'An Earth-Shattering Calamity Is About To Happen'
by Ted Slater on 03/11/2009 at 1:16 PM
I have a lot of respect for Pastor David Wilkerson. I'm inspired by his moving to New York in the late 1950s to minister to gang members and drug addicts, a story recounted in The Cross and the Switchblade. I also admire his current activities, serving as a pastor of Times Square Church in NYC.
So when I came across his "urgent message" a couple of days ago, in which he warned that "an earth-shattering calamity is about to happen," I didn't immediately dismiss it as the incendiary words of a madman.
In part, he explained:
For ten years I have been warning about a thousand fires coming to New York City. It will engulf the whole megaplex, including areas of New Jersey and Connecticut. Major cities all across America will experience riots and blazing fires -- such as we saw in Watts, Los Angeles, years ago.
There will be riots and fires in cities worldwide. There will be looting -- including Times Square, New York City. What we are experiencing now is not a recession, not even a depression. We are under God’s wrath.
He doesn't ask for money, but provides practical counsel on how to prepare:
- Gather a 30-day supply of non-perishable food, toiletries and other essentials.
- Fix your eyes on the Lord, trusting in His loving care over His people.
Regardless whether we're about to face calamity or not, both these words of advice seem fairly reasonable. For example, the U.S. government recommends that we keep several days' worth of food and water on hand, in case of emergencies. And it's always the right time to place your faith in the Lord.
This isn't the first catastrophic vision Wilkerson has had. In 1973, for example, he published The Vision, in which he predicted worldwide economic confusion, an increase in floods and hurricanes, a fall in moral conduct, an acceptance of homosexuality, a new drug popular with teens that will break down resistance and will encourage sexual activity, the ordination of gay and lesbian ministers, a spiritual awakening behind the Iron Curtain and Bamboo Curtain ... and a nuclear bomb detonating in New York City.
I honestly don't know what to think of Wilkerson's vision. He doesn't claim to be a "prophet," but rather simply a Christian to whom the Lord has communicated certain things. This is not an unbiblical perspective; while God primarily speaks to us through Scripture, He has communicated to humans outside of Scripture as well.
And people have gone from prosperity to need in a very short period of time; Katrina showed us that. Or consider Zimbabwe: It used to be the "Breadbasket of Africa," churning out more food than they could eat; now they are starving and impoverished. America, long-blessed by God, is not immune from the suffering that most of the world is currently experiencing.
As for me, I'm not going to panic. That's pointless, and faith-less. I may keep my pantry full, and have a few bottles of water on hand. That seems prudent, regardless of whether the "crisis" is a power outage, a truckers' strike, or a regional disaster. And I will certainly aspire to become more sober in my efforts to place my trust in the Lord.
1. BDB said the following at 1:31 PM on Mar 11:
Huh - all of his 1973 stuff has come true, except the nuclear one. Though, the damage of 9/11 was probably comparable to a suitcase nuke.
I was here during the LA Riots. A very tense time. Somewhat unexpected-I don't know how many people really expected that jury verdict. You do get looting activity any time there is a major evacuation. When we have evacuations for wildfires, many people return home only to find that their house was burglarized while they were away. That's why many people choose to stay.
2. Craig M said the following at 1:49 PM on Mar 11:
A nuclear explosion in NYC is a pretty big prediction. Wilkerson is a good guy, but.....
3. Rachael said the following at 1:50 PM on Mar 11:
Strange. I guess I'd bend in the way of skepticism of modern day prophecy.
I didn't realize Wilkerson felt he had prophetic visions.
I also vaguely remember something about the Cross and the Switchblade. My mom may have read it to us when we were kids, or I may have read it way back when, or/and watched a movie...
Interesting.
4. Dee said the following at 1:55 PM on Mar 11:
It always saddens me when people claim to have judgment prophecies (or words of knowledge). Not because I don't believe it's possible that they heard from God, but simply because, it seems to me that even in biblical times, when God showed someone that He was going to pour out His wrath He was looking for one of two things. The hope was that people would either repent and be saved, or that even one person would stand up on behalf of the people.(see Exodus 32:11-14).
