Sunday,
July 14, 2013
DO WE NEED
REVIVAL?
We sang that old hymn, "Revive
Us Again." At the top of the page
you may have noticed that the scripture associated with it is Ps. 85:6,
"Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee?" When we sing that song and say to God,
"Revive us again," what do we mean?
You know, that is a very important question. If that is really our prayer, we need to know
what it is for which we are praying.
I.
What Is Revival?
How many of you have ever been to a
revival? How you answer that question
depends upon how you understand the term "revival"? I dare say there is no one here under 40 who
has not heard the word used quite a bit.
Someone from my home church might well say, "We had at least one
revival every year." Even our day a
person might see a church sign that reads:
"Revival -- One Week Only."
Or, "Revival every night except Saturday." Some of us have prayed for revival in this
church. We are often encouraged to pray
for revival in this nation. But what is
revival?
The answer to that question depends
upon whom you ask. So to give us a place
to start, I am going to tell you what I mean when I talk about revival. The important thing isn't so much whether you
judge my definition to be right or wrong.
It is more important that you understand what I mean by the term. That will allow us to talk intelligently
concerning what we believe the Bible tells us about our need.
First of all, I want to be very
clear about what I do not mean. First of
all, when I use the term "revival," I am not talking about a series
of meetings held in a particular church or a city. At their best, such are meetings where people
are seeking revival, but to call such meetings "revival" leads to
great confusion. Anyone can organize
meetings, but that doesn't mean there is revival. I asked if you had ever been to a
revival. If you answered,
"Yes," it is because you were thinking of these kinds of
meetings. Call those meetings whatever
you want to, but that is not what I mean when I use the word
"revival."
By "revival" I am not
talking about the rejuvenation of religious fervor. In other words, if we have more meetings,
more activities, more programs, I do not equate that with revival. Even tripling our attendance doesn't
necessarily have anything to do with revival.
In my estimation, true revival isn't about human activity.
So let me come to the point. When I talk about revival, I am talking about
a supernatural work of God. Many
definitions of "revival" could be given. Here's one -- "an extraordinary movement
of the Holy Spirit producing extraordinary results" (Richard Owen Roberts,
Revival, p. 17). We may see a
church experience growth; we may see quite a number of people genuinely
converted; we may observe great enthusiasm among the saints... but that isn't
necessarily the revival I am talking about.
I am using the term in a historical sense. Down through history there have been times
when the Spirit of God moved in an extraordinary way producing extraordinary
results.
Let me clear at this point. That is not to say that there is no such
thing as "personal revival." I
quoted last week from a book titled Personal Revival (by Stanley
Voke). Call it "renewal,"
"revival," or whatever you choose, but we you or I can personally
experience great refreshing from God, regardless of what happens with people
around us. Praise God for that
truth. We see this in the scriptures. Consider Isaiah. All we have to do is read chapter 6, where it
is recorded that the Lord worked in Isaiah in a powerful way, revealing His own
glory, Isaiah's brokenness over sin, and then Isaiah's willingness to speak on
behalf of God. However, when we read the
rest of that chapter, we find out that what happened to Isaiah was not contagious
in the nation. As a matter of fact, the
Lord specifically told Isaiah that the people wouldn't listen, that Isaiah's
message would serve to blind their eyes, dull their hearing, and harden their
hearts.
For months we have been talking
about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
In much of that surely God has been calling us to personal renewal,
personal revival, a fresh working of His Spirit within our individual
lives. We can disagree over the
terminology we use -- whether it is a filling of the Spirit, a baptism of the
Spirit, an outpouring of the Spirit that we need -- but most of us recognize
the need to be broken before God and to have His Spirit work in and through us
in a greater way. May we long for that
and pray for it.
Nevertheless, such a dynamic
spiritual work is not confined to the individual. There have been times in history when not
only churches, but nations have experienced what I am calling revival. There is a sense in which we could refer to
the Reformation as a great revival. Does
that mean that everything associated with the Reformation was good? No.
But throughout Europe and over a long span of time there was a mighty
work of God. Lives were changed, and as
a result, society was changed. Since
that time there have been a number of these revivals. In this country we refer to Great Awakenings,
where police forces became idle, because there was nothing to do. Prayer meetings began and continued for
decades. People saw an extraordinary
move of the Holy Spirit producing extraordi-nary results.
You see, we are not just talking
about a great emotional stirring. We are
talking about an occasion when God's people are shaken, convicted, broken, and
changed. And along with that comes the
genuine conversion of multitudes of people who before had little or no interest
in the Lord whatsoever. And as a
consequence of the change in so many people, society is impacted. Crime is noticeably cut; people suddenly
notice the church and its influence; the general atmosphere is altered for the
good. Furthermore, the change is
lasting. I can't remember the details,
but I recently heard of a prayer meeting that was begun at the time of one of
the great revivals, and it continued to meet regularly for 100 years.
