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                  It's Not Enough to Get Out of Babylon!

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By David Wilkerson
January 7, 1991
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          After seventy years of captivity, the Jewish people
          heard the prophet's cry. "Go ye forth of Babylon, flee
          ye" (Isaiah 48:20).

          Jeremiah came forth preaching, "In those days, and in
          that time... the children of Israel shall come, they
          and the children of Judah together, going and weeping:
          they shall go, and seek the Lord their God. They shall
          ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward...
          remove out of the midst of Babylon" (Jeremiah
          50:4-5,8). "Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and
          deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her
          iniquity" (Jeremiah 51:6).

          Only 42,000 men and their dependents got out of
          Babylon. They returned to Jerusalem with weeping and
          great supplication. There, they repaired the altar and
          instituted the daily sacrifices.

          Here is a picture of a people who removed themselves
          completely from the corruption and idolatry of the
          world! They returned to the Lord with all their hearts,
          separating themselves to God. These people represent
          today's righteous, holy remnant who have come out of
          dead religiosity and everything that once hindered
          their spiritual growth.

          Yet God's goal for the Israelites as well as for us
          today - has never been just separation from the world.
          You may have come out of a dead, Babylonian church
          system, something that brought death to your soul.
          Perhaps you once lived a double life - your mind
          corrupted and your growth in the Lord hindered. But
          then you heard a call!

          God was stirring you. You longed to be among Christians
          of like precious calling - and God brought you out! Now
          you can say, "I believe I'm growing, because I have a
          heart for God. I've been separated from the world!"

          Yet it's not enough to say, as the Jews did in Israel,
          "We have arrived! This is the Lord's ultimate goal for
          us. We're separated from sin; we've come out of
          Babylon. We're now given wholly unto God!"

          You see, as they were saying this, Gods testimony lay
          in ruin. The temple represented the Lord's testimony on
          earth. When all things were ordered according to God's
          plan and purpose, the temple was blessed with God's
          presence. People such as the Queen of Sheba came and
          watched Solomon go to the temple. Just the experience
          of it took her breath away! Such people had great
          reverence and awe for the God of Israel!

          But sin caused God's presence to leave the temple.
          Whenever sin came in, the glory would depart and the
          temple would fall into decay!

          When God told Israel to come out of Babylon, He didn't
          just want them to flee that corrupted city and society.
          He called them to go to Jerusalem to raise up a
          testimony - to restore and build His house! That was
          their first calling: "Go to Jerusalem and build My
          house! Take My interest upon you first!"

          God had stirred the hearts of the ministers and
          leaders, Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the
          prince. They went to work with great vigor - but when
          opposition set in, they began to lose heart. For
          sixteen years the temple stood ignored. And a thousand
          excuses came to their minds as to why they couldn't
          continue God's work.

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                     The Story of Haggai Is Vital to Us
                     - Because The Lord Has Stirred Us
                      and Spoken to Us The Same Words:
                "Get Out of Babylon - and Build My House!"

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          God has given us a burden for the homeless, the poor
          and the needy. He doesn't want us just to sit here and
          eat our morsel alone. He's telling us to put His house
          and His interests first!

          He's saying, "I didn't call you just to be separated,
          just to be holy, just to praise Me. Yes, those things
          are good. But I called you out of Babylon for a greater
          purpose. I want to prepare you - to use you to raise up
          My testimony!"

          Beloved, there's a testimony lying in total ruin. I ask
          you: What has the church shown the world of Jesus
          Christ in the past fifteen years? A Christ of riches,
          of prosperity, of begging and pleading to support men's
          dreams and empires!

          Yet all the while, the true testimony of Christ lies
          waste! And God is calling a people in these times to
          rebuild the true testimony of who Christ is! He is the
          One who hears the heart-cry of the poor. He's a loving
          Christ who cares. He reaches down to help the needy,
          the homeless!

          In Revelation 18:2-4 John cries out, "Babylon the great
          is fallen.... Come out of her, my people, that ye be
          not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of
          her plagues."

          I've been preaching that same message for twelve years!
          Babylon represents a backslidden, wicked society, in
          collusion with an apostate, backslidden church! For us,
          Babylon represents a life of spiritual indifference,
          sloth and worldly compromise - a religion empty of God
          and His holiness!

          Right now there is a growing remnant of holy, separated
          Christians whose hearts have been stirred. This a
          sovereign work of God! These believers could no longer
          put up with the wickedness and compromise in their
          church. They heard the Holy Spirit calling them to a
          life of holiness and separation from the world!

