Steps to Revival (part IV)
Can the Church Be Revived?
2 Chronicles 7:14
For the past three weeks I have preached for revival—in our day and in this place. The question remains unanswered: can the church be revived; and more particularly the question is addressed to us, can our church be revived? Such questions cannot be answered in a sermon; they must rather be answered through our own determination and in our subsequent experience. Such questions demand implementation and not discussion. The message this day, then, is not so much an exposition or even a homily as it is an exhortation to consider the need and to determine to seek revival.
The Prospects For Revival In These Last Days — Is there is any possibility for revival in these last days? Jesus told a parable about the planting of seed. You will recall the parable and subsequent explanation in Matthew 13:3-9: A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear.
The disciples were confused; what possible spiritual meaning could they attach to this parable. We also, were it not for the fact that we have heard the parable expounded by Christ Himself and that we have read the entire account before, would be confused by this story. Did it really teach anything? The disciples were driven by their curiosity, however, to enquire of the meaning of the parable when they were at last alone with Jesus, and He graciously and patiently instructed them in its meaning. Fortunate are the people who receive the teaching of the Master provided in Matthew 13:18-23.
Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he lasts only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
This is actually one of the Kingdom parables which are grouped together in Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life and ministry. By this parable and the others included with it (the parable of the weeds, the parable of the mustard seed and the yeast, the parable of the hidden treasure and of the pearl of great value, and the parable of the net), Jesus instructed His disciples about the progress of the Kingdom during the course of this age. Throughout the age the Kingdom will grow, but it will be invaded by, even include within it, unrighteous people whom God alone shall segregate at Christ’s return.
In light of this parable, then, it should be no great surprise to discover that there are a number of theologians who contend, some quite vigorously, that there is no possibility for revival. No doubt some, perhaps even most, of the religious leaders who inveigh against the presence of God are themselves spiritually dead and can neither long for nor understand the concept of revival since they have never known what it is to be alive to God. They walk in darkness and have never perceived the light; and though they speak a religious language, they do not know the language of Zion. They have heard the Word, the seed has been sown, but since it fell on the hardened path it was snatched away before it could even root. Thus, they have neither a longing for nor zeal to prepare for the presence of God among His people. Such people are best left alone whatever name they may adopt and however pious they may appear.
I met one such individual early in my ministry. In my experience, such religious infidels seem legion. Roland McGregor was a Methodist minister completing studies at Southern Methodist University in Dallas during the early seventies. He had charge of two small east Texas parishes where he held forth when he was not engaged in theological study. We became acquaintances through a ministry I conducted at the Kaufman County Prison Farm where he also came each fifth Sunday.
In conversation I learned that he did not believe the Bible to be authoritative, he did not believe Jesus Christ to be God nor did he believe there was any such thing as salvation, he did not believe there was a life beyond this present moment nor did he believe there would be a judgement of mankind … in fact, he did not believe much at all!
When I asked about the vows laid out in the Methodist Discipline and which he had avowed before the bishop and the assembled observers at the time of his ordination, he said that he did so holding mental reservations. Though he spoke the words accepting the authority of the Word and the deity of Jesus Christ and the necessity of salvation and the judgement of souls, he employed a subterfuge which in his mind permitted him to take the vows without believing them. When I asked why he bothered to be a preacher, he responded that it was an easy life and did not demand much of him. Furthermore, he saw himself as helping people, although he was unable to address their deepest need or point them to life in Christ. Such an individual is dead and incapable of being revived. A liberal churchman is a liar and nothing that such an individual says can be trusted. While the liberal speaks religious words, she or he employs subterfuge and deceit to blind the eyes of her or his listeners while lulling them to eternal death.
There are other religious spokesmen opposed to revival who have no root. The seed of the Word fell on stony soil in which no root could be formed. They are more concerned about the opinions of others, and they think that perhaps denominational leaders or influential people within the church would be embarrassed by pleas for revival and so they also oppose renewal of the spirit and refreshment of the heart. They are best described as gopher Christians who poke their heads up out of their subterranean playpens to see which way the wind is blowing and then speak the same as everyone else. They are professionals, not prophets of the Living God.
You will no doubt recall the incident when Ahab, that vile occupant of the throne of Israel during the days of Elijah’s prophetic service, was withstood by Micaiah. Jehoshaphat, though stupidly allied with Ahab, had at least perspicacity to ask if there was a prophet of the Lord after hearing from four hundred false prophets.
