Asking For Revival...
Read...
Psa 85:6 Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?
Intro...
Psalms 85:6 gives us the cause & effect of revival. See, the cause is that the psalmist asks for revival.
How many know that asking can cause alot of things to come to pass.
Jesus said in Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
So by asking, the saints of God can set the ball rolling to start receiving. Amen?
In this case revival is what the psalmist asked to receive.
And the effect that revival would have was happiness.
It’s happiness that causes people to rejoice. Gladness.
When we ask for something specific from our Father and He is faithful to hear and answer our prayers we rejoice.
God is good. Amen?
How many came expecting something tonight?
I don’t think the problem with this generation is expectation. I think we expect great things.
We just need to learn how to expect and receive!
What I’m trying to say is that we can’t just sit back and expect something to happen if we aren’t working toward that common goal.
We can’t go through life thinking that God, or anyone else for that matter, owes us something, and therefore we are going to receive.
If I expect a pay increase from my boss then I have to work a little harder and do things by the book.
In the same way, if we expect an increase from God, whether it be spiritually, physically, or financially, we have to do things by the book.
Fortunately for us the Book says that all we have to do is ask.
Give Him some praise.
Statistics...
In his book, The Bridger Generation, Thom S. Rainer gives us some recent statistics.
It says that 65 percent of the Builder Generation are evangelical Christians.
That is Americans born between 1910-1946.
35 percent of the Boomer Generation, that is Americans born between 1947-1964, are evangelical Christians,
While only 15 percent of the Buster Generation, that is Americans born between 1965-1976, are evangelical Christians.
Can you see the decrease?
Slowly our nation has lost it’s main asset... Our root in Christ Jesus.
I believe that the gradual decline of our nation’s moral ethics is mainly because we have neglected to instill our
superior Christian beliefs in our youth.
The same Christian beliefs and the same Christian principles that our nation was founded on we’ve neglected to
pass down through the generations.
I think it’s time we stop complaining about our youth and start praying for our youth.
Start claiming blessings on their lives!
Praying for the Holy Ghost to pour out conviction of sin, righteousness and judgement across our youth.
I think we as the adults have expected a change in our children’s and grandchildren’s lives but we haven’t done our part to break the generational curses.
We haven’t educated our youth in the things of Christ.
Scripture tells us in
Pro 22:6 to ...Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
It seems like these days we are more apt to critisize our youth than support them.
We complain about their clothes, their music, their speech, etc., but what if we just taught them about modesty in
dress or traded in their secular rap for Christian rap.
What if we supported their differences in style and celebrated our likeness in Christ.
I believe that’s what Jesus would do.
God calls us to be seperated from sin not our personality.
Look at it this way... If you listened to country music before you were saved chances are you like southern Gospel
now. If you wore cowboy boots before you were saved you probably wear cowboy boots now.
If someone would have told you that you weren’t Christian enough because you wore cowboy boots then you
probably wouldn’t have gone back to that Church. Amen!?!
God didn’t call you out of your personality and He’s not going to do it to our youth.
I believe the problem is that we’ve been trying to put our youth into an hundred year old mold and that doesn’t
work! We have to reach them on their level or we’re going to continue to shun them away from Christ.
I don’t know about you but I don’t want that on my rap sheet when I get to Heaven. Amen!?!
Don’t get mad at me!
The statistics show it.
Our nation went from having 65 out of an hundred youth professing Christ as their personal Lord and Savior,
To only a projected 4 out of an hundred in this generation.
My generation our children’s generation.
Only a projected 4 percent of the Bridger generation, that is Americans born after 1977 are or will be evangelical Christians.
And I believe it’s because we haven’t embedded strong Christian morals in their life.
We haven’t reached out to them on their level.
We’ve told them to conform to an hundred year old mold and because that is not possible we’re losing our teens.
It’s time to do something, Church, and it’s time now!
Act Now...
Studies show that 80 percent of people who come to Christ do so before the age of 21.
That’s why it is imperative that we start focusing on our youth now.
Our youth are being pulled away from God in multiple angles.
The media is one of the main culprits.
There are increasingly perverse TV shows, movies, and music being broadcast over the air waves right into our
homes.
Internet access to more than 4.2 million pornographic websites.
The moral decline of our nation plays it’s part by legalizing gay marriage or civil unions in some states.
They remove Christian symbols such as nativity scenes and the Ten Commandments from public places.
Any and all evidence of Christianity is being removed from public holidays and government logos.
Imagine a world where pastors are thrown in jail for saying homosexuality is wrong.
That happened in 2005 in Sweden. How long before it happens in America?
Imagine a world where our children are the target audience for adult entertainment.
Studies now show that 12-17 year olds are the largest group viewing porn on the web.
The signs are here, Church. You say what signs brother John?
The signs that we are in need of revival.
How do we know when we are in need of revival...
When the people of God are easily offended by the Word of God we need revival!