Rather than condemning the people, shouldn't we rise up and claim them as our own? Shouldn't we pray and seek to intercede on their behalf? Shouldn't we seek to change the hearts and minds of people through our actions rather than spouting off words of condemnation?
The God I know is a compassionate and loving God who is slow to anger. And He longs for us to be transformed into his image. He gives these visions as a warning not to condemn us but to encourage us to rise up and act! (see Romans 8:15)
5. khalil said the following at 1:57 PM on Mar 11:
Time will tell, but whenever times are tough you get all sorts of nut jobs coming out to proclaim the "end is near".
6. BDB said the following at 2:17 PM on Mar 11:
I'm glad you list those two points here.
I remember the Y2K stuff. When people started to advocate acquiring firearms and ammunition, my pastor felt it necessary to remind everyone from the pulpit that Christians are called to help one another in difficult times, the verse is 'Love thy Neighbor.'
7. Cassandra said the following at 2:41 PM on Mar 11:
I read that too and wondered what to make of it. Thank you for blogging about it. What are we supposed to make of stuff like this? My reaction was skepticism (not being familiar with him), curiosity, and somewhat of a resolve to start accumulating some extra food and water in my closet (since it's a good idea anyway, at least.)
Certainly the "I heard from God" thing has been abused, which is why I'm mostly skeptical. But the stuff he "predicted" in 1973... dang, if you're not leaving anything out, that's all basically happened. The nuclear attack is off, but perhaps the "vision" was like John's on Patmos, or Daniel's, where he saw something in the spirit and he used the closest comparison he could think of to describe it.
8. Kevin said the following at 2:43 PM on Mar 11:
Man, according to all these 'prophecies', the world is going to end about 30 times in the next 10 years. At least Revelation doesn't put a date on what it says, it just says 'soon'. Although that was almost 2000 years ago. I don't know if I consider 2000 years to be 'soon'.
9. NeedACatchyName said the following at 2:47 PM on Mar 11:
It looks like John Piper has his doubts.
10. allison said the following at 3:01 PM on Mar 11:
I used to attend TSC and when I was there, that last time something similar( won't go into details) to this happen, the twin towers fell. And I was there. so I wouldn't just dismiss what he is saying.
11. Colette said the following at 3:06 PM on Mar 11:
Interesting. It's certainly possible that's he's heard from God on some level about this.
Like you say...best not to panic...be prepared as you would for any possible disaster...hurricane, blizzard, earthquake, etc, that people deal with all the time. No need to freak out, but a little preparation never hurt anything.
12. Ted Slater said the following at 3:22 PM on Mar 11:
Kevin (#8) -- to be fair, Wilkerson doesn't say anything about his vision being "the end of the world," what John described in Revelation/The Apocalypse.
NeedACatchyName (#9) -- thanks for that link. I've got a lot of respect for Piper.
allison (#10) -- intriguing. I had heard about that.
13. Allison said the following at 3:35 PM on Mar 11:
yeah, and it doesn't suprise me. I don't think that God is going to sit back and just let all these big decisions to be made with no consequence. when I was in NY all these natural disasters started happening, Tsunami's earthquakes,floods Fires all at the same time, this was from 03 up til now. so it was like a shaking. I won't comment on his message, but i do know God won't do anthing before warning His prophets and he does have watchmen. But God always confirms His word and He is always speaking but are we being sensitive to His voice to listen. Sorry this is long...but if we prayer long and have a close relationship with God He will tell us Himself what will happen. he told Abraham... It doesn't suprise me though, God isn't going stay silent forever...thanks
14. Christopher from Albuquerque said the following at 3:49 PM on Mar 11:
For the reasons that Ted listed, and simply because of our common brotherhood in Christ, I do have an affection for David Wilkerson. However, I must also say that his "prophecies" have been wrong many, many times in the past, and such carelessness on his part does not honor God. Check this link to see how he has been off the mark with his "impressions" and "sensings" in the past: http://www.geocities.com/asterisktom/wilkerson.html
15. farmer Tom said the following at 4:17 PM on Mar 11:
Before reading John Piper's comments I already had my doubts, and I still do.
