                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

                                 Violence!

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By David Wilkerson
September 5, 1994
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          When you hear the word "violence," what comes to mind?
          You probably think of the incredible things you hear on
          the radio or see in the newspapers:

             * Do you think of the motorists on Florida and
               California freeways who are randomly shot by
               hidden snipers? Perhaps you think of the innocent
               people in cities who no longer sit by their
               apartment windows because of drive-by shootings
               that have no motive. In some small Texas towns, it
               isn't even safe to drive through!

             * Do you think of the 25 million babies slaughtered
               in their mothers' wombs by abortion fiends? Maybe
               you think of the daily news reports of murder,
               rape, sodomy, stabbings, robberies. Yet it all has
               become so common, we are no longer moved.

             * Do you think of the unknown, four-year-old
               Brooklyn girl who was suffocated and found stuffed
               into a suitcase in an abandoned building? A local
               priest had to take up an offering to bury her,
               because there was no one else to care.

             * Do you think of the man on the Upper West Side of
               Manhattan, who took a five-year-old girl behind a
               fence and raped her? Several cars stopped on the
               expressway nearby -- and the drivers cheered the
               rapist on!

             * Do you think of New York City's schools, where
               children fear going to class because wild,
               drug-pushing students carry guns and switchblades?
               Most of the schools now have metal detectors at
               their entrances, and policemen patrol the
               hallways. Teachers are frequently beaten and
               stabbed. Worse yet, perverted teachers molest
               trusting, helpless students.

             * Do you think of the twenty-one-year-old Bronx man
               who was so stoned on crack he killed his
               six-month-old baby? He couldn't stand her crying
               any longer. So he carried her into the kitchen,
               took out a butcher knife and cut her into pieces!
               Then he fed her body parts to his two hungry
               rottweiler dogs -- and went back to sleep!

             * Do you think of the 500,000 Rwandans who have been
               brutally murdered by machete-wielding tribesmen?
               "Life" magazine recently showed pictures of
               thousands of the dead bodies. Some were stacked in
               piles six and eight feet high. Others floated by
               the hundreds down rivers and over waterfalls.

             * Do you think of the bloody ethnic wars now raging
               worldwide? Thousands have been murdered in former
               Yugoslavia. Bloodshed continues in Ireland.
               Newspapers and magazines are filled daily with
               pictures of mutilated bodies, slaughtered
               children, war casualties strewn across open fields
               and in city squares.

          Everything I have mentioned here is a form of violence.
          And our senses have become so overloaded with such
          images, we now try to shut them all out. We hate to
          even pick up a newspaper anymore!

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                        What Forms of Violence Were
                        There in Noah's Day, That So
                         Riled the Anger of God He
                         Finally Cried "Enough!"?

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

          Genesis tells us that the more man multiplied on the
          earth, the more violent he became:

          "Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God, and the
          earth was filled with violence. And God looked on the
          earth, and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had
          corrupted their way upon the earth" (Genesis 6:11-12,
          NAS).

          So God said,

          "The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth
          is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I
          will destroy them with the earth" (verse 13, KJV).

          God determined to destroy the earth because all of
          mankind had become violent! He instructed His prophet
          Noah to build an ark, so he could escape the coming
          wrath.

          Think about it: With all the violence I've mentioned --
          all the horrible things we've seen -- God still hasn't
          done to our generation what He did to Noah's! I wonder
          what kind of violence went on in Noah's generation that
          caused God to say, "I can't take any more of this. I'm
          sorry I created man!"

          Did everyone carry a sword? Was it like Sodom, where
          roving gangs of homosexuals raped strangers? Was it a
          time of bloody wars and ethnic tensions? There may have
          been some of these forms of violence. But there had to
          be others besides murder, bloodshed and perversion. You
          see, Scripture says that in these same violent days,
          the people

          "...were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in
          marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark"
          (Matthew 24:38, KJV).

          It was safe to go into the streets. People were buying
          and selling in the markets. Couples were getting
          engaged and having weddings. They were building houses,
          raising families. There isn't any mention of bloodshed.
          Yet the Bible says these were violent people!

