What Prevents Revival?
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
My oh my, how many of us have watched what has been going on at Asbury University? Social media has been ablaze with what is being described as a great revival. For the past eleven days, God has been moving mightily. Headlines such as “The Asbury Collegian reports that during a call to confession last Wednesday, Feb. 8, at least 100 people fell to their knees and bowed at the altar. Since then it has turned into a Holy Spirit outpouring that shows no signs of stopping.” It hasn’t stopped there, as it has also been reported that the The Stone Chapel on the Lee University campus was packed, with more people coming in on regular basis (while others were leaving). There were probably 350–400 people by a rough estimate. The pews were full. The area in front of the stage was crowded with people sitting on the floor. Students at Samford University gathered at the school’s Reid Chapel Wednesday to pray and sing. Then, as the school canceled Thursday classes due to weather, students continued to meet, until, by Friday, students and supporters were calling the event a revival, inspired by a similar outbreak at a Christian college in Kentucky.
Now, there have been interesting commentary related to these outpourings of the Holy Spirit.
“I'm gonna ask questions, I'm gonna need to hear some accounts of Biblical teaching and preaching, evangelism, repentance, and life change before I say yes this is revival. I have been called caustic, a trouble maker, a rabble rouser, and a doubter quenching the spirit.” to “We pray for reveals and when it happens you can't believe it because it didn't happen in your church.” So it led me to ask, what is revival and what may either prevent it from happening or may cause concern or doubt from other evangelical Christian churches and Christians?
Sure, we must put it up against scripture and test it, but when reports are coming in of sins being confessed, repentance happening, testimonies being shared, and people being saved one can say it sure sounds like a revival to me. But what IS revival?
Revival - Making something alive again; renew. The sovereign activity of God whereby he renews his people individually and corporately, affecting both sincerity of belief and quality of behaviour. What are we being revived from? Life, backsliding, and death - eternal separation from God.
The Hebrew word hayah means to have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously, live forever. To me that is an excellent way to look at revival - it brings life back into the Christians focus, into their heart, and it sustains them, keeps them prosperous, and reminds us of our eternity in heaven with Jesus.
Why do we need revival? Because we are sinful humans. We continue to sin, regardless of how good a Christian we are, and we will continue to sin as long as we have breath. However, its our reaction TO sin that brings us to the point of needing spiritual renewal, regeneration, revival.
You see, FAILURE to experience a revival robs the Christian of his joy in God. And maybe, just maybe, the reason we don’t experience a true revival is because we can’t get out of God’s way and let Him work. Truly sin hinders our blessings, and the blessings God intends for the church. We must examine and realize our own weaknesses, and let truth come into our life so that the Word and Christ can work in us and through us. You see, we tend to think of revival as a church wide, or community wide happening, but revival begins with the individual.
David, a man after God’s own heart, after sinning realized the need for God to cleanse him and RENEW him. A restoration of God’s Work in His life and a closer relationship with God. As David realized His need, He cried out to God.
Acknowledge and Repent
Acknowledge and Repent
1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
David cries out for mercy, God’s compassion on him, for His sin. Now, leading to this point, David had been sitting on his porch while the men were at war. He commits adultery with Uriah’s wife, and she conceives. To cover it up, he sends her husband to the front line to be killed, essentially committing the act of murder. One commentary sums these acts up as “Adultery and murder … these are the despicable sins of Israel’s king, the sweet psalmist of Israel, the man after God’s own heart”.
What made David a man after God’s own heart? His personal acknowledgement of his sin and his recognition of his need for God’s forgiveness. Blot out my transgressions (notice plurality), wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. David understood he was guilty. There was nothing he could do, except repent and ask God’s forgiveness. Only God could forgive and restore even the vilest sinner.
18 “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.
What we should recognize is no one is immune from sin. Even what we would view as the “big” sins. And we should never forget the smallest or biggest sins are all transgressions against God. He sees them as only sin, a serious condition that impairs our relationship with Jesus. But, we can never sin so badly that God cannot forgive us. And like David, when we confess our sin sincerely, He will forgive, cleanse, and restore and renew our relationship with Him.
Confess And Be Restored
Confess And Be Restored
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
It was nearly a year before David confessed his sins to God. How do we know this? The baby has been born and has died. David recognized it as God’s punishment and it brings him to a point of confession. Confession is the act of acknowledging and declaring our sin to God. You see, it’s not just knowing you sinned and “trying” to do better. It’s not just “trying” to live a better life. It’s not just “trying” to be a better Christian. It’s not just “trying” not to sin any more. You see, for forgiveness to be extended confession must be made. We acknowledge our sin, but them we declare it before God. David cries out to God, recognizing what he has done. “I know my transgressions” - David knew. David knew God knew. David couldn’t hide his sin any longer. David realized he couldn’t fix it on his own. He confessed his sin, asked for forgiveness, and to be restored. Purge me, wash me, and blot out all my iniquities. He realized only God could make it right - He could clean him, make him whiter than snow, and create a clean heart and a renewed spirit within him. David also recognized his sin had separated him from God, and it had impacted the relationship he had with God. Lord, don’t cast me aside, don’t throw me away, and certainly don’t take the Holy Spirit away from me. David felt lonely enough in his separation from God because of sin, he certainly didn’t want a complete separation.