But, I also know that there are groups in the world, (you know who I'm talking about), who would like nothing better than to cause another devastating calamity in New York City.
And since the man who is President is truly skilled at reading the teleprompter, his leadership skills in a crisis have yet to be challenged.
So I will assume that storing away some basic necessities seems to be a prudent course of action. If for no other reason than if some horrible event happens, I may have some resources to share with others.
16. Holly (the married, parental one) said the following at 4:30 PM on Mar 11:
I always feel a little embarrassed when Christians - respected ones, at that - make big statements like that. Most likely it won't happen, and then we have a credibility problem, no?
17. EKB said the following at 5:07 PM on Mar 11:
I have a lot of respect for David Wilkerson's ministry, and "The Cross and the Switchblade" is a great book. However, these alarmist prophecies seem entirely unbiblical, and make Christians look foolish and paranoid when they turn out to be wrong.
18. allison said the following at 5:24 PM on Mar 11:
To;Christopher, he never said he was a prophet, in all my times hearing him speak he said he was a watchman. Like I said before i will not comment on what he said, because he is a pastor and while debating is fine, I think God is truly the only one we would want to place our faith in. Also given his track record, with the ministry I would have to look at the sources behind your research and see where the opposing opinions stands. How is their walk with God? Pastor Wilkerson has admitted to making mistaking in his early ministry. It says in the world we all have different gifts.While i am always cautious, because human being are fallen, discounting what he said entirely, and not going to God directly about any warning at it's best is arrogant, foolish at worst. the worst thing that could happen is he is wrong.
19. Sarah said the following at 5:28 PM on Mar 11:
Yeah i read this letter a couple days ago, all I have to say is wow. I believe God reveals things to people, I believe God is really peeved off at this world but I also believe that God will protect His righteous ones. I find this letter a little over the top. God is the God of love! Through out the whole bible when someone was used by God to prophesy, God gave 2 choices to people: either turn from your sins, or this and this will happen to you.. and even when the latter happened, God saved the ones that were righteous (ie, Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah). Also, I find it kinda odd that Dave would mention stocking up on food before talking about fixing your eyes on the Lord. All this stuff could very well happen, and I believe we absolutely will be facing trials and tribulations but God doesn't want to instill fear into our hearts and worry about where we're going to be getting food for the next day. Rather we need to fix our eyes on the Lord first and just trust in Him.
20. DannieA said the following at 6:15 PM on Mar 11:
whether or not one listens to every "prophecy" out there, the 2 things listed are essential...
of course living in CA where one doesn't know when a big earthquake will strike, having a supply of non-periahble foods and water is not bad advice anyways...also have stuff in your trunk....but that's just common sense...
as for praying and keeping eyes on Jesus....Amen...we should ALWAYS do that.
21. Marie said the following at 6:58 PM on Mar 11:
I lean toward skepticism. Those previous prophecies seem kind of vague- "increase in floods and hurricanes"? if we're talking short-term, then yes, it has happened several times since then. "a fall in moral conduct" has also happened in various cultures and places since then, in various degrees, but was also happening since time began. "a new drug popular with teens that will break down resistance and will encourage sexual activity"- it's not so unusual for a 'new drug' to be discovered, and drugs are USUALLY popular with teens, and most drugs do loosen inhibitions. Even the nuclear bomb- if someone was going to nuke the USA, their top two choices would probably be D.C. or New York. So even if it happens, well, he had an almost 50-50 chance.
If his message is indeed from God, it should be testable. Fires all over NYC are a more specific prophecy than the 1973 ones, so I guess we'll find out.
22. Kevin said the following at 9:22 PM on Mar 11:
Ted(#12) - To be honest, I was referring to false prophecies made by many religious people about disasters, hardships, end of the world (michael drosnin, house of yahweh, ronald weinland, harold camping...).
Doesn't a 'prophecy' that doesn't come true (the New York nuke) make the person who made the 'prophecy' a "false prophet"?
