The Prayer of Revival

Revival comes when we seek God!

Jeremiah 29:11-13

11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

Text;

13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

SEEKING GOD

A. THE ATTITUDE OF SEEKING GOD

attitude is everything

1. We need to seek God in Sincerity—

Seek God when you feel Him speaking to you. He honors sincere seekers. God often moves us to pray, but if we keep putting him off, our hearts can become hardened toward Him.

Isaiah 55:6

Seek ye the Lord while he may be found,

Call ye upon him while he is near:

2. We need Sanctified seeking of the lord

The Bible tells us over and over to seek God.

A handful of scriptures talk about seeking God’s face.

What does it mean to seek God?

Why do we need to seek God?

And what is so significant of seeking God’s face?

Why Seek God?

Other than obedience to the Bible, why do we need to seek God?

Why does he tell us to seek him? Is he hiding? No, God is not hiding.

The reason God instructs us to seek him is because he wants to us to find him!

Deuteronomy 4:29 (KJV 1900)

But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

Proverbs 8:17 (KJV 1900)

I love them that love me;

And those that seek me early shall find me.

Matt.7:7

“Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened unto you”

Luke 11:9

“And I say to you: Ask and it shall be given to you; seek and ye shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you”

Acts 17:24-28 Paul speaking in Athens to the Greek philosophers

24 God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

25 Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;

26 And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;

27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:

28 For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring

We need to seek God because we’re surrounded by so many distractions.

What Is Seeking?

The word “seek” in Hebrew in Strong’s Concordance means “to search out by any method.”

In Greek, it means to “seek to find.”

To seek something is to crave it, to pursue after it. He who seeks is tenacious, determined,

We seek God through prayer.

But what Are We Seeking?

We go to God in prayer about many things, provision, healing, comfort, wisdom, etc. and there’s nothing wrong with that.

We have needs and God’s desire is to provide for us. as a good father,

Matt. 6:31-33 Jesus speaking;

31 “Therefore take no thought , saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or wherewithal shall we be clothed?’

 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

33  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you”.

Luke 12:32 gives more detail on God’s desire to provide for us,

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for its your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” SO How Should Christians Respond to an Ever-Changing World?

Seeking these types of things can be called seeking the “hand of God.”

It’s seeking what he can do for us or give to us.

As I said, there is nothing wrong with this,

But there is a deeper relationship God desires to have with us.

It is found through seeking the “face of God.”

Why His Face?

The Bible verses for seeking the “face” of God are all found in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word used for face means, the part that turns.”

It comes from the root that means “to turn, to face, appear,to peer and to look.” This implies being face-to-face with God, which is a place of deep personal intimacy.

Look at how these two scriptures are translated differently.

One uses the word face, while other doesn’t.

Psalms 105:4 KJV

Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always !

Psalms 105:4 English Standard Version

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!

Can you see the difference? This is why I like using the KJV because it is the closest bible we have to the original text.

Psalm 27:8 KJV

8  When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee,

Thy face, LORD, will I seek.

Psalms 27:8 (NLT)

My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.” And my heart responds, “LORD, I am coming”.

#1 God wants us to seek his face because he wants us to know him.

We can learn a lot about God without really knowing him intimately.

Every human has a desire to be known and to be loved.

Why would God be any different we were created in his image!

#2 And he abundantly blesses those who seek his face.

Psalm 24:5–6 (KJV)

He shall receive the blessing from the Lord,

And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

This is the generation of them that seek him,

That seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.

To seek God’s face is to seek a deeper relationship with him.

This is done by through prayer and also through worship.

Those who seek the face of God will not be disappointed.

Hos. 10:12

Sow to yourselves in righteousness,

Reap in mercy;

Break up your fallow ground:

For it is time to seek the Lord,

Till he come and rain righteousness upon you.

Note the progression here:

(a) sow in righteousness,

(b) reap in mercy,

(c) break up fallow (hardened) ground,

(d) seek the Lord, til he come’s

(e) And he will rain righteousness upon you.

#3. We need to be Surrendered in our seeking God

Matthew 6:33

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. ( #1 priority)

“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” We must not follow our own ambitions, but God’s plan and purpose for our lives. His plan and purpose brings righteousness into our lives!

B. THE ANSWER TO SEEKING GOD!

The answer has a name its Jesus!

And ye shall Seek me “[ye shall] and find me.”

1. The Promised answer —Jer. 33:3

Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

God longs to do great things through us, if we only ask Him.

He will do abundantly more than we ask!

Ephesians 3:20

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

2. The Prayer— Notice the persistence needed in prayer:

Matt. 7:7-11

7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him

(a) asking,

(b) seeking,

(c) knocking.

A right heart that persists in prayer will get a answer from God James 5:16

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

3. Seeking Purity.

a) Confession—“Confess your faults one to another.”

b) Cleansing— Confession brings cleansing.

Psalm 139:23,24

23  Search me, O God, and know my heart:

Try me, and know my thoughts:

24  And see if there be any wicked way in me,

And lead me in the way everlasting.

4. The Person of prayer—James 5:16. “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”

Not just any man, but a righteous man.

5. There is Power in Prayer —James 5:17

17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.

Notice what ”18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

He did not give up. We must not give up. We must keep on praying. God has promised he will answer!

C. THE ATTENTION To our Prayer

“When ye shall search for me with all your heart.”

1. Specific time of prayer— Have a definite time each day to pray.

Just as you eat at regular times, have special, regular times to pray.

And just as when you get hungry for food at those regular times.

You will begin to get hungry in the spirit for your prayer time as well.

We are told Daniel prayed three times a day.

Psalm 55:17

Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud:

And he shall hear my voice.

2.We Pray with an expectation to hear from God— Wait on the Lord;and allow God to speak to you.

Isaiah 40:28-31

28  Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard,

That the everlasting God, the LORD,

The Creator of the ends of the earth,

Fainteth not, neither is weary?

There is no searching of his understanding.

29  He giveth power to the faint;

And to them that have no might he increaseth strength.

30  Even the youths shall faint and be weary,

And the young men shall utterly fall:

31  But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings as eagles;

They shall run, and not be weary;

And they shall walk, and not faint.

3. We should be Determined in our praying— Note that Jacob said “I will not let go.” We can to pray those words too!

Genesis 32:26-27

26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.

27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.

28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

4. We should be Dedicated to prayer—Dan. 6:10

10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.

Daniel prayed and gave thanks even when he knew it was dangerous to do so.

Prayer does not only consist of asking … it is thanking God and praising God ! seeking God!

It’s Communion with God, Sharing with God, as he shares with you! Keeping him #1 priority in your life!