We Will Never See Revival

Our homes need revival. Our churches need revival. This nation and the world need revival. But no military power can bring revival. No economic upturn brings revival. And no election can bring revival.

Revival is the sovereign work of Almighty God.

In Isaiah 64, God’s people had been carried into captivity, His work was in disrepair, and His people were dispirited, much like believers today. The Church has been carried into captivity by the world, the flesh and the devil. Christians are discouraged. Many have no hope for revival. They don’t even believe that revival is possible!

I want to tell you, revival is not only possible, it is inevitable when God’s people get right with God.

Why is there no revival? Listen carefully. Not because of liberalism in the churches, or disunity among God’s people, or because we’ve been worldly and compromised. Friend, if we get all of these matters changed, it still would not be revival. These aren’t the reasons for no revival. They are the result of no revival.
-Adrian Rogers

Brother Blaine,

Revival does not come because the Holy Spirit is welcome. Revival comes because the Holy Spirit intrudes into the lives of men who hate Him and who have no desire for anything remotely of Christ. He works in their hearts in such a way that they turn from god-hating, sin-loving men and women into Christ-adoring, walking-talking-living-breathing saints.

I think the problem is that we think revival is the goal. Revival is not the goal. It is a product of the goal--the expansion of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

As far as Cessationism is concerned--if the Lord can overcome Arius by the steadfast hand of Athanasius, then He most certainly can overcome this, too.

I thank the Lord that He promised that He would complete the work He started in me and all my brothers and sisters. Without that hope, I have nothing.

I can't speak for brother Blaine, and he doesn't need me to in any event. I speak only what I have deep in my own heart, guys.

No doubt, God can do anything. We depend on that, don't we? (Everyone said, "Amen!"). :)

When was Jesus ever limited in what He did? When people did not believe Him even though they stood and heard Him and saw Him and saw what He did. People witnessed Him for themselves and still did not believe, still did not obey, still not follow Him. And, of them, Jesus admitted there was no hope, no life for them so long as they remained blind to Himself.

Blaine, I believe, has asserted that the American church --- the CHURCH, now --- does not believe Jesus, does not obey Jesus, does not follow Him. Does anyone disagree that this is, with little exception, the state of the church here?

You may have read my post yesterday about lunch with my friend. Today, my wife shared a conversation between herself and someone she knows. This 'someone' had lived homosexual lifestyle, had come to a point where she realized her sin and need of Jesus, professed Christ and conversion, was baptized in water, and joined a local church here that is a Word of Faith church. This church is steeped in Osteen, Prince, Copeland, Hinn and all that. It is arguably (and I say conclusively) the most influential church in the county, full of local "dignitaries" like teachers, business owners, government employees (the holy trio in these parts). Full of money. Full of people in position. Now, this female "someone" my wife knows has become engaged to another woman and is fully involved in this local church along with dozens of other self-righteous false converts. They are embraced, not brought to sorrow. They are "loved", not brought to repentance.

Friends, the American church not only does not believe, does not obey and does not follow the Lord Jesus; the American church flatly rejects Him and has itself given Jezebel and a host of evil spirits the name "Jesus Christ" and worships His Name given to another.

The true Jesus is the one described in Philippians 2:2-10. The true Jesus is the one who did not think equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself and being found in the form of a man He humbled Himself, having put away everything He was before and taking on humanity, He became obedient unto death on a cross. Because of this, God highly exalted Him by giving Him a name above all names that at HIS name all knees bow, all tongues confess HIS Lordship to God's glory. The Jesus worshipped in the American church is some other Jesus, created from the thin blue sky by the imaginations of fallen people, and given by the American church the name "Jesus Christ", so that at this little impostor's name every person should stiffen their neck and wag their tongue and mock Almighty God, so that people's "identities" and people's "destinies" and people's "dreams" should be highly exalted above the one true God. It makes me want to puke, and I'm a sinfully fleshed man myself. We can't even think of the offense this church is to God. I am AFRAID, brothers and sisters, of what God is going to do on this land. Revive it? On what basis?