So this is the kind of thing I am
talking about when I refer to "revival." How often do these kind of revivals
occur? Let's put it this way -- it has
been a long time since anything such as this happened in this country, well
over one hundred years. That doesn't
mean that revival hasn't taken place in other parts of the world. Nor does it mean that there haven't been
revival on a smaller scale in some local contexts. And, of course, there are reports of revival,
where there is question concerning whether it is really revival. Back in the 1990's there was this thing that
came to be known as the "Toronto Blessing." Some very unusual things happened there in
the name of the Lord and revival, but there is great deal of skepticism
concerning whether it was truly a God-sent revival. Those questions come because of the some of
the bizarre behavior that was attributed to the Holy Spirit and because there
didn't seem to be any real and significant impact on society. Some have said it did more harm than
good. That is not what has been said
about the great revivals of the past.
II.
Who Needs Revival?
So that is the definition I am using
for revival. But now comes the
question: "Does the church need
revival?" Do the people of God in
this country need revival? Do we need an
extraordinary moving of the Holy Spirit to produce extraordinary results? That is a fair question. Perhaps what we are really doing is asking
for an evaluation of the church. When I
say "the church," I realize that is a term that is a bit difficult to
grasp. I am simply talking about the
churches in this country. Put all of
them together and view them as a whole.
How is the religious climate in our country? Is there a need for a great revival?
I don't want to beat around the
bush. Surely there is a great need in
the churches of America. I believe that
is true of this church. Of course, that
is a very touchy subject even with us. I
find we have a hesitancy to affirm that we are a church in great need. If we say that, are we denying that God is at
work here? Is it possible to rejoice in
the Lord and proclaim His goodness, while acknowledging that we are a people in
great need?
So how do we evaluate where we
are? The way I see it, we can choose one
of three things to gauge our spiritual health.
First of all, we can use the measurement of comparison. That is the first thing we are tempted to
do. How are we doing in comparison with
other churches? Before you begin to
think on that, let me say that this is not a godly measuring tool. Nowhere are we encouraged to compare ourselves
with others as individuals or as a church.
If anything, the scripture discourages us from doing such a thing. Let me just read I Cor. 4:1-7...
Let a
man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. 3 But with me
it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In
fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know nothing against myself, yet I am
not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge
nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the
hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each
one's praise will come from God. 6 Now these things, brethren, I have
figuratively transferred to myself and Apollos for your sakes, that you may
learn in us not to think beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed
up on behalf of one against the other. 7 For who makes you differ from another?
And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive
it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?
Pay particular attention to that
seventh verse. Don't compare yourself
with someone else. Whatever makes you
differ from another is simply due to what you have received from the Lord. Surely we can apply that to a church as well
as we can apply it to the individual. If
we ever take any satisfaction in the perception that this church is doing
better than other churches, may the Lord rebuke us severely, because that is sin. It is pride, and there is no excusing
it.
The second measuring stick we can
use is simply the way we feel.
"Well, we feel that as a church we are doing pretty well. We aren't all we should be, but we aren't
doing too badly." When we do that,
we are in a sense doing exactly what Paul refused to do when he said, "I
do not even judge myself" (I Cor. 4:3).
If we try to judge ourselves as a church, what good does that do? Where do we get our authority for such
evaluation? Ultimately, it comes only
from our subjective feelings.
So is there a standard by which we
can evaluate ourselves as a church? Is
there a rule by which we can judge American churches as a whole? There is, and that standard is what God has
given us -- His holy Word. The only
place we can find a true and accurate picture of the church is in the
scriptures. I realize that such a
statement brings up all kinds of questions.
Is it right to measure a church in American society on the basis of the
churches that existed almost 2,000 years ago?
Times have changed. Society has
changed. We live in totally different
conditions. While all that is true, God
has not changed; mankind has not changed; the nature of the church has not
changed.
When we consider the individual, we
would not hesitate to say that we cannot evaluate our own lives by comparing
ourselves to others or trusting our own feelings. Rather, we must look at the standard set
forth in the Bible. Why would it be any
different for the church?
The problem comes when we look at
churches in 21st century America, even this church, and set forth that picture
against what we find in the scripture.
