Last week we focused on what it means to be revived. Now we can explore our readiness for revival. Is the church of God ready for revival? Are we just throwing around the word casually? What are the conditions necessary for a revival?
Taking an earnest look at the state of affairs in Christendom reveals that many churches are not ready for revival. The members do not seek it with all their hearts. They are too preoccupied with the cares of this world: the socials, the parties, work and family affairs. There is precious little time devoted to prayer, fasting and asking God for revival. We are currently in a spiritual drought, yet we do not realize it. The deer pants for streams of water in the dry places, but God’s children do not thirst for the living water only He is able to supply. (Ps 42:1)
The theme of our Church is Revival & Reformation. We have started the 777 Initiative. How many of us have taken this seriously? It’s one thing to outwardly proclaim that we desire revival and reformation; it’s quite another to demonstrate that we REALLY are thirsty for it. How many of us have taken the quarterly times designated by our Conference for fasting and prayer seriously? I was dismayed to read a recent article by a member of our worldwide church, which revealed that this condition of spiritual lethargy is a worldwide phenomenon. She wrote that in her church, most of the church members had forgotten that they should be heeding the call to fast, pray, and earnestly ask the Lord for the latter rain. Instead, the church held a luncheon on the designated days and became a place of temptation and a snare to those who had remembered and wished to seek God with all their hearts.
What has happened to us? We seem to have grown cold and lost our first love. We no longer possess the zeal of the early church to embrace revival and submit to the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. The Bible predicted that in the last days, this would happen. The question is, are we going to let ourselves continue to drift in this condition or are we going to seek the Lord and beg of His mercy so that He may lift us out of the spiritual quagmire that we have fallen into? This phenomenon is not seen in countries where persecution is at its zenith; perhaps we who enjoy religious liberty have taken this precious gift for granted. The Lord does not approve of our “lukewarm”, comfortable, self-focused Christianity. It is time to go on our knees and seek the Lord with all our hearts.
“On the other hand, there are some who, instead of wisely improving present opportunities, are idly waiting for some special season of spiritual refreshing by which their ability to enlighten others will be greatly increased. They neglect present duties and privileges, and allow their light to burn dim, while they look forward to a time when, without any effort on their part, they will be made the recipients of special blessing, by which they will be transformed and fitted for service.”—The Acts of the Apostles, 54. {ChS 43.4}
References: Christ’s Object Lessons 303-304; Rev 3:14-20; Ps 42; The Acts of the Apostles 54
