Revival

Gtcotr/ss052222

People can go to heaven having been poor, stupid, miserable, afraid, lazy, or crazy, but they can’t go to heaven without Jesus. A person can be on their way to heaven while living in hell. What people go through is not always a choice but the person they are in the midst of the problem is a choice.

I  believe there will come a great departure from the faith in the last days. I also believe in a great last day revival. I see both as a pattern of God’s revealed plan. God is a God of patterns.

Let me say it this way:

What do these things have in common:

·        Genesis 1

·        Noah’s ark

·        Job’s recovery

·        Moses delivering the Children of Israel from Pharaoh and Egypt

·        Ezekiel‘s Dry Bones

·        The Day of Pentecost

·        Paul and Silas in the Philippian Jail

·        The Rapture of the Church

They are all pictures of revival. And there are so many more.

·        David bringing the Ark back to Jerusalem

·        Jonah at Nineveh

·        Ruth meeting Boaz

·        Esther going to the King

·        The Great Light that surrounded Saul of Tarsus

You see:

·        Revival is something God makes happen

·        Revival is a sovereign move of God

Revival is not something we can prescribe it is something we can only describe after it happens.

It’s on God’s shoulders, not ours. The scriptures tell us that God has a set time to favor Zion and that He will suddenly come to His temple. God is going to do it with or without me … I can participate or I can spectate.

Each one of the great revival events in the Bible were on God’s calendar from the foundation of the world, along with every resurrection you have ever faced and every resurrection you will yet face in this life.

Psalms 30

5  For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

2  O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me.

11  You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,

Bad days turn to good days in the hand of the Lord.

The greatest revival ever known to mankind was the reviving of the Body of Christ at the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus.

I believe and have long preached that the last days of the Church on the earth will follow the pattern of the last days of Jesus on the earth. Two thousand years ago the world and the devil thought they had the last word concerning the Body of Christ. Nothing could have been farther from the truth.

God had a plan and He had already decided He was going to bring about the greatest revival the world had ever seen. It is simply the pattern of God. And God has that same plan for your life. The same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in you. Without respect as to what we may face in life, the devil will never be able to count you out.

You may not always be able to prescribe what God will do but one thing for certain, one day you will be able to describe what He did.

Miracles happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.

2 Corinthians 4

17  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,

18  while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

This morning I want to share three things we conclude from all the stories of revival found in the Word of God.

1.  God has predetermined the success of His children.

a.   It’s not a matter of if, it’s only a matter of when.

b.   He is in control of the future.

2.  Revival brings results.

a.   Order to chaos and light to darkness in Genesis 1

b.   Deliverance for the Children of Israel from slavery in Egypt

c.    Victory over sin, death, hell, and grave at the Resurrection

d.   Salvation on the day of Pentecost

e.   Revival brings whatever is needed

f.    God has plans for a revival in your life

3.  God most often demands we participate in our miracles.

a.   Job had to keep trusting God

b.   Paul and Silas sang and prayed in their midnight hour

c.    The Disciples and Believers were together in one place and in one accord on the Day of Pentecost

d.   The Church will be busy preaching the Gospel and meeting needs on the day the Lord returns.

What can you do to participate with God’s plan to bring revival to your life, your family, your community, your nation, and your generation?

·        Pray

·        Trust God

·        Don’t let the devil divide you

·        Be a functioning part of the Church in these last days

o   Decide to be a Goer; Stayer; Prayer; or a Payer

o   Sign up today …