The messenger dispatched by the kings to summon Micaiah approached the prophet thinking the man of God to be just another mouth for hire and urged him to agree with the majority: Look, as one man the other prophets are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favourably [1 Kings 22:13]. But no true prophet is for hire, so Micaiah informed the courier: As surely as the LORD lives, I can tell him only what the LORD tells me [1 Kings 22:14]. Just so, the prophet of God in these last days will carefully consider where God is at work and call the people to work there with Him. Let the denomination sink into oblivion if God has passed it by. Let the influential among the congregation either get their lives right with God or remain silent. If such seems odious to them let them leave that the leaven may be purged from among God’s holy people.
Other theologues opposed to revival are caught up in the concerns of this life. They are like the seed which fell among the thorns. Thus consumed with the cares of daily life and with the rewards of mortal life they are by default unconcerned for the glory of God. Some such spokesmen of the Faith even have influential ministries, but their concern for personal security and for position precludes risk for the cause of Christ.
Some years ago, I chaired an evangelistic crusade in a coastal city. All the churches united in an evangelistic effort. Three of us pastors had met weekly for over twelve months praying for revival. We issued repeated invitations to other churches to join us for a noon-hour prayer session. Gradually a growing number of lay people joined us in prayer until the room in which we met was filled with people praying for revival.
God blessed richly and the churches were compelled by weight of lay demands to seek out an evangelist behind whom they might unite. A steering committee was struck, an evangelist was approached and his agreement obtained, and meetings were scheduled. During the meetings many people were converted to Christ and added to the churches. At the conclusion of the evangelistic meetings the prayer meetings continued and the lay people inquired if there was not a means by which the churches could co-operate for continued advancement of the Kingdom of God and to foster the presence of His Spirit.
To my utter surprise, there was great opposition from the pastors of the largest churches in that city. Their opposition was neither because of theological differences nor because of differences in worship styles, but their opposition was in each instance (whether they were Baptist, Presbyterian, United churchmen, or Reformed) predicated upon the concept that continued co-operation would hinder the building of their personal future. In short, the advancement of their careers took precedence over the building of the Kingdom of God and over advancement of the cause of Christ.
I have focused on individual religious leaders who were opposed to revival and raised questions concerning the motives for their opposition—questions which find their origin in Christ’s teaching. However I would have you take note that in the parable Jesus directed major attention to seed which fell on good soil representing he who hears the Word and understands it. Such individuals produce a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Thus, I am hopeful when I preach for revival. I am hopeful because there are Christian leaders with a heart for God, and within whose hearts such appeal resonates. I am hopeful because God is in the business of saving people and not simply scattering the seed of the Word in a vain hope that it will find appropriate soil. Therefore, I am hopeful because God still reaches out to the lost and establishes them within His churches.
Even in the midst of the darkest days of the Tribulation—days in which the Spirit of God is withdrawn from the earth—we read of an astonishing revival in which men and women, converted during those awful days of unchecked wickedness, worship God even though such praise and worship means death. I read of multitudes being turned to righteousness by the witness of these persecuted and punished believers. John saw the souls of those who had been slain because of the Word of God and the testimony they had maintained [Revelation 6:9]. These are part of a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language who shall stand before the throne and in front of the Lamb, and who are identified as they who have come out of the great tribulation. The revelation given the aged Apostle was that they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb [Revelation 7:9, 14].
Dear people, if God can so work during the darkest days yet to come, when the Spirit if removed and when evil rampages unchecked, and if God can accomplish such great things to the praise of His glory, is He not able to yet renew His work in this day? The greatest revivals to ever be witnessed yet lie in the future, and who is to say that God cannot—or that God shall not—revive His work in this day and in this place?
The Prerequisites for Revival Set By God — If there is a possibility of revival in these last days, the question of conditions for revival naturally follows. What prerequisites has God set for revival—if any? The simple answer to this question is to again cite the text of these past several weeks that we might be reminded that God has called His people to revival. If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. More than any other facet of the divine program, the requirement that we seek His face challenges us if we would see revival.
I do not say that we have no need to humble ourselves, but if we seek the face of our God, we will find that we are humbled by the revelation of His person. I do not say that we have no need of prayer, but the prayer which we must offer up is that He might make us worthy of His presence and that He might reveal His presence among us. I do not say that we have no need to turn from our own wicked ways, but try though we might we shall fail until He graciously reveals His presence to us. Then, in the light of His glorious presence, we shall see our own self-righteous opinions and self-righteous acts, as they truly are—filthy rags. It is God Himself we need and it is His face we must seek.