When we recognize we have sinned against God, we must get to the point we realize the impact it has on our relationship with God. Our walk is impacted, our talk is impacted, our WITNESS is impacted - we are out of the will of God by deliberately disobeying Him.
19 Do not quench the Spirit.
You see, we should be conscious that the spirit can be quenched in the New Testament believer. What does it mean to quench? To drown out, snuff out, deliberately put out the Holy Ghost fire that comes when we are in the right relationship with God.
We, too, must confess our sins asking for forgiveness and restoration. You see, if you feel separated from God - don’t forget He doesn’t move. WE move from Him. But when we confess, repent, and ask for restoration - oh, He gives us back the joy of serving Him by renewing our relationship.
Renewal of Relationship
Renewal of Relationship
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.
13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
18 Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem;
19 then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Not only will God restore our relationship, but He delivers us from our sins, our guilt, and our shame. David makes a promise to God. Lord, when you restore me, uphold me, and deliver me, I will teach others to not make the same mistakes. I will shout praises of adoration, and sing of your righteousness. Lord, I will tell them you treated me as one who was looked on as sinless. Why? Because God cleaned his heart. You see, David did not want to experience the spiritual separation any more. He knew the feeling of the weight and burden of sin, and he experienced the victory when his relationship had been restored.
Notice David didn’t question his salvation - instead he asked God to restore the JOY of his salvation.
Too often, we find ourselves in sin. We can’t figure out how to work ourselves out of that sin. The best way I can describe it is like this. How many of you have ever been in a truck - 4 wheel drive, and good tread. You think you can go anywhere, regardless of the past 6 inches of rain, and we are confident we can make it. We can work through it. We can’t get stuck. And then, we go across a soft patch of ground and our tires start to slip. Instead of easing back out, we know confidently that we can get through, and we do what? We step on the fuel. Before long we are mired up to the frame and it will take someone else to get us un-stuck. Can I tell you today, many Christians today sitting in our churches are spinning away, slinging mud, making noise, and sinking deeper. It’s not until we realize we are stuck and need someone else to get us out of the mire that we can find ourselves back on solid ground. You see, for revival to occur, we have to recognize who NEEDS revival and where we RECEIVE revival.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We all know the song “Revive Us Again”. I love the words of the last verse “Revive us again; Fill each heart with Thy love May each soul be rekindled with fire from above”. I would dare guess every person sitting within the sound of my voice needs a rekindling will fire from above. We need a repentance. We need confession. We need repentance. And we need revival. So what is stopping us?
I would suggest WE prevent revival.
Why? Pride. Look at 2 Chronicles 7:14, and tell me what it says that those who are called by the name of Jesus have to do???
14 if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
You see, God gives us a promise when we yield to Him.
6 Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?
Maybe our joy is gone…because we need reviving. We know we are saved. We don’t need salvation to be restored, but we do need our joy to be restored. When we recognize all God has done for us, then we - like David - will want to shout from the rooftops what God has done for us.
I ask you to do this. Bow your heads and close your eyes. And think of this - what is the worst thing we have ever done in our life? Have we asked Jesus to forgive us? Secondly, think of the things we have NOT asked Jesus to forgive us of. How much of a blessing have we been robbed of simply over unconfessed sin? And last, how have those unconfessed sins robbed us of the JOY God intends us to have.
I ask this question already knowing the answer. Who among us have never sinned? Who among us does not need Jesus? Who among us has all the Joy of the Lord we can stand?
Church we each, individually, need revival to break out in our lives. We need the fire from heaven rekindled in our souls. Our churches need revival, if for no other reason so our communities can see God working in the church. The body of Christ needs a revival so we can have a restored desire to tell others what Jesus has done for us and what He can do for them. And again I ask, what prevents revival from happening within us today?
One student made this comment of the Asbury revival “Never in my life will I forget this.” Very well said young man. None of us will ever forget the day God moved in us.
If you feel God calling you to confess your sins, to repent of the things in your life that are not pleasing to God, to have the JOY of our relationship with Jesus restored, NOW IS THE TIME. It’s time for revival to begin, and today I pray O Lord, send a revival, And let it begin in me!