Last week I began a series of messages on Key’s to Revival. It may seem strange that I’m sharing about revival with a group of Believers that are faithful. But you are exactly the ones that I need to pour this message into.
Revival will always be birthed by someone who cares.
If no one cares about revival, then they will not sincerely seek God to send a revival.
On the other hand, God will answer the cries for revival from the hearts of those who truly are concerned and have vision for what God wants to do.
As I began to work on this message the Lord laid on my heart our scripture text tonight.
Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”
It’s important that we get a vision for what God wants to do in our city. It’s up to those who care to cry out to God for revival to come not only to our city but to our church.
Our churches are dying and people are going to hell because of the lack of our knowing God’s vision for this city.
What is God’s vision for the city?
If we’re to understand God’s vision for the city, we first need to understand where God’s heart is.
2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” The King James Version
Underline in your bibles God is not willing that any should perish. Look at this verse in context…
First it says “the Lord is not slack concerning His promise…”
The promise this verse is referring to is Christ coming to take home His bride.
For years we’ve heard that Jesus is coming soon, and for years He’s not come. But the Word makes it plain that God has not been slack concerning the rapture of the Church. He’s not forgotten that He suppose to be doing this.
We see why He’s not come yet, because He’s not willing that any should perish, but all would come to repentance. If He doesn’t come today, it’s because He’s extended His hand of mercy to give people another chance to come to Him.
But here’s where we need to be concerned, every day that goes by is one day closer to the rapture of the Church. It’s one day less that someone has a chance to make it in. It’s one day less for someone to come to Christ.
That’s why we need have the vision of God, the compassion of God and the power of God operating in our life. That’s why we need revival to fill our church and to fill our city.
Before revival can come to our church, we’ve got to get ourselves ready. We need to live in awareness that judgment is coming to the house of God first.
1 Peter 4:17 “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?”
We’ve got to get ready. A few weeks ago the Lord spoke to my heart and told me that revival is coming, get ready. That’s what this series is about. What must the church do to get ready for the revival that God desires to bring.
Last week we looked at the first key, renewal of prayer and Worship.
Let me share just a little bit more about prayer before we go on. Prayer is the key to any revival. I’ve shared this before, there have been great revivals without great preaching, but there’s never been a great revival without great praying.
I’m passionate about prayer, there is rarely a day goes by that I don’t spend at least an hour in prayer. God has invited us through the avenue of prayer to help bring His will to pass on this earth.
I don’t know why God has, but the fact remains that God has placed the responsibility in our hands to help bring His will to pass through the avenue of prayer.
Jesus taught the disciples to pray …thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. God has chosen to use intercessor’s on earth as the go betweens between man and God.
When we don’t pray, things that God desires to do, don’t get done. I don’t know of one person that has ever come to the Lord that someone wasn’t praying for them.
There are such strongholds out there that want to keep man blinded from the light of the Gospel. It’s going to take us to enter into intercession and pray that the veil be lifted from off their eyes. We need to be praying that the Father would draw them to Christ.
We’ve got to come to an understanding that people’s lives are being weighed in the balances and it’s up to us to tip the scale in their favor through intercessory prayer.
God has chosen us to stand in the gap for and pray that the veil be lifted. It’s as if God has chosen not to get involved until His people begin to cry out to Him. He wants to be involved, but He’s left it up to us to ask for His involvement.
That’s why satan has attacked the prayer meeting so much in our churches. That’s why it’s so difficult to pray, because the enemy is opposing your efforts to tear down His strongholds.
In many places the old fashion prayer meeting is a thing of the past. Satan has been systematically shutting down prayer meetings, because they are a major threat to his work.
That’s why the first key to revival is the restoration of prayer. Without the cries of the believers revival will not come.
The second key to revival is we need to remove all idols.
When we think about idols we think about little statues that people pray to. The truth is, an idol is anything that we put before God.
TV can be an idol, our jobs can be an idol, our pleasure can be an idol, food can be an idol. Anything that keeps God having first place in your life is an idol.
Churches have idols too. (talk about each)
Traditions can be an idol… We’ve always done it this way. But God said do it the other way, but we can’t because we’ve never done it that way before.
People can be an idol – We don’t want to offend Sister Do-Better or Brother Happy won’t like what we’re doing. I know God said to do it, but we don’t want to cause problems.
The building can be an idol – We can’t open our doors to anyone. Those children down the street are wild, and wouldn’t know how to act in church and they might tear it up.
Those people aren’t the right kind you know.
The denomination can be an idol – We don’t care what God says, the minutes say…
…And the list could go on.
Whatever it is that keeps us from putting Christ first in our lives is what we must tear down.
Here’s the hard part, we’ve got to look at ourselves first. Do we have anything in our lives that keeps Christ from being number one in us? If we do, we must confess it, and ask forgiveness for it before we go on.
The next key to revival is we need to rediscover the Word of God
We looked Wednesday night at how the Word of God came to us, but I believe if we’re going to experience a mighty out- pouring of God’s power, then we must put a premium on God’s word once again.
People barely bring their bibles anymore to church. The only word some people get is what they hear in church because people don’t take the time to read the bible anymore.
We’ll never experience revival if we don’t put a premium on what God says.
Wall Street rises and falls on the words of Allan Greenspan, the press hangs on every word the president says so they can try to make news out of it.
We need to hang on to every Word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
You see, it’s not just any book it’s His book. It’s not just any word it’s His word.
When God declares something we need to take notice of what God says. So often when God speaks to us through the gifts of the Spirit, we take what He says so lightly.
God never speaks without a reason, every jot and tittle in the Word of God will not pass away, but will come to pass.
Let me share with you a few reasons why saturating ourselves in the Word is so important…
First, God watches out over His word to make sure it accomplishes what He’s sent it to do.
God’s word helps keep our lives in check, it discerns the thought and the intent of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
Next, putting the Word of God in its proper place in our life allows us to have answered prayer.
John 15:7 “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
Conclusion:
Keys to revival, prayer and worship; remove everything from our life that keeps Christ from being first; rediscovering the importance of the Word in our life.
You do these things and I guarantee that God will bring a freshness to your life.
