We are in the series Revival. Today I will share the third message of the series: “The Key to Revival”
I believe that the greatest tragedy in the world is a sick church in a dying world without Jesus.
Only a revived and restored church will be able to fulfil God’s purpose on this earth.
I believe that we are in the last days now; God has promised that He would send a great revival and that there would be a great harvest of souls during these days.
As an introduction to this message I want to share the testimony of my life. I don’t think I’ve ever told you my testimony the way I’m going to do it now.
I was born again in the middle of a revival! But at the time I didn’t know it was a revival.
I thought that what I was living was the normal life of every Christian and all churches!
1984, 40 years ago, I was a young man (who didn’t even know what revival was), I was just a new convert who had a supernatural encounter with Jesus.
I was first baptised in the waters, then I was baptised with the Holy Spirit in a supernatural way, I fell in love with the Bible and it transformed me. I repented my terrible sins, I cried a lot for having sinned against God, against Jesus and against the Holy Spirit.
By the grace of God my values changed, I lost my love for the world, and I fell in love with Jesus. I started preaching to my friends, I took them to Jesus.
After my conversion, I no longer wanted to go to the disco, I didn’t feel like drinking and I no longer had any pleasure in going to parties. I stopped listening to secular songs and since that time I have never heard secular music, but only Christian songs.
My joy was to be in the presence of God, to pray, to read His word, my desire was to be with the church, with the body of Christ.
Because of my thirst for God, I used to wake up every day at 5 a.m. to pray before going to work.
On Friday nights, we would go to vigils on the mountain or in the forests and we would be up there praying from 10 p.m. until 4 or 5 a.m.
God manifested himself in our midst, God spoke to us, often in these places where we were (on the mountain or in the forest) the glory of God was so strong that the place, the ground, the leaves, the tree branches and even the ground were illuminated by the Glory of God.
And we would leave those places with our hearts full of passion and love for Jesus.
On Saturdays after the youth meetings we would go to the city square, praise God and preach to the young people and adults who were there in the square. After preaching the gospel and many accepted prayer and many of them got possessed and I would drive the demons out of their lives.
On Sunday, which was my day off from work, I would go to church in the morning (9:00am), after church I went to the hospitals to preach to the sick and pray for those who were suffering and many were physically healed, and many were saved.
After Hospital I would come home, have lunch, and at 3 o’clock in the afternoon I would go to the Penitentiary of my city to preach to the prisoners. It was beautiful to see prisoners listening to the message, repent, cry, confess their sins and delivered from demons and many were baptised.
I would leave prison at 5 p.m. I would go home, take a shower, have dinner and at 7 p.m. I would go to church to praise and worship God.
My moments of greatest joy, satisfaction and pleasure were in the presence of God, in the house of God (the church), being together with my brothers and in serving, helping people and preaching the gospel.
All this I did not do alone, but with a group of young people who loved God and had also been transformed.
Many of my friends, who I brought to Jesus today are also pastors now. I took some of them to church drunk, addicted to drink, sex and drugs and today they are pastors, missionaries and men and women of God.
I was in the middle of a revival and I didn’t know it, I thought that every Christian, and all the churches were like that!
But when I went to visit other churches, to meet other nominal Christians, I was so disappointed!
I realised that the church of Jesus needed that same revival! That’s why I’m preaching this message today.
You need to be revived, you need to fall in love with Jesus again, you need the power of the Holy Spirit in order to repent and return to a victorious Christian life.
Let’s read a Biblical prophecy about Revival, Isaiah 44:3-5
3 “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;
4 They will spring up among the grass Like willows by the watercourses.’
5 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
Revival is a promise of God: I will pour water on the thirsty, I will pour out My Spirit on his offspring and this will happen, because the one who is promising is not a man and what He says, He fulfils!
Revival is not only a promise of God, revival is a necessity for the Church.
Let’s read again verse 3
3 “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;
Isaiah 44:3
God says he will pour water over in two kinds of situations: over the THIRSTY AND THE DRY GROUND !
Have you ever been to a dry land? If you just lived in Ireland, you’ve never seen it, because there’s no drought ever here!
There are many countries that face terrible droughts, months and months without rain in which all plantations die and rivers dry up and even animals die of thirst. The land and the residents scream out for rain.
Do you know when you are going to experience a revival? When you get really thirsty for God!
Do you know when the church will experience Revival?
When the Church is thirsty for more of God, desperate for God, starved for God. When nothing in our life is more important than God!
We will experience Revival when God has the first place in our lives, revival turns when He is first in our desires and priorities, when our greatest aspiration is His will.
REVIVAL IS A NEED OF THE CHURCH
In the Bible the Holy Spirit has several symbols: Fire, water, wind, olive oil, dove, etc.
