                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

               Stand Still and See the Salvation of the Lord!

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By David Wilkerson
June 9, 1997
__________

          The three most common words heard among Christians in
          times of crisis are: "Lord, do something!" It is
          totally against our nature as human beings to stand
          still and do nothing when we face perplexing trials. In
          fact, waiting patiently for God to act is probably the
          most difficult thing about the Christian walk. Even
          devoted believers panic when the Lord doesn't move
          according to their timetable.

          We constantly give God deadlines and time limits. We
          cry, "Lord, when are you going to do something about
          this? How long will you take? If you don't act now, it
          will be too late!" But God is never too late. He always
          acts -- and not according to our schedule, but his.

          Our God is always searching the earth for a people who
          will trust him in every crisis, trial and hopeless
          situation. Indeed, he often leads us into situations
          that are alarming, critical, difficult, in order to
          test us. He wants to see if we're willing to stand
          still and wait for him to bring supernatural
          deliverance.

          The Bible states very clearly: "The steps of a good man
          are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way"
          (Psalm 37:23). The Hebrew word for "ordered" here means
          "prearranged, step by step, fixed, ordained by God."

          This means it is God, not the devil, who leads us into
          difficult places. We may cry out, "Lord, why are you
          allowing my crisis to continue?" But the truth is, not
          only does he allow our trial, but he does so
          deliberately -- for a purpose. And that is hard for us
          to accept!

          Yet God allows these hard things in our lives in order
          to produce faith in us. He is molding and shaping us
          into godly examples of faith -- to be his testimony to
          a faithless, ungodly age.

          I firmly believe every step we take is ordained by our
          heavenly father. And if that is indeed true, then I
          can't believe God would ever lead me to the brink of a
          difficult situation only to abandon me. He wouldn't
          say, "Okay, David, I've directed you up to this point.
          Now you're on your own!"

          No! God is absolutely faithful to his children, in
          every crisis. And he is always asking us, "Will you be
          one I've been searching for? Will you be one who won't
          panic -- who won't charge me with forsaking, abandoning
          and hurting my children? Will you stand still in your
          crisis, and lean on faith, trusting me to see you
          through?"

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

                            The Bible Is Filled
                           With Examples of Great
                           and Alarming Crises --
                            Deliberately Set Up
                               by the Lord!

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

          The Old Testament lists many times of testing for God's
          people. Perhaps the greatest example of these was the
          crisis at the Red Sea. This trial wasn't instigated by
          the devil or by Pharaoh. It was a crisis completely
          arranged by God -- set up by his very own commands to
          Israel. After all, scripture says, it was God who
          hardened Pharaoh's heart, who caused the Egyptians to
          pursue Israel, and who allowed the Egyptian army to
          overtake them by the sea.

          God had told the people specifically to camp between
          Migdol and Pihahiroth. This location was situated
          between two mountain passes, with the sea bordering a
          third side. The only possible route of escape was back
          into the wilderness -- and that was blocked by
          Pharaoh's approaching army. Now the Israelites were
          horrified at their situation. Their God had led them
          there!

          Let me point out something here: God could have
          prearranged to knock the wheels off the Egyptians'
          chariots at any time. He could have done it in the
          wilderness, stranding the Egyptians and starving them
          to death. But, instead, he waited until they were
          between the walls of the separated sea.

          God also could have sent the supernatural cloud down
          upon the Egyptians' camp to confuse them. Those
          soldiers would have run around in the confusing mist
          for days. But, instead, he chose to send the cloud
          behind the Israelites as protection.

          Or, God could have sent a single angel to slay the
          entire Egyptian army, in the blink of an eye. He could
          have chosen to destroy them at any point.

          But the Lord didn't do any of those things. Instead, he
          squeezed Israel into a tight, alarming situation -- a
          crisis that was impossible to escape by human means!

          I believe the Lord had two purposes in allowing this
          impossible situation for his people:

            1. He was determined to so annihilate Israel's
               enemies, they would never again have to look over
               their shoulders in fear. God was saying, in
               essence, "I'm going to strew your enemies' bodies
               along the shore, so you can see every one of them
               dead. Then you will know I have all power!"

            2. God wanted to provide an opportunity for his
               people to put their lives in his hands -- to stand
               still and trust him to give them direction.