I would hardly consider saying that there will be an increase in floods and hurricanes a prophecy. The weather is different every year. If that's the case, then the guys who put together the farmer's almanac are prophets too, maybe even more so.
And what new drug was he referring to?
23. Jorden said the following at 9:46 PM on Mar 11:
Hmm, well I always felt like Katrina was part of God's Judgment on our country(whether it was or not I can't be certain of course). So something like this happening wouldn't surprise me honestly. I doubt I'll go stockpile stuff, but I might go ahead and get some extra water or something, because there's always a use for that anyways. We tend to keep a decent amount of food around here so we could probably do fine on what's in our freezer if we had too.
I don't know much about this guy, but I might keep my eyes open to see if it comes to be though. I guess it wouldn't be too hard to notice if it does though.
24. Janice said the following at 11:32 PM on Mar 11:
I am not sure what to think about this but I am also not going to put God in a box and say what he can/can't do based on my limited understanding. What I do know from the bible is that we are to always be prepared, always be ready to give an answer, always watch and pray, love our neighbor as ourselves, and do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Prophecy isn't to be dismissed but most importantly we should be focused on the gospel and its saving effect on the world and sanctifying effect in our lives.
25. tiro said the following at 11:52 PM on Mar 11:
I also have a lot of respect for Wilkerson. Though he has been off on occasion, he has also been right on. Knowing that there likely will be a lot of calamities in our future, I would take it as just another affirmation that there is likely trouble ahead, and we should think about some preparedness.
26. Matt C. said the following at 6:05 AM on Mar 12:
It is interesting, but the one thing we can be sure of is that he is not receiving direct revelation from God. He was right about most of his 1973 predictions (except for the nuclear bomb), but God is not *mostly* right.
Somebody who is good at reading society and understanding human nature could make mostly right predictions of that sort. He could also make mostly right predictions about riots. It is for this reason (not divine prophecy) that we should not dismiss him out-of-hand. It is the false claim of receiving a word from God which should also make us careful about believing him. Nevertheless, as Ted pointed out, so far his advice is sound in any case.
27. Katie said the following at 8:40 AM on Mar 12:
I feel that this blog is timely. We as a nation have grown too accustomed to the rich blessings of God and have, at the same time, collectively turned our backs on Him. Shouldn't the tragedies of the Oklahoma City Bombing, 9/11, and Katrina (just to name a few) be seen as warnings from God that we need to turn back to Him?
I am saddened by the direction that our country has taken. How can a "God-fearing" nation legalize embryonic stem-cell research? Though I haven't done a tremendous amount of research on the subject, the material that I have read shows that adult stem-cells show more promise in curing diseases than do embryonic stem-cells. Yet the United States is resolute on killing unborn babies so that people who have already had a chance at life can be cured by scientific means. God is trying to get people to realize that he is real and can easily bring about or allow catastrophic situations to occur.
As evil as America has become I can see the predictions of David Wilkerson occurring. Look at the depiction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the visions that God gave Abraham. We need to be in serious prayer for our nation and our president.
28. Kari said the following at 9:59 AM on Mar 12:
Yeah BDB, that was my thought too, all of that stuff HAS come true,save for the last prediction/vision....
Well I asked my mom the other day "Hey mom, as a woman, do you think I should spend the money to go to graduate school?"
to which she replied:
"Well, I think that if you have a passion for something and the talent, you should pursue the education needed, and not be foolish, but don't worry about the money... PLUS the whole economy and social system is going to collapse soon, and if you don't die in the mass chaos, you will at least be imprisioned by the one world government for the remainder of your life,so I wouldn't really worry either way"
and that actually made me feel quite nice.
29. Michelle (in the UK) said the following at 10:54 AM on Mar 12:
I was home reading this last night and I didn't feel quite right about it; although I do agree that we should always be prepared like you stated with water, food etc...
But I thought the gifts of the Spirit, like prophecy were meant for encouragement of believers...
This is not very encouraging. My thoughts might be elementary, anyone?
