When Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn's book The Harbinger hit the New York Times best-seller list the week it released in print, I believe the sleeping giant called the church started waking up.

A prophetic warning to the American masses about God's impending judgment on the nation, The Harbinger connects undeniable dots between what has happened in the United States since the terrorist attacks in 2001—including a housing market bust and banking industry collapse that led to a $700 billion government bailout to prop up financial institutions and auto manufacturers—and Israel's fate after it turned away from Jehovah God. Although written as a fictional narrative, the book details how nine signs hidden in recent events reveal God's progressive judgment on America.

Here's the message in a nutshell: Cahn believes the Holy Spirit showed him that events such as 9/11, the collapse of Wall Street and the Great Recession occurred because God lifted some of His hedge of protection from around America. He is certain God is trying to get our attention. He is convinced that God is warning the nation to turn back to Him and used nine harbingers, or prophetic signs, to shake us up and wake us up.

The Harbinger may anger some; it may scare others. It caused some to fall to their knees in repentance, and it caused others to cry out in intercession. The release of The Harbinger was what you could call a "kairos moment"—a supreme moment in time when God sent a prophet with a "you need to hear this and repent" message to America. Notice I say "to America"—not just to the church in America. Cahn's message about an ancient mystery that holds the secret to America's future transcended the Christian market to become a mainstream phenomenon that, at the time of this writing, is still on the New York Times best-seller list nearly three years later.

The book—and the clear proof of God's discipline on our nation—changed my theology. Until 2012 I did not believe God sent judgments on nations in the New Testament age. I reasoned that if God were going to judge any nation, He would start with places like the Netherlands, with cities like Amsterdam and its infamous Red Light District that hosts all manner of immorality. But the founders of the Netherlands didn't make and break a covenant with God.

I believe America as a nation is reaping what we've sown. I believe that where there is unfettered sin, there is ultimately death (Rom. 6:23). And although some rightly argue that many nations are more sinful and anti-God than the United States, consider this: to whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48). As a world power, the United States has done much good. But our nation's Christian foundations are shaking. The seven major influencers of our society—the economy, government, family, spirituality, education, media and arts—are shaping an idolatrous New Age culture.

I submit to you that our nation is in natural and spiritual crisis, and it will take a divine intervention to avert disaster. Although "man" can't solve the problems in our nation, electing leaders who will guide the United States using biblical principles rather than those who defy biblical principles in the name of change speaks volumes to heaven. Politicians can't fix what's broken, but politicians who pray to the one who can will receive His wisdom to right the ship.

If we don't make a drastic shift in this nation, I believe there's no way to escape God's judgment. Billy Graham's late wife, Ruth, once said, "If God doesn't judge America He will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah." Again, I never wanted to believe that. But now I do. I can see it. God has removed some of our hedge of protection because He loves us and hopes we'll wake up.

A Third Great Awakening

On April 21, 2007, the Lord woke me up at midnight with a prophetic word that I didn't fully understand. Mind you, this was before the housing bubble burst, before the banks and financial institutions started to fail, before the U.S. government bailout, before President Obama was elected, before the Great Recession that rippled through the world and eventually saw economies completely fail, before the Ebola scare, and before ISIS emerged as a credible threat on American soil. Before we—or at least before I—understood our desperate need for a great awakening, the Holy Spirit spoke these words to me:

There is a great awakening coming to this nation, for I have heard your cries and I long to heal your land. I am a covenant God, and I will not forget the covenant I made with your Founding Forefathers. Yes, there will be a shaking, but the foundations will not crack and they will not crumble. Only those things which can be shaken will be shaken that the sin in the land may be laid bare. Repentance. I require repentance from My people who have through the generations allowed the enemy to take ground in this nation. I require repentance for the abortions and for the prayerlessness. I require repentance for the apathy and for the idolatry. You shall have no other gods before Me. I am indeed the God of America. Yes, there is a great awakening coming to this nation. I am the author of it, and I will bring it to pass. Just turn from your wicked ways and humble yourselves. Stand in the gap and make up the hedge. I am the Lord, and I am a warrior. I will not leave or forsake this country. I will fight through you and with you to regain what has been lost. Be encouraged now, because as you go forth boldly with My Word and My Spirit, there will be the sound of truth, and it will prevail in the land. Speak boldly and clearly, and watch as the mighty men arise to take their positions on the wall and in the churches and in the marketplaces, for I am raising up deliverers and reformers in this generation who will not shrink back at the challenge that is coming in the days ahead.

Yes, it will grow darker before My light shines brightly from this nation again. But the light has not been extinguished and will not be extinguished. The time to rise up is now. I am calling you to war. I am calling you to repentance. I am calling you to My side. I am the captain of the hosts. I am calling you to victory. I am calling you to destiny. Will you answer?