          How do we know God arranged this frightful situation to
          test his people? His own word says so: "Thou shalt
          remember all the ways which the Lord thy God led thee
          these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee,
          and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart,
          whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no"
          (Deuteronomy 8:2).

          This verse spells it out clearly: "...all the ways
          which the Lord...led thee..." It was God who led them
          to the Red Sea -- not the devil!

          But, why did God do this? The same chapter tells us:
          "...that he might humble thee, and that he might prove
          thee, to do thee good at thy latter end" (verse 16).

          God was saying, in essence, "I was after something in
          you. I brought you into these situations so you could
          practice your faith. Only these kinds of circumstances
          could produce true faith in you. Only your absolute
          trust in me could ever get you out!"

          "He humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger..."
          (verse 3). In other words: "I gave you hard places,
          hungering places, thirsting places, places that were
          alarming, terrifying -- to see if you had a trusting
          heart!"

          As the Egyptians quickly approached, there was no place
          for the Israelites to run. The mountains on both sides
          were bare, with no trees or caves to hide among. And
          the sea hemmed them in on the other side. They simply
          had no place to run. It was an impossible situation!

          Scripture says that at this point, "...the children of
          Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians
          marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the
          children of Israel cried out unto the Lord" (Exodus
          14:10).

          Try placing yourself in their situation: Your family is
          gathered around you -- children, grandparents,
          relatives. And suddenly you hear the rumbling of
          chariot wheels, the rattling of sabers, the fierce war
          cry of a murderous, bloodthirsty army. Wouldn't you be
          afraid?

          The truth is, God is patient with us when the awful
          flush of human fear overcomes us in a sudden crisis.
          Our Lord is not a hard taskmaster. And he knew this
          would be a frightening experience for Israel.

          In fact, he would have been pleased with a prayer such
          as, "Lord, we're afraid! Yet we know you have always
          been faithful to deliver us. When we were in Egypt, you
          delivered us from the death angel and from all the
          plagues. And we know you have the power to deliver us
          out of this crisis as well, no matter how bleak it
          looks. Father, we commit our lives into your hands!"

          But was this Israel's cry? No! Scripture says, "They
          said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt,
          hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness?
          Wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us
          forth out of Egypt?...it had been better for us to
          serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the
          wilderness" (verses 11-12).

          They were being sarcastic, almost to the point of
          blasphemy. And they charged God with intent to destroy
          them. This was not the cry of faith!

          Are you facing your own crisis right now? Perhaps you
          carry burdens so heavy, your friends would fall on
          their faces weeping if they knew about them. Yet, the
          fact remains -- you have been led into your very
          difficult situation by the Lord himself. The simple,
          biblical truth is that if you are his -- if he has
          ordered your steps -- then he has put you where you
          are. And he must have a good reason for it. You are
          being tested!

          You may ask, "What am I supposed to do when I'm brought
          into such a crisis? What should I do when everything
          appears hopeless -- when there is no visible escape?
          What happens when I'm overcome with fear because
          everything is coming down all around me -- and I have
          nowhere to turn, no answers for my problem, no one to
          tell me how to get out of my trouble?"

          Here is how God answered Israel, when they faced their
          crisis: "...Fear ye not, stand still, and see the
          salvation of the Lord...the Lord shall fight for you,
          and ye shall hold your peace" (verses 13-14).

          The Lord was saying to them, "The first matter you must
          deal with is your fear! I will fight for you. And I
          will save and deliver you. Now, let that promise be
          your strength. Let it drive out all your fear!"

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

                           Now Let Me Apply This
                           to the New Covenant!

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

          First, I want to talk about bondage to sin -- that is,
          your battle with the flesh. Under the New Covenant, God
          will allow situations to show us how helpless we are --
          and how wholly dependent we are on him to deliver us
          through faith.

          God will never lead you into temptation. But he will
          allow you to come to your wits' end. If you have a
          besetting sin, that sin is the Pharaoh in your life.
          And his army of lying spirits comes against you
          continually with demonic lies: "You're not going to
          make it. You're going down. You will end up destroyed!"

          You hear the rattling of chains as Satan tries to bind
          you to your habit once more. And you wonder, "Lord, how
          will I ever get up from this? I've gone down so low!"