When we can easily gossip about our brother or sister with no conviction we need revival!
If we compromise with and justify sin We are in need of a revival!
If we act and talk just like the world, put sports and secular events over God’s house we need revival!
The list goes on and on, Amen.
There are two kinds of revival in the Bible: Personal and corporate - the church.
We need to be seeking both, Amen?
A preacher by the name of Raymond Perkins once said...
“The single greatest need in our land today is heaven-sent revival! Revival comes at the sovereign, gracious decision of God to
send a fresh movement of His Spirit among his people… (but) Revival will not come unless it is desired. It is an invasion from
heaven at the request of the saints on earth.”
How do we trigger revival?
We ask for it. We request it. We put our faith and expectations into action. Amen!?!
We have to walk by faith if we want to move God, Church!
Read:
Exo 3:7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
Exo 3:8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
Exo 3:9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
Look at verse seven. God knows our sorrows, He knows our need even before we ask. Amen.
Verse 8... He wants to deliver us Church. He’s willing to go to extremes to draw us closer to Him. Amen?
He came down on a mountain in those days and raised up a deliverer to set the captives free.
He came down in the flesh in our day, died and rose again on the third day so that we might be delivered.
I don’t know anything more extreme than sending His only son to die for our sin. That’s love Church.
But look, It’s not until verse 8 that we see our way out. It says He heard the cry of the children of Israel,
and that’s what moved God.
How many know that God is a faith God. That goes to say that faith is what moves God.
The children of israel cried out in faith and God responded.
It’s time for the Church to cry out in faith.
Because faith moves God!
Faith moves God to send revival!
Faith moves God to send change!
To send blessings!
Healing!
If faith moved God to deliver an entire nation out of Egypt over thirty-five hundred years ago,
How much more can faith move God today in the Church age to deliver us from bondage in sin.
From financial burdens, peer pressure.
from drug or alchohol addiction!
Sexual perversion and immorality!
Abusive relationships, or family members!
1Jn 5:4 For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.
Faith is our victory church!
Do we have faith tonight? Then we have victory.
Church revival isn’t about a formula, it’s about falling in love with Jesus again!
It’s about renewing our relationship with Christ.
It’s putting our faith into action and God opening the windows of Heaven and pouring out a blessing in response to our faith.
It’s reviving our spirit man!
How many in here tonight came expecting a heaven sent revival?
REVIVAL HISTORY:
How many in here tonight have heard of The Welsh Revival of 1904-5
Did you know that it started with the youth?
In 1904 a 26 year old ‘youth intern’, Evan Roberts, had been praying for revival for 11 years.
He felt like God was going to pour out a mighty spirit of revival on Wales.
A pastor allowed him to speak following a prayer meeting and only 17 people stayed behind to hear the message.
The 17 that stayed were mostly youth & young adults.
They all ended up at the altar that night crying out to God in faith until 2:00 in the morning.
That week 60 people were saved.
For the next 1 1/2 years there was revival in Wales and 100,000 people were saved.
Revival changed their national culture.
Bars & liquor stores shut down. The entire police force was dismissed because crime rates dropped so dramatically
that they weren’t needed.
Their prayer meetings were multiplied to 2,000 in a meeting.
This was a mighty move of God!
And it was all because 17 youth and young adults cried out in faith to a God who operates through faith.
God told Solomon in
2Ch 7:13 If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people;
2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
He’s telling us tonight if there’s no rain it’s because we haven’t asked,
If there’s no blessings flowing it’s because we haven’t prayed,
If the door is closed we haven’t been knocking,
If we haven’t found revival we aren’t seeking it.
I’m going to close out tonight by opening up the alter, and if you have a need, a desire, or an expectation
on your knees at the alter is where you’ll find it tonight.
Jesus said to ask, seek, and knock. It’s your choice to do so.
If you’re in a back slidden state 1Jn 1:9 says that ...If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our
sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
If we have a need scipture says to "humble ourselves, and pray, and seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways"
And he will hear from Heaven and forgive, heal, restore, and revive.
Everybody put your hands up and say Lord,
Your word says to ask and it will be given to me,
Tonight I’m asking you for personal revival in my life,
Anything in my life that doesn’t glorify you Lord I’m laying down at the alter,
And I’m leaving it here. Renew my mind oh Lord,
Send your fire to burn away my impurities,
And revive my spirit.
Lord, I pray for revival in the Body of Christ.
Revive our leadership, our youth, and our lay people,
Send your spirit to pour out conviction upon the world,
And lead and guide us forever. In Jesus’ holy name, Amen.
H2421
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châyâh
khaw-yaw’
A prim root (compare H2331, H2424); to live, whether literally or figuratively; causatively to revive: - keep (leave, make) alive, X certainly, give (promise) life, (let, suffer to) live, nourish up, preserve (alive), quicken, recover, repair, restore (to life), revive, (X God) save (alive, life, lives), X surely, be whole.
