'Sacred assembly' to gather at Lincoln Memorial

Martin Luther King, Jr., at the Lincoln Memorial, delifering his "I Have a Dream" speech on Aug. 23, 1963

Martin Luther King, Jr., at the Lincoln Memorial, delivering his "I Have a Dream" speech on Aug. 23, 1968

WASHINGTON – The ancient Israelites knew what to do when a nation was in crisis, and, now, the nation's top Christian leaders are taking a cue from them, following the prescription in Joel 2: "Call a sacred assembly, gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders ..."

And what an assembly it promises to be. The call has gone out for 30,000 pastors and Christian leaders to gather at the hallowed ground of the Lincoln Memorial this Saturday, from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. EDT.

They will be led by some of the biggest names in modern Christendom, including:

Messianic Rabbi Jonathan Cahn, author of the New York Times best-seller "The Harbinger"

Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council

Anne Graham Lotz, "the best preacher in the family," according to her father, Billy Graham

Robert Vernon “Bobby” Schuller, lead pastor on the "Hour of Power" worship broadcasts

Alveda King, niece of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

Pastor Jim Garlow, author of the New York Times best-seller, "Cracking DaVinci’s Code"

Pastor Harry Jackson Jr., conservative activist and commentator

Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership

Lewis and Rachel Hogan, founders of United Cry

The event is organized by the group United Cry, and they are calling it United Cry DC 16.

Read the books transforming hearts around the world. "The Harbinger," "The Mystery of the Shemitah" and more now available at the WND Superstore.

Perhaps the Almighty is already calling attention to the event by providing some freakish spring weather, with the possibility of snow in the forecast. But hardy souls will brave the elements because they consider the gathering a divine calling.

Organizers say the nation is in crisis and has arrived at a pivotal moment, but that every time Christians have gathered to pray and repent for America, God has intervened and significant events have followed.

According to the United Cry website:

"Throughout our American history, pastors have also always played a significant role in bringing about spiritual and social transformation in our nation. We need our pastors to rise up, teach us how to pray, and lead all of us within the Body of Christ back to a relationship with the Lord! Strong times call for strong measures – It’s time to gather again and pray!"

Lewis and Rachel Hogan founded United Cry in 2014, and call it "a national movement of pastors and Christian leaders dedicated to reclaiming America’s future." They believe "the core issues of America are not political but spiritual."

The Hogans described United Cry DC16 as "the first national event focused on unified prayer and civic action with pastors and Christian leaders for the purpose of spiritual awakening."

The United Cry DC 16 event seems particularly suited to Cahn, who rose to fame with a best-selling book that brought to light of an obscure Bible passage that, he believes, contains a prophetic warning that America is courting disaster by turning its back on God.

It was a message that reverberated across America.

The extraordinary collection of teachings from one of the leading voices in modern Christianity. Check out Jonathan Cahn in the WND Superstore.

"The Harbinger" vaulted onto the New York Times best-seller list in 2012 and stayed there for more than 100 weeks.

Cahn wrote that the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in particular, were a warning that America may come under judgment for turning away from God as ancient Israel did.

He said the key to avoiding a repeat of the disaster that befell ancient Israel was to be found in decoding the seemingly innocuous words of Isaiah 9:10, which served as a harbinger of what would happen to America, unless it repents.

The book lists the ways in which Cahn said the prophecies in Isaiah 9:10 have uncannily come true.

Cahn told WND why his book is particularly relevant to United Cry DC 16 and why the event is important.

Jonathan Cahn

"Since the publication of The Harbinger, I’ve been sounding an alarm concerning America’s future. The Harbinger reveals that the pattern and prophetic signs of warning that manifested in the last days of ancient Israel, the template of national judgment, is now manifesting on American soil. In the course of the last few years, America has not turned back to God but has grown much farther from Him. We’ve witnessed a rapid acceleration in the nation’s apostasy from God and His ways. We have called good evil and evil good. We are now at the threshold of persecuting God’s people as we celebrate godlessness. The Bible is very clear on the consequences. To any nation that has been given so much as America, much is required. If we don’t turn back to God, we are advancing toward judgment.

"The fact that it is also the year of a presidential election and a critical moment with regard to the Supreme Court, raises the stakes even higher.

"We are given a call and a promise ‘If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, I will hear from heaven, I will forgive their sin, and I will heal their land.’ It is for this reason that United Cry is taking place. It is call to pastors and leaders from across the nation to come before God, to humble ourselves, to seek His face, and to turn in repentance to Him, interceding and crying out on behalf of America."

The answer to America’s problems are not economic, political, cultural, or military. The ultimate problem has to do with America and God. And so the answer can only come from God to America. We need revival. We must pray for it. We must intercede for it. We must keep praying for it. And we must live in it."

Cahn's devotion to God came to him as a revelation that nearly cost him his life -- twice. He was raised an observant Jew who attended initially synagogue frequently, but he became an atheist when he was eight years old. At age 20, Cahn became a Messianic Jew, accepting Jesus as the Messiah after narrowly escaping death twice in separate car wrecks. In the first one, he just avoided a collision. In the second, he barely escaped from his car before it was crushed by a train at a railway crossing.

Cahn is also the head of a messianic congregation, the Beth Israel Worship Center.

Read the books transforming hearts around the world. "The Harbinger," "The Mystery of the Shemitah" and more now available at the WND Superstore.

A note from Harry Jackson was designed to capture the spirit of the event:

"All across America, I am hearing the sound of angry voices. I am hearing the sound of accusation, contention, and aggravation. Like Cain and Abel, we are jealous and attacking one another. For the most part, we are no longer even attempting to be civil and accommodating. Instead, we have terrorism, urban rioting and economic stagnation staring us in the face. At the same time, we have one of the most contentious presidential campaigns, in recent history, ramping up before our eyes. God’s protective shield over this nation is crumbling because of our disobedience to the Lord and His principles. Creative slogans, clever phrases, and human ingenuity cannot defeat the giants we face today. We must have help from heaven. We literally need Jesus to come walking upon the waters of life to us like He did in Matthew 14:22-33! We need Jesus to reach out his hand and save us from sinking into the waves of confusion and fear.

Pastor Harry Jackson, Jr.

"On April 9, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, we believe that prayer will untie God’s hands – so He can help us. And as thousands of pastors and leaders pray as one, it will allow our hearts to be open to respond to His love. I am coming to United Cry16 because our nation is in this critical place. At the same time that I am concerned for our nation, there is the sound of a spiritual drum beating in the distance. It’s the sound of repentance, humility, and revival. Jesus is standing at our door – asking us to let Him in. United Cry DC16 may be our last chance to avert natural calamities and turn to The Lord and His destiny for our nation. Perhaps the Lord will allow a critical mass of strategic leaders to turn toward Him in DC, just like the hearts of the people did in the great city of Nineveh in Bible Days. The prayer gathering occurs on April 9, which is a very strategic and historic day in American history for racial reconciliation and healing. April 9 was also the day the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church was established. On April 9, 1968 a crowd of 300,000 attended the funeral of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. One of the major themes of the day of prayer will be the Cry for the Church to lead the way in healing the racial divide in the U.S. We will pray that grace will come upon the Christian community to unite, to build bridges, and to fulfill Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s dream.