Do you
want
revival?By Ron Mar.
DO YOU WANT REVIVAL?
We all want to see revival, don't we?
Clearly the answer is "no", we don't all want to
see revival.
In fact, very, very few indeed want to see
revival.
The reasons are numerous. But they all have to
do with the character and requirements of
revival.REVIVAL IS COMPLETELY OF GOD It is not man-made, man-produced, man-
organized or man-controlled. It is absolutely and
completely of God. And we have become so used
to running things, we feel downright insecure at
the very thought of anything we cannot organize,
produce and control.REVIVAL IS REVEALING It rips the lid off sin and darkness. And there is
so much we do not want revealed. --So much of
sin and darkness in us we don't want others to
know about.REVIVAL DEMANDS REPENTANCE We must become guilty before God for sins
that we prefer to cover up ... and for sins we
prefer to call mistakes, poor judgment, human
failings or imperfections.
We must be willing to call sin by its name,
sense deeply our guilt, acknowledge it without
reservation and turn from it.REVIVAL DEMANDS CONFESSION AND Even after we are willing to recognize and
RESTITUTION
repent of sin, are we willing not only to confess it
to God but where appropriate to confess it to the
necessary people ... and even to make restitution
to the extent to which that is possible?REVIVAL DEMANDS EARNEST, Most of us know little of this kind of praying.
TIME-CONSUMING, SOUL-RENDING,
SELFLESS, GOD-HONOURING,
PREVAILING PRAYER
Mostly we verbalize our grocery list of prayer
wants to God.
Often God has already closed His ears because
we haven't submitted them to His will. We
haven't sought His guidance.
We haven't worshipped, honoured or praised
Him. We haven't sought to be sure that answer-
ing our requests will bring glory to Him.
In short, we ask amiss that we might consume
it on our own lusts.
So how can we pray prevailing prayer for
revival?REVIVAL DEMANDS THE PRIOR Pride does us in. How can I depend on God sole-
PREPARATION OF HUMILITY
OF MIND AND SPIRIT
ly, completely, absolutely for His divine interven-
tion in the routine of His church or even of my
own heart, if I am quite content to depend on my
own abilities and efforts?
I must first come to the place where I know
there is nothing good in me ... nothing except
God. This death to self is so opposed, so deathly
opposed, to the old adamic nature that we nor-
mally fight against it with might and main. How
then can we say we want revival?REVIVAL PREPARATION DEMANDS AN I must not be satisfied with simply "knowing
EARNEST, INSATIABLE HUNGER
FOR GOD HIMSELF
the Lord." I must "hunger and thirst after
righteousness[.]"
I must "set my affection on things above, not
on things on the earth, where Christ is seated at
the right hand of God." I must crave "That I may
know him, and the power of his resurrection, and
the fellowship of his sufferings, being made con-
formable unto his death; If by any means I might
attain unto the resurrection of the dead."
I must seek Him with all my heart, knowing
that it is then I will surely find Him.
This demands the kind of time in worship,
devotion, praise and fellowship with Him in
prayer that few indeed "have time for" in this
busy, busy age.
God will not be rushed. The admonition to wait
on the Lord is not repeated scores and scores of
times in His Word without reason. It really
means just that: waiting on Him in supplication
and devotion and praise and worship and
fellowship until He rains His Holy Spirit on us.
The quick dip in the Spirit that most people
equate to Spirit-fullness or Spirit-[seeking] is not
enough. There must be that daily infilling which
comes only with adequate time properly spent
seeking His face.REVIVAL BRINGS HOLINESS And God doesn't force-feed His children. If we
don't want holiness. If we don't seek holiness, do
you think for a moment we will get the revival
that brings holiness?
Holiness is a holy anger at sin. Holiness is a ho-
ly desire after righteousness. Holiness is a holy
longing that God's "will be done in earth, as it is
in heaven."
Holiness is separation from the world and sin
and Satan unto God. Holiness is a supreme desire
that God alone be uplifted, magnified, glorified.
Who do you know that you could describe in
those terms? Can you see anyone ever describing
you in those terms? If not, how can you say you
want revival?REVIVAL BRINGS SEPARATION How much we are look-alikes with the world
FROM THE WORLD
around us! How little we recognize that he that
would "be a friend of the world is the enemy of
God."
Are we willing to be separate from the world's
thoughts, habits, practices, hopes, ambitions,
desires ... even its looks, its dress, its manners
where godliness and purity indicate it? If not,
how can we say we want revival?REVIVAL BRINGS SEPARATION AND We read of all the wonderful things accompa-
SUFFERING
nying revival. --Confession of sin [that's wonder-
ful as long as someone else is doing the confess-
ing]. --Restoration of Christian homes.
