Let it rain!
Thesis: We need to cry out to God and ask Him to open the flood gates of Heaven and send his rain to us.
Scripture Texts:
James 5:16b-18
“…The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops.”
I Kings 17, 18, 19 ( See NIV Bible)
Opening Illustration: Play Michael W. Smith’s clip off of Worship where he sings let it rain. Ask the question to New Life Community Church why is he asking God to send the rain? Because he is crying out and he wants us to cry out for revival in our communities and in our own personal lives.
LET IT RAIN by Michael Farron
Let it rain, Let it rain
Open the floodgates of Heaven
Psalm 97: 1-6 (NIV): “The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice. Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. Fire goes before Him and consumes His foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim His righteousness and all the peoples see His glory.”
© 2001 This Is Your Time Music LLC / ASCAP. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Introduction:
The phrase “Let It rain!” is a plea for God to send a spiritual rain onto this world in which we live.
We have all heard the phrase “April showers bring May flowers.” Have you heard this little quote:
April Shower
Mix a little sunshine
With an April shower
Drop it in a garden bed
And up pops a flower.
April rains pave the way for a refreshing Spring full of beauty and new life!
Lets take a moment and look at what the natural rains provide for all of us this time of year.
The rain brings the satisfaction of the quenching of thirst for plants and creatures.
When the rains come to a desert it gives the life in that desert the opportunity to quench their thirst for refreshing water.
The rains come in and clean up the areas in which we live.
* This was very important when I was in India because they have the rainy seasons and the dry season. When the rainy season starts it cleans up the town and literally flushes out the sewer systems and the ditches around the villages. The result is its more sanitary and refreshing.
The rain softens the soil so you can plow it and seed it.
In places like India it’s imperative that the farmers get some rain to soften up the soil. Drought causes the ground to become very hard and almost like rock. The rains help soften the soil for planting.
The rain also helps provide nourishment so the plants produce new life.
Just go look at all the trees around here right now they are starting to bud. New life is ready to break forth. The rain is good at producing New Life!
We see the importance of the natural rain but it also applies spiritually to God’s spiritual rain:
The rains of Heaven promise to quench our thirst if we drink of them.
When we drink in the rain of heaven we quench our thirst for that missing spiritual water.
The rains of Heaven come into a life and purify and cleanse our lives.
Have you ever been so hot and sweaty that when you jumped in the shower and the water washed over you? Did you feel refreshed?
Did you feel better.
They have talked about this on Survivor how the showers have felt so good. It was refreshing because it cleansed away all the filth of the world.
The rain of Heaven when its being poured out softens the soil of individuals hearts so they are moldable and have the ability to plant the seeds of eternal life in their lives.
The rain helps to prepare the soil but it also is very instrumental in getting the seeds to bud and break open with new life.
The moisture and the sun help this process to blossom. It births new life and starts the process of growth.
I spent some time on the internet this week searching for information on “Let It rain’ here are few interesting discoveries I made this week: Listen to this poem from one person:
Let It rain!
Rainbow visions, reflected, refracted...
As I gaze out my window.
Bright skies, only a pane away.
Inside, only pain.
I wish it would rain,
and wash the iridescence from the streaked,
and cracked glass that holds me prisoner.
Here inside my world, of self-induced pain...
let it rain, let it rain, let it rain.
Copyright ©...Teresa Bass
Do you here the cry of this heart? Here inside my world of self-induced pain let it rain. She is crying for the hurt to be washed away. She wants to be cleansed and to be filled with joy. She does not want the hurt and pain. Here is another song on rain and pain.