Whenever I preach for revival, my thoughts turn frequently to the disciples in the days immediately preceding Pentecost. These saints had seen the Risen Christ and they were yet powerless before the threat of religious persecution. Therefore a group numbering about one hundred twenty men and women retired from the threat to an empty room where they joined constantly in prayer [Acts 1:12-14]. For ten days, they prayed importunately. Don’t you wish you could have been present to hear their prayers? It is doubtful that they wasted time trying to impress God with their knowledge of conditions about them or with flattering words. I doubt that their prayers were benign little requests which would make absolutely no difference if they were answered. I doubt that they prayed in such general terms that when prayer was answered no one would know it. While we cannot know precisely all that they sought, we do know some of their requests.
They submitted to His mastery over their lives and over their desires as an assembly. Lord, they prayed, you know everyone's heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs. More than any other facet of this prayer the attitude of submission to His will is the most striking. He had promised to send the Counsellor when He had ascended and He had promised not to leave them orphans. He had promised that they would be His witnesses in the very place where He had been crucified. They were certainly anticipating that what He said He would do. Dear people, when we seek the face of God—humbling ourselves before Him, offering up repeated petitions for His grace and turning from all known wickedness in our lives—He will answer.
Another of the great prayers from those exciting days of the first great Christian revival is that recorded in Acts 4:24-30. They raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:
“’`Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth take their stand
and the rulers gather together
against the Lord
and against his Anointed One.’
“Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
Isn’t that a humbling prayer? That title by which they addressed the Lord, Sovereign Lord, is translated from the Greek term Devspota. We obtain our word despot from this Greek word. These disciples saw God as absolute ruler of life. They were conversant with His promises and they did not hesitate to remind Him of His Word. The heart of this prayer, however, is the request for boldness that Jesus might be glorified.
Would we be willing to meet daily for prayer that God would fulfil His promise, even if His answer meant inconvenience and submission of our own desires to His will? Would we actually surrender our own desires to the will of God so that Jesus might be honoured among us? Would we actually seek boldness, knowing it would mean that we would likely be counted as fools for the sake of Christ? Would we?
What would it be if one or two of us, if a handful of us covenanted together to seek the face of God? However long such covenant might require we would agree together to pray daily for the presence of Christ to be revealed among us. Perhaps we would give ourselves to fasting and prayer at specified periods of time to discover those attitudes and actions which we thought to be small matters but which are offensive to Holy God. Were we to so commit ourselves to one another to unite in seeking the face of God, could we not anticipate that He would revive us and through us revive others?
The Possibility of Revival in the Last Days — What prospects have we for revival among God’s people at this dawn of the Twenty-first Century? According to biblical prophecy, this could well be the terminal generation. Therefore, what possibility exists that God shall revive His people and His work in the terminal generation? According to the Word of God, I assess the prospects for revival in our day as excellent. If I review the prerequisites for revival, I discover that God is ever and always ready to revive His work and to refresh His people in the midst of their days.
If you are content with your Christian life and feel no longing for the presence of God with His people, I suggest that something is seriously wrong with your Christianity. Should you be complacent about your faith, not wishing to be disturbed from your lethargy, your faith is dead and you need to seriously review your profession in order to determine whether you are indeed in the Faith. Those who have been born from above have been left in the world that they might glorify God, that they might shine as lights in the darkness and that they might be as salt halting the rot and decay of this dying world.
Adoniram Judson was the first Baptist foreign missionary from the new world. After the Judsons had invested long years of frustrating labours with scant results to show for the effort he was challenged by his mission board concerning the advisability of continued mission work in Burma. The weary pioneer responded to their queries with a classic statement of God’s faithful, The future is as bright as the promises of God. Something similar could well be said concerning the possibility of revival after such a period of spiritual drought: The future is as bright as the promises of God. Has God promised to revive His people? If so, then the lack of revival stems not from God’s reluctance, but from the failure of His people to seize His promise. I suggest that the text sets forth the principle that God is prepared to bless His people with the revelation of His glorious power if they but meet the condition of seeking Him with all their hearts.
I am convinced that revival awaits a few people, a handful of men and women with courage to seek the face of God without considering the costs. I speak to Christian men and women for the most part. Can it really be true that there is no desire to see the glory of God revealed among us and in this day? I am convinced that there is within the heart of each true believer an undefined and an unfulfilled longing for what we call revival. Revival is but a return to the normal Christian life wherein God dwells among His own. Revival awaits our willingness to seek His face. If you remember but one thought from this message let it be this one—God longs to revive His people. We need the Lord God to renew our spirits, to refresh our hearts, and to restore our service to the praise of His glory; and He awaits our cry that He might do just that.