          What can you do? You know you can't outrun the enemy.
          And you are no match for him in a fight. You are
          helpless against him. So you stand before him,
          cowering, trembling, fearful.

          You may say to yourself, "I'll just go back to my old
          ways. That way, at least I'll be spared from all this
          spiritual warfare. It's too much for me!" But you know
          you can't go back to your old master. If you turn back
          now -- if you desert Christ -- it will cost you your
          life!

          I ask you -- how many Israelites would have been spared
          if they'd returned to Egypt? Not one would have
          survived! They all would have been hewn to pieces. Why?
          The enemy is a bloodthirsty killer, out to destroy us!

          At this point, many Christians become caught in the
          hellish cycle of sin and confess, sin and confess. They
          run to friends, counselors, anyone who will listen to
          them as they weep, cry and pray. Such believers will do
          everything except stand still and trust the Lord to
          bring their deliverance.

          Yet the Old Testament gives us example after example of
          how we have no power in our flesh to fight spiritual
          battles. Our old man is utterly weak and powerless. But
          we have a new man inside us -- and he is to submit his
          life totally to the Lord's hands. The new man
          understands there is no human way out -- that God has
          to do all the fighting for him. We resist the devil not
          in our strength, but by the power of the Holy Spirit,
          which is revealed in us by faith alone.

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

                           I Believe That God, by
                           His Spirit, Saves and
                           Delivers His People by
                       Giving Them Clear Direction!

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

          God speaks to his people by his Spirit. And he makes
          the Spirit's voice clear to us: "Thine ears shall hear
          a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in
          it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to
          the left" (Isaiah 30:21).

          The voice of God's Spirit comes to us primarily through
          the scriptures. He may open up to us a biblical passage
          that will be the key to our deliverance. But before we
          can hear his voice of direction, God requires something
          of us: We are to stand still and wait upon him to act!

          This word is not a suggestion, but a commandment. And
          it is the secret to our total victory and deliverance.
          Indeed, the Lord commanded his people to stand still on
          many occasions.

          For example, in Joshua 3 we read of another crossing
          Israel had to make, at the Jordan River. God instructed
          the people: "...When ye are come to the brink of the
          water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan"
          (Joshua 3:8). Then the Lord added: "...as soon as the
          soles of the feet of the priests...shall rest in the
          waters of Jordan...the waters of Jordan shall be cut
          off...and they shall stand upon an heap" (verse 13).

          God was saying, "When you get to the water, plant your
          feet in it and just stand there. Be still, rest. Don't
          try to figure out what I'm up to. Just wait for me to
          act. I will part the waters for you!"

          The Hebrew word for "stand still" in this passage means
          "stop all activity, cease all striving." Yet, how many
          Israelites obeyed when they came to the Jordan? As they
          stood with their feet in the water, many must have
          thought, "How do we know this is going to work?"

          Some might have been tempted to build some kind of
          pontoon bridge and try to get across on their own
          ingenuity. But that would have been all in vain.

          God did act on that occasion -- he did part the waters.
          And he did it because Israel's act of obedience was
          accompanied by faith. They did what God had told them,
          and they rested in it. God answered their faith!

          On another occasion, Israel's king was commanded to
          stand still rather than act. After Samuel anointed Saul
          as king, he escorted him to the edge of the city. And
          at one point, Samuel said to Saul, "...stand thou still
          a while, that I may shew thee the word of God" (1
          Samuel 9:27).

          Samuel was saying, "Saul, I've just anointed you, and
          yet already your mind is racing. You're thinking, 'What
          is God doing? How can I know his voice, his will?' Stop
          striving, Saul! Do you want to hear from God? Do you
          want direction from him? Then stand still and listen.
          I'll give you God's word."

          This perfectly illustrates the principle I want to
          emphasize here: The word of the Lord -- the voice of
          direction and deliverance -- is given to those who come
          to a place of standing still before God!

          In Second Chronicles we read that Judah was being
          invaded by a coalition of mighty armies. Scripture says
          King Jehoshaphat "...feared, and set himself to seek
          the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah"
          (2 Chronicles 20:3).

          The people began to pray, crying, "...in thine hand is
          there not power and might, so that none is able to
          withstand thee?...for we have no might against this
          great company that cometh against us; neither know we
          what to do: but our eyes are upon thee" (verses 6, 12).