          Contrast that scene with our present day. Can you
          imagine what would have happened if Noah had tried to
          build the ark in some abandoned area in New York City?
          Do you know how long that work would have lasted?

          Within an hour there would've been camel races down
          42nd Street! The wire fences protecting the ark
          would've been cut. Noah's tools would've been stolen.
          Teenage gangs would've drilled holes in the ark's hull.
          The expensive gopher wood would've been taken apart by
          sections and hauled off. Pickup trucks would've been
          backing in and out all night long. And by daybreak all
          those exotic animals would have been hidden in
          apartments across the city!

          Think about it for a moment: In Noah's day, there was
          no sign of robbers, thieves or pranksters trying to
          burn down the ark. No one plundered his livestock or
          stole his hay. No one painted graffiti on the sides of
          the ark. Instead, Scripture says, for 120 years he
          walked to and fro, safely collecting his animals. He
          could eat, preach and go to weddings and never be in
          any danger.

          No, there was something else going on in Noah's day.
          This society was so orderly, people could go on with
          their ordinary lives without any trouble. There had to
          be a different form of violence -- a kind engaged in by
          ordinary people who went about their daily affairs!

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                          The Form of Violence in
                          Noah's Day That Enraged
                         God Was Mental Violence!

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

          "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in
          the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts
          of his heart was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5).

          There it is -- mental violence! Every imagination of
          the people's minds was corrupted! As any drug addict
          can tell you, the habit is in the mind. And there was
          something going on in the minds of the whole corrupted
          society of Noah's day!

          The Hebrew word for "violence" means "vicious dealings,
          mistreatment, wrongful imaginings, cruelty." All the
          bloodshed, murders, rapes, etc. that took place in that
          day were the fruit of a root of violence in the
          people's hearts and minds! The whole society -- every
          man, woman and accountable person -- was gripped by
          mental forms of violence!

          God blames all violence on the thoughts and intents of
          the heart: "Yea, in heart ye work wickedness; ye weigh
          the violence of your hands in the earth" (Psalm 58:2).
          And what God saw going on in the people's minds of
          Noah's day was so grievous to Him,

          "...it repented the Lord that he had made man on the
          earth, and it grieved him at his heart" (Genesis 6:6).

          In the framework of God's definition of violence -- the
          kind that possesses and rules the heart -- many reading
          this message right now could be violent people! That's
          right -- many Christians are guilty of the kind of
          violence for which God destroyed the world!

          You may answer, "But I've never hurt anybody! I've
          never even entertained a thought of harming anyone. I'm
          a gentle, peace-loving person. I may have problems, but
          violence isn't one of them!"

          That all may be true of you. But you still may be a
          mentally violent person! I want to show you in God's
          Word what mental violence is all about. And I hope
          you'll understand why God so hates this kind of
          violence:

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                       1. First, There Is the Mental
                      Violence of "Bearing a Grudge"!

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

          It is absolute hatred in the sight of God for you to
          hold a grudge against anyone. This includes thinking
          ill, voicing it or in any way causing anguish to the
          one you despise.

          In Psalm 55:9, David says, "Confuse, O Lord, divide
          their tongues, for I have seen violence and strife in
          the city" (NAS). David then describes the violence he
          was victimized by: "...the voice of the enemy... the
          pressure of the wicked... they bring down trouble upon
          me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me" (verse
          3). The King James translates this last phrase, "...in
          wrath they hate me."

          A grudge is any envy or ill-will toward another. Now,
          David was blessed on all sides -- financially,
          physically and spiritually. And that caused envy all
          around! The envy was so strong, in fact, that the
          grudging became extreme.

          David said,

          "My heart is sore pained within me: and terrors of
          death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are
          come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me" (verses
          4-5, KJV).

          Please note: There was no knife piercing David's back.
          No gang of thugs was trying to rob him, kill him or cut
          him down. Yet he trembled, shuddered with horror, shook
          from head to toe. Why? Because his brother bore a
          hateful grudge against him!