Let It Rain
Let it rain, let it rain
to wash away the tears,
Let it rain to hide the pain
(Thought – he does not just hide the pain but he can heal the pain)
wiping away all of my fears,
Rain, rain, raining on my sorrows
pouring down on my teary eyes,
Leaving the hurt of tomorrow,
running along my face filled with cries,
Let it rain, let it rain
to wash away the tears,
Let it rain to hide the pain
wiping away all of my fears,
The feelings are so apparently true
that could make me willingly weep, These feelings
could only be you, I’m even thinking of you in my
sleep,
Let it rain, let it rain
to wash away the tears,
Let it rain to hide the pain
wiping away all of my fears,
Thinking of you every time I cry
about things that were of yesterday,
I wish I could keep me eyes dry,
but I don’t have the words to say,
Let it rain, let it rain
to wash away the tears,
Let it rain to hide the pain
wiping away all of my fears.
This person is crying for the type of rain that heals the pain of broken relationships and the hurts in life. God’s rain is able to accomplish this task!
Then I ran across this headline that impacted my thought life. The world is always screaming this phrase to the Lord of Hosts.
“Runners of the world don’t let it rain on our parade!”
The truth is the world and us need to be reminded that if we allow God to rain on our parade he will take way the pain and set us free – free to run free. Listen to this song by Kathryn Howard. She wrote this song because she knew that God’s rain would cleanse and set her free because she had experienced this in her own life:
"Let It Rain"
Written by Kathryn D. Howard
CHORUS
Let it rain and wash me clean. Let it rain and set me free,
I feel the storm welling inside of me, so please Lord let it rain.
V 1
When I thought my life was in control, and I reasoned I’ve got it all. Something happened to prove me wrong, that’s when I know it needs to rain.
CHORUS
V 2
Your presence overwhelms me Lord, and my heart is over flowing. When I feel you are gone I will stand my ground, for I know, your forever here.
V 3
Lord I’m blessed, though it’s been a hard time, yet I stood at Your command. Because of You my life is worth the living, I’m glad I belong to You.
Published and Copy Written (2000) by MIKTOM Publishing
Used and reproduced by permission only
Kathryn knows that the answer to her pain was the Lord’s rain!
I found another song written by Andy parks some of you will know this song listen again to the words as I read them: He talks about how God’s rain falling on him makes such an impact in his life.
Let It Rain
Words and music by: Andy Park
I am dry and thirsty, Lord.
Send Your rain, send Your rain.
Lord, I need Your touch again.
Send Your rain. Send Your rain.
Chorus: Let it rain, let it pour from heaven.
Let it rain, to revive my soul.
I need Your rain, I need your streams of refreshing, Until I thirst no more.
Lord I need Your cleansing now.
Send Your rain, send Your rain.
Please forgive my every sin.
Send Your rain, send Your rain.
To this dry and weary land,
send Your rain, send Your rain.
Lord, we need Your touch again.
send Your rain, send Your rain.
Chorus: Let it rain, all across this nation. Let it rain, let revival roll. We need Your rain. We need Your streams of refreshing for every thirsty soul.
Copyright 1996 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing
Used By Permission. CCLI License #1275010
T.S. - All these thoughts help us to focus on the importance of rain – God’s rain. Lets look at a story in the Bible that has a lot to do with rain. Turn with me to I Kings 17-19. It’s the story about a Prophet named Elijah.
I. Elijah was a prophet of God who knew what it was like to go through the dry times and the rainy season.
a. God sent him to make a declaration to the king of Israel one day. He was to tell Ahab that it would not rain for years until Elijah was instructed by the Lord to change his position. (I Kings 17:1)
b. The reason Elijah was instructed to tell the King their would be no rain was because the King was very wicked. Notice (I Kings 16:29-34)
i. It’s important to know your Bible here because when the Lord gave the Israelites the promised land it was on the condition that they would serve him and not other gods.
ii. Ahab was serving Baal –
1. Baal Worship – This was a Canaanite deity that was believed to control nature.
a. This local deity was to be worshipped because it was the one who would send the rain so the crops would grow.
b. They believed this local god controlled fertility in agriculture, beasts and mankind.
