"So, we can pencil you in for ... let's see ... the week of January 1st and you'll be there for this revival, right?"
"Sure! I've got an opening then. Lucky you asked me for that week. I have three more in January already."
"Great! We'll start putting out the word of revival right away!"
Like it works that way. Like we get to tell God when to show up. Another version of "God is my butler."
So how does it work? Is "revival" a thing? If so, how does it come about?
"Revival" is a bit of an odd duck in Christian terms. Often we think of "revival" as an outreach thing, a bringing of people (preferably hordes of people) to Christ. This is problematic just in the language. The word is built on two parts. One is "re", meaning "again". We're familiar with that. So what is the thing we want to do "again"? The second part is from the Latin "vivere" -- "to live". To revive is to cause to live again. So the idea that "revival" is to cause a bunch of spiritually dead people to live again is problematic since "live again" requires an original "alive once".
This is why the other common understanding of the term is among believers, not as an outreach. In this version, "revival" would be waking up believers to what was once true. And this has some biblical support behind it. The church at Ephesus was told to "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first." (Rev 2:5) That's the idea. They were alive, but they had lapsed. Repent and return to "the works you did at first." There are lots of references in the Bible to "restoring", which only works if there was an original something to which to restore it. So David says, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." (Psa 51:10) See, that "right spirit" to which he wished to be renewed had to have been there once.
If, then, revival is a bringing to life something that was once alive, how does that happen? Well, if we were once spiritually dead and then we were made alive, it would stand to reason that this bringing back to life something that was once alive would occur in the very same way. How is that? A tent meeting? A special scheduling of the Holy Spirit for a week of prayers? No, apparently not. Paul argues that we begin this new life by repentance and faith, so we continue it -- including this revival concept -- in the same way (Gal 3:1-3).
Revival, then, is accomplished in the same way as ... well, "vival" -- the initial coming to life. It is initiated by the power of God, presented by the power of His Word, and carried out by the work of His Spirit. Our part is to agree -- to confess, to repent, and to "do the works you did at first." It is to step out afresh in the work of God in us (Phil 2:13), to go back to the plan God had for us from the start (Eph 2:10). It isn't some 12-step program, a kind of magic, some special meeting, some sort of "revival party." It is God's work. It can start in the individual any time the individual believer chooses to ... obey. It might be assisted by more than one believer going this direction; I'm not saying meeting with other believers for this purpose is a bad idea. But it is neither a method or magic. It's common. Oh, and it's commanded. So ... when do you want to schedule this thing?
10 comments:
i want revival.. i remember when i was a new christian, i was so full of enthusiasm. i would drive everyone crazy with the gospel message. like a kid with a new toy. now i am an old man and i drive everyone crazy by sleeping in the chair and snoring. when i was a child i would point my toy gun and the cat and say, BANG-BANG. now as an old man, i just sit in a chair and point my finger at the dog and say BANG-BANG. perhaps i will never go to a tent meeting a get of dose of the Holy Ghost. but nowadays i just want to rest in the arms of the Savior. i just want to read about His marvelous promises. the years have passed and the road was long, and the only thing i need is his presence. Thank you Jesus...
Revival is a good thing. When do you want to schedule yours for?
sorry my calendar is full right now, but maybe i could download an app. on my iPhone. and get slain in the spirit on the go, while texting Jesus and sucking down a my cuna monga espresso latte. wonder what kind of emojies would serve to convey the power of positive thinking and higher conscienceless, perhaps a picture of a grand pa snapping his suspenders and grandmother rolling in the isles. in addition we could have conference ALTER CALL in the meeting room with hallelujah donuts, provide by your local "bag lady's for Benny Hinn" fund. and dont forget those poor kids in south american, that just wont get with the program. we should do a book drop, with one thousand prosperity gospels sighed and autographed by the man himself.
Hang on there a minute ... I sense that you're being flippant. :)
sorry about that, it's just that there is so much useful lampoon material on the subject after watching TV evangelist play the revival card all these years.
my advice to believers is simply: Return to your first love. spend time with the Master and He will restore your soul.
however if someone wants to send a check to the Church of "Cont di mone". i will gladly except your generous offer. and i will send you my new book on christian parenting. " how to wip the evil out of God's children" or my new best seller " blind bird dogs of insipid masters"
ok, ok i will stop now..
I was just reading about the Great Awakenings and I didn’t realize that they were starting to “.manufacture” revival even back then. I know that we’ve seen a lot of that over the past few years, but I was unaware that it went back that far.
The first Great Awakening was simply a matter of preachers seriously preaching the Word. The Second Great Awakening was Charles Finney's new version that was the template for all others since. His version was predicated on what we would recognize as modern marketing techniques. Finney denied Original Sin and argued instead that with sufficient emotional appeal anyone could save himself (full-blown Pelagianism). He was the originator of "seeker-sensitive", "entertaining" services with altar calls (never practiced before but unimaginable without today). He was the originator of the "You can schedule your revival today" concept.
Yes, I hadn’t really paid much attention to 2 before. I guess there’s nothing new..,
I know its not the topic, but I finally looked at the image you chose. Where did this "Lady" title come from? I just looked at their site and she is call First Lady. Almost sounds like a similar title to the Catholic Nunnery, like Reverend Mother or Mother Superior.
No idea. I picked the image off a random image search for "revival". No notion of who the organization is or anything about them. It had the requisite date -- "Come on this date for a revival" -- to suit my point.
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