We may take comfort when we come to the church in Corinth, because the
two letters from Paul indicate that this church had some real problems. However, when we look at the churches as a
whole, that is not what stands out. No
local church in the New Testament was perfect, but those churches had a great
sense of purpose. The gospel was
advancing in a pagan world. Though the
church was strongly opposed and even persecuted, that did not shut down its
service and witness in the world. It had
its Ananias's and Sapphiras, but after the death of this couple, we immediately
read... (Acts 5:11-15)
So
great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things. 12 And
through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the
people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon's Porch. 13 Yet none of
the rest dared join them, but the people esteemed them highly. 14 And believers
were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so
that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and
couches, that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of
them.
We
can disagree over the place of such outward miracles in the church today, but
surely we all agree that this deep respect for the Lord's church and the
increasing of believers is what He desires for His church in every
century.
Can anyone genuinely disagree with
the assessment that the churches in America, when taken as a whole, are in
state of decline? It's not just
statistics that would lead us to make that claim. Far more serious is the general atmos-phere. It isn't that the church is opposed in our
day; it is ignored. The church has very
little impact on our society. Even
worse, is what we find on the inside of churches in this country. There is a general apathy toward spiritual
things, and we are not free from that either.
Even among we who call ourselves Christians, there is a tendency to
generate far more enthusiasm for worldly things than for the things of
God. We don't like that fact, but we
often find ourselves powerless to change it.
Bluntly, we are a people in great need, and we see the same thing in
churches all around us.
III.
Is Revival What We Really Need?
Earlier, I asked this basic question: Do God's people need revival? I answered the first part by saying without
apology that we are people in great need.
But what about the second part?
Do we need revival? In other
words, if we are a people in great need, is revival what we need. Do we need an extraordinary moving of the
Holy Spirit producing extraordinary results?
That is a fair question.
There are people who make the point
that revival is an old covenant rather than a new covenant concept. Of course, I can take you to John 7, where
God's people were gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of
Tabernacles. Being the last of the
mandatory-attendance feasts of the year, it was supposed to be the most joyous
of all. And the climax of the feast was
on the last day, when the priest would lead the people down to the Pool of
Siloam to draw out water and take it up to the altar. What shouting and singing and reciting of the
Psalms, as the people shook their palm leaves and praised the Lord. Then at the moment when the water,
symbolizing spiritual life itself, was poured out at the altar, there was dead
silence. It was the most awe-inspiring
moment imaginable, absolute reverence to the Lord... at least that is what it
was supposed to be. Then we read in John
7:37, "On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood
and cried out, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.'"
We have read that verse many times
and will continue to do so, but notice the context. It is not by accident that John tells us
Jesus spoke these words on the climactic day, likely at the very moment I
described. Why? Because that which symbolized life was
surrounded by death. The symbol had lost
its meaning and power. The joy that
should have been communicated by all the outward celebration was empty. To put it concisely, it was a time of
spiritual decline. Yes, they needed
revival. They needed an extraordinary
moving of the Holy Spirit producing extraordinary results. And they would find that revival through
heeding Jesus' words. "If anyone
thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
He who believes on me, as the scripture has said, out of his innermost
being shall flow rivers of living water.
But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing on Him
should receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not
yet glorified" (John 7:37-39). Praise
God that Jesus was glorified. He did go
to the cross, dying in our place, and God raised Him from the dead. That same Jesus, together with the Father, on
the Day of Pentecost sent the Holy Spirit into the lives of all those who
believed. That was revival at its best.
While that account is found in the
New Testament, it is in the context of the old covenant. The need for revival was before
Pentecost. After the Holy Spirit came on
the Day of Pentecost, things did change.
Now believers actually had the Holy Spirit living within them. That was not true of the Old Testament
saints. The basic question is this: Do New Testament believers, those who are
indwelt by the Holy Spirit, need revival?
If we have the Spirit, do we not have all we need?
Please turn to Ephesians 1. Three weeks ago we read this prayer Paul
prayed for the people of the Ephesian church, but I want us to read it again
this morning. Let's read Eph.
1:15-19...
Therefore
I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the
saints, 16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my
prayers: 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may
give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 18 the
eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the
hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the
saints, 19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who
believe, according to the working of His mighty power...
The
basic prayer Paul prayed for them was that God might give them the spirit of
wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him.
The word translated "knowledge" has a preposition added to it,
making it intense. Some trans-lations
render it "full knowledge" or "complete knowledge." While the King James and New King James do
not capitalize "Spirit," other translations do. In the original languages, there was no
capitalization (unless all the letters were capitalized). So was Paul referring to a human attitude, or
did he have in mind the Holy Spirit?
There are some very good reasons to conclude that he was referring to
the Holy Spirit. Certainly, it is the
Holy Spirit who gives us wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God.