The American church is lost, and brother Blaine is spot on.

Will God revive us because of His mercy? On what authority do we base any such expectation? Is God bound to be merciful to us still?

MIGHT God revive? Maybe.

I can be so wrong, here, but it seems to me that the New Testament says not much of our ekklesia, our assemblies, our churches, our fellowships (by any of these names) meeting to evangelize. We meet to edify and build up and encourage and teach and walk humbly together in the Holy Spirit. The preaching of the gospel of salvation to the lost occurs almost completely outside of those meetings from what I can read in the Bible.

I point this out to say this: What our assemblies ARE doing are not following the NT. There is just no power or truth to almost all of the American church. What we ARE meeting to say is that we are appealing to the lost, hurting, families, etc., to be with us for a zillion reasons none of which are the NT church. And, we shouldn't be polite about this. Where the American church meets to "minister to" the endless litany of needs and hurts of people, we are not meeting as the body of Christ, but as a false church centered on a false gospel presenting a false hope and resting on a false bottom over the abyss. There IS an edification in the assembly, and there IS a ministry to the body in the context of the assembled church, but inviting others to join us BECAUSE OF those needs is not NT Christianity and God won't revive anything BUT NT Christianity.

The American church needs more than repentance. It needs an awakening to the lie it has imposed on itself, but it loves the lie and therefore will not be awakened. It prefers sleep and dreams, identities and destinies and that's what it will have. What of it can be revived?

Brothers,

I thank God that what is termed as revival is in no wise dependent upon the American so-called Church. There is a true bride of Jesus Christ in America and she isn't what you are talking about here.

Revival has NEVER started with more than but a few men who loved Jesus. History tells of revivals, not prophets. Should we not simply seek Jesus and His glory now and allow the Lord to yield the results?

Finally, there is NEVER a basis for revival apart from the grace of God. Revival is not some super-spiritual time in a certain place for a certain season. It is the salvation of souls, the growth of the Church, and the glory of God. And I am telling you that happens every day in this country, whether you are willing to admit it or not. It may not be a big production like is expected, but when has the Lord ever grabbed one of our revival checklists and started marking off items? Never. Why on earth are we taking wide swaths of the bride of Jesus Christ, saying they are all bad and messed up and no good, and then exalting our own selves here by saying we know better. Who in this forum hasn't prayed for revival? Who in this forum hasn't sought the Lord for their own personal revival? We all have, but brothers, I am telling you that if you keep slapping every true believer across the face every time you strike at non-believers or false-converts then you are going to only perpetuate the serious mess we've got already.

Rev__Enue

"Adrian Rogers"

Now that was a godly man who loved Jesus. Never gets tiresome listening to his Bible based Holy Spirit anointed messages. And a Southern Baptist even.

Maybe a better question is...Will I ever see revival. We too often see revival as a corporate thing, a sovereign move of God upon a people who are simply swept up in something that comes from outside. But I don't think that is necessarily true, nor do I see a Biblical pattern for it happening that way. Scripture tells us to draw nigh unto God and He will draw night unto us. It says blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.

Repentance is not a corporate event, it is an individual event. WE cannot repent...I must repent. But if you and I both repent individually, then the outward appearance of the thing is that WE have repented. The decision to turn and follow God in obedience is one that only I can make.

Personal revival is the key to corporate revival. When I decide that there is absolutely nothing on this earth that is more important than my passionate pursuit of God and His will and presence in my life; when I am willing to change absolutely anything in my life if only it will allow me to be closer to Him; it is then that I will experience revival. He will show up in my life in manifestation of power and glory.

And I have an effect on those around me. My own revival causes the guy next to me to say, "Hey, I want some of that." And then there are two and so on and so on. If I am fulfilling my role in the body of Christ effectively, if I am a joint that is supplying as I am anointed of the Holy Spirit (See Eph. 4), then I will infect the rest of the body with my own revival.

Let me make sure I clarify here. I do think God has times that he wants to do something special with a group of people in a community. But it is ultimately up to the individuals in that group to respond to God and see that thing come to pass. He can only move in and through us to the extent that we cooperate and allow Him to do so.

