Let me give you a quick review of what we learned last Sunday. If you didn’t hear this message, please listen to it later.
Let’s read two verses that talk about a church crying out for revival.
“Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?”
Psalms 85:6 NKJV
“O Lord, Revive Your work in the midst of the years! In the midst of the years make it known”
Habakkuk 3:2 NKJV
“To Revive” means to go back to life.
REVIVAL – Every time you see “RE” means to go back to the original intention.
What’s revival?
Revival simply means to bring something back to life. Revival was what the church had and lost.
Revival is to bring something back to life that once died or to get back in touch with something that was lost.
The question is: what did the church once have and what did the church lose?
When I say “church” I’m talking about the the global church, all the churches in this town, and I’m also talking about our church and YOU, because you are church! The church is not a building, the church is people, you are the church!
We see in the book of Acts that the church was revived at some point. They received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that comes from without, but we must remember that revival starts within, it begins in one’s heart.
When we look to the church in the book of Acts and then to churches nowadays, what can you identify the church today no longer has?
The first thing the church lost was the presence of God. We now got very nice buildings, “good preaching”, motivation, money , entertainment, good music but there is no presence of God.
What the church once had and lost, must be revived again! We need revival because the condition of the church is dry and dead.
There is so much the church is doing right but still we lost something essential, we lost the moving of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit was rejected.
The reasons why the church lost its revival are:
1- Because the church compromised the truth .
2- Because the church started disapproving of any real move of God.
Today leaders lead the church with tradition, they are wired to not incite any type of revival.
I want to read a text that speaks of this revival:
“For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, And floods on the dry ground; I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, And My blessing on your offspring; They will spring up among the grass Like willows by the watercourses.’ One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’; Another will call himself by the name of Jacob; Another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ And name himself by the name of Israel.”
Isaiah 44:3-5 NKJV
This text talks about revival!
REVIVAL IS A PROMISE FROM GOD
God said : I will pour water on him who is thirsty, I will pour My Spirit on your descends – This will happen, because whoever is promising is not a man, it is not a church, it is the Sovereign God who is not a man to lie, who says it and does it!
We should expect REVIVAL because God promised it! If God promised it, He is faithful to fulfil it!
Nothing and no one can stop the advancement of the Kingdom of God and His church!
When God visits His people, nothing can hold or prevent His advances.
The first Revival of the New Testament happened after the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
The religious leaders of the time tried to stop it. The Apostles were arrested, threatened and the more they were pursued, the more the church grew.
The emperors tried to stop it burning believers, crucifying believers, throwing them to beasts, and the more blood shed, the more the church grew.
Throughout history, the more the church was persecuted, the more it grew.
The church of God is indestructible, it is unbeatable, the church of God will advance!
If God visits His church with the power of the Holy Spirit there is no power in hell that can stop the church or stop the advancement of the kingdom of God.
God promised it and He is faithful to keep it!
The purpose of revival
In order for one to believe in anything, the purpose of it needs to first be established.
In other words you will not be able to believe in something unless you know its purpose.
The church abused the purpose of revival!
Some people try to use Revival for their own benefit. They want to “use” the power of God from Revival to promote themselves, to get money and fame.
Some people think that the purpose of Revival is to have fun, they think that revival is about loud music, they think the purpose is to dance, or make noise.
There is a saying : “An empty vessel makes much noise” it means that people that are empty of God often make the most noise to attract the most attention.
And because of this abuse most revivals have never reached their full potential.
Most of the history of revivals show that revivals have only lasted from 8 to 10 years.
Why was it lost? It was misused, it was abused! When God revives your life, do not abuse it and do not use the power of God for your personal ambitions but for the Glory of God!
Let’s read Acts 19:21 and see how Revival starts
“Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,”
Acts 3:19 NKJV
Times of Refreshing!
Times of refreshing are nothing more than times of Revival!
We need to cry out: Lord, bring us Revival! Lord bring times of refreshing over us!
What is time of refreshing?
It’s about moments of the pure presence of God !
Times when the church becomes truly alive.
Times when the church gets revived and filled with the presence of God!
What does it mean for a ministry, a church or a person to be in revival?
The verse we read about times of refreshing starts with: “Repent!”
That is the condition needed for revival, to enter the state needed for revival!
The number one condition for revival is to repent.
Repent and be converted.
Converted is about conversion or a change of state. There are many people that have repented but they never truly converted.
