RESTORATION AND REVIVAL

Intro: An unnamed Christian in China said years ago “Lord revive your Church, let it begin with me.”

Today what we (I) need is restoration and revival. An awakening from God in the hearts of us here today. A smile from God that warms the coldness of empty religion and brings renewal to our stale condition. 2 Chronicles 7:14 is addressed to Jews living nearly 3,000 years ago as a recount of their history and God’s faithfulness to His promises and His people. This text was not written to us but it can rightly be applied to us because the Bible is for us. And we are a people whose heritage is God, by grace through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord who brought us into His family.

CPS: Application of this text is the sure road to restoration and revival for all time. The instruction is quite clear, If we will humble ourselves before God to Him, seek Him, and repent of of our sins He will hear from heaven and forgive us and heal us and our land.

I. We must Humble ourselves before God

A. Revival Begins in God’s people

God’s chosen people are Israel who He chose out of His gracious love. Who He held together in captivity and set free with His mighty display of power. They are called by His name, Israel (prince of God). The term “Called by my name” means to carry the mark of His ownership. 2,000 years ago Jesus paid for the sins of the world and by grace through faith we are included in His ransom. He bought us thus we are grafted in to His family.

We are God’s people and restoration and revival has to start in His people! It is by His initiative not self manufactured religion… however He sets forth conditions by which He will bring it. The condition is submission!

B. Revival will begin when God’s people live God’s way

God hates sin, unfortunately for us we are sinners by nature (Rom. 3:23)(2 Chron. 6:36). That doesn't mean that God hates us, NO.. He loves us (Rom 5:8)! It is the sin that God hates and the foremost sins that are in our lives are Idolatry and Pride.

a. Idolatry

(Replacing God with anything else) This is the sin that led to Israel’s captivity and the sin that plagues our nation today. We have turned from God and worship self thus God has turned His face from us. (Revival has been explained as God turning His face towards us.) Numbers 6:24–26 “The Lord bless you, and keep you; The Lord make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’”

b. Pride

God will not shine his face upon us as long as their is idolatry in our lives and Pride in our hearts! Humble is the Hebrew verb kā·nǎʿ it means to have an attitude of a proper low status in relationship to an authority, and so not being wrongly proud or pretentious

Proverbs 6:16–19 Proud look!

James 4:6,10 Opposes Pride but exalts the Humble.

ILL: On his way to a reception held in his honor, Ulysses S. Grant got caught in a shower and offered to share his umbrella with a stranger walking in the same direction. The man said he was going to Grant’s reception out of curiosity; he had never seen the general. “I have always thought that Grant was a much overrated man,” he said. “That’s my view also,” Grant replied.

How do you view yourself. Are you the one sitting on the thrown..... We are the created He is the Creator, we are the redeemed He is the redeemer, we are the servant He is the Master! We must always remember this and and have an attitude of humility in our life.

II. We must Prayerful Seek God.

Prayer is an important factor in the restoration and revival of God’s people. In contexts It was during a time of prayer that God showed Himself, consuming the offering and sacrifices as His glory filled the House Solomon built for Him. (vs. 1) When Israel saw the Glory of God upon the temple they bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the Ground. Perhaps its time we bow our faces to the Ground until we see the face God shine upon us!

In case I’m not clear we need to pray and pray seeking His face. Prayer its supplication offering our desires to God. Seek, (verb bā·qǎš) to search or look for. Praying with the intent of being in the presence of God.... I must see Jesus. My greatest Desire is the presence of God.... but there are so many things that draws our attention away. TV, social Media, etc etc. The problem is that God isnt our greatest desire!

ILL: When I’m away from Hope I crave to see her and hear here voice. When I traveled I called 20 times a day! When we truly desire God, when we crave God then we seek the Lord.

Psalm 105:4 “Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face continually.”

I thinks its time we live a life of prayer a life with a desire for God and His presence.

ILL: When asked how much time he spent in prayer, George Mueller’s reply was, “Hours every day. But I live in the spirit of prayer. I pray as I walk and when I lie down and when I arise. We must live in the Spirit of Prayer!

I long for the presence of God and He will be found as I seek Him in prayer.

III. We must return to God

We must turn from our wicked ways! This whole text..... Humble yourself, pray and seek my face, turn from your wicked ways.... this is all one attitude.... Repentance! A double turn. Turn from our wicked ways, form idolatry and Pride and return to God we would experience revival in our hearts.

Turn (verb) literally means to return, make linear motion back to a point previously departed. Its important to understand that this was written after Judah’s deportation to Babylon.... God had kept His promise of Judgment for those who had abandoned Him. 2 Chronicles 7:22 ““And they will say, ‘Because they forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them from the land of Egypt, and they adopted other gods and worshiped them and served them; therefore He has brought all this adversity on them.’ 

That’s exactly what we have done, forsook God. We come to Him for salvation then once we have the blessing we wander away far from His presence and fellowship. We are living out of His will and He is far from. us but their is Hope. As Judah returned to God so can we. The Lord is just a turn away.

ILL: It was a bright Sunday morning in 18th century London, but Robert Robinson’s mood was anything but sunny. All along the street there were people hurrying to church, but in the midst of the crowd Robinson was a lonely man. The sound of church bells reminded him of years past when his faith in God was strong and the church was an integral part of his life. It had been years since he set foot in a church—years of wandering, disillusionment, and gradual defection from the God he once loved. That love for God—once fiery and passionate—had slowly burned out within him, leaving him dark and cold inside. Robinson heard the clip-clop, clip-clop of a horse-drawn cab approaching behind him. Turning, he lifted his hand to hail the driver. But then he saw that the cab was occupied by a young woman dressed in finery for the Lord’s Day. He waved the driver on, but the woman in the carriage ordered the carriage to be stopped. “Sir, I’d be happy to share this carriage with you,” she said to Robinson. “Are you going to church?” Robinson was about to decline, then he paused. “Yes,” he said at last. “I am going to church.” He stepped into the carriage and sat down beside the young woman.

As the carriage rolled forward Robert Robinson and the woman exchanged introductions. There was a flash of recognition in her eyes when he stated his name. “That’s an interesting coincidence,” she said, reaching into her purse. She withdrew a small book of inspirational verses, opened it to a ribbon-bookmark, and handed the book to him. “I was just reading a verse by a poet named Robert Robinson. Could it be…?”He took the book, nodding. “Yes, I wrote these words years ago.” “Oh, how wonderful!” she exclaimed. “Imagine! I’m sharing a carriage with the author of these very lines!” But Robinson barely heard her. He was absorbed in the words he was reading. They were words that would one day be set to music and become a great hymn of the faith, familiar to generations of Christians: Come, Thou Fount of every blessing, Tune my heart to sing Thy grace’ Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for songs of loudest praise. His eyes slipped to the bottom of the page where he read: Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it—Prone to leave the God I love; Here’s my heart, O take and seal it, Seal it for Thy courts above. He could barely read the last few lines through the tears that brimmed in his eyes. “I wrote these words—and I’ve lived these words. ‘Prone to wander…prone to leave the God I love.’” The woman suddenly understood. “You also wrote, ‘Here’s my heart, O take and seal it.’ You can offer your heart again to God, Mr. Robinson. It’s not too late.” And it wasn’t too late for Robert Robinson. In that moment he turned his heart back to God and walked with him the rest of his day

Conclusion: We need revival and if we would just return to God He would heal us and if the Christians of our land would return to God He would heal our land. Lord we repent shine your face upon us.