A good question may be whether a corporate gathering can foster individual revival. I believe that it can and I think history bears this out.

There is something about being around other believers when the Spirit of God begins to move. But there is power in it.

So I agree that personal revival is the key but sometimes I think this happens in a corporate setting.

It can't be manufactured. I think we all see that together.

Sometimes, I wonder if seeking revival is even correct. Havok said well to seek God. Revival is a merciful thing, an act of God.

Yet, if it is not revival, there is still the holy prophetic voice that calls out unapologetically to awake, arise, repent, and go with Christ. There is yet a life to know in Him as bodies of saints walking together in Jesus, in Spirit and in truth.

I cannot find a biblical example of diplomatic prophetic calls. God is not an ambassador. He is the Sovereign. His pastors and His teachers, His servants of every calling live rightly and well in love and gentleness. When, though, the church has fallen away the severity of Christ -- as king, as judge, as the one who can cast both body and soul into hell, as the Lamb of God who will return as the Lion of Judah--that severity must be surely stated in order to snatch men as from the fire. Jude 23.

If the American church is as populated by true believers as some suggest, then either brothers like myself are badly mistaken and need to repent of the Spirit's relentless dealing with us about the church or we need to break loose from the weights we are told to wear while tiptoeing politely through the mission fields that our own churches have become for fear of insult or injury. My question is where are the men of God among these churches across our land? Where are those men who will stand and repent publicly for the shepherds who heal God's people lightly with romantic "services" and the so called "gospel of grace" a la Joseph Prince and Joel Osteen? Where is the outcry among these churches full of hidden believers? Are they captive? Has anyone kidnapped them? No. I am ready to repent. I am ready to lay down what I know and join the ranks of this great movement of hand raisers and anthem singers and vacuous teaching and powerless prancing prissing prayer. But, God is not there. I won't go back. I won't be shamed into the cool-kid company of culturally relevant engagers and smooth talkers and church growth experts. I will not accept that we should be silent because someone may be offended by hard truth when it is given in hard words by a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

Todd: agreed! The question is, will I be the one who is part of that influence or will I be the one who needs to be influenced?

Repentance is not a corporate event, it is an individual event. WE cannot repent...I must repent. But if you and I both repent individually, then the outward appearance of the thing is that WE have repented. The decision to turn and follow God in obedience is one that only I can make.

Personal revival is the key to corporate revival. When I decide that there is absolutely nothing on this earth that is more important than my passionate pursuit of God and His will and presence in my life; when I am willing to change absolutely anything in my life if only it will allow me to be closer to Him; it is then that I will experience revival. He will show up in my life in manifestation of power and glory.

And I have an effect on those around me. My own revival causes the guy next to me to say, "Hey, I want some of that." And then there are two and so on and so on. If I am fulfilling my role in the body of Christ effectively, if I am a joint that is supplying as I am anointed of the Holy Spirit (See Eph. 4), then I will infect the rest of the body with my own revival.

I believe we will see revival if WE REMEMBER
2 CHRON 7:142 Chronicles 7:14King James Version (KJV)

14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall 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.

King James Version (KJV)
WE ARE HIS PEOPLE WE NEED TO REPENT.. WE NEED TO BE HUMBLED.
WE WILL HEAR FROM HEAVEN.. HE WILL FORGIVE AND HEAL THIS LAND..
IM BELIEVING FOR REVIVAL IM REPENTING AND IM HOLDING ON TO HIS WORD..
THERE ARE CHURCHES that are on fire and looking to JESUS.
In Christ
Sister Frannie

Perhaps the issue is that two different entities are spoken of as one, in the OP: the true church of the Lord Jesus Christ and the harlot church. The former is full of regenerate people who are saved, living right and are kept by the power of the Holy Spirit. They are revived and have both their lamps and vessels filled with oil, awaiting the Bridegroom.

The latter is full of happy folks who are quite happily dead in their sins and would be offended at the very thought of their being called 'sinners'.
I believe the OP would accurately depict the harlot church.

Just my 2 cents....