom from
          all fear and worry is found in two words -- sparrows
          and hair. Remember what I said in Matthew 10:28-33.
          'One of them (sparrows) shall not fall on the ground
          without your Father. But the very hairs of your head
          are all numbered'" (verses 29-30).

          It sounds so elementary, so very simple -- but what
          Jesus tells us here is very profound.

          In the Old Testament, King David could boast, "He
          delivered me from all my fears!" How did David find
          such freedom from fear? By obtaining a vision of the
          greatness of "Him who made heaven and earth." When
          David had his eyes on the creator of all things, he
          discovered how big God is!

          I want to be like David -- an example of a shepherd who
          has learned how to be free of fear and worry, able to
          lead a people into that same freedom.

          I did a study on sparrows and hair. And soon I began to
          get a revelation of David's immense Creator God, who
          was interested in every tiny detail of His creation!

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                    Sparrows - God's Little Messengers.

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          Sparrows! There are 9,000 species of birds, and out of
          all them, Jesus referred to the sparrow. In America
          alone there are 35 kinds of sparrows. In Jesus' day,
          the term "sparrow" described all small land birds.

          These delicate birds are recognized for their music,
          some warbling as many as 22 different tunes. There are
          song sparrows, larks, vesper sparrows, white-throated
          sparrows -- all names having to do with music.

          Like all birds, sparrows are wonderfully made. Their
          thin, small bones are strong and specially equipped for
          flying. Modern science still cannot copy the intricate
          wing system that allows them to migrate two and
          three-thousand miles. Each sparrow has from 1,300 to
          2,600 feathers. How intricate and detailed they are!
          Our Creator God designed them perfectly. He designed
          every bone, every feather -- and He counted every one
          of them.

          Most sparrows build their nests in the ground -- and in
          Christ's time they were trapped with trip nets into
          which they fell while preparing their nests. In
          Jerusalem Jesus saw sparrows being sold on a skewer,
          two for a penny. They had all been trapped with trip
          nets because Jews could not eat those that died by
          themselves.

          Of these birds Jesus said, "Not one of them was trapped
          without My Father's knowledge." He knew where each one
          of them was until its little lungs took their last
          breath. He fed them. He knew every sparrow -- even
          those on the skewers!

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                         Hair -- A Symbol of God's
                     Intricate Care For His Children.

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          Hair! Every hair on our heads is counted by our Father
          in heaven. Between 100,000 and 150,000 hairs blanket
          the human head. Even those who are bald still have the
          vellus variety hair which is unseen by the human eye!
          God made hair useful, not just for the sake of
          appearance. Hair on our heads is for insulation during
          summer and winter. Our eyebrows keep sweat out of our
          eyes, and eyelashes protect our eyelids when dust or
          tiny insects get too near. Tiny hairs in the ears and
          nostrils filter incoming air of particles. The hair in
          the armpits helps reduce friction while we walk.

          What a marvelous and intricate thing a hair is. If we
          could know what an awesome creation a hair is, how full
          of life, we would never doubt that God numbers what He
          has created.

          Every hair is a cylinder of cells that has tunneled
          deep into the skin to reach the blood vessels that
          nourish it. Every hair has muscle, nerves and glands.
          If you even lightly touch the top of your head, your
          hairs nerves will alert your brain, and you'll feel it!

          Look in an encyclopedia and find a drawing of a single
          human hair. A cross section reveals many different
          rings. These rings of tissue surrounding the trunk,
          which is surrounded as well by nerve collars. It
          maintains a cuticle, medulla, cortex, papilla and root
          sheath. A small cluster of glands drains into every
          hair. Melanin produces the hair's color. It is
          deposited in growing hair. God put an incredible color
          factory in the scalp. And, left alone, hair can grow to
          25 feet in a life-time!

          It's no wonder David said, "I am fearfully and
          wonderfully made . . . that, my soul knoweth right
          well" (Psalm 139:14).

