Where’s the Revival?

If springtime is anything, it’s a season of revival. Flowers bloom, trees bud and birds sing in joyful celebration along with all of nature. The Biblical term revival translates as, “to make alive again”, or “to have new life”. Many Christian leaders in our day have been calling for revival for some time now. Along with others, I myself have yearned for such a visitation from Heaven. While personal revival is always in order, I believe many in the church long to see a much more sweeping, inclusive experience - one that will alter the spiritual landscape of the church and significantly impact our entire culture. Some armchair theologians split hairs, defining revival as something that is reserved for unbelievers, while renewal is something that happens to God’s people. I prefer to see it as one seamless process. The unsaved population as a whole can’t be reached with the gospel and be saved (revival) unless the saved community experiences renewal. Whichever way you slice it, we can all agree that the church in our day is in urgent need of a spiritual awakening. With these facets in mind, let’s take a look through the lens of God’s Word and see just what is involved in this phenomenon we call “revival”. THE NEED FOR REVIVAL MUST BE SENSED. “Will you not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?” Psalm 85:6 One of the classics among Christian hymnody, the song, “Revive Us Again!” is based on the above cited verse. It’s more a heart cry than a song title. The writer of this psalm verbalizes the troubled state of affairs in his country, and his longing for God to step in and do something about it. Earlier in the passage he describes Israel’s plight as a nation experiencing God’s displeasure rather than His blessing, His anger rather than His favor. The author repeatedly makes reference to “the land”. God had blessed their land in the past (1), could once again fill their land with His glory (9), and would return their land to a place of economic prosperity (12). But right now they weren’t enjoying any such blessings. In fact, they had seriously strayed from God and had completely lost their joy, a joy only to be recovered through revival (6). They lost a sense of God’s covenant love upon them (7), and peaceful relationships were hard to come by (8). With loss of joyful worship accompanied by all the many unresolved conflicts in family and church life today, one has to wonder if we don’t find ourselves in a similar boat. If we hope to see any move of God, we first need to genuinely sense the urgency of the hour and the tepidness of our spiritual temperature. THE SOURCE OF REVIVAL MUST BE SOUGHT. “O LORD, revive YOUR work!” Habakkuk 3:2 When any system experiences dysfunction or shutdown, it pays to get to the source. It’s a waste of time consulting or contracting with anyone other than an expert because such a person possesses the competence and capability to fix what is wrong. The prophet Habakkuk understood this principle as he surveyed his nation’s spiritual trajectory. They were headed in the wring direction-badly. Violent crime was rampant in his society (Hab. 1:2). The civil laws were being compromised as the courts ruled against righteousness and for wickedness (1:4). The Lord has stood by watching in silence, but now was preparing to judge the land (1:20). He’d do so by raising up the foreign army of the Chaldeans to overtake the land (1:6). Known for their rank ungodliness and brutality, this army would decimate Habakkuk’s people in short order without a second thought ((1:7-8). The Chaldeans will capture the land and dethrone its leadership (1: 9-10). No wonder Habakkuk trembled at God’s unfolding of His plans to judge His people (Hab. 2:2a)! Now the prophet issues a lengthy appeal, citing case after case where God intervened on behalf of His people. Habakkuk recalls everything historical from the Egyptian plagues (3:5a) to Sodom’s brimstones (3:5b); from the parting of the Red Sea (3:10) to the suspension of the sun allowing Joshua to eliminate the Amorite armies (Josh. 10:12-14). In complete desperation, Habakkuk cries out to God to revive his people (“the work of His hands”) before it’s too late. Only God could correct the problem that was facing impending judgment. Habakkuk sought revival from God because He’s the ONLY one Who can send such a solution! THE CAUSES OF DEADNESS MUST BE IDENTIFIED. “You have forsaken your first love.” Revelation 2:1-4 Heart disease has become one of the leading causes of death in America. While new procedures and a more conscientious population have helped curb the numbers, tens of thousands still die from heart attacks. The apostle John had the encounter of a lifetime when he saw the Risen, Glorified Christ in a Sunday afternoon vision on the Island of Patmos. Among other things, the Lord appeared to John to communicate His concern about the churches in Asia minor (modern day Turkey). Each church had its own set of circumstances and issues, many which have been present in churches down through history, and which still exist in churches today. The core problem in the church located in the city of Ephesus was not one of orthodoxy (right belief) or orthopraxy (right practice). This congregation was straight on their doctrine, and applied it correctly and zealously in their ministries. So what could possibly be wrong with this apparently “fundamental” church? Jesus goes to the heart of the matter, figuratively as well as factually. This church had a heart problem. They were engaged in doing all the right things, but for all the wrong reasons. What started out as a fiery church motivated by love for Christ and commitment to His cause eventually became a visionless place driven by activity. They lost sight of Who it was they were serving. Like Martha, they got so caught up in the work that they lost touch with the One Whom they were serving. The “First Church of Ephesus” needed revival in the truest sense. And Jesus called them back, not to any kind of action, but to Himself. Returning to Christ and rekindling our love for Him, this is the essence of any and all revivals. For Ephesus the deadness was rooted in their departure from Jesus. Like them, each church needs to identify what’s causing the spiritual deadness, and then deal decisively with that cause. THE OBSTACLES TO REVIVAL MUST BE REMOVED. “Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’ ”… “Elijah commanded [the people], ‘Seize the prophets of Baal. Don’t let anyone get away!’ They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.” 1 Kings 18:21, 40 Spiritual polygamy. That’s the best way to describe where Israel found herself at the time of this event. The people were stalled in a state of spiritual incapacitation. They surely knew that their idolatrous worship of Baal was wrong, so they tried to salve their consciences and placate God with a compensatory approach to religion- they’d worship both! Of course this never was and never is an option for God’s people. Something had to be done to bring this state of affairs to a head. The crisis came in the form of a spiritual showdown. Few examples of revival can rival this contest sometimes referred to as the ‘Battle of the Gods’. Brave Elijah arranged to have a public demonstration that would conclusively decide who the real God was. Once the contest revealed the identity of the real God, Jehovah, Elijah swiftly removed the false prophets who had introduced and advanced the worship of Baal. All 400 of these spiritual phonies were summarily dispensed with. The land was cleansed of its grievous idolatry, and enjoyed the blessing of God once again. The lesson is clear. Before we can expect a fresh visitation from God, we need to get our spiritual house in order, updating and keeping short our accounts with God. As we wait before the Lord, He’ll place His finger on the pressure points in our lives. The Spirit will do the rest, leading us to turn away from these stumbling blocks that deaden our spiritual vitality. Once this is done, we can receive all that God has for us. THE CONDITIONS OF REVIVAL MUST BE MET. The scene is all too familiar. A person in the throes of a heart attack falls to the floor and goes unconscious. Rescue workers respond by placing paddles over the heart and shocking the victim back to life. Sometimes the only thing that gets a heart beating again is a jump start. When the heart of God’s people hardens and ceases to function properly, a similar jump start is necessary. Often, God uses the shockwave of His Word to spark life back into His people. Israel experienced significant revival under the capable leadership of Ezra and Nehemiah. The key component of that revival was the public reading and preaching of God’s Word. It triggered a ready response in the audience that transformed the entire nation. The first condition for revival is humble, repentant confession of sin. “Oh my God, I am too ashamed and disgraced to lift up my face to You, my God, because our sins are higher than our heads and our guilt has reached to the heavens.” Ezra 9:6 When God’s people lose their spiritual vitality to the point of becoming dead, the root cause is always sin. In Israel’s case, the people were culpable on numerous counts. Ezra itemizes their disobedient acts that led to their state of bondage and spiritual inertia, confessing their sins of disregard for God’s commands (9:10) and pagan intermarriage (9:12). This repentance must be experienced by the entire household of faith (10:1). The repentance was real, as evidenced by the steps taken to rectify the wrongs done (10:11). The second condition for revival involves a return to obedience to the Word of God. “Ezra the priest brought out the book of the Law of Moses and ... read it aloud from daybreak … and all the people listened attentively to the Law.” Nehemiah 8:1-3 Abandonment of the God of the Word and the Word of God will spell spiritual disaster for the individual believer, a church, and even, as in Israel’s case, an entire nation. God’s people had chosen to forsake His Word, and paid dearly for it. Without its moral compass, they strayed far, far away from Him as well as from being a just and healthy society. God honors the land that keeps His Word, but also warns of His punishment upon a people who forget Him and His Word (Psalm 9:17). Ezra helped the people identify where they’d gone wrong, and led them in returning to the Lord. The Israelites meant business this time, taking steps to put down their commitment in writing (Nehemiah 9:38). THE BLESSING OF REVIVAL MUST BE HEAVEN-SENT. “I will bless them and the places surrounding My hill. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.” Ezekiel 34:26 When a meteorologist gives a weather forecast, he uses different kinds of terms to identify the kind of precipitation an area can expect. There are sprinkles, as well as the downpour associated with thunderstorm activity. Then there are the occasional showers. Here God promises to send the gentle rains of a seasonal shower. Such rainfall is most desirable as it most easily sinks down into the soil with a minimum of runoff. God also promised that Israel would receive the showers at just the right time seasonally that would do the most for their crops. His showered blessings would fall upon the people as well as the places where they dwelt. It would be a comprehensive blessing for all to enjoy and benefit from. This unprecedented blessing would boost their economy through the roof, releasing them from their slavish dependence upon foreign oppressors (34:27-28). They would be safe from foreign invasions, and their agricultural output would (and did) surpass all the nations (34:29). In the end, they would clearly recognize that it was the Lord Who had engineered their 180 degree reversal of fortune. Ezekiel then quotes the thematic phrase repeated throughout the entire book, “Then they will KNOW that I am the Lord.” God would do the sending as the people dealt decisively with their sin. Once that condition had been met, God promised to open up the heavens and send untold blessings upon His restored people. Likewise, when the church meets the conditions God sets forth, she will enjoy spiritual showers of blessing from above in the form of revival. While no one can predict God’s ways in a formulative manner, it does seem quite apparent from Scripture that there are certain prerequisites to revival. Both Old and New Testaments testify to that fact. Perhaps we can gain much needed perspective from our Biblical predecessors, and then enjoy the revival we so desperately need! May we echo the revival prayer request of Isaiah, “Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down!” (Isaiah 64:1).