          To make matters worse, this wasn't an enemy of David's
          -- it was a friend! "...a man my equal, my companion
          and my familiar friend" (verse 13, NAS). David said,
          "This is someone who knows me, who has seen the hand of
          God on me. And yet he holds a grudge against me!"

          The kind of murder David describes here is "mental
          murder." It's the kind that occurs between a husband
          and a wife, between you and your coworkers. It is a
          terrible cause of family strife -- children holding
          grudges against parents, parents not forgiving
          children. This kind of ill-will builds up inside and
          eats away at you, until finally it takes over your life
          completely.

          Beloved, if this describes you, then you are a
          murderer!

          "Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you
          know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him"
          (1 John 3:15).

          When you stand before the Judgment Seat, God will judge
          you equally with every killer and murderer on earth.
          According to His Word, murder is murder!

          We all get angry at the murderers who roam our streets
          and kill randomly. We think, "God cannot put up with
          this much longer!" But the Lord focuses more on what is
          going on in the hearts of multiplied millions --
          including many Christians who carry murder in their
          hearts every day!

          The Bible is clear on this matter: You can attend
          church faithfully, pay tithes and be nice to everyone.
          You can abstain from drugs, alcohol and promiscuous
          sex. But do you have a mother or father you can't
          forgive? Is there someone who has done a terrible wrong
          to you -- but you have never forgiven that person? If
          you bear a hateful grudge against anyone, you are a
          murderer in God's eyes! And you have no chance
          whatsoever of heaven!

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

                       2. There Is a Form of Violence
                       the Bible Calls "Enticement"!

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

          "A man of violence entices his neighbor, and leads him
          in a way that is not good" (Proverbs 16:29).

          The word "entice" here means "to induce or seduce
          another into an act of evil." God says you are a
          violent person if you entice or allure someone to do
          evil!

          I wonder how many husbands believed Noah's message of
          coming judgment? Perhaps there was one who recognized
          the truth. His heart was warmed -- and he was almost
          persuaded by Noah's preaching. But then he went home to
          a Jezebel wife -- and she mocked him and dragged him
          into sin to shake off his conviction!

          How many wives heard Noah preach righteousness and were
          almost convinced? Perhaps Noah prayed with one. But a
          pleasure-mad husband made the woman's life miserable,
          threatening to kick her out! "Next time you go to hear
          that crank preacher, it's out the door for you!"

          I once knew a burned-out junkie named Roberto. He was
          one of the worst drug addicts in Brooklyn. He would
          rob, steal, even kill for drugs. He had a wife and a
          beautiful baby daughter, but he abused them terribly.

          Roberto's wife begged me to take him to our center for
          help. I did - - and God transformed him! Roberto became
          a new man: gentle, sweet and full of love for Jesus. He
          left our Teen Challenge farm longing to put his family
          back together.

          But Roberto's wife was not a Christian. And she didn't
          like her new- born husband! She loved to party, but
          Roberto wouldn't go with her anymore. Instead, he
          prayed and read his Bible. He was sweet and tender
          toward her -- but she couldn't stand that!

          Finally, she went out one day, bought two bags of
          heroin and flung them down on the kitchen table. She
          told Roberto, "Get high, or get lost!" She seduced her
          husband back to the needle. And not long after that,
          Roberto died of an overdose. That wife was a violent
          woman -- as violent as any killer loose on the streets
          today!

          According to Proverbs, a violent person is one who
          "leads others astray, into a way that is not good." I
          tell you, the next time you see a woman walking down
          the street half-dressed -- showing off her body,
          strutting before men -- call it what God calls it:
          violence! She is leading men to hell, even if they
          never touch her!

          Jesus says:

          "...everyone who looks on a woman to lust for her has
          committed adultery with her already in his heart"
          (Matthew 5:28).

          And the apostle Paul adds:

          "...Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor
          idolaters, nor adulterers...shall inherit the kingdom
          of God" (1 Corinthians 6:9- 10).

