Pastor Rick Flowers
First Baptist Church of Flushing
(Fourth of a four-part series)
"God’s Requirements For Genuine Revival - Repentance"
2 Chronicles 7:11-15
As we conclude our study on "God’s Requirements For Genuine Revival", let us review the previous three requirements as set forth in 2 Chronicles 7:14:
Humility (…Will Humble Themselves…)
· The opposite of Humility if Pride.
· God Hates Pride.
· Pride is Harmful To Everyone (Self and others).
· God has promised to Chasten the Proud.
· Pride will blind us to our true Spiritual Condition.
The Results of Humility
· We Become Recipients of God’s Grace.
· We Receive His Forgiveness.
· We Enjoy His Blessing.
· He Hears And Answers Our Prayers.
Prayer (…And Pray…)
· Prayerlessness is Sin.
· God commands His people to Pray.
· God sometimes uses our Circumstances to Stimulate Us To Prayer.
Hindrances To Effective Prayer
· Prayerlessness
· Selfishness
· Unconfessed Sin
· Doubt and Unbelief
· An Unforgiving Spirit
Seeking God
· An urgency to enter into the presence of God!
· Desire for an intimate fellowship with the Lord.
· Wholeheartedly seeking God through believing prayer.
· This should be done humbly, diligently and regularly.
This seeking may begin with a simple desire to know Him better or it may be in response to adverse circumstances in a person’s life. (God may use them to get our attention.)
As we close our study on "God’s Requirements For Genuine Revival" I would like for us to consider the fourth requirement: Repentance.
Repentance (…Turn From Their Wicked Ways…)
Let’s Read 2 Chronicles 7 one last time together:
(Read 2 Chronicles 7:14 & Pray)
I. Repentance In The OT - Let’s Define Repentance
Hebrew Words translated "Repent"
Shoob - "To Return, to turn back, to turn away." This word carries with it the thought of turning, both to and away from something. So to repent of something is both turning from sin and turning to God.
It is the word most commonly used by OT writers to describe Repentance.
This word represents the "Volitional Aspect" of Repentance or the exercise of the will.
Nacham - "To be sorry, to regret, to suffer grief."
This word describes the "Emotional Aspect" of Repentance.
Sorrow over sin… not worldly sorrow because you got caught, but Godly sorrow because you recognize that it offends a holy God!
True Repentance is best defined as a combination of the two: "A sorrow over sin because of how it grieves God and affects others. Broken over his sin, the individual chooses to turn from his sin and turn in his heart to God."
Examples In The OT of Exhortations to Repent:
"Turn From Sin"
Ezekiel 14:1-8 (Turn Away From Sin - idols in your hearts.) (Key: To The Jews the Heart was the seat of the intellect and emotions.)
1Now some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me.
2And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
3“Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts, and put before them that which causes them to stumble into iniquity. Should I let Myself be inquired of at all by them? (Coming to the prophet to find out something from God or to call upon Him.)
4“Therefore speak to them, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Everyone of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, and then comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him who comes, according to the multitude of his idols,
5that I may seize the house of Israel by their heart, because they are all estranged from Me by their idols.”’
6“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Repent, turn away from your idols, and turn your faces away from all your abominations.
7For anyone of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell in Israel, who separates himself from Me and sets up his idols in his heart and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, then comes to a prophet to inquire of him concerning Me, I the LORD will answer him by Myself.
8I will set My face against that man and make him a sign (example) and a proverb (poem or parable), and I will cut him off from the midst of My people. Then you shall know that I am the LORD.
"Turn To God"
Joel 2:12-13 (Plague of locusts strikes Judah, the Southern Kingdom due to their sin - the prophetical aspect of Joel deals with the terrible Day of the Lord)
“Now, therefore,” says the LORD, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13 So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.
"Turn To God/Turn From Sin" - Zechariah 1:1-4
1In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying, 2“The LORD has been very angry with your fathers. 3Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Return to Me,” says the LORD of hosts, “and I will return to you,” says the LORD of hosts. 4“Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets preached, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Turn now from your evil ways and your evil deeds.”’ But they did not hear nor heed Me,” says the LORD.
II. Defining Repentance In The New Testament
Metanoia - "To change one’s mind; to change one’s mind for the better;heartily to amend with abhorrence of one’s past sins."
· Whenever you see the word "Repent or Repentance" in the NT it is a form of this word.
· Metanoia carries with it a change of mind which results in a change of action or direction. (Example: I was on my way to the store, but changed my mind and returned home. I redirected my course.)
· Repentance has been described as:
1. An Intellectual change in my reasoning.
2. An Emotional feeling of sorrow over the wrong I am doing.
3. An exercise of my Will to stop doing wrong and obey God.
Thus, true Repentance involves the Intellect, Emotions and the Will!
NT Occurrences Of Repentance
Acts 20:17-21 (Unto Salvation)
17From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; 20how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 3:14-19 (Church at Laodicea)
14“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. 16So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17Because 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—18I counsel you to buy from Me gold (banking industry) refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments (wool cloth), that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve (Pharmaceutical industry - powder mixed with water and applied to the eyes.), that you may see. 19As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
The church at Laodicea had set up idols in their hearts: Money, possessions, status, independence, etc. and had lost sight of their true spiritual need!
-Have You Set Up Idols In Your Heart Which Cause You To Stumble Into Iniquity?
-Are you willing to Repent of Them?
Until you do, you will never experience Personal Revival in your life! You will not know the joy of the Lord or the Spiritual Power that is available to you in Christ!
God will never empower you to do things which are displeasing to Him are detrimental to His kingdom!
Invitation: When was the last time you really searched your heart and life to see if there are "Idols in your heart which are leading you into iniquity"?
Money/Job
Possessions
Position/Status (Even in Christian Ministry)
Pride/Hypocrisy (appearing to be someone you aren’t)
Relationship or a person
Sexual immorality or Lust
Cheating or stealing
Hobby or a Habit
Any number of things that you have put before God in your life!!!
· Would you be willing to ask God to help you examine your life right now to determine the idols in your life?
· Once you recognize the idol, would you be willing to repent of it, walk away from it, remove it from your house or life, and return to your first love?
Unsaved: Would you be willing to repent of your sin and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior right now?
