A CRY FOR REVIVAL
Study Text: Psalms 85:6, Psalm 119:159
Introduction:
- Revival means drawing near to God with the expectation of Him drawing near to us. Isaiah 55: 6-7.
- When revival comes, God's people will hunger for righteousness, worship and service in His name. When revival comes, the lost will be drawn to Jesus by the Father.
- Revival is needed whenever the love of God’s people has grown cold. We read in Revelation 3:15-17, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, ‘I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing’; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.”
- When revival comes, people who have wandered away to the far country will return to the Father's House. When revival comes, serving God will not wear us out but will lift us up. When revival comes, His name will be exalted and His people filled with His Spirit.
- You will never receive a blessing from God that you are not pursuing. Revival is intentional. Receiving from God comes through deep desire for more of Him. Ask and it shall be given thee, seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto thee.
- Revival must be personal and experienced by individual. The church is as strong as the individual person. As one walks with joy, as one walks with zeal, as one walks with power, it strengthens the cords of the entire group. The church will be stronger as the individual life is made strong.
- When you desire to see His name glorified – you are desiring revival. When you seek to motivate the Church – you are seeking revival. When you are burdened by sin within the Church – you are burdened for revival. When you ask the Lord to fan the flame within your own heart – you are asking for revival.
- A revival is not the Church deciding to do something and doing it. It is something that happens or is done to the Church by God. It is an awakening to who God is and a longing to be close to Him and follow His word.
- We shall discuss the topic under three sub-headings:
1. The Different Pointers of Revival
2. The Definite Picture of Revival
3. The Desperate Prayer for Revival
1. The Different Pointers of Revival
- In the last days I will pour out of my Spirit on all flesh. There is a promise of last day revival. Ye shall be endued with power from on high. Revival is truly a work of the Spirit of God.
- On the day of Pentecost, they were in one place, in one mind and in one accord when God visited them. For Revival to take place, people must come in faith, with a heart of expectancy. We will not receive it, until we believe it. Revival isn’t accidental, but when people purpose in their hearts.
- Consider some of the different pointers to the need of revival: just as a sick person manifests physical symptoms, so the need for personal spiritual revival has spiritual symptoms.
i. Complacency:
- Self-satisfaction or satisfaction with the status quo. “Seat-warmers” who have a “care-free” attitude may well need a spiritual revival.
ii. Lack of concern for the lost and the suffering in the world (1 Corinthians 10:23).
- How can we see or read the world news, considering all the suffering in the world, and not be moved by it? If we are not, we definitely need spiritual renewal or revival.
iii. Hiding or covering secret sins (Numbers 32:23).
- If we find ourselves covering or excusing our sins, or rationalize, “I will have to change that…someday,” we may well need spiritual revival.
iv. Having an unforgiving spirit (Matthew 6:14-15).
- An unforgiving spirit is a strong indication that we need spiritual revival. We are to put on the mind, the views, and the feelings of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).
v. Being filled with pride (Proverbs 29:23).
- We are reminded in Proverbs 16: 18 that “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Pride and vanity were the cause of Lucifer’s fall (Ezekiel 28:17). - We must beware, lest his attitude is reflected in us. If we find ourselves feeling superior or puffed up, we need the humility of revival.
vi. Animosity toward other Christians.
- It is said that we can pick our friends, but we cannot pick our brethren.
vii. Any condition of spiritual standing where we are less than we were before:
- A “backslidden condition.” We all know the way back to Babylon—it is only some steps back to our old ways and habits of life. If you feel yourself slipping, YOU need spiritual revival!
- All of these symptoms are strong indications that we need to draw closer to God and His Word. Remember, God’s Spirit, which gives revival, is renewed in us daily, but conditionally! What are those conditions?
i. We must face up to spiritual realities.
- “Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates” (2 Corinthians 13:5)?
ii. We need to see ourselves as we are—as God sees us.
- We must be honest. We must be repentant. “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish” (Luke 135).
iii. We need to acknowledge God for Who He is and stop playing church.
- “Oh how great is Thy goodness, which Thou hast laid up for them that fear Thee; which Thou hast wrought for them that trust in Thee before the sons of men” (Psalm 31:19).
iv. We must see sin for what it is.
- Confess it, repent of it, and forsake it. FOREVER! “Go, and sin no more” (John 8:11).
v. We must cultivate an earnest desire to be revived.
- If we believe strongly enough in a cause, how can we not get involved? Often we don’t want revival badly enough to make any difference or change in our lives.
- Change is what Christianity is all about. We must change from what we are—our “old man,” or nature—to become more and more like Jesus Christ is in every way.
- Godly character is knowing right from wrong and choosing to go God’s way no matter what—even if it seems uncomfortable or awkward or brings persecution.
- Isaiah 55:6-7 encourages us to “Seek ye the LORD while He may be found.” This implies that a time is coming when God may not be easily found. No one knows how much time he or she may have left. God wants to send revival upon those who genuinely seek it.
2. The Definite Picture of Revival
- Revival must be purifying—a true revival changes the heart, only the pure in heart will see God.