          Here is a warning to all Christian women: When you
          dress to go out, don't let it be an act of violence!
          Instead, pray: "I know I walk among angels, Lord. And I
          don't want anything to draw attention to my bare flesh.
          I only want to bring glory to You!" God help any
          Christian woman who walks out the door dressed
          seductively. She must answer for every man whom she
          causes to commit adultery with his eyes!

          The worst violence ever to come against Israel happened
          without a single drop of blood being shed. Not one
          arrow was shot; not one Israelite was murdered or
          robbed. Instead, the Midianites used their women to
          seduce Israel's men! They put all their pretty women
          outside the camp to attract the Israelites!

          Sure enough, curious Israelite men slipped out to watch
          these scantily clad, idol-worshiping dancers. And
          fornication broke out everywhere! Seducing women led
          those men astray -- and Israel was brought to shame at
          the hands of the Midianites. The Bible says God saw
          this as such violence, He destroyed many of those
          Midianite women with a plague!

          Of course, not all seducers are women. There are just
          as many violent men running about, leading women
          astray! These lying men will say anything to work their
          way into a lonely woman's good graces. And after they
          have made their "conquest," they boast about it!

          Such men are like Amnon, David's son. Amnon was
          "lovesick" for his half-sister Tamar. He couldn't eat
          or sleep because of his lust over her. Finally, he
          persuaded a friend to tell her he was sick, so she
          would come and care for him. When Tamar came to his
          room, Amnon forced himself on her. And when he had made
          his conquest, his devilish heart was exposed:

          "Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred
          wherewith he hated her was greater than the love
          wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her,
          Arise, be gone" (2 Samuel 13:15, KJV).

          He had Tamar physically thrown out of his house!

          There are men today who tell Christian women, "You're
          the only one! We really have something spiritual
          together. We are soul mates. This is of God!" But they
          also say this to a dozen others! They want to be known
          as the most spiritual men in the church -- all because
          they want a woman's body!

          Could this be what God saw in Noah's time? Were the
          people playing roles in seductive games, with no
          commitment to marriage vows? Were neighbors defiling
          one another, spreading diseases, justifying their own
          lust at the expense of others? It is all violence!

          "And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in
          the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts
          of his heart was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5).

          If you are a Christian woman asking God to give you a
          mate, you'd better spend a lot of time on your knees,
          seeking Him! Don't judge a man by his outward
          appearance; ask God to show you what kind of heart he
          has. The Lord will expose any devil!

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

                     3. The Very Worst Kind of Violence
                     -- the Kind That Offends God Most
                    Deeply -- Is Found in Matthew 18:6!

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

          "But whoever causes one of these little ones who
          believe in Me to stumble, it is better for him that a
          heavy millstone be hung around his neck, and that he be
          drowned in the depth of the sea" (Matthew 18:6, NAS).

          You've heard that the Mafia rubs out an enemy by tying
          bundles of concrete to his feet and throwing him into a
          river. Beloved, Jesus is saying this is exactly what is
          deserved by those who rob children of their faith in
          Christ!

          What did Jesus see taking place in Noah's day? He saw
          hundreds of innocent children who loved the bearded old
          preacher! They loved playing with his animals -- and
          they loved what he preached. These kids must have asked
          their parents why no one obeyed what Noah said. But
          their parents mocked Noah! They said, "Don't go near
          that old man again!"

          How many children in Noah's day were robbed of any
          chance of being saved? Their parents chipped away at
          their faith with ridicule, shame, snide remarks.
          Eventually, those children's hearts were hardened as
          well -- until they stood by as teenagers and laughed at
          the old man and his ark!

          Those young people were drowned along with the rest of
          the world. And if you do violence to the faith of
          children, God is prepared to drown you in the deepest
          sea! That is His way of expressing His anger against
          all who cast stumbling blocks to destroy the faith of
          the young.

          When we talk about the violence in schools, we think of
          guns, knives, fights, gangs. But a much greater
          violence is taking place in our classrooms: Teachers
          are now one of the most violent, destructive forces in
          the world! They rob children of their faith in God --
          of the Creation story, of the gospel, of morals, of
          absolutes. This is violence in the sight of God!