30. Tim said the following at 11:16 AM on Mar 12:
Thanks for the post, Ted. I'm not usually one to get overly panicked by prophecies and visions. That said, I have enormous respect for David Wilkerson. And while not perfect, he has demonstrated a long track record of an uncanny ability to seemingly hear from God on different issues. I appreciate your willingness to present this in a charitable, even-handed way. As one who finds myself squarely in both the mainstream evangelical and charismatic camps, I often feel like a bit of a mutt with no clear theological home. We all need to be reminded of the necessity both of submission to Scripture *and* sensitivity to the Spirit.
31. callie m (formerly cn) said the following at 11:59 AM on Mar 12:
Kevin 22 and others...
A prophecy that doesn't come true doesn't necessarily make someone a false prophet because prophecies are often contingent on how the people chose to follow through (will they repent and be obedient; will they intercede and fast for the matter to change?). That's one of many issues that makes the prophetic ministry such a gray area. There are not necessarily clear cut "rules" about how it works, or how to tell what is truly from the Lord and what is not.
Of course, a word should fall in line with scripture, but there are also other dynamic facets beyond that such as whether or not the word is supposed to be shared and if so, when and to whom?
Of the few guidelines we do have, testing the spirits is critical. Some of you who are automatically acting out of skepticism are abusing the command to test the spirits just as much as someone who takes it at face value with out any prayerful concern. In that regard, its even an act of hypocrisy.
32. Jo said the following at 12:29 PM on Mar 12:
Katie (27):
I think we need to be really really hesitant about suggesting that bombings and terrorist attacks are warnings from God. These are acts committed directly by people. That doesn't necessarily rule out God's involvement, but I don't think any of us can make that call. Who are we to claim that these kinds of tragedies were planned and executed by God, when the far more obvious cause was fallen humanity?
Anyway, I don't really understand prophecies like this one. There are so many and they cause so much confusion. It seems odd to me that God would predict something just so that we could say "Ah, God told me this would happen". Like several people have said, these kinds of prophecies give no option of turning from sin and avoiding the disaster. I just don't see the point of them really. And any message that starts with "An earth shattering calamity is about to happen" seems alarmist, to me.
And while I agree that having supplies is a good principle anyway, I sort of think that saying "Well it's probably not true but I'll stock up on food anyway just in case" is a bit too pragmatic. It's like hedging your bets - not quite the kind of faith Jesus calls us to. If you believe this prophecy, then heed it and continue to trust God. If not, then ignore it and continue to trust God. Or do we think when this great calamity happens He's going to just look down with his arms folded saying, "Well, I'm not helping you now - you should've listened to David Wilkerson!"
33. Kevin said the following at 12:56 PM on Mar 12:
#31 "A prophecy that doesn't come true doesn't necessarily make someone a false prophet because prophecies are often contingent on how the people chose to follow through"
So basically there's no difference between vaguely prophecying social trends and vaguely predicting the stock market?
And again, what was the 'new drug' that became popular among teens between 1973 and now?
BTW Jo, that last sentence hits the nail on the head...and makes me laugh. My thoughts exactly.
34. NeedACatchyName said the following at 1:24 PM on Mar 12:
I tend to agree with Marie in #21. I really don't see what's so amazing about many of these "predictions." In the 1970's people were already starting to become aware of things like teenage drug use, homosexuality, and some global climate change. It's not exactly "going out on a limb" to suggest that trends like these will continue and become more widespread in the future. It's kind of like when technology pundits predict that computers will get "smaller, cheaper and faster" in the next year. Well yeah, of course they will--that's been the case for fifty years now, and there's no reason to think that trend won't continue. I see many of these predictions to be similar--noticing a trend in it's infancy and "predicting" that it will continue.
35. callie m said the following at 3:54 PM on Mar 12:
Kevin,
Have you considered Jonah 3?
1 Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time: 2 "Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you."
