What Revival Restores, Part 1

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 29:28

The whole assembly bowed in worship, while the singers sang and the trumpeters played. All this continued until the sacrifice of the burnt offering was completed.

Insights: Sunday night we were shown what real biblical revival restores – WORSHIP!  We can’t have real revival if we don’t have real worship.  Worship must be at the absolute center of everything we do.  Mike shared with us the two reasons for this truth.  First, God deserves our worship.  He IS God and we are not.  He displays His greatness throughout all creation.  He is the One who purchased our redemption.  His IS God!  Second, God designed us for worship.  Isaiah 43:7 reminds us, “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.”  We were created for worship.  Every culture worships something and for most of them it is not the One true God.  They worship, however, because they were created for it.  The One who must be at the center of our worship is JESUS!  In the passage Mike preached yesterday evening, it was full of sacrifices being made to God.  Mike shared with us that all the animal sacrifices of the O.T. serve to point us to the one, final, complete, perfect, sacrifice that we now have in Jesus.  These O.T. sacrifices and Jesus’ sacrifice reveal to us that our sin leads to death and a sacrifice must be made in order to restore our worship of God.  Jesus paid such a price and we ought to worship Him unashamedly!

Questions:

1. Is there anything hindering your worship of God?
2. Have you come to the saving knowledge of Jesus in order for you to worship properly?

Prayer: Father, my heart desire is to have pure and undefiled worship for You.  Search my heart and reveal to me any wicked way that may hinder my worship of You.  Remove such iniquity and receive my worship and be glorified.  Amen. 

Where Revival Begins

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 29:5

Then he said to them, "Listen to me, O Levites. Consecrate yourselves now, and consecrate the house of the LORD, the God of your fathers, and carry the uncleanness out from the holy place.

Insights: Little River Baptist Church is holding our revival meetings and praying that true revival will be brought down from our Father.  We have the joy and pleasure of having Mike Megginson, missions pastor at The Church on the Eastern Shore and former pastor of LRBC, preaching our services.  We also have Glenn Eubanks, minister of music at FBC Monroeville and former member of the group Truth, leading us in worship.  All this week we are going to examine the revival under king Hezekiah in 2 Chronicles.  To get the full scope of what pastor Mike shared I would encourage you to read 2 Chronicles 28 through 29:19 for today’s Thought by Scott.  It was king Hezekiah’s father, king Ahaz, that got Judah into the state of problem they found themselves.  He was a godless man who continually lead these Israelites into the deep waters of sin.  Fortunately, however, God brought revival through this wicked kings son, Hezekiah and in the start of chapter 29 we begin to learn the following four truths regarding revival.  Firstly, we learned that revival can begin with anyone at any time.  Some could have argued that Hezekiah was not the right man for the job, but revival never depends on having the right person.  It depends on us being the right person.  Secondly, revival begins with opening what has been shut.  In other words, if we have shut the giving door, the relationship door, the obedience door, etc., then it means we have opened the door to other dangerous things.  We need to reopen the former doors and ask for God to restore them.  Thirdly, revival begins with leadership.  Hezekiah called on the priests and Levites to return to their work.  Godly leadership is crucial for the vitality of the local church.  Finally, revival begins with cleaning house.  Do you have sin in your life that is making your spiritual house filthy?  Then you need to practice 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Questions:

1. Have you shut a door that the Lord desires you to reopen?
2. Are you willing to remove the filth from your spiritual house?

Prayer: Father, forgive me, for closing doors and allowing the putrid filth of sin to clutter my house.  Hear the specifics of my confession and cleanse me of sin, I beg.  Let real revival fall fresh on me.  Amen. 

The Solution to the Problem of the American Church

Scripture: Isaiah 64:1

Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, That the mountains might quake at Your presence