The Plea for Revival Among Us — Do we want to be revived? The real question arising from the message this morning is whether we want to be a revived people or whether we are content to be cultural Christians. I observe a disturbing trend as many people choose to treat the Faith as though it was but a refuge from the world. We live much as the inhabitants of this world during the week, indistinguishable from the pagans about us and then retreat for a brief time into holy enclaves on Sunday mornings. After a brief respite, we devote the remainder of the day to the same pursuits as our neighbours. Revival will never come to a people indistinguishable from the pagans about them.
Ezekiel observed that the priests of his day failed in their duties. One of the great charges brought against them was that they [did] not distinguish between the holy and the common; they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean [Ezekiel 22:26]. Looking beyond this present age, the prophet warned the priests who would minister in the Millennial Kingdom that they are to teach my people the difference between the holy and the common and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean [Ezekiel 44:23]. Believers are viewed as a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light [1 Peter 2:9]. The people of God must distinguish between the holy and the common.
I have always been uncomfortable with ministers who need to wear clerical garb. A godly life is the distinguishing mark of divine relationship. I am uncomfortable with believers who think it necessary to dress in a particular manner in order to identify themselves as Christians. A godly life is the distinguishing mark of divine parentage. No one among us should require an analytical concordance in order to prove that he or she is a Christian. Say not thou hast royal blood in thy veins save thou dare to live a holy life, was the Puritan watchword. Sound advice, that. Let us be holy—and we shall be holy if we dare seek God with our whole heart, seeking to dwell in His presence.
I cannot help but wonder what would happen if we were to become somewhat extreme as a congregation. What would happen if even a few of us were to determine that during the brief weeks preceding the autumn—from now through September—we would set aside one day each week to seek the face of God? I do not say that we should determine to seek revival—revival is the natural outgrowth of entering into the work at that place where God works. What would happen if we gave ourselves to seek God Himself one day each week during the days until the New Year comes?
During that day, we would, as the saints of another generation would say, afflict our souls. We would humble ourselves, fasting and praying even as we went about our regular work. On that day, at the conclusion of the duties for which we are responsible, we would covenant to unite here for solemn prayer. We would not make the days of affliction of our souls a matter of open knowledge, but we would quietly seek God and His righteousness, first in our own lives as individuals and then as a community of faith.
We would give ourselves on that day to pray for His glory to be revealed in us and in our daily routines. We would pray that God would bless our brothers and sisters who worship with us by revealing Himself in our midst and that He would visit as well sister churches about us. At the start of each day of affliction we would read again this one singular verse of Scripture, meditating anew on the conditions outlined to insure that we obeyed each one so that nothing would hinder God’s gracious response save His sovereign will. If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
I hesitate to issue a call for response, fearful of the consequence of such call; but the hour is late and our Lord Jesus has promised that He shall soon return cutting short any further opportunity to work for Him. If the desire for revival has found residence within you, perhaps it is that the Spirit of God is at work among us even now. If the recommendation makes sense to you, perhaps it is that the Spirit of God is calling us.
If you are willing to give a day a week throughout these spring months to seek God, to seek His glory in your life and in the life of your church, I invite you to make a response today. The response I suggest is a thoughtful response to covenant together as I have suggested. I invite you to consider setting aside the day of Wednesday each week as a day to solemnly seek the presence of Christ among His people. I invite you to set aside that day to seek the face of God. I do not dictate to you how that day should be reserved, but I invite you to consider a day of fasting and prayer as you particularly seek God’s glory in this day and in this place.
At the conclusion of each day of affliction, I would welcome a response from the congregation to meet for united prayer. We would meet to pray for God’s presence among us, staying only so long as there is interest and permitting people to pray as they might wish. Permit me to stress that I am not issuing a command, I could never do such a thing in this case. Neither am I voicing my expectations. I am expressing a hope that those whom the Spirit of God should prompt to heed such a call—and He is even now issuing such a call—would covenant together. There would be no advertising, no notices in the bulletin, no coercion. Either God puts this in our hearts or He does not.
For so many as are moved by the Spirit of God, I invite you to join me in this time of seeking the face of our God. I invite you to join in solemn prayer throughout these days until the autumn arrives with its new demands upon our time. As many as God shall call are invited to join me in affliction of soul and solemn prayer this coming Wednesday and each Wednesday throughout the weeks until the summer.
Now, let us bow our heads for a time of solemn reflection on the words of this message. As many of us whose hearts God has moved are invited to set aside the day of Wednesday for a day to seek the face of God. If you wish suggestions of how to fast, I will count it a privilege to discuss the matter with you. If you wish recommendation of how to hold the day reserved in the midst of the business you may be called to conduct, I will be pleased to discuss the matter with you. Nevertheless, if God now calls you to respond, let us covenant together to the praise of His glory. Amen.