The word converted means changed, it means to become something else: having changed in form or character, or been made suitable for a different use.
In other words: You were a rebel and if you converted you are no longer a rebel, if you had addictions and you are convert you are no longer an addict.
Before I became a Christian I listened to worldly songs, I used to sing songs from the world, I used to participate in parties of the world, but after I converted I was never again seen in these places and I never sang a song of the world again. I only listen to and sing songs that worship God.
“And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right! Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring.” James 3:10-12 NLT
It is so sad to see Christians that on Sundays are singing and worshipping God with Christian songs, (fresh water coming from the fountain) but the next day they are singing or listening to non-Christian songs (bitter water coming out from the same fountain).
Repentance and conversion is supposed to turn you into a different being! That’s why we need Revival, and Revival starts with Repentance and conversion.
When revival comes you change your ways, your character and you are made completely new for the use of your new master and saviour. You become a new being.
Times of refreshing represents times of revival, times of the presence of God, times of moving of the Holy Spirit, times of the fulfilment of God’s promises.
The original intent of God was for men to always live in His presence, not just visit God on Sunday services but to eternally live in the presence of God.
Revival comes to revive and to transform our hearts. Revival is to be alive again!
It’s about being alive in your faith, being alive in your commitment to God, alive in your first love for God , alive in your relationship with God.
There are many areas in need of revival in our lives, but people are only seeking manifestations: miracles, healings.
It’s okay to seek for manifestations, it is part of revival, but revival starts in the heart, healings and miracles are merely the result of transformed hearts.
Revival starts in the heart and revival comes to awake the heart of people.
What’s the purpose of revival ?
1- To take men back to the presence of God
Revival comes to restore you and me to the place where the presence of God is – this is the number one purpose of revival and if we try to abuse it we will lose it.
That’s what the church once had but lost. In many churches today in Ireland and Europe we no longer have the presence of God or the move of the Holy Spirit. That is what the church has lost.
The restoration of the presence of God is for God to become Emanuel and tabernacle with us, for God to become part of us so He can freely move among us.
2- To cause transformation and restoration to society
Revival doesn’t come for you to be alive and dancing. It comes to transform society through you. Because a changed person can transform a family, a changed family can transform a city and a changed city can transform a nation.
Revival is about the transformation of many lives, transformation is change. If you are in revival you must be in transformation mode.
If you’re not being changed and transformed that means you have not been revived. The purpose of revival is to transform, it’s changing into a new being, it’s about you turning into the likeness of Jesus.
3- Revival is restoring men’s relationship with God
Revival is about men’s relationship with the Father being restored.
You’re not in revival until your relationship with God becomes truly alive.
When your being is being continually changed, transformed and restored You don’t just visit God’s presence, you inhabit this place, He is in you and you are in Him.
Revival is when churches revived their relationship with God.
Barna, a company that does researches and surveys in churches asked a question to a number of believers in many churches: Do you have a personal , close , continual, relationship with God?
They said that 20% said yes I do! 8 of 10 people in Church said No, I just come to church but I don’t have this personal daily relationship with God.
Do you know what it means to have relationship with a person?
It means you talk to that person, you communicate with them, you listen to them.
Relationship is an exchange of two lives coming together.
In other words, you have a relationship with me if I am imparting something with you. I have a relationship with you if you give me something and I give you something in return.
Sometimes we come to the presence of God but there’s no exchange between you and Him.
4- The purpose of revival is to empower believers for the end of times harvest
If we are a church in revival we must be ready for what is coming, the end times and the last revival.
Revival is not going to come to everybody, it’s not going to be for everybody. Because there are many people who are only concerned about themselves and they’re not concerned about their relationship with God, they are not hungry for more of God, they are not hungry for change!
So many people are not going to see any revival. Revival is for those who are thirsty and hungry for God!
God said: I will pour out water on the Thirsty! If you want Revival you need to seek it, you need to cry out for it. Revival is a promise from God for those who are thirsty.
Revival begins with repentance of sins and a genuine conversion!
We need to repent from our lukewarm lives, our lives mixed in with sin. Maybe there is fresh water coming out from your mouth on Sundays and bitter water during the rest of the week.
God is calling us to true and deep repentance! Cry out before God, ask for forgiveness for you and your family, change your attitude and convert to the Lord!
May God bless you and bring a great revival over your life, over our church and our Town.