          It is no wonder kids now kill without remorse. They
          kill for sneakers; they kill their parents. Why? They
          have been violated -- robbed of everything meant to
          guide them! Their moral compass has been smashed in the
          classroom!

          Too often, a child's worst danger of violence is in the
          home -- perpetrated by his own parents! There is a
          tidal wave of incest, child abuse, broken homes.
          Children are being neglected, abandoned, wounded,
          emasculated.

          But God is concerned with an even more insidious form
          of violence toward children. The real violence -- the
          real stumbling block -- is a father who has neglected
          the call of God! He swears, curses, takes God's name in
          vain. He mistreats his wife, drinks, carouses -- and
          leads a devil's example for his children! This is not
          only abuse of his children -- it is violence against
          them!

          You may say, "I don't hit women! I've never lifted my
          hand against my kids. I'm not violent!" But your total
          neglect of God -- your neglect of His church, your lack
          of spiritual help to your family -- constitutes vicious
          violence!

          I see mothers who sit around smoking, drinking, telling
          dirty stories -- and then try to lecture their teenage
          kids about drugs! Mothers ought to raise their children
          in the fear and love of God. But too many women today
          are strangers to God. They are spiritually dead --
          nothing more than caretakers for hell-bound children!
          God says of such parents, "It's best for these kind to
          be drowned in the sea!"

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

                         What Was It Like for Noah
                        to Preach for 120 Years and
                        Not Have a Single Convert?

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

          Nobody came to Noah's church. But at least God knew
          where the people stood: They were as hard as stones!
          Yet the Lord is saying to us today,

          "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold
          nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth" (Revelation
          3:16, KJV).

          Consider our day: Millions are confessing Jesus as
          Lord, in the United States and all over the world. It
          has almost become popular to say, "I'm a born-again
          believer!" Yet, what did Jesus say about this last
          generation?

          "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we
          not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast
          out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
          And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you:
          depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Matthew 7:23).

          Noah's entire generation refused his preaching. And God
          said of them, "Their hearts are hard, their minds
          corrupted." But look at our generation: Millions are
          saying, "Lord, Lord!" and have a form of godliness --
          yet they have no power in their lives! They possess no
          moral force, no power for the gospel. And they are
          going to be shocked at the Judgment when Jesus says to
          them, "I never knew you!"

          Beloved, this message is not about the increase of
          crime in the city. It is not about whether you drink,
          smoke, use drugs or fight with your neighbor. It is not
          about murder, rape, incest or any other kind of outward
          depravity. Rather, it is about violence against the
          truth! It is about the violence in people's hearts
          against Jesus Christ and His Cross!

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

                              Violent Faith!

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

          Yet there is another, different kind of violence taking
          place in this last day. Indeed, I see a godly people
          being raised up who have a violent faith! These are a
          holy remnant -- full of Jesus, loving Him with all
          their hearts. And these believers see a mad devil
          coming at them with everything in his power. They know
          they have more of hell to face than any other
          generation!

          Jesus said:

          "...until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence,
          and the violent take it by force" (Matthew 11:12).

          This remnant is going to rise up with a holy violence
          and say, "I'm not going to let the devil steal my joy
          and peace! I won't let him plant seeds of grudges,
          murder, hatred or violence in me. No -- I'm going to
          rise up in Jesus' power and live victoriously above
          this demonic filth!"

          Dear saint, God wants to put a fight in you! If you
          have been guilty of any of these forms of violence,
          quickly repent before the Lord and obey His Word.
          That's all He asks. And may God put a holy zeal and
          faith in you beyond anything you've ever known. He
          wants you to be able to stand against Satan's wicked
          devices!

          The only spirit of violence we are going to have is a
          violent faith. It will be a strong, holy violence that
          comes full force against the gates of hell and the
          strongholds of the enemy. And, by the power of God, we
          will bring them all down in Jesus' name!

          Hallelujah!

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

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