Why is the Holy Spirit symbolised as water this verse?
First, because there is no LIFE without water.
You can have the best land, the best seed, the best machinery, the best plant fertilisers, but if you don’t have water the seed will die in the soil.
What does this mean? We, as a church, can have a large and beautiful temple, we can have the best sound technology, we can have the best musical instruments, we can have the best musicians, we can have the best preachers, but If we are not full of the Holy Spirit, THERE IS NO LIFE IN THE CHURCH.
We can use all our resources, all our technology, the best programs on the internet, but without the anointing of the Holy Spirit there will be no true converts, there will be no true transformation of lives.
Without the work of the Holy Spirit there is no life in the church. It is the Holy Spirit who produces repentance in our hearts (if we listen to Him, of course).
The key to Revival is Repentance and Prayer!
It is He who produces Faith, He who regenerates, who baptises with the Holy Spirit, it is He who brings power to the Church and who sanctifies the Church, and it is He who teaches us to pray and helps us in our weakness.
That’s why we need to have this thirst for God and this need for the Holy Spirit of God.
Without the Holy Spirit there is no life, there is no holiness, there is no power, there is no empowerment!
Water, in addition to bringing life, has another function: To purify (clean)
Have you ever asked yourself: Why is the full revival taking so long?
There is a famous book on the topic titled: Why Revival Tarries – Leonard Havenhill
Why do the rains not fall? Why are the rains held back? Why does God often visit one place and not another? Why does Revival come in one place and not in another? What retains the rains?
Only one thing retains the rain of Revival: SIN!
Sin retains rain but repentance will bring Revival.
The key to revival is REPENTANCE and PRAYER!
Prayer will make you stop sinning or sin will make you stop praying!
When Elijah went up to the Mount Carmel to ask for rain, before taking the obstacle out of the way, he took baal out of the way.
As long as baal is not removed, the torrents of water cannot descend.
The problem with today’s church is that it is imitating the world too much, trying to be like the world.
If we look at the life of a believer nowadays and a worldly person, there is not much difference.
The Bible does not agree with divorces or separation but the number of divorces in the church is the same as in the world.
Today’s Christians see marriage like the ones in the world! Couples keep fighting, arguing, and talking about separation.
Today’s young Christians go to bed (have sex) before marriage, their dating is the same as in the world.
Christians who owe money and do not pay their debts, display bad characters, borrow things and do not return them…Christians who lie and make frauds to receive benefits.
Christians who one day are singing and worshipping God with Christian songs and the next day are listening and singing worldly songs.
Christians who have time for everything, for their work, spend hours on their phones, on the computer or TV or for their own pleasure, but do not have time for God, do not have time for Cell meetings, do not have time to read the Bible, do not have time for prayers and some don’t even show up to church some Sundays!
There is no difference between a Christian and an unbeliever! Even in their Tithes and offerings, many are like the unbelievers.
Either we change our way of life or we will be left behind and one day hear from the Lord: Get away from Me because I don’t know you!
That’s why we need repentance! It is necessary to cry over sin, to be broken and humiliate yourself in God’s presence.
“And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.””
Joshua 3:5 NKJV
Without Holiness (sanctification), without thirst for God there will be no revival, the rains will be held back!
We need this revival, we need to thirst for God, hunger for God so the Holy Spirit can come and transform us.
Transform our lives, our history, our marriage and our family!
When the Holy Spirit comes, he changes us, transforms our spiritual life, transforms our marriage and we become an instrument at our workplace, in our family, in business, in our financial life, and in our relationship with others.
Revival produces extraordinary results for the church.
4 They will spring up among the grass Like willows by the watercourses.’
Isaiah 44:4
The first result of a Revival is a large numerical growth. I believe that God will bring many people to this place! I have prayed and asked the Lord for 10% of this town and I believe that God will give it to us!
Can you imagine, when the people of this town learn that the Holy Spirit is acting powerfully here in your church.
When God pours out Revival, the descendants will sprout and multiply along the water currents.
I crave and I wish for it!
5 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
The second result of Revival is the testimony of all believers!
Everyone will get up and say: I am the Lord’s!
Each one of you at work, at school, in stores, hospitals, on the streets saying with all your might: I am the Lord’s!
This statement will reach all households and families of our city and spread throughout our nation.
We need the power of the Holy Spirit to have boldness, intrepidity and power to preach His name, the name of Jesus.
I took many of my friends to Jesus, and it was not thanks to my eloquence or my wisdom, but the power of the gospel, the power of the Holy Spirit!
Open your mouth and speak of this name! Don’t be quiet! Speak of Jesus
May God visit us on this day and bring on us the power of the Holy Spirit!