4 On the first day, Jonah started into the city. He proclaimed: "Forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned." 5 The Ninevites believed God. They declared a fast, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
10 When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened.
36. Leah said the following at 5:35 PM on Mar 12:
So often I hear these prophecies and go "well, DUH". I mean, "a fall in moral conduct", "a new drug popular with teens that will break down resistance and will encourage sexual activity, the ordination of gay and lesbian ministers" etc... it doesn't take any special 'vision' to know our world will CONTINUALLY experience a fall in moral conduct (read the bible, people). By 1973 it was blatantly obvious the world was undergoing a sexual revolution, and even by then, contraceptive pills were being produced. Again, it wouldn't require a special 'vision' to guess that more effective drugs would continue to be produced. You get the idea.
And the weather? Our world is continually falling apart. The bible tells us this. Not only is our moral conduct disintegrating, but so is our physical environment. More cyclones/hurricanes, global warming, animals becoming extinct- it's all a result of the sin we have in our world which is tearing the world apart.
Whenever I hear things like this, I want to tell the person "tell me something I don't know".
37. Kevin said the following at 6:50 PM on Mar 12:
callie,
I don't remember any New York mayors sending out a decree for everyone in NY to repent of their ways and beg the christian God for mercy. I think if I were to ask any christian if New York has turned from its 'evil' ways they would probably say no.
And seriously, what was that new drug? Does anybody know?
38. Sarah Beth said the following at 6:33 AM on Mar 13:
These apocalypse-style predictions of natural disasters and moral debauchery have been going on since the dawn of time, millions of years ago. the earth should have been destroyed hundreds of times by now, according to all these people with so-called "prophecies." nature happens, people - storms, floods, earthquakes, etc. people have been engaging in extramarital sex, porn, homosexuality, drugs, and other immoral taboos throughout all of humanity. there's nothing new here.
complete bull hockey. let's move on.
39. Matt C. said the following at 9:34 AM on Mar 13:
Kevin @ 37,
Giving him the benefit of the doubt, the new drug could be ecstasy.
very good point about New York's repentence, btw.
40. Christina (in green) said the following at 10:06 AM on Mar 13:
I have a question...
How do you determine if an open-ended prophecy is true or not?
You can't necessarily write off a nuke in nyc simply because it hasn't happened yet.
If we did that, we'd all be condemning John of being a false prophet cuz 2000 years have passed since his Revelations.
I'm not trying to say I believe him or not. But it really is very hard to say yeay/nay.
The only thing we've got is that he could be a true prophet if something comes true.
And I'm not going to write him off just yet.
41. Tami said the following at 11:03 AM on Mar 13:
I'm not going to "choose a side" about Wilkerson's announcements, though I do tend to be extra-careful when people announce specifics. However, regarding such statements, we are wise to be critical (evaluative), but not dismissive.
Prophecy doesn't need to be predictive to be prophecy. It can also mean speaking forth God's warning and truth to those who are still asleep in blindness and sin. If you already know the direction the world is headed towards, praise God that He's shown you that in His Word. If this message (or any like it) shakes you up to action and awareness, praise God for that as well. Continue to be diligent in seeking out and speaking the truth, but may I again adjure you *not* to be *dismissive* towards your sincere brothers and sisters in Christ.
And regarding New York City specifically? It *has* turned around in many ways since the ‘70s and ‘80s, no doubt in response to much prayer by the believers there. Of course it’s not sinless. And no, no mayor stood up and said "Repent and turn to Jesus" -- BUT mayors who led clean-up efforts *did* get elected, and they got a lot of work done. If you spent any time there in the '70s and ‘80s, and then later in the ‘90s and ‘00s, you would definitely notice a difference. [Incidentally -- if you want to read about a small piece of the Lord's work in NYC during the '70s up until (basically) today, read Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire and other books by Jim Cymbala. The story of that church is *so* encouraging.]
Yes, there are kooks out there who see Doomsday around every corner and want your money for the privilege of telling you so. Yes, there are many who read Armageddon into politicians' every move. Yes, there are many who feel as though they have heard from God and feel as though they must tell you what they’ve heard… and many times they’re wrong.
