David Wilkerson

David Wilkerson

David Wilkerson (born May 19, 1931 in Hammond , Indiana , † April 27, 2011 in Cuney , Cherokee County , Texas ) was an American evangelist . He was the founder of Times Square Church in New York City and author of The Cross and the Knife Heroes .

Rehabilitation aid

David Wilkerson avoided classifying Christians according to their different church affiliations and therefore found a wide audience. His sermon was primarily aimed at encouraging and empowering believing Christians. He emphasized the holiness and love of God , advocated a Christian life centered on Jesus in constant prayer in the guidance of the Holy Spirit and directed himself against fashion trends and showmanship in the church.

In 1958, Wilkerson Teen Challenge founded a Christian rehabilitation service for young drug addicts, alcoholics, gang members, and prostitutes. Teen Challenge now has more than 400 facilities in many countries around the world.

Books

In The Cross and the Knife Heroes , Wilkerson tells of his work as an evangelist among the street gangsters and drug addicts of New York. The book describes the misery of young people in the gang milieu and became a bestseller in contemporary Christian literature.

In his book It Began with Cross and Knife Heroes (1974), Wilkerson expressed the belief that "the end is very near" . For now he thought he could perceive all the omens for it - while in earlier times, when some Christians mistakenly believed the end was near, only some of these signs had come together. Wilkerson presented - and affirmed - the determination of a young Christian that it would not be 15 years before the return of Jesus. When a reporter asked what will be in 15 years, this Christian replied: "That is not a real question for us. We do not believe that we will still be here in 15 years." The reason for this: "We live in the end times." Wilkerson's comment on this:

That was the message I brought from now on to young people who were worried about their future.

Also in 1974, Wilkerson published The Vision . In his introductory remarks, Wilkerson says he received this vision in April 1973 and continues:

Many of the predictions of this vision have since come true; others will come true in the near future; and others in the years ahead. (P. 5)

So it was current events in the next few years - but not only: year tenth - should come. Wilkerson set high standards for his vision:

I am deeply convinced that this vision is from God, that it is true, and that it will come true. (P. 16)

However, when Wilkerson made his predictions, it was not clear what exactly was part of his vision and what his underlying considerations are. One of his predictions was "a new sex drug," combined with a radical change in the entire drug scene:

Aside from this sex drug ... the younger generation won't bother with drugs that much anymore.

Wilkerson also foretold "furious persecutions" of all Christians, including those in the so-called "free world":

I see an hour of persecution coming on a scale not seen before by mankind. All true believers in Jesus will suffer from this persecution ... The persecution will spread to the United States and Canada and will continue to spread throughout the world. (P. 92)

On the other hand, a comprehensive unified church should be created:

I see how the union of liberal, ecumenically minded Protestants and the Roman Catholic Church is creating a super universal Church ... (p. 92)

The gospel should spread to China - u. a. by Japanese Christians (although there are far more Christians in China than in Japan, but this was not known at the time of Wilkerson's vision):

Japanese and Korean Christians are used by God to bring the gospel by the thousands in China. (P. 112)

Much of Wilkerson's predictions concern the United States:

In not long time the United States will experience the most tragic earthquake in history. One day, and soon, the United States will tremble and stagger from the force of this most terrible occurrence of our time. All newspapers will be full of the ruin caused by this most terrible earthquake in living memory. ... I believe it will be many times more severe than the great San Francisco earthquake. (P. 40f)

It didn't come to that; meanwhile Wilkersons brought out another prediction book: Let the Trumpet Sound (1987). In it he announced a completely different catastrophe for the residents of the USA:

America will be destroyed by fire! All of a sudden it will happen and few will escape. Totally unexpectedly, a nuclear disaster will strike this nation and in just an hour America will be wiped out. (P. 9)

He leaves it open whether the previously announced earthquake (for "soon") should come.

Other books by Wilkerson deal with counseling .

Fonts (selection)

• The Cross and the Switchblade ( The Cross and the Switchblade ). Leuchter, Erzhausen 1963
• It started with the Cross and the Knife Heroes , 1975 (American orig . 1974)
• Keep talking pastor ( Hey Preach, You're Comin 'Through ). Christl. Publishing house, Constance 1968
• Twelve angels from hell ( Twelve Angels From Hell ). Christl. Publishing house, Constance 1968
• Man, I have problems , Christl. Publishing house, Constance 1973
• The Vision ( The Vision ). Leuchter, Erzhausen 1974, extended new edition “Die Vision”, Leuchter, Erzhausen 2003
• Parents to court ( Parents on Trial: Why Kids Go Wrong - or Right ) with Claire Cox. Leuchter, Erzhausen 1975
• Weather light of the court . Leuchter, Erzhausen 1978
• Got tired? ( Have You Felt Like Giving Up Lately ). Leuchter, Erzhausen 1980, new edition under the title “God has not forgotten you”, Leuchter, Erzhausen 2001
• Sound the trumpet. CM Fliß, Hamburg 1987
• Hungry for more of Jesus . CM Fliß, Hamburg 1994
• The answer to despair and suicide ( Suicide ). Leuchter, Erzhausen 1995

literature

• Franz Graf-Stuhlhofer : “The end is near!” The mistakes of the end-time specialists . Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft, Bonn, 3rd ed. 2007, pp. 163-181: The Teen Challenge founder as a visionary, ISBN 978-3-938116-30-2

Movie

The bestseller The Cross and the Knife Heroes was filmed in 1970 under the direction of Don Murray . The role of David Wilkerson was taken on by Pat Boone . The film premiered in Germany in 1974.

Web links

• Literature by and about David Wilkerson in the catalog of the German National Library
• David Wilkerson's website with sound files from his sermons
• German translations of David Wilkerson's sermons
• Teen Challenge in Germany eV
• The Cross and the Knife Heroes in the Internet Movie Database
• Video: The Cross and the Knife Heroes

Footnotes

1. ↑ Times Square Church founder dies in Texas crash dailymail.co.uk
2. ↑ Wilkerson: It began , pp. 160f.
3. ↑ Wilkerson: It began , p. 165. - Wilkerson mentioned this interview as “recently”, ie 1974 at the latest. If 15 years are added, we come to 1989 at the latest for the end.