Three Things For Revival

1 Corinthians 2:1-5

1 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.

2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Revival is somewhat of a relative term. You almost need to have an individual's definition of revival to understand what they are referring to when they talk about it. What do I mean when I speak of revival? I am referring to those supernatural events that happen to churches where no explanation or reason exists for the event. Some examples would include the radical transformation of lives. Healed and restored marriages. Sometimes whole communities or even nations have been effected by these events.

They are not programs that have been produced, promoted, and pushed on the people. It is something beyond human capabilities or power. It is the mighty moving of God.

I like how Vance Havner put it, "the one thing needful is a brand-new experience of God among His people. I do not care what your favorite name for it may be. We have named it a-plenty, but most of us have never known it. The filling of the Spirit, full surrender, consecration, the victorious life, perfect love, revival - whatever you call it- most of us don't have it…

We may rise from our knees singing "Onward, Christian Soldiers" like a camp-meeting Methodist; or we may feel so subdued that we can only whisper "Abide With Me." But whatever form it takes, we need a fresh meeting with God.

For one it may mean nights of prayer, not because God is slow but because we are stubborn. It may mean tears of repentance, for our spiritual eyesight is bad these days and we see better after our eyes are cleared by the saltiness of godly sorrow.

It may mean giving up something that displeases God or undertaking something that pleases God.

But whatever may be necessary, one man with a glowing experience of the Lord -- is worth a library full of arguments!

We are God's witnesses, not His lawyers, and we have been apologetic when we should have been apostolic. People do not usually find God at the end of an argument; Simon Peter usually comes to Jesus because Andrew went after him with heavenly compassion and holy compulsion.

Call it what you will, we need a brand-new meeting with God!"

I think Havner nailed it. I find there are three things that we need to understand and grab hold of before we can have or expect real revival.

Understand The Seriousness of Our Position - Sometimes I don't think we fully recognize the condition we are in.

A time when sin and immorality are not only thought of as normal - but are encouraged and affirmed A time when true spirituality and searching the scripture is hard to find, and not a priority of the majority. A time when dangers, catastrophes, and natural disasters are at record breaking levels.

Understand The Significance of Prayer - "E.M. Bounds, who was born in 1835, began his three-hour prayer routine at 4am. To him, prayer was not a prelude; it was a priority. Edward Payson, who ministered during the Second Great Awakening, was said to have worn grooves into his hardwood floors as a result of prayer. Adonia Judson attributed his success in Burma as a missionary to a life of prayer, as did J. Hudson Taylor, founder of the China Inland Mission. George Mueller petitioned God for millions of dollars to fund his orphanages in the 1800s. John Fletcher, one of the leaders of the Methodist movement, "stained the walls of his room with the breath of his prayers" until his death in 1785. The men, and women, who do the most for God are always people of prayer."

I don't ever want to make people feel guilty because you don't pray like others - please don't take it like that, but I do want to encourage each of us to take an inventory of our prayer life - do we really seek God - or do we come to Him with a wish list?

Internet shopping is starting to really hurt the brick and mortar stores. One thing about the online shopping is most stores have wish-list you can add items you wish you could own but don't really have the money right now to purchase. You can then share that wish list with the world if you want through the miracle of social media. I'm afraid people approach prayer with this concept. But it is ineffective Real praying takes, a real heart, in real faith, asking a real God for real things. Understand The Significance of Power - Erwin Lutzer the other morning in a sermon at Moody Bible Church in Chicago made a statement to the effect, "If we can explain everything that is going on in our church there is a problem. There should be things going on and happening that we can't explain." Miracles we call them sometimes. I know that the size of our congregation isn't huge and so maybe they don't happen every service - But I am alarmed that they do not happen more frequently.

Where are those who are convicted of their sin? Where are those who interested in hearing about Jesus? Where are those who just felt compelled to come in? Where are those whom Jesus is dealing with?

I pray that no fingers will be pointed at me at the Judgment and say, "It was your lack of power preacher" or what about you "It was your lack of power parishioner" This power was promised to every believer. I'm not talking about power to still the storm, but power to live a Godly life. Power to be attractive to the sensitive soul. Power to point people to Jesus.

Say what you will, I agree with Havner - We need a brand-new meeting with God right here at Wichita Bible Holiness Church!!!

Will you commit and agree with me to pray for this not just now but in the day s and weeks leading up to our revival. Let's bath and soak this meeting in prayer!!!