          Now they have come out of Babylon, out of the deadness
          and corruption of apostasy. They no longer bow to the
          idols of this age. They are a holy people, truly
          separated - a people hungry to go deeper in the Lord.

          But just getting out of Babylon is not enough! It is
          not enough to say, "God has cleansed me and I've left
          my old ways behind! I've truly changed! I'm out of that
          old Babylonian, religious graveyard!"

          God is trying to say something more to us. And I
          believe this is where the "faith and prosperity gospel"
          got off track.

          You see, that particular gospel started out with some
          very pious, godly men. They were God-hungry, stirred,
          believing there was more to serving God than what
          they'd seen in the dead, religious system around them.
          They began to see that God wanted to bless His people,
          to put resources in their hands for a purpose. And,
          like Israel, these people stepped out of Babylon and
          discovered that God blesses those who truly trust Him.

          We see this in the Old Testament. God promised to bless
          the Jews who set their hearts toward Jerusalem. But He
          provided all those blessings with the intention that
          the people would build His house first - to restore a
          testimony that had been ruined!

          Today we are to use God-given resources to feed the
          poor, to clothe the naked, to house and maintain the
          widows and to rescue the fatherless and homeless.
          That's why God wants to pour out His blessings on us -
          so we can give them away! God's people have always
          prayed, "Oh God, bless me so I can bless the needy!
          Prosper me so I'll have more to give to Your works"
          This appears in the literature of all prosperity
          teachers as well: "God wants to enrich you so you will
          have more to give to the Lords cause."

          But there's something awry in human nature. Once we get
          our hands on resources, we immediately begin to set
          goals for ourselves instead of giving those blessings
          away. This is what has happened with the prosperity
          gospel in this last hour.

          I believe God was trying to raise up a testimony. He
          wanted a church that, through His Son, Jesus, would
          stand in the darkest days to come - a church that would
          believe God for resources and for an anointing. God
          wanted a people He could trust! People who wouldn't
          spend money on themselves, but who would give it out-
          so that others in the last days would see a Christ who
          could do what no government could do!

          But what happened? Instead of reaching out to the poor
          and needy. Christians who have been blessed financially
          spend their resources on themselves. They shop 'til
          they drop!

          Few have put the Lord's heart first in their giving.
          They give when its convenient, or out of guilt. Instead
          of living by faith and giving away what God has given
          them, they buy more and more for themselves and give
          only what's left over.

          Yes, it is good to say, "Lord, bless me so I can bless
          others!" But outside of those with hearts broken before
          the Lord, Gods people never follow through!

          That happened with Israel. Eventually, the people
          stopped building Gods house. For sixteen years they
          said, "The time is not come, the time that the Lord's
          house should be built" (Haggai 1:2), They had only laid
          the foundation - and they found hundreds of excuses why
          they could not do what God had called them to do!

          The task was too expensive, and the economy was
          weakening. They said, "The time is not right. We'll
          wait until conditions improve." But the future looked
          bleak. Crops were failing, businesses were going under,
          wage earners were losing money as fast as they made it:
          "He that earned wages earneth wages to put it into a
          bag with holes" (Haggai 1:6)

          It's clear that they wanted to build God's house. They
          saw it as a true vision from God. But they said it was
          not the appropriate time: "We hardly have enough for
          our own families. How can we undertake this huge
          project when most can't even make ends meet? Even
          Solomon burdened the people in taking on so much."

          So not another stone was laid for sixteen years. Yet in
          that period the people found all the money, time and
          resources they needed to build their own houses and to
          secure their own interests!

          They built fine homes, expensive furnishings, cedar
          wainscoting, carved ceilings! They did not forsake the
          altar nor the sacrifices - but they preoccupied
          themselves with their own family's needs: "Surely God
          expects me to care for my family. He's a good God, and
          we love Him. As soon as we get our needs met, we'll go
          all out for God!"

          Finally the Lord said, "Is it time for you, O ye, to
          dwell in your ceiled [paneled] houses, and this house
          lie waste" (Haggai 1:4).

          In other words, "For sixteen years you've said, 'It's
          not time for God's house to be built, it's not time for
          His interests yet you went out and got whatever YOU
          wanted. Is it not time now to step out by faith and do
          what I commanded you? Yet you go home to your lovely
          houses with fine furniture and you say, 'God
          understands.' You go out and eat what you want, do what
          you want buy what you want but when you consider the
          needs of the poor, you say, It's too costly, too
          expensive!'"