Insights: Let me again thank James MacDonald for his influence for this week’s Thoughts by Scott.  If you would like more information regarding this solution being discussed today, let me recommend James’ book Vertical Church to you.  Today’s verse is the answer to the churches problem we have been diagnosing all week.  The “oh” of the verse is a declaration of passion.  Isaiah understands that if the next part does not happen, then there is no hope for Israel.  He is completely sold out to this ONE truth.  Everything about him is being moved in this direction.  What is that direction?  Being in the presence of God!  Isaiah prays, “that You [God] would rend the heavens and come down.”  Something is blocking us and heaven and Isaiah knows God is the only One capable of doing anything about it.  This week’s thoughts have been pointing to the thing hindering God’s presence—our self-centered sinfulness.  Isaiah is desperately crying out for God to remove this sin from our lives and come down and dwell in our midst.  Why is Isaiah so passionate about this One thing, because he (as well as you and I) have mountains in our lives.  Mountains make us feel small.  Mountains also make us feel like they have been here for a long time and will continue being here for a long time.  Isaiah knows all too well Who the mountain mover is and it is not him.  These mountains move at God’s presence.  So, what mountain is in your life presently?  Is it a health issue?  A decision that needs to be made?  An emotional situation?  A spiritual crisis?  The mountain can be anything, but the only hope we have to move this mountain is God.  So, what is required of us in order to be in the presence of God?  You are now back to the first word, “oh”.  You must have a singular passion for a relationship with this living God who sent His Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior of the World.  You need to grow in this relationship with Jesus by the Spirit He fills you with after you have received His gift of salvation.  You must repent of all your sins which hinder the growth of your relationship and finally you have to submit to His Lordship.  He rules, we do not!  His way, or no way!  This is the answer to the churches problem in America.

Questions:

1. Do you have a passion for the things of God?
2. What in your life needs to be rent by the Father in order for Him to come down?

Prayer: Father, forgive me, for allowing the daily pressures of life to push You to the side.  Stir within me a passion for You and Your glory.  Increase my hope in the reality that You are my mountain mover today.  Amen. 

Self-love is being Propagated

Scripture: Jeremiah 5:30-31

"An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?

Insights: The final problem which occurred in Jeremiah’s day was the people loved the false prophets and the earthly rule.  I have stated throughout this week that I believe the same problem exists today in the American Church.  I believe this is the only explanation for 6,000 churches every year closing their doors and 3, 500 people walking away from the church every day and only one out of ten ministers making it to “retirement” years.  How often throughout these Thoughts by Scott have I referenced James 4:4, “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?  Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”  The sad reality is the church has become so infiltrated by the world system that we are choosing friendship with the world.  It is for this reason that Jeremiah said in that thirtieth verse, “An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land.”  Today’s thought is much shorter than normal because this final point is in many ways a recap of the previous three days.  I will say this, however, to leave you with some hope.  Just because I believe this is an accurate assessment of the average American Church, does not mean I believe there is no hope.  In fact I think there is a great deal of hope and that is what I am going to write about tomorrow.  Tomorrow I will give you what I believe the answer is to the problem of the American Church.

Questions:

1. Do you love the things of this world more than the Father?
2. If your life was on trial for your love of God, would you be convicted?

Prayer: Father, forgive me, for I so often fall prey to the trappings of this world.  Keep my heart at rest in You.  Amen. 

Personal Authority is being Practiced, Part 2

Scripture: Jeremiah 5:30-31

"An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?

Insights: Yesterday we started this conversation regarding us ruling on our own authority and how it has crept into almost every area of the American church.  As a way of illustration we began discussing the worship wars which have gone on for so long.  Let’s break down some of the components with which God Himself has already spoken regarding this issue.  God of the New Testament is the same God of the Old Testament.  If He declares a thing in the Old Testament, it is still valid in the New Testament unless He specifically addresses the matter.  The Psalms are the Bibles hymnal.  If we want to know about worship, that is the place to start.  First thing we learn about God’s desires regarding worship is He likes lots of instruments.  Ps. 150:3-5 reads, “Praise Him with the trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre.  Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe.  Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals.”  Second, God likes it LOUD.  Psalm 95:1-2, “O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.  Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving.  Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.”  One of my favorite stories regarding prayer is found in 2 Chronicles 20 and at the point the people trust God you find this verse, “The Levites, from the sons of the Kohathites and of the sons of the Korahites, stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel, with a VERY LOUD VOICE (vs 19).”  Even in Psalm 150, which we have already looked, God tells us to use LOUD cymbals.  We have come to assume that loud and lots of instruments are irreverent before God, really?  When God has called us to be loud and use them, then is it really irreverent?  Reverence is a heart issue not an ambience issue.  You, like me, may not prefer it loud, but we don’t have a voice.  God has spoken on the matter.  One last point regarding worship: God desires a new song.  We get caught up in singing the same songs every so many weeks and then we start over.  God declares in Psalm 33:3, 96:1, 98:1, 144:9, and 149:1, “Sing to the Lord a new song.”  He has spoken and His rule is all that matters.