But what disturbs me here is how ready we are to automatically shut these things down -- even when they come from someone sincere, whose work in the Lord has been proven fruitful -- and throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Wilkerson could be partly right, and partly wrong, yet he does seem sincere. He doesn’t tell a date. He doesn’t tell you to go hide and build a bunker with a generator and 50-pound bags of rice and beans (which indeed I *did* hear from others around the Y2K scare, and I thought that *was* excessive… especially because the ills of the Y2K bug were already being taken care of even as those books were being published and sermons being preached). He tells you to look to the Lord. He asks you to “do with the message as you choose.” I urge you to think critically – that is our biblical mandate – but for your own sake, don’t be dismissive.
42. Adam said the following at 11:20 AM on Mar 13:
Hey Everyone!
Gary DeMar addressed this issue on one of his programs:
http://www.americanvision.org/media/download/defense-for-sound-perspective/
Actually, Gary said that this guy has not only done this once, but he has done this in three different books. I really think Christians need to rethink this obsession with end times. I even know dispensationalists who believe people like Jack Van Impe and Hal Lindsay are an embarrassment.
Rather than predicting that these kinds of things are going to happen, we should be fighting to reclaim this world for Christ. The society today is in a mess, and we should be seeking to bring the gospel of Jesus Christ to this society, rather than predicting its demise.
God Bless,
Adam
43. Ted Slater said the following at 12:05 PM on Mar 13:
Adam (#42), you wrote: "Rather than predicting that these kinds of things are going to happen, we should be fighting to reclaim this world for Christ."
Doesn't have to be either-or. I think Wilkerson is doing both.
44. Adam said the following at 12:44 PM on Mar 13:
Ted,
The problem is, as Gary DeMar points out, of the culture is just going to hell in a handbasket, why then should we do anything? Our attempts at revival are already doomed to fail in the first place.
God Bless,
Adam
45. Melissa S. said the following at 12:54 PM on Mar 13:
I hadn't heard about Wilkerson or his predictions before. Maybe he has visions, maybe not.
In any case, I don't really think you need a vision from God to think it's possible/probable that the USA will be hit by a nuclear weapon in the future. Just read the world news. It's obvious that it's a possibility.
And so it seems only wise to prepare for major disasters of any kind. Hey, I live in CA, and until this week, practically lived on top of a fault line. Now I live about ten miles from the fault line. I should be prepared for disasters whether Wilkerson is having visions or not.
Need a Catchy Name #9- thanks for the link to John Piper's thoughts about this.
46. Christopher from Albuquerque said the following at 3:27 PM on Mar 15:
For anyone who missed it, I'll repost the link to an article about David Wilkerson's hit-and-miss series of "predictions" over the years: http://www.geocities.com/asterisktom/wilkerson.html
47. Merly said the following at 8:09 PM on Mar 17:
Hi all!
#31, I agree about the "grayness" of it all. I also think that many people (including Christians) view prophecy along the lines of "reading the tea leaves" and tarot cards. Growing up in the Pentecostal church, I've been exposed to the gift of prophecy, or "sign gifts", from a young age. However, it's more so since I've become older that I realize the fulfillment of it has so much to do with how we accept God's messages through the voice of another believer, through the Word, or just the inner promptings of the Holy Spirit. We do have a choice in how to respond, or as it says in Revelation 13:9, "he who has an ear, let him hear."
When you read through the prophecies in the Bible, keep in mind that God didn't HAVE to speak to His children, but it's because He loves us and has mercy on us that he sometimes gives us a "sneak peek". And yes, some of these mighty men of God were made to look like "fools" for awhile, but in the end, God's will was done, no matter what the public opinion poll said.
I wonder why very few people want to believe that catastrophic events have nothing to do with God's response to mankind's acts, simply because God is loving and slow to anger. One of my fave quotes is from Pastor James MacDonald who says "God's love is not a pampering love, it's a perfecting love". Who are we to limit how God chooses to let a dying world know he loves them and they need to come back to Him? As someone mentioned earlier, He won't stay silent forever.
Oh, #37, the new drug could very well be the new HPV vaccine for young girls. It's supposed to protect against the virus that causes cervical cancer and certain STDs, but at the same time acts as a cushion to be sexually active at a younger age now.
Sorry to make this so long...