It's Time to Wake Up

There is hope for America. I believe the remnant is rising. But it has certainly gotten darker in this nation, and again, I fear God's judgment may fall harder if we continue to stand by in silence while abortion, same-sex marriage, and other sin rages in our land.

The church—the "sleeping giant"—needs to wake up. If the church were being the church, we wouldn't have so many problems in our nation. Of course, these problems didn't start just four years ago. There has been an increasingly rapid decline in morality in this nation since prayer was removed from schools in 1962.

Abortion was legalized in 1973. Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriage in 2004. And plenty of wickedness has taken place in between and since.

Meanwhile, the church looks, thinks, and acts too much like the world. Christians are having abortions. Christians are committing adultery. Christians are fornicating. Christians are getting divorced. Lord, help us!

At the same time, the Sermon on the Mount speaks to giving to the needy, prayer and fasting. I can't prove it with hard numbers, but it's likely that most Christians aren't giving to the poor. It's probable that most Christians aren't praying for our nation. And I'm quite sure most Christians aren't fasting. We really aren't serving as salt and light. And that's ultimately why our society is becoming more tasteless and continues to grow darker.

Adding insult to this injurious lifestyle, some Christians declare that prayer rallies and solemn assemblies don't make a difference.

I believe the greatest sin of the church is prayerlessness. Far too many are busy feeding their souls on worldly entertainment to meet God at the altar.

There Is Hope

The shaking is undeniable and our nation is in crisis. It has grown darker since the Lord spoke that prophetic word to me in 2007. It will continue growing darker until we turn back to God as a nation. The good news is that when we do, we'll see a great awakening, and many souls will come into the kingdom. There will be a great harvest. I'm blowing the trumpet. I'm sounding the alarm. There is hope for America, and that hope lies in the body of Christ rising up to do as Jesus commanded: "Occupy till I come" (Luke 19:13, KJV).

Of course, we have to wake up first. It would be easy to dismiss Cahn's revelation about America's future, which is based on a pattern found in Isaiah 9:10 after God temporarily lifted the hedge of protection around Israel and an enemy struck the land. Yet the It's Time to Wake Up message of The Harbinger has resonated with millions of Americans—and even found its way into the hands of government officials.

In 2012 Cahn's publisher, Charisma House, sent a copy of the book to every member of Congress so they could hear what God is saying to the nation. I believe we're living in the last days when, like the apostle Paul said, "Men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, slanderers, unrestrained, fierce, despisers of those who are good, traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying its power. Turn away from such people" (2 Tim. 3:2-5, MEV).

I believe we're living at the end of the age when, as Jesus said: "You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. ... For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines, epidemics, and earthquakes in various places. ... Because iniquity will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Matt. 24:5-14).

I believe time is short for America to repent before we see stronger manifestations of God's discipline on this nation, but at the same time I have never been more hopeful. I believe that we are on a cusp of a Third Great Awakening. And I believe the Lord is using The Harbinger to sound an alarm that will wake up the mighty men and women, the reformers and deliverers who will stand in the gap and make up the hedge.

But God is not just using The Harbinger. He's also using prophetic voices such as Dutch Sheets with his "Appeal to Heaven" message, Billy Graham with his "My Hope" initiative, Reinhard Bonnke with his trumpet call that "all America shall be saved," and many others.

So let this be a wake-up to the realities our nation is facing, but let it also fill you with hope, and let that hope give substance to your faith to pray and take action as you agree with God's plan for America to wake up in this hour.

Jennifer LeClaire is the news editor of Charisma. She is also director of the Awakening House of Prayer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and author of several books, including The Next Great Move of God: An Appeal to Heaven for Spiritual Awakening and Mornings With the Holy Spirit. You can visit her website at jenniferleclaire.org.

Bishop Harry Jackson tells how government officials shut down their 'Appeal to Heaven' meeting at appealtoheaven.charismamag.com.

A resource on this topic:

Prophet and author Jennifer LeClaire calls the church to arise in this dark yet hopeful hour in her latest book, The Next Great Move of God: An Appeal to Heaven for Spiritual Awakening (Charisma House). You can find this book wherever Christian books are sold or at amazon.com or christianbook.com.

Get Spirit-filled content delivered right to your inbox! Click here to subscribe to our newsletter.

Dr. Mark Rutland's

National Institute of Christian Leadership (NICL)

The NICL is one of the top leadership training programs in the U.S. taught by Dr. Mark Rutland. If you're the type of leader that likes to have total control over every aspect of your ministry and your future success, the NICL is right for you!

FREE NICL MINI-COURSE - Enroll for 3-hours of training from Dr. Rutland's full leadership course. Experience the NICL and decide if this training is right for you and your team.

The NICL Online is an option for any leader with time or schedule constraints. It's also for leaders who want to expedite their training to receive advanced standing for Master Level credit hours. Work through Dr. Rutland's full training from the comfort of your home or ministry at your pace. Learn more about NICL Online. Learn more about NICL Online.