Revival And The Beatitudes Series

Intro

What the world needs now is revival. In times of revival the effectiveness of the church skyrockets. The wind of the Spirit lifts the believers to greater heights of service, the world is evangelized, and the moral climate of society is changed. The question asked of God in Psalm 85:6 is: ‘Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?” Revival always produces renewed strength and exceptional joy among God’s people.

I was born again in the aftermath of the Pentecostal Revival and have participated in two revivals: the Jesus Movement in the late 60s/early 70s and the Brownsville Revival in the late 90s.i I was not a key leader in either of those revivals, but I was transformed by personal experiences during those seasons. Revival lifted me into greater love for Christ and thrust me into more fruitful ministry. This message is provided because the Beatitudes provide important counsel on how God’s people can position themselves for revival.

WHAT IS REVIVAL?

There is both an element of God’s sovereignty and a factor of Christian receptivity in the outbreaking of revival.ii God is the supreme commander in charge of timing and strategy.iii But he is the rewarder of those who diligently seek him so that attitude of heart matters.iv And that is what the Beatitudes teach us about posturing for revival.

“There is no cheap grace in revival. It entails repudiation of self-satisfied complacency. Revival turns careless living into vital concern . . . exchanges self-indulgence for self-denial. Yet, revival is not a miraculous visitation falling on an unprepared people like a bolt out of the blue. It comes when God’s people earnestly want revival and are willing to pay the price.”v

Revival is wonderful, but revival is costly. Revival is not for lazy people. During the Brownsville Revival, I watched people more consecrated than me minister night after night to those who came to be renewed and empowered by the manifest presence of God in the meetings. Over and over lay people cleaned bathrooms for thousands who came to the meetings. Pastors, teachers, and evangelists poured themselves out to the people night after night. If you want revival for entertainment purposes, you’re on the wrong track. Revival is a costly endeavor, but it is worth it beyond words.

Revival shakes the status quo and is often disturbing before it is refreshing. The first time my wife, Jeanie, and I attended the Brownsville Revival we immediately came under conviction. That surprised us because we were faithful pastors living an upright life. But in revival the intensity of God’s holiness is felt at a heightened level.

If “revival” is not accompanied with strong conviction of sin, it is not true revival. “In revival, The Spirit of God like a cleansing flame sweeps through the community. Divine conviction grips people everywhere: the strongholds of the devil tremble and many close their doors, while multitudes turn to Christ!”vi Michael Brown writes,

“What is revival? It is God ‘stepping down from heaven’ and baring his holy arm. He comes and acts and speaks. There is a holy Presence and a word on fire. God is in the midst of His people. The Lord is shaking the world. That is revival! It is a time of visitation.”vii

The fear of the Lord is an essential part of true revival. Revival is not thousands of Christians in a stadium singing Kum ba yah. While that may be a good thing, it is not revival. In his account of the Hebrides Revival, Duncan Campbell reported,

“This supernatural illumination of the Holy Spirit led many in [the Hebrides] revival to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ before they came near to any meeting connected with the movement. I have no hesitation in saying that this awareness of God is the crying need of the Church today. ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,’ but this cannot be worked up by human effort, it must come down.”viii

The need of the church today is not better methods and improved technology.ix Those may be helpful, but they are not essential. And without that which is essential, they matter very little. The Holy Spirit alone can bring eternal life into the soul. The Holy Spirit alone can transform a self-absorbed sinning creature into a child of God dedicated to the glory of God.

What the church needs is a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit like the early church experienced. Many are seeking clean entertainment at the church when we should be seeking empowerment for the spiritual battle between light and darkness. Years ago, A. W. Tozer observed, “That this world is a playground instead of a battlefield has now been accepted by the vast majority of fundamentalist Christians.”x “We’re in a war—a spiritual war, a cultural war, a moral war—but we often lose sight of it, choosing to play, to simply get on with the business of our lives rather than the fight. Life in this world casts a spell on us, and we live and die just like the people of the world live and die. Our values as believers are barely distinguishable from theirs!”xi