          Haggai said to the people, "I want to show you what
          happens when you put off obeying the command of God!"

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                            The Right Time to Do
                             What God Tells You
                           Is The Moment He Sends
                             His Prophetic Word
                           And Stirs Your Heart!

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          God's commands are to be obeyed as soon as they are
          revealed! No delays, no excuses, no putting them off
          while we pursue our own interests.

          Something sovereign happens to those who procrastinate
          in doing what God commands. While they're saying, "It's
          not the right time; I've got too many irons in the
          fire," God calls down a drought on them!

          "Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and
          when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith
          the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste,
          and ye run every man unto his own house. Therefore the
          heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is
          stayed from her fruit" (Haggai 1:9-10).

          Haggai was explaining why these people were so dry,
          empty and bored! The people could not understand the
          strange experience that was common among them: They
          were never satisfied! They had a deep, unquenched inner
          thirst. The more money they spent, the more things they
          needed - and the unhappier they became!

          When we don't obey God, He blows on our blessings and
          withers them. An inner withering takes place!

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                         This Divine Restlessness,
                          This Deep Inner Drought,
                          Is God's Loving Judgment
                       to Keep Us From Being Overcome
                       By a Consuming Self-Interest!

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          I have experienced this kind of caring judgment - to do
          so much for God and yet feel so much is unfinished. To
          work so hard and yet feel like I haven't gotten
          anywhere.

          It's an unexplainable sense of doing much but
          accomplishing little, of restlessness of soul. It is to
          love God, yet sense that you haven't touched something
          He wants. It's to know there's something you've missed!

          Am I explaining something that's happening in your life
          right now? Maybe you're serving God, but you're not
          totally fulfilled and satisfied in your Christian walk.
          You have a spiritual dryness, a deadness inside, while
          everyone around you is moving ahead in the Lord. God
          maybe saying to you "I caused the drought"

          Beloved, this is not God's wrath. It is His love
          bringing it upon us! You see, God calls for the drought
          to show us the futility and emptiness of all that
          caters to self and flesh! It is God's loving hand at
          work: "I will not let you get swallowed up in
          selfishness, so I'm sending a drought - to save you!"

          The people of Israel believed both the messenger and
          His message! They laid aside all their own thoughts,
          all their own messages. They did not say, "I, too, hear
          from God - and I know it's not time to build yet!" No!
          They allowed God's Word to touch their hearts (Haggai
          1:14). They were stirred!

          You see, Haggai wasn't condemning them for having fine
          houses or for being blessed. Those were by-products of
          walking in covenant with God. God does want to bless
          His people!

          But the prophet was calling the people back to a proper
          balance! The people responded by laying aside their own
          thoughts. And in just twenty three days they advanced
          from a stirring to a doing!

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                            God Moves In Quickly
                          When His People Get Busy
                              Obeying His Word
                          and Building His House!

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          The very hour the people decided to do what God
          commanded, the Lord opened up the storehouses of heaven
          and earth! God sent Haggai back with this message: "The
          silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of
          hosts" (Haggai 2:8). He was saying, "Never again look
          at the economy. Never again be afraid because the
          future looks bleak. It's all mine. I will supply all
          you need!"

          New York City will run out of money! The banks are
          going under! The state and federal governments are
          collapsing - but God is as wealthy as ever and His
          storehouse never diminishes! And He wants to give His
          resources to His people - not to spend on themselves,
          but to establish His testimony!

          You can do the Lord's work with confidence, "for I am
          with you saith the Lord of hosts" (Haggai 2:4)
          "According to the word that I covenanted with you when
          ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you:
          fear ye not. For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet
          once, it is a little while, and I will shake the
          heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land"
          (2:6-7).

          The rebuilding was a very big and expensive
          undertaking, and the Israelites had almost nothing to
          work with! Yet God said, Because you decided to step
          out in faith - because you have a heart to build My
          house and raise up My testimony - I am going to shake
          heaven and earth! Don't look at the economy or the
          future. Keep your eyes on Me, and get to work! I am
          with you - and that's all you need to know!"

          Jesus said, "Give, and it shall be given unto you, good
          measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running
          over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same
          measure that ye mete withal [measure] it shall be
          measured to you again" (Luke 6:38).

          At this point the local governor had not sold the
          Israelites any products. They had been hemmed in on all
          sides. And for sixteen years, they were hindered in the
          work.