          Once again, we see there is nothing wrong with being
          afraid. God is longsuffering toward us, and he does not
          hold our fear against us. In fact, we are to pray the
          same prayer that Jehoshaphat prayed: "Lord, I'm
          frightened! The enemy is coming in like a flood, and I
          don't know what to do. But I do know that you have all
          power and might. So I will do nothing, Lord, except to
          pray. I will fix my eyes on you!"

          "Then...came the spirit of the Lord in the midst of the
          congregation" (verse 14). Here is what the Spirit
          commanded: "Be not afraid nor dismayed...for the battle
          is not yours, but God's....Ye shall not need to fight
          in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see
          the salvation of the Lord with you...." (verses 15-17).

          The phrase "set yourself, stand still" means "take your
          position; do not waver in this matter." In other words:
          "Take a position of faith. Be convinced the battle is
          the Lord's. Any demon that comes against you has to
          come against Christ in you. It is the Lord's battle to
          fight -- not yours!"

          You may remember what happened in this story. When the
          men of Judah went out to fight the great army, they
          found their enemy already slain on the battlefield. The
          mighty soldiers had gotten up in the middle of the
          night and begun to fight themselves -- and they ended
          up destroying each other!

          So the army from Judah simply picked up the spoils and
          marched back home in a great victory processional. They
          hadn't even lifted a sword. The Lord had done all the
          fighting for them!

          The psalmist writes, "Be still, and know that I am God:
          I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted
          in the earth" (Psalm 46:10). The literal translation in
          Hebrew is, "Cease and forsake all your striving, and
          acknowledge that I am God." In other words: "Quit
          striving! Stop all your efforts to deliver yourself.
          Acknowledge that God alone can save you!"

          You may say, "But, Brother Dave -- didn't Israel
          sometimes have to take up arms and do battle?" Yes,
          they did -- but on this condition: that they first
          stood silent before the Lord and received detailed
          directions from him. That's what Joshua did before the
          battle of Jericho. He got detailed marching orders
          before doing anything. And his victory brought God all
          glory!

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

                            Let Me Tell You What
                           I Believe Is Required
                             in This Matter of
                              "Standing Still"
                             Before the Lord.

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

          The phrase "stand still" does not mean being passive or
          resting on fate. Fate says, "Whatever will be, will
          be." But faith changes everything. And "standing still"
          is an act of faith -- an active resting on God's
          promises. It is a determination to cease all questions,
          doubts and useless strivings.

          Ever since I've been in the ministry, a major area of
          striving for me has been this matter of knowing the
          voice of God. I believe this struggle is common to many
          Christians today. We constantly ask, "How can I know if
          a voice I hear is God's? How can I discern whether it's
          his, or mine, or my flesh's?"

          Whenever I face a critical need that requires an
          answer, I turn to the Lord in prayer. I cry out,
          "Father, your word says you speak to your people.
          Please, God -- speak to me. Give me your direction!"
          And I end up quoting every scripture promise I know:

             * "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they
               follow me" (John 10:27).

             * "Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying,
               This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to
               the right hand, and when ye turn to the left"
               (Isaiah 30:21).

             * "(My) word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth,
               and in thy heart..." (Deuteronomy 30:14).

          Indeed, a still, small voice often comes to us -- and
          as God begins to speak, we suddenly have a great sense
          of peace and calm. The voice is comforting, soothing,
          and we leave our prayer closet feeling wonderful. He
          most assuredly does lead us and deliver us by the voice
          of the Holy Spirit.

          But all too often, the word we hear in prayer doesn't
          come to pass. In fact, it can sometimes prove to be
          wrong. And we realize we've heard another voice -- not
          Christ's. In such a case, it had to be either the voice
          of our own desires and ambition, or the voice of our
          flesh.

          Please understand -- I'm not talking about hearing
          "foolish things." Over the years I've heard people
          attribute many stupid, fleshly things to the voice of
          the Lord. Rather, I'm talking about godly believers who
          cling to God's word and faithfully seek him for
          direction. And when the word they receive somehow goes
          wrong, a cloud of doubt comes upon them. They end up
          confused, crying out:

          "Oh, God -- I did everything I know to do! I prayed. I
          held to your word. You know I want your will, Lord. And
          I know I'm under your blood. How could I have messed up
          so badly? How did I mistake another voice for yours?
          Oh, Lord -- how can I ever trust any voice again?"