2. Worship of this idol god lead to ritual prostitution and child sacrifice.
a. Judges 2:17; Jeremiah 7: 9 and Amos 2:7
3. You must remember the warning from the Lord back in Lev. and Deut. When the took the land. Listen to what the Bible Truth Homepage says about this:
a. A conditional promise. When we look back to God ’s promises of blessing, especially those concerning the rains, we see something else that is very significant. The promises are conditional .
Lev 26:2-4
2 ’You shall keep My sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary; I am the LORD.
3 ’If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments so as to carry them out,
4 then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit.
Deut 11:13-14
13 "And it shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul,
14 that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late rain, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil.
b. God said that He would send the early and latter rains if His people would follow His commandments.
c. Elijah addressed the King with the word of the Lord and then he was directed by the Lord to go to the brook where he would have water and the ravens would feed him there.
i. He stayed there until the brook dried up because there was no rain.
d. He then went by the direction of the Lord to Zarephath were he was to find a widow who would be used by the Lord to feed him.
i. He found her at the end of her rope with one last meal.
ii. She welcomes Elijah in to partake of that one last meal but it lasts for a long – long time.
1. Her flour never ran out and the jar of oil never ran dry.
2. Important point you can be in a national drought but still enjoy the provision of god’s rain personally.
iii. Then in the midst of a drought with no rain her son gets ill and dies.
1. Elijah cry’s out to God and the boy’s life is returned to him (I Kings 17: 22)
a. When you in a drought disease spreads worst then when the rains are there to wash it out.
2. Result is she becomes a believer see verse 24 “I know you speak the truth.”
e. The Lord summons Elijah after about 3 ½ years and tells him to return to Ahab and the Lord will send the rain (I Kings 18:1).
i. Notice his reception from the King in verse 16!
1. You --“Troubler of Israel”
2. Elijah corrects him in the next verse and says “You’re the trouble maker!” (18).
f. Elijah -The challenger - to Baal.
i. No contest - Elijah proves the Lord God is God. The people reject Baal and kill all its prophets (I Kings 18:20-40).
1. When God displayed His power on Mount Carmel, the Israelites bowed down and said, "The Lord He is God." Then they tore down the altars of Baal and executed the prophets of Baal. Do you think that God would have sent the rains if the people had turned their backs on Him instead (Bible Truth)?
g. The drought is about over when Elijah tells Ahab to go eat and drink because there is the sound of heavy rain coming.
i. I Kings 18:41-46 – The rains Come!
1. The area is being cleansed with the heavy rain.
2. The soil for planting is being softened up.
3. The rain comes – and there is refreshment in the air.
4. There is new life being produced.
5. The old sinful way of drought is being swept away in the flood of God’s rain. (I Kings 21-22).
T.S. – We have learned about the phrase let it rain but lets apply it to our lives today.
II. Let’s re-look at what it means when we ask God to send his rain. What are we asking for? What is the latter rain?
a. The Bible Truth makes this observation: So what exactly do we mean when we talk about the latter rain of the Holy Spirit? In Palestine they had a wet season and a dry season. The wet season ran from autumn to spring. The summer months were hot and dry. The rains would begin in the fall. These rains were referred to as the early rain or former rain. The early rain would soften the sun-baked ground so that it could be plowed. It would also cause the newly planted seeds to germinate and thus cause the crop to begin to grow. The latter rains were the heavy rains that came in the spring. They would ripen the wheat and barley crops and prepare them for harvest. The rains were a symbol of God’s blessing and providence to the Jews. Their lives depended on the bountiful harvests that the rains made possible. We see an example of this principle in the book of Joel.
Joel 2:23
23 So rejoice, O sons of Zion, and be glad in the LORD your God; for He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, the early and latter rain as before.