          The people asked themselves, "How are we going to get
          all the lumber? Our neighbors won't even say hello to
          us. They're cursing us!

          Yet nevertheless, the Israelites committed to the work.
          That's all God needs - a willing people ready to work!

          With the people's commitment made solely on faith, God
          decided to bless them beyond all they could imagine.
          Suddenly, with the stroke of a pen, God provided for
          every need to be met!

          He knew they would follow through! Now they were
          getting excited about doing His work. And before the
          first stone was laid, God began to pour out His
          blessings! (Haggai 2:13-19).

          God said "Consider now from this day upward" - meaning,
          "Take notice! Mark it on your calendar! Before now, you
          did your own thing, you built for yourself. But now
          things will change. No more boredom, No more feeling of
          accomplishing nothing! You're just beginning!

          "From now on I will water your soul with great joy,
          peace, a sense of total fulfillment. I'm going to give
          you My strength and life! I'm going to make this a city
          of peace!"

          Here is why this prophecy of Haggai has so chastened me
          personally. God has stirred our hearts to step out in
          faith and to raise up a testimony of the love and care
          of Jesus for the poor, needy and destitute in this
          city. We have been challenged to build a house of
          compassion!

          The job seems overwhelming. There are some 90,000
          homeless people in New York City alone, and the numbers
          are growing. Even some of our congregation could be put
          out of their homes if they lost their jobs. The economy
          is collapsing and the future is scary! Trying to work
          with city agencies is like getting lost in a jungle. I
          know without a doubt that the Lord has blessed us by
          putting us in a place to do what He commands. And I
          know that if we do not act - and act now - a spiritual
          drought will be called down upon us.

          God will blow on our blessings and smite us "with
          blasting and with mildew" (Haggai 2:17). He'll cause us
          to become self-centered, complaining, unhappy
          Christians getting poorer by the day.

          Yet even though God assured me of His provision, I
          became afraid recently when I read an article in The
          New York Times, entitled, "The Depression is Here."

          A bankruptcy lawyer was saying that the real estate
          market will collapse in about nine months - that you
          shouldn't buy property now, because in a year it will
          be available for a fraction of the current cost.

          Immediately upon seeing that, I thought, "It's not time
          to move ahead with a home for widows and unwed mothers,
          or one for homeless men and addicts. Next year it will
          be cheaper!" I called one of our board members. I said
          to him, "Maybe we ought to wait..."

          Thank God for the boldness of that dear brother. The
          economy didn't faze him. He said, "Pastor, all that
          matters is whether or not God says this is the place
          and now is the time. We will do it, depression or no
          depression. God will see us through."

          If that little spanking wasn't enough, I got all I
          needed when I went to prayer. The Holy Spirit told me
          to read Haggai - and what a chastening I got!

          We had just ordered some new drapes for my study and
          had the walls painted and papered. While I sat in that
          room: reading the words of God's prophet, I got
          convicted! I couldn't wait for Monday to get back to
          the office and get to work on God's house!

          Not long ago a social worker said that "compassion
          fatigue" has hit New York. People are growing tired of
          seeing homeless beggars wherever they go, and they are
          distancing themselves emotionally from those suffering
          all around them.

          Beloved, may that never happen to us! It dare not
          happen to the church of Jesus Christ! Because Christ
          always brings new life to those who suffer. He's the
          rain that waters the garden and satisfies the drought,
          the spring that doesn't fail (Isaiah 58:11). Everything
          He touches springs to life!

          If we don't reach out with that precious life, do you
          know what's going to happen? The very thing that
          happened to the people Haggai spoke these words to!
          Your interests will turn inward rather than outward.
          Everything you do will be a sham!

          But God's not going to let that happen. He's saying,
          "I'm going to send My glory down on you! I'm going to
          give you all my resources and all you have to do is
          make the commitment and stick to it!"

          There is one final application to Haggai's prophecy. It
          is directed to those who have said, "This is not the
          time to give my all to Jesus. It will be some other
          time! I really mean to do it - some day!"

          You are harboring some self-interest that you think God
          will take from you. You say, "Later, when I make it,
          when I prove myself - then I'll give my all to Jesus!"

          No - believe me, you won't! God may be calling you for
          the last time. His grace will always be available, but
          your heart will be too hard to respond! Today is the
          day! "Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your
          hearts, as in the provocation" (Hebrews 3:15). Don't
          wait another moment - to say yes to Jesus!

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

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