          Paul describes the feeling this way: "...we are
          perplexed, but not in despair" (2 Corinthians 4:8).
          Yet, we forget that Paul also says, "There are, it may
          be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of
          them is without signification" (1 Corinthians 14:10).
          There are thousands of voices -- including a voice of
          the flesh, a voice of the will, a voice of ambition --
          and all scream for our mind's attention.

          It doesn't matter how much we pray, how close we are to
          the Lord, how many hours we spend in his word. We all
          are fallible, and we all make mistakes. Our flesh still
          has a voice -- and at times it will get in the way.

          Let me tell you how God brought me through this test of
          faith: I HAVE BECOME SET ON THE TRUTH THAT THE LORD
          ORDERS MY EVERY STEP! I am convinced God prearranges
          and sets up all my circumstances. He has promised, by
          covenant, to lead me and guide me by his Spirit and to
          keep me from falling. So, now I pray in faith,
          believing his word to me. And I stand still and wait
          for him to act.

          You see, when God makes a promise, it is no longer a
          matter of grace. Rather, it is legal. He seals all his
          promises with an oath -- and we have the right to stand
          on them "legally." God can't back away from any of his
          promises, or he wouldn't be God. So, we can hold to
          each promise and say, "Lord, I'm going to stand on what
          you've said. No reply is necessary! Your promise is
          your voice -- speaking directly to me!"

          You may say, "Wait a minute. Do you mean we're not
          supposed to commune with the Lord?" Of course, I don't
          mean that. But the fact is, our communion with God
          isn't restricted to worship, praise or prayer. Our
          communion with him also includes trusting him. We
          commune with him by actively leaning on his written,
          revealed word!

          The Holy Spirit "speaks" mostly by leading us to
          pertinent scripture passages, showing us God's mind on
          any matter and telling us what steps to take. Why
          should he speak with an inner voice when we will not
          "hear" his revealed, written voice?

          The fact is, God doesn't have to tell us everything for
          us to have intimacy with him. He doesn't have to reveal
          all his plans to us. In fact, we can have intimacy with
          God simply by giving up our efforts to figure out his
          voice. This kind of intimacy says, "Lord, even if I
          never hear another word from you, you've still given me
          everything I need. I know you love me -- your word has
          come to me -- and I'm going to rest in that. All I ask
          is that you keep your promises to me. There is no reply
          necessary!"

          Meanwhile, we are to be satisfied with the revelation
          we have in God's word: "God...hath in these last days
          spoken unto us by his Son..." (Hebrews 1:2). And God
          has given us enough covenant promises to see us through
          any crisis or trial:

          "According as his divine power hath given unto us all
          things that pertain unto life and godliness, through
          the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and
          virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and
          precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers
          of the divine nature..." (2 Peter 1:3-4).

          David is an example of this kind of trust. As this
          godly man lay on his deathbed, he said: "Although my
          house be not so with God..." (2 Samuel 23:5). In other
          words: "I have not yet seen all the words the Lord has
          given me come to pass. My house is still not as it
          ought to be. Three of my sons are dead. Yet I have been
          given a promise that my house will not fall!" "...he
          hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in
          all things, and sure..." (same verse).

          God had promised David's forefather, Abraham, "I will
          give you a sure house with a firm foundation. I will
          bless you, and the whole earth will be blessed through
          your seed" (meaning, Christ).

          David had no prophet standing nearby, telling him these
          things. He had no dream, no vision, no inner voice
          speaking to him. No -- as he faced eternity, David
          didn't look for any of these things. Instead, he said,
          "God gave me a covenant promise in his word. And I'll
          go into eternity standing on that promise!" "...for
          this is all my salvation, and all my desire..." (same
          verse). He was saying, in essence, "I can face death
          now -- because his promise is all I need."

          We may fail in our discernment, our hearing, our
          decisions. But we can rejoice in our God, who is our
          strength! He will make us to walk in the right way. It
          is all his work. And we must simply yield, stand still
          and see his salvation!

          The Lord promises: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee:
          be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen
          thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee
          with the right hand of my righteousness" (Isaiah
          41:10).

          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
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