Questions:

1. Do you desire to give God the type of worship He likes?
2. Is your life characterized as one of worship?

Prayer: Father, forgive me, when I offer You only what I like.  Help me grow into a worshipper that desires to please You and only You.  Let my worship be to an audience of One.  Amen. 

Personal Authority is being Practiced, Part 1

Scripture: Jeremiah 5:30-31

"An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?

Insights: In so many ways, the state of America mirrors the history of Judah before they were taken into captivity by Babylon.  Yesterday we looked at the mirror between prophets giving false prophecies to preachers preaching false doctrines.  As horrific as the first problem was, this second problem is even worse.  Jeremiah said the priests rule on their OWN AUTHORITY!  God forgive us for our arrogance.  Church leaders today often rule on their own authority as well.  One of the pathetic jokes about us Baptist is the Holy Spirit could leave the average Baptist church and no one would know it for fifty years because we are so efficient at governing ourselves.  We have allowed modern American business protocols to infiltrate the church to such an extent that we default to these comfortable ways of doing things rather than surrender to the Lordship of God Himself.  This faulty managerial approach treats the church like an organization rather than the organism it truly is.  Along the way we have come to believe the church is a democracy when it is reality a Theocracy.  There is only One who has the right to rule the church and it is NOT us.  Our authority and wishes have no business in the governance of the church.  For the remainder of today and tomorrow I am going to use the worship wars which have been going on for over 25 years, and sadly are still going on in some places, as an illustration of our own authority verses God’s authority.  I write this in an exaggerated way, but hopefully you will get the point.  We have churches that refuse to use instruments at all.  We have churches that use a full orchestra.  We have churches that only allow a piano or organ.  We have some churches unwilling to sing any song written before the electric guitar was invented.  And at the same time we have churches that sing song only written by John or Charles Wesley and Fanny Crosby.  I hope you get the point: who is making the decisions in each of these churches regarding worship styles?  Is God making the decisions or is man and his rule by his own authority making the decisions?  Sadly, man.  Beloved, it ought to be God.

Questions:

1. Does the Scripture stand as the authority by which you make decisions?
2. Are you one who hear the words of the Bible, but choose to make your own decisions?

Prayer: Father, forgive me, when I act as if I know better than You.  My personal pride so often hinders my walk with You.  May Your word truly be the authority by which I live my life and may it bring honor and glory to You.  Amen. 

False Doctrine is being Preached

Scripture: Jeremiah 5:30-31

"An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it?

Insights: Before I begin, I owe a debt of gratitude to James MacDonald and his Vertical Church tour for revealing these truths to me.  6000 churches close their doors every year.  3500 people leave the church every day.  Only 1 out of 10 preachers will survive the ministry to “retirement” years.  Why is the church of America hemorrhaging so?  Verse thirty tells us there is an appalling and horrible thing happening and it is true for us today.  The first problem is false doctrine is being preached.  In the day of Jeremiah the prophets stopped saying, “Thus says the Lord!” and started saying whatever made people happy.  There is a pathetic story of king Ahab in 1 Kings 22 that I would recommend you to read, but in cliff note form, Ahab was about to go to war.  Jehoshaphat asked him if he had inquired of a prophet and Ahab responds, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, but I hate him, because he does not prophecy good concerning me, but evil.”  We in America are doing the same thing with its preachers.  We don’t like to hear sound biblical doctrine preached.  We want desserts only and no real substance in our preaching.  You may argue this is not true, then why is Joel Olsten’s “church,” I use that term loosely, the largest church in America right now?  The answer is because people just want to feel good and receive platitudes instead of the truth of the Bible.  What ends up happening is a church hires a preacher, and they don’t like what he has to say, so they run him off.  The hire a second thinking he will be better, but he is not, so they run him off.  Third time is a charm, but it is not.  At this point the church has lost so many members because every time they run someone off they lose bodies in the church.  Then they have this debt they cannot pay and finally the doors have to be closed.  And the preachers, after being run off several times, say, “I don’t have to put up with this kind of treatment,” and they quit the ministry.  This pattern is the reason for MacDonald’s statistics he provided.  Beloved, we must return to sound biblical preaching.

Questions:

1. Are you attending a Bible believing and doctrinally sound church?
2. Do you just receive sugar and sweets in your spiritual diet?

Prayer: Father, forgive us, the believers of a nation, for our desire of fluff and comfort.  As a result we have grown cold to the hard truths of Your word and become ineffectual at the proclamation of Your grace.  Soften and convict our hearts oh Lord.  Amen.