Revival through Intercession: Draw Near God

Vision 2018: Forward Revival through Intercession James 4:1-3 Introduction: I. This Christian Life is not “Automatic.” A. Your life has to be prepared for a daily walk. James 4:1bDo they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? NKJV a. Revival is returning to God, renewing life from death where life once was, it is restoring Jesus to His rightful place as LORD. Every day you & I deal with the impact of society, culture & an onslaught against your Christian walk. b. James is telling Christians, the issues you have with others is because of something going on inside of you. Stop blaming others & look inside, there is a war that will destroy you if not dealt with. c. Revival will never come to the pulpit, congregations much less a nation if, as a Christian, you & I don't deal with this spiritual war. Transition: The next several statements from James deals with the direct output or result of the nature of battle which goes on in a person who is half-hearted about their relationship with God. B. Love what God loves. He then says: James 4:4bDo you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”? a. He makes a strong accusation here regarding what goes on inside what some would refer to as a carnal Christian. The spirit of the world begins to reign & roots out God from your life. James 4:4b b. However, God does not give up that easily! The Amplified Bible brings to light how the heart of God is jealous with a jealous love. Why would Father have a "jealous love" for someone who seems to be straying? James 4:5bThe Spirit Whom He has caused to dwell in us yearns over us and He yearns for the Spirit [to be welcome] with a jealous love? AMPC c. Listen to Exodus 34:14 (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God). C. Pray according to 1 John 1:9 James 4:7Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up. NKJV a. Key is the overcoming ability to submit to God & resist the devil. In the process your heart cry would be "Draw near to God". Before the heart cry is a closer relationship with God, the "desires for pleasure that war in your members" has to be eradicated. b. Remember James is speaking to Christians but the same thing is required from Christian or sinner, repent. As a Christian the Holy Spirit is your Teacher & the Word of God is light to your path. Hebrews 2:1-3 (BIBLE) II. Draw Near God What is our personal responsibility in our spiritual life? Does our spiritual growth & maturity depend all on God, or is it our responsibility to seek Him? We are told that we have a responsibility to seek Him & His will for our lives. Remember the application: Learning to walk-out this life. A. Increase in Knowledge a. You comprehend the will of Father two ways: 1.Intellect & 2.Revelation. Both of these involve reading His Word & seeking Him. b. The secret to the Christian life is obedience. B. Grow in Christ 2 Peter 3:18 (BIBLE) a. There must be a hunger for the Word. Not everyone grows at the same rate, the hungrier you are the quicker you will mature in Christ. b. Jude 1:20-21 (BIBLE) How do you build yourself up on your most holy faith? Jude 1:21 How do you keep yourself in the love of God? There are four ways: 1. Keep His commandments. 1 John 5:3 says, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” 2. Keep yourself from idols. 1 John 5:21, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.” 3. Take time to be Holy. Why does a fire go out? Because you don’t replenish it. You have to keep feeding a fire if you want it to keep burning. 4. Put on the whole armor of God (Ephesians 6:11-13) so that you can 1.stand, 2.withstand even when you don't 3.understand. III. Conclusion: A. Perfection is made up of trifles, but perfection itself is no trifle. Wouldn’t you love to have Paul’s maturity as a Christian. 1. His Power, he could raise the dead. 2. His Peace, he could glory in tribulation. (Romans 5:3) 3. His Poise, none of these things move me. (2 Corinth 4, and 2 Corinth 6) 4. His Purpose, this one thing I do. (Philippians 3:13) B. These things are open to us as believers in Christ. We have the same power through Christ as Paul did if we seek Him as Paul did. C. The reason we can do this is because of the resurrection of Christ. - He asks us to: * Repent * Live by Faith * Be Baptized * Be Filled with His Spirit Conclusion: PRESENT THE GOSPEL FOR SALVATION – EVERY WEEK – AND THE NEED TO COME FORWARD IN PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE OF CHRIST