- As the church becomes lukewarm, individuals loose personal holiness. As the church is on fire, each individual begins to walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
- The following are some of the things that true revival depicts, they will be evident when there is revival.
i. A spontaneous outpouring of the presence and power of God that moves the people to respond.
- Only God woos and draws the heart to Him. His Holy Spirit pricks the heart to respond to His drawing. It is God who pours out His spirit upon all flesh.
- Something happens when you are in the presence of the Lord. Once you have experienced it, you are never the same. True signs of revival are people longing and lingering in the presence of God.
ii. A heart of repentance and obedience.
- Repentance and obedience is another sign of true revival. Throughout the history of the church and the revivals that have taken place, repentance is one of the main signs that have been manifested.
- People can’t help but repenting and asking for forgiveness when the presence of the Lord has saturated the place.
iii. A hunger for God, and the things of God.
- Revival is an awakening of hearts to God and the things of God. It is an awareness of our need for more of God.
- Hunger makes one do desperate things. Desperation makes one run to the source to be satisfied. With God, He will always satisfy those who hunger and thirst after Him. We shall be filled!
iv. A desire to go deeper in Him, and to excel to a higher level spiritually.
- Once we repent, and taste and see that the Lord is good, we want more. Natural hunger is satisfied after you eat a meal. Being spiritually hungry builds to more hunger and a desire to go deeper with God.
- It really makes you want to give your all to your Creator. Complacency is not present in revival. Satisfying the flesh is never an option when true revival has come. Only satisfying and pleasing God is the main desire.
v. A heart for humility and readiness to forgive others.
- We decrease with our desires to please our flesh and God increases in us. Pride and arrogance is gone and humility and brokenness is present.
- Revival is releasing any un-forgiveness, bitterness, or past hurts to God and allowing Him to bring a refreshing in your soul. It is walking humbly with God, hand in hand, and watching Him reveal areas in your life that needs attention or change.
vi. A desire to see souls saved and to see lives changed for God’s glory.
- Seeing souls, people, come to know Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior should be fruit of true revival. The revivals in history all have the common factor of people coming to Christ.
vii. A desire to see dead things back to life!
- You see, revival is bringing dead things back to life. We can have dead relationships, dead finances, dead dreams, and dead emotions.
3. The Desperate Prayer for Revival
- Today, the church needs to be revived. Revival is desperately needed in any church to cause an awakening to what God is doing and wanting to do.
- Only desperate praying for revival will bring results. All our plans and programs are nothing without the movement of God's Spirit among us.
- Sadly, for some people, prayer is like a fire extinguisher - only used when the house is on fire. We ought to be a people of prayer at all times. Jesus said that His House would be called a House of Prayer.
- A Cry for revival is something that comes from deep within us and can’t help to come out and be heard by the ears of God. Crying out to God brings Him instantly to us. As we all cry out to God we become one voice, one cry and God is compelled to respond.
- What kind of praying must we offer if we expect a movement of power and presence from the Lord?
i. Confessing Prayer
- God's people have lost something today. We must cry out for God to "restore" it. Only He can. And the only way He will, is for us to call our sin what He calls it. Our sin is not a "mistake" or "weakness." Our sin is SIN!
- We cannot have joy, peace, purity and power restored to the church of our Lord and to His people, unless and until we are willing to pray honest, confessing prayers to Him!
ii. Consistent Prayer
- We must pray till God answers. The Lord will test our sincerity with His silence. When we pray faithfully, He will answer!
- Again and again the Bible teaches us that we are to be persistent in prayer. Think about the people praying after Jesus ascended back to heaven. They prayed for ten days and the Spirit of God fell on them and three thousand people were saved in one day.
- Do you think that would have happened if they had only prayed nine days? We must pray through till we hear from God and see His mighty hand move upon us.
iii. Confident Prayer
- We must trust His love and pray with expectation. We are not asking Him to revive us because we deserve it; we are asking him to revive us because He has an unfailing love for His children and for His Church.
- We are not asking Him to revive us so that we can merely feel better; we are asking Him to revive us so that He may gain glory to Himself. He deserves the best from us and we can't give it to Him unless He enables us to do so!
Conclusion:
- We need to cry out to God, “Wilt thou revive us again?” “Revive us again” means that there have been revivals before. God will always forgive as long as we return to Him.
- The Christian life is made up of “many beginnings.” We fall down—or sin—but keep getting up, striving not to fall in this way again. With this resolve in mind, we should be growing daily stronger and wiser in our Christian walk.
- Only God can send revival. He alone is the Source: “Wilt Thou…revive us again” No man, no organization, can “schedule” or plan spiritual revival. It is not something men do; it is what God will do if we are repentant and demonstrate humility, receive His Word and remain constant in prayer.
- We need:
i. Personal revival: that means individuals getting right with God.
ii. Home revival: that means families getting back to the place they need to be.
iii. Church revival: that means to be doing the work Christ ordained (Mathew 28:19-20).
- Revival—a returning to God—is not turned on and off like a water fountain, but if we meet God’s conditions He will bestow it upon us. He wants us to be renewed!