Well, these literal rains were symbolic of a greater spiritual truth. They symbolized times of a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This is hinted at in the passage we just read. Different versions of the Bibles differ in their translation of the phrase "He has given you the early rain for your vindication." This is because some Hebrew manuscripts use the words "moreh sedaqah" here, and others use "yoreh sedaqah". Sedaqah means righteousness. Here is the interesting point. Yoreh is the word for the early rain. Moreh is the word for teacher. So this phrase could be referring to the former rains, or it could be referring to the teacher of righteousness. And who is the Teacher of righteousness? The Holy Spirit. I don’t think that the ambiguity here is accidental. The symbolic meaning becomes even more clear when we read the verses which follow this one in Joel chapter 2.
Joel 2:28-32
28 "And it will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.
29 "And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30 "And I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire, and columns of smoke.
31 "The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.
32 "And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD will be save
In this context it is very clear that the former and latter rains are symbolic of times when there is a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Conclusion:
This is what we are to be crying out for today when we say “Let It Rain!” . We are asking the Lord to pour out His spirit on our lives. We are asking the Lord to send His cleansing rain, his refreshing rain, his life giving rain into our lives and the lives around us. We need RAIN! You ask why? Let u make a few observations of why we need a special out pouring of the Holy Spirit:
If we receive a fresh outpouring we could experience the following:
A cleansing touch of the Lord in our lives.
A refreshing touch of the spirit in our souls.
A preparation of our hearts and others hearts to God’s planting of eternal seeds in our lives.
The birth of eternal seeds in our hearts.
The growth of the fruit of the spirit in our life.
The ability to experience abundant New Life.
The blessing of having a fruitful life filled with joy.
Altar Call:
Some here today need it to rain in your personal lives.
Some of you here today need God to wash away the filth of the world in your hearts and minds.
Some of you here today need to let the Holy Spirit rain down on your marriages. Point you need to stand in the rain together and let it wash over you for healing and refreshment.
Rain
Across the bean field, sweeping toward us like a thundering waterfall, the fantastic white curtain of rain poured from a dark cloud. As in a dream when something huge and terrible comes chasing, the rain was catching up with us as we ran toward home.
"Red Dog, go on home!" I commanded. I was too slow to outrun the rain but maybe Red Dog could.
Of course, Red Dog stayed with me.
When the air began smelling of ozone, and huge, widely spaced raindrops made mud-craters in the dust along the roadside, we understood that soon the flood would catch us. Yes, this rain would drench us and soak us to the bone. Causing ear-splitting cracks of thunder, the lightning began striking all around us.
"Red Dog," I said, "let’s sit at the road’s edge. This lightning frightens me. If we stay low and don’t go near tall trees or telephone poles, it won’t hurt us. Let’s just sit here and let the rain come... "
There was nothing bad about the storm. The rain was warm and it made everything so fresh. A billion, billion friendly raindrops washed us and tickled our backs. Lifting my face, I let raindrops explode inside my whiskers. Raindrops splattered into Red Dog’s eyes, making him blink and smile.
The lightning stopped before the rain did. Without thinking, I stood and looked across the fields, and Red Dog stood with me. We saw waves of wind and rain making a joyful storm. And how alive the whole world seemed!
"Rain," I called, throwing open my arms and laughing, "Red Dog and I thank you!"
Some of you need it to rain at your places of employment – Let it rain!
Some of you need it to rain on your families – Go stand in the rain- and Let it rain!
Some of you need it to rain over your physical bodies- Let it rain!
Some need to let it rain into your finances- Let it rain!
How many need it to rain? Raise your hand- Lord, let it rain!
Closing prayer – actually a song!
Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain.
Rain, rain, rain, rain, rain.
On us Lord, let it rain once more.
Send your rain, oh Lord,
let it rain once more. (repeat)
Open the fountains of the deep,
Your good treasure let us see.
The windows of heaven open wide,
and let your rain fall down upon Your bride.
Send a gentle rain, send a gentle rain
On our land, on our barren land.
Let it rain again, on our barren land.
The earth is Yours and all it contains
so send Your promised latter rains.
For no other God can make it shower,
so Father, bear your arm and show Your power,
and send Your rain!
©Kev-X music 6-91