          In the passage in Matthew about sparrows and hair,
          Jesus was teaching the disciples not to fear. He had
          created every sparrow, formed every human body and
          numbered every hair. "For by Him were all things
          created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth...
          All things were created by Him, and for Him: And He is
          before all things, and by Him all things consist"
          (Colossians 1:16-17). But the disciples still did not
          understand. Oh, how Jesus must have longed to take them
          into such intricacies -- of how He made the wings and
          bones of the sparrows and how He designed the hair. No
          mere carpenter could figure it all out -- all of it so
          fearful and amazing!

          He could have said, "Peter, what if I told you that you
          have 127,550 hairs on your head, 162 in your right
          eyebrow and 165 in your left. You have 165 hair
          follicles in your nostrils, 306 in your left ear and
          319 in your right! Your beard is made up of 33,980 hair
          follicles. Now, since you know I have numbered every
          hair on your head, won't you trust Me with every detail
          of your life? Won't you believe that I know every step
          you take?"

          What if He had said to James, "Beloved James, did you
          know there are 2,396,000,065 sparrows on the earth as
          of yesterday? In the last 24 hours 2,000,603 died a
          natural death and 986,152 are trapped or killed. In
          Jerusalem's marketplace today, there are 2,950 for
          sale.

          "Not one falls to the ground without the knowledge of
          your Father in heaven. Knowing this, will you now be
          "careful for nothing"? Will you now trust Me to take
          care of all your needs? Will you now give no thought as
          to what you shall eat or drink? Will you now believe
          that your heavenly Father knows what you need and will
          gladly supply It? Will you now trust Him to house you,
          feed you, clothe you?"

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                          God's Thoughts Toward Us
                            Can Not Be Counted.

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          David said, "Many, O Lord my God, are thy wonderful
          works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are
          to usward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto
          thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are
          more than can be numbered" (Psalm 40:5).

          "How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how
          great is the sum of them. If I could count them, they
          are more in number than the sand" (Psalm 139:17-18).

          God spoke to the Israelites In Babylonian captivity: "I
          know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the
          Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you
          an expected end" (Jeremiah 29:11).

          God thought of you before you were born -- before your
          hair color or sex were determined! He thought of you
          when your life was breathed into a cell... when you
          were still in the womb!

          "Thine eyes did see my [unformed] substance, yet being;
          and in thy book all my members were written... when as
          yet there was none of them" (Psalm 139:16).

          "Thou... took me out of the womb. Thou didst make me
          hope when I was upon my mothers breasts. I was cast
          upon thee from the womb: thou are my God from my
          mother's belly" (Psalm 22:9-10).

          The Lord thinks on our every part, over every member!
          We accept that He cares for our body, but He goes much
          farther -- counting every hair, bone, muscle, cell,
          fiber. He is aware of every tear you've shed. He has
          counted and bottled them all. "Thou tellest my
          wandering: put thou my tears into thy bottle; are they
          not in your book?" (Psalm 56:8). I can't comprehend it
          all. He counts my hairs; He counts my tears and He
          bottles and saves them. Think of It -- not a wasted
          tear of sorrow, joy or repentance.

          He thinks of us when we lie down in bed and when we
          rise. He thinks of us with every step we take. H e
          knows and understands every thought we think. It Is
          written. "Jesus perceived their thoughts" (Luke 5:22).

          Heaven is populated with highly intelligent, created
          beings -- angels, seraphim, cherubim and the
          four-and-twenty elders. They are witnesses to the
          faithfulness of our God. They know of all the promises
          He has made to us concerning His attention toward every
          detail. They hear Him tell of His minute, total
          provision to keep and watch over us!

          If God failed in a single one of these promises, all
          heaven would become chaos and ruin, for the heavenly
          host could say, "God failed to keep His Word! He can't
          be trusted!" Ye the fact that all heaven praises God,
          throwing their crowns at His feet, is proof that they
          behold and believe in His faithfulness. God can be
          trusted to do all He said He would!

          Now lets go back and see what Jesus said would be the
          wonderful result of our "trusting away" all fear and
          worry!

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                   Confessing Christ As All-Sufficient.