--Restitution [fantastic, as long as I'm not the
one having to face my culpability before the one
I've wronged]. --Joy. --Holiness of life [great as
long as I'm not the one who has to pay the price].
--People finding Christ as Saviour.
What we don't normally read of is the separa-
tion and suffering revival brings. There are wives
revived when husbands won't be ... and the
reverse.
There are pastors revived when churches won't
be ... and the other way around. One fiance is
revived and the other is not. Then either separa-
tion and suffering result or the revival is lost.
The giving up of sin, its confession to those
hurt by it, restitution, self denial for instance in
order to spend time with God. These ought to be
easy and joyful in the joy of the Lord, but the suf-
fering during the battle to break the hold the
devil has on us may be very real indeed, and
sometimes prolonged.
Are we willing to pay this kind of price? If not,
can we say honestly that we want revival?REVIVAL COSTS. We are living in a society accustomed to having
things come easy. General affluence by historic
standards still prevails.
We are protected from need by every kind of
insurance and by government handouts when
that fails.
The idea of really paying a price for something,
of doing without anything I really "just have to
have" in order to get something of ultimate
worth ... that is something little experienced,
generally not considered necessary and assigned
very, very little value in this age.
My brother-in-law returned from the mission
field to say in wonder, "Our dedication has cost
us everything. These people's dedication has cost
them nothing."
How can we be other than hypocrites claiming
we want revival, if we will pay no cost just to be
Christians?
Have we covered all the ways in which we show
we don't really want revival? Scarcely.
Yet these same lacks are reasons why revival
usually does not last long. Thank God for some
notable exceptions primarily among what we
choose to call primitive people.
But here is what usually happens. Some few
pay the price. God moves in mighty power in
answer to their prayers. Many are affected and
numbers pay some price to participate in its fur-
thering.
But the few who paid the price initially tire of
"carrying the whole load" now that so many are
revived. They're lulled into believing others will
pick up the burden.
These many got caught in God's blessing, and,
participating enjoyed it, but paid little price for
it, and when called upon to do so, didn't either
hear or respond to the voice.
And those who in the excitement furthered the
revival and probably paid some price for their
participation all too soon tire of this. They've
never been taught that revival is built on leading
a normal Christian life ... a life composed of all
these elements.DO YOU WANT REVIVAL? If you want revival, go back over the eleven
REVIVAL headings above. One by one under-
stand their implications for your life.
Ask yourself whether you are prepared to pay
the price demanded by each ... one at a time. Put
it down ... yes or no.
Now, if you won't take time to even perform
this exercise, you already have the answer, don't
you? --You don't really want revival.
If you want it enough to perform this check up,
and you don't want it enough to pay the price ...
not yet, there's only one thing to do.
TELL GOD SO!
That's right. Don't pretend. Don't be a
hypocrite. Tell God exactly how you feel. And tell
Him you want to want revival.
You don't really want it yet, but you'd like to.
If you're willing to be made willing, you can be
sure He's willing to make you willing.
BUT --
You've got to keep right on being willing, tell-
ing Him you're willing right until He makes you
willing, no matter how long that takes.
But if you just say you're willing and you do
nothing about it, it's unlikely God will make you
willing. You see, it's unlikely you really are will-
ing for God to produce in you a desire for revival
if you won't do what you can about it.
So go back over those headings. Pick out at
least one or two you believe God will help you
with now. Determine to start acting on them.
Make a commitment before God to do so.
Be sure you start with establishing an extend-
ed daily prayer time on the order of the fifth
heading on REVIVAL. If you must start with on-
ly five minutes, you probably should not be
satisfied until ultimately it is an hour, two hours
or even more.
But please don't let that deter you. Extend
your time as God leads you and His blessing
demands.
And when you pray, pray "Our Father which
art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name" -- start out
with worshipping and praising God. And why
not pray right through the Lord's Prayer phrase
by phrase, deciding what it means to you and us-
ing it as a guide, a divine track to run on?
For instance right now, "Thy kingdom come"
means to me 1) Lord, infill me today 2) Come in
revival to your church 3) Come again in ultimate
power and glory. This has enabled me to pray all
three of these prayers daily where I had failed
before.
God will guide you. If you want revival just a
little, God is willing to give you an insatiable
craving ... if you will pay the price.
[Make] as many copies of this Christian In-
quirer reprint as you can use effectively for the
glory of God.
As God supplies through His people, they are
....REVIVAL PRAYER FEL.
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