STUDIES OF REVIVAL

STUDY ONE

Introduction;
O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy. (Habakkuk 3:2) KJV

LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, LORD. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy. (Habakkuk 3:2) NIV
Religion is the work of man. It is something for man to do. It is all about obeying God. It is our service to Him. It is true that God influences us by His Holy Spirit to convict us of our great wickedness and unwillingness to obey. If it were not necessary for God to influence men, if we were so ready to obey God on our own, there would never be a need to cry out to Him, "O Lord, revive us!" The reason we would cry out to Him in this way is because we not 100% ready , at all times, to obey. If God didn't give us His Holy Spirit to guide and stir us up, not one person would ever obey the commands of God.


The reason for this study is it is necessary for God to use our tendacy to get excited. We can be so sluggish, there are so many outside influences that lead our minds away from obeying. So many evil influences that cause us to hide the Gospel and not share. We can get so wrapped up in our way of doing Church that we become cold. It becomes necessary for God to use an excitement among us so that a tide rises so high as to sweep away any obstacles. We must be so overcome with the excitement of His presence, that those things which cause us to be lazy will be replaced with a revived will to obey and share.
1. A REVIVAL IS NOT A MIRACLE;


A miracle has been generally defined to be a divine interference. A setting aside, or suspending, the laws of nature. A revival is not a miracle in this sense. All the laws of matter and mind remain in force. They are neither suspended nor set aside in revival.


We seek for God to move among us, but, it is no "miracle" - in the sense of something above the powers of nature. It is in our nature, as believers, to have super natural drawings. Holy Spirit dwells within us. He draws and enpowers us to obey. If we didn't have His Spirit dwelling within us, we wouldn't be drawn at all.


The revivals we see in the opening chapters of the book of Acts were not miracles. Revival followed miracles, but were not miracles themselves. The right means of these revivals were due to the right use of Gods word. In Acts 2 when the miracle of the giving of Holy Spirit was quite a different thing from Peter standing and giving his sermon where about 3000 souls were saved. Also, in Acts 3 is the story of Peter and John going to the temple and a lame man being healed. When the people saw the lame man walking and praising God, they wondered what this was. Again, the lame man being healed was the miracle, Peter standing and preaching the truth was another. About 5000 people was saved from this encounter.


It is not a miracle for a gardener to enjoy a nice harvest after planting seed. It is only right that, with Gods blessing, that the seed will grow and bring about the desired result. The same result is expected by planting the seed of Gods word into the souls of people, with Gods blessing, a harvest will follow. Jesus spoke in Luke, chapter 8, of seed being planted. That seed is the word of God. when planted in good soil, a good result will follow. So, a revival is not a miracle, only the result of the right means being applied in the right way.


2. WHAT A REVIVAL IS;


A revival is always needed when the Church is sunk down in a back-slidden state and/or society around the Church is so depraved and lost.


A revival always includes conviction of sin on the part of the Church. Back-slidden Christians cannot wake up and begin immediately in service of God without deep cleansings of heart. We cannot keep saying that we are only human and that we are prone to sin. There is some truth there, as we are still in this flesh. But Peter again stands and speaks to us today, "Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires." (2 Peter 1:2-4 NIV)


Back-slidden Christians will be brought to repentance. A revival is nothing more than a new beginning of obedience to God. Just like the case of a saved sinner, the first step is deep repentance, a humbling of ourselves, a getting down in the dust before our Creator, with the goal of forsaking sin that is present within ourselves.


Christians will have their faith renewed. While in a back-slidden state, Christians can become blind to the state of the lost. Their heart can become as hard as marble. They can believe the truths of the Bible, admit they are all true, and even their daily walk is based on the truths found there. But, their faith does not see all the burning realities of eternity. They will look upon the lost with a cold, judging eye. When they enter into revival, they will as Jesus sees. They will see with that strong light which will renew the love of God in their hearts. They will feel grieved that others do not love God when they love Him so much. They will be filled with a tender and burning love for souls. Their prayer life will be renewed for the cause of salvation on the souls of the lost.


A revival breaks the power of the world and of sin over Christains. They will have a renewed desire towards Heaven and being close to our Father. It is then that the charm of the world and the power of sin is broken.


When the Church is so broken down and then revived, the lost will begin to truly see Jesus in Christians. Salvation will be found by those around them. The worst human beings are softened and reclaimed for Christ. They will be made to appear as lovely specimens of the beauty of holiness.