“LORD, SEND A REVIVAL”

2 Chronicles 7:11-22

August 26, 2007 Pastor Harpold

Revival is an Old Testament word. Revival and evangelism are two different things. Revival, rededication, renewal, or repentance, or a combination, must come before the church can have an effective witness causing many to seek Jesus Christ as Savior.

The problem is man is insubordinate, obstinate and, plain and simply, rebellious. There can be no revival unless and until the rebellious man surrenders. Revival is nothing less than a full surrender to the Lordship of Jesus.

Revival is a work of the Spirit of God leading his own people to get right with God and with each other. We need more than a revival of church attendance or tithing.

Our text is 2 Chron. 7:14 – What does God have for us today?

The Premise: "… If My people, who are called by My name…” (v. 14a). The original emphasis is on those who owned, or professed His name. This is written specifically to Israel, but as someone wisely said, "Although all Scripture is not written to us, all Scripture is written for us." Today, those called by His name are the Christians.

The Practice: “... will humble themselves…” Revival does not come to the proud (Micah 6:8, “walk humbly with your God”; 2 Chron. 26:16 “after Uzziah became powerful, his pride led to his downfall”; 1 Pet. 5:5b-7 “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time”).

"… and pray…" Selflessly (James 4:3 “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with the wrong motives”): Earnestly (James 1:6-8 without doubt…): Definitely: Charles G. Finney said: "I have prayed all night, not because God was reluctant to hear me, but because I had to get my heart ready for what God had to say."

A man asked Gipsy Smith, celebrated English evangelist of a past age, how to have revival. Asked Gipsy, “Do you have a place where you can pray?” “Yes,” he replied.

“Tell you what to do, go to that place, and take a piece of chalk along. Kneel down, and with the chalk draw a circle all around you – and pray for God to send a revival on everything inside of the circle. Stay there until He answers – and you will have revival.”

"… and seek My face…” The church has lost its hunger for God. We need an unquenchable longing, a fervent craving, and an ever-increasing hunger for God! (Heb. 11:6 “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists… and rewards those who earnestly seek Him).

“… and turn from their wicked ways…" The ways of some "Christians" is a stench in God's nostrils. Proverbs 28:13 warns, "He who covers his sin will not prosper. But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy." We need revival.

A new pastor preached his first sermon in his new church. He preached a wonderful sermon: “Repent, repent, repent! The kingdom of God is at hand, repent.” Everyone loved the sermon, and some even said it was the best they had every heard.

The second Sunday the new pastor preached the same sermon, “Repent, repent, repent! The kingdom of God is at hand, repent.” Since most did not remember last week’s sermon, many responded it was the best sermon they ever heard.

On his third Sunday, the pastor again preached the same sermon, word for word. This time his listeners began to stir and were disturbed. They approached the governing board of the church and directed them to look into the matter.

On the fourth Sunday the new minister preached the same sermon once again, “Repent, repent, repent! The kingdom of God is at hand, repent.” The church board called in the new pastor for a full explanation. His answer: yes he was able to preach other sermons. Yes, he did have other sermons. Yes, he did want to preach other sermons. He would preach another sermon as soon as the congregation repented!

It is much easier to repent of sins that we have already committed than to repent of those we intend to commit.

Christians seem to have lost their passion for God, for His righteousness, His truth.

The Promise: "If...then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land" (v. 14c). This is a conditional promise. "… I will hear from heaven… "

"Hear" in this verse means "to listen to a point where one is moved to action." In other words He was promising to respond to their cries. This must be understood in the light of Isaiah 59:1,2, Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God.

“… I… will forgive their sin… " Dr. Alan Redpath said: "God's mercy with the sinner is only equaled and perhaps out-matched by His patience with the saints, with you and me" (cf. 1 John 1:9).

"... I...will heal their land." Great revivals will have an impact on the surrounding area, not just those within the building in which they were held.

We need revival. Are you willing to humble yourself and pray, and seek His face, and turn from your wicked ways?

We need a revival that will cause us to recognize the abiding presence of God. God is our Creator. He is sovereign, holy, and just. He will one day be our Judge. God is gracious. He demonstrates His love through forgiveness, patience, and helpfulness.

We need a revival that will cause us to rediscover the Lordship of Christ.

Jesus Christ is Lord because of who He is.

Jesus Christ is Lord because of what He has done.

Jesus Christ is Lord because of what He can do (Phil. 4:13).

Christ the Lord has been endowed with the right to command. He has the right to issue orders to each of us. We should remember that He is the Lord of love who demonstrated His compassion for us by dying in our place on the cross.

We need a revival that will cause us to rediscover the blessing and power of prayer.

Jesus our Savior found prayer both necessary and profitable.

Prayer had a vital place in the life of the early church (Acts 6:4). Prayer has been described as the mightiest force in the world. When we come to God in prayer we not only come into connection with the power behind the universe, but we make it possible for God to release His power in and through us.

We need a revival to revitalize our faith so as to reshape our lives.

Real faith is something much more than a mental assent to the existence of God (James 2:19 You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that – and tremble).

A genuine faith will always express itself in faithfulness. Someone has said, "The faith that falters before the finish had a flaw from the beginning."

We need a revival to renew our devotion to our Lord so as to cause us to redefine the goals of our lives.

Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments" (John 14:15).

Jesus would have us to serve Him because of love rather than because of fear.

We need to recognize our debt of gratitude to our Lord for all He has done for us. We enjoy the gift of everlasting life because Jesus was willing to die on the cross for us.

Because Jesus died for us we should live for Him. Our goals in life should be defined in terms of obedience to the One who loved us so lavishly.

We need a revival that will recover a lost passion and restore a sense of loving loyalty to the church.

Jesus Christ came into this world to seek and to save the lost. He gave Himself to this task to the extent that He died on the cross to achieve it. We need to let His concern for the lost become our concern for the lost.

As individual members of the church we need to recognize the importance of our being loyal and faithful in rendering the ministry the Holy Spirit would lead us to give.

With your heart and faith join with the psalmist in praying, "Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?" (Ps. 85:6). God will rejoice to give us these blessings. Others will experience great joy as we experience this kind of a spiritual revival.