Just think about that for a
minute. Paul desired them, and God
desires us, to have wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of Him. This knowledge, of course, goes much deeper
than just facts. He is talking about
personal experience in our acquaintance with the Lord. This fits very well with what we read
recently in I Corinthians 2. Let's read
again I Cor. 2:9-12...
But as
it is written: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart
of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him." 10 But
God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all
things, yes, the deep things of God. 11 For what man knows the things of a man
except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things
of God except the Spirit of God. 12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the
world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have
been freely given to us by God.
The
Spirit of God blesses us with wisdom and reveals to us the things that God has
freely given to us. So we see that in
Paul's thinking believers have received much, even everything we need, but it
is the ministry of the Spirit to open our eyes to see and our minds to understand.
It would not be wrong to say, "Paul
didn't pray for revival among those Ephesian Christians; he prayed for the
spirit of wisdom and revelation in the full knowledge of God." That is certainly true, and it is based on
the ministry of the indwelling Spirit in our lives. However, the state of churches in our day is
such that many of us are blind to our great need. The cry for revival is a prayer that God
would open our eyes to see our need and appreciate this ministry of the Spirit. It isn't a denial that we have the Word and
the Spirit. It isn't saying that God's
supply isn't sufficient. Rather, it is a
prayer that the Spirit will move in an extraordinary way to stir the people of
God to seek Him and long for everything He has for us. As someone has said of the church in our
day: "Never have so many been
content with so little."
If we want to find an example of
revival in the New Testament, I suppose the closest we can come is to the need
for revival, and you know where we find it.
We find it in the third chapter of Revelation, where Jesus speaks to the
church at Laodicea. Many of you are
familiar with this passage, but let's read it again in Rev. 3:14-22...
And to
the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, "These things says the
Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 I
know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold
or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will
vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy,
and have need of nothing' --and do not know that you are wretched, miserable,
poor, blind, and naked-- 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the
fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that
the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye
salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore
be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone
hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and
he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne,
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 He who has an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
The church of Laodicea was
blind. Those people thought they were
rich, but they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. They needed revival in the sense that they
needed the Lord to stir up their minds and hearts. Jesus said to them, "Be zealous and
repent." Repentance and revival go
hand in hand. There can never be revival
apart from repentance. Whenever the
church becomes comfortable with sin, there is great need of repentance. Revival is the move of the Spirit that opens
our eyes to see that need.
Conclusion
So that is what I mean by
revival. That is why revival is so
desperately needed in our day.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word "revive" like
this: "to return to consciousness
or life; become active or flourishing again." The root idea is "life again." If we truly know God through Jesus Christ, we
have life, but the church as a whole needs to flourish again in the spiritual
realm. Revival begins with the church,
but out of that has always come the conversion of multitudes.
Yesterday at Men's Meeting we were
talking about how the Holy Spirit dwells in believers, and surely He is
speaking, but are we listening? Are we
responding to His guidance? Oh that we
might see a great movement of the Holy Spirit, producing in us a renewed
longing to be in the presence of our Father.
It is somewhat ironic that the date
today is July 14, "7/14" if you write it numerically. Some of you are familiar with the text that
is often used in association with revival -- II Chron. 7:14, "If
My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek
My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and
will forgive their sin and heal their land." By the way, I didn't plan it that way. Let me be absolutely clear. When I speak of revival, I am not talking
about a national revival of America. I
am not speaking about the healing of America.
I don't believe the United States of America has ever been the chosen
people of God. If there is any direct
application of this verse to our situation, it has to be applied to the church,
not to the nation. The revival we need
is not about healing the ailments of our country; it is about a breaking of the
pride and blindness that exists in the professing church. But praise God that He is still the One who
hears from heaven and forgives our sin. And
He can and will do far more than just forgive us. If we are in Christ, we are indeed the
righteousness of God in Him. As D. L.
Moody once said, “The world has yet
to see what God can do with a man fully consecrated to him. By God’s help, I
aim to be that man.” If you knew nothing
about him, you might conclude that he was arrogant, but that was not the
case. He longed to walk in the Spirit
for the glory of God.
Brothers and sisters, I encourage us
to pray for revival, but with some understanding of what that means and what it
doesn't mean. If you prefer another
term, that's fine. Let's not quibble
over terminology; but let's long for a true work of the Spirit of God in our
lives and in the lives of all of God's people.
Let's not be content because we think we are doing as well as everyone
else. Let's come to the Word and ask the
Spirit to plant within us a longing for all God has for us.
This week I commend to you the
scriptures you find in the bulletin.
Let's meditate together on the Word of God, expecting the Holy Spirit to
reveal to us the things that have been freely given to us by God.
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