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          "Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many
          sparrows. Whosoever therefore, [in light of all of
          this] shall confess me before men, him will I confess
          also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever
          shall deny me before men, him will I deny before my
          Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 10:31-33).

          For years I quoted this in my citywide crusades! I said
          it at the altar call to provoke people to come forward
          and confess Christ. But trusting God is so much more
          than making a public confession - "Jesus forgive my
          sins. I believe in You!" Well-meaning millions have
          made that kind of "confession", and yet it did not
          stick.

          The key to understanding what Jesus is saying is in
          Psalm 31:19. "Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou
          hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou has
          wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of
          men!"

          This "confession" is something the world must see and
          not just hear! "And He hath put a new song in my mouth,
          even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear,
          and shall trust in the Lord" (Psalm 40:3).

          We often talk about "Witnessing for Jesus," and we
          picture it as street preaching, passing out tracts, and
          telling friends and strangers that Jesus loves them.
          Beloved, that is only part of it!

          The world is not looking for more doctrinal proof of
          the reality of God! It Is not looking for greater proof
          of the resurrection or better arguments about creation.
          The world is looking for Christians who can stand up to
          every crisis, fear, trouble and difficulty and who
          remain calm and at rest in the midst of it all. The
          world needs to see God's children trusting wholly in
          their Lord.

          The world must be able to point to a Christian and say,
          "There goes one who is not a complainer! He doesn't
          fret or fear or run in times of trouble. He isn't
          worried about tomorrow! His faith holds at all times!"

          Whether you know it or not, you are witnessing and
          confessing every day -- to your fellow workers, your
          family, your lawyer, your hairdresser, your neighbour,
          your brothers and sisters in Christ! These people see
          you going through a difficult time, and they watch and
          listen, saying to themselves, "Will they live what they
          preach? Will this Jesus let them down? Will she talk
          and act just like the rest of us who do not confess
          Christ?"

          What do those around you hear coming from your lips
          when things get tough? Continued sadness is a terrible
          confession for a believer. It makes the world think God
          has somehow failed you. Scripture says that Hannah,
          Samuel's mother, "poured out (her) soul before the
          Lord, and as she went her way her countenance was no
          more sad" (1 Samuel 1: 15,18).

          How do you leave the Lord's presence after prayer.
          Still sad and burdened down? Do you look downcast? Then
          you have not truly cast your care upon Him. "They that
          trust in the Lord shall be as mount Zion, which cannot
          be removed, but abideth for ever" (Psalm 125:1)

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                   The Great Creator God is On Our Side!

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          The majestic Lord who has done all these incredible
          works, and who has all power and might, is on our side!
          This is what Jesus has been trying to show His children
          all along? He says, If you can, comprehend the
          greatness of God and the fact that He is on your side!

          "When I cry unto thee, then shall my enemies turn back:
          this I know; for God is for me" (Psalm 56:9).

          "The Lord is on my side, I will not fear: what can man
          do unto me? The Lord taketh my part with them that help
          me" (Psalm 118:6-7).

          The Holy Spirit has given us Psalm 124 as an antidote
          against fear and worry: "If it had not been the Lord
          who was on our side, now may Israel say: If it had not
          been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up
          against us: Then they had swallowed us up quick, when
          their wrath was kindled against use Then the waters had
          overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul: Then
          the proud waters had gone over our soul. Blessed be the
          Lord, who hath not given us a prey to their teeth. Our
          soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the
          fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped. Our
          help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and
          earth."

          God wants us to be bad-news-proof! "He shall not be
          afraid of evil tidings [bad news]: his heart is fixed,
          trusting in the Lord. His heart is established, he
          shall not be afraid" (Psalm 112:7-8).

          "When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid... thy
          sleep shall be sweet. Be not afraid of sudden fear,
          neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it
          cometh. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall
          keep thy foot from being taken (Proverbs 3:24-26).

          Trust God with all your heart. To have freedom from
          fear and worry is to rest confidently in the Lord of
          Hosts. Rest in the very One who created you!

          ---
          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
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          on its web page. You are free to download, copy, print
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          link this site to reference these messages.

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