The Need for Revival

I write with a heavy heart and concern for our churches and for the spiritual climate of our nation. As I look around at the moral and spiritual condition of our country, it does not take much for me to realize that we are in desperate need of spiritual renewal and spiritual revival. Our nation has slowly declined into decadence, while much of the church is asleep. Our great and God-blessed nation has forsaken its once-solid foundation of Biblical principles, slowly removing God out of its culture and way of life. America is sinking into moral decay as much of the church sits spiritually impotent void of any spiritual life or power. Having fallen into the “cult of the comfortable” the Church for the most part is no longer a power to be reckoned with. It has largely lost the respect of the masses and is often the object of ridicule. Polluted with the desires and materialism of the world, the church knows little about spiritual discipline and living a spirit-filled life. This picture is a mirror image of the churches at Ephesus and Laodicea portrayed in Revelation two and three, to whom the Lord spoke these sobering words, “You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” It does not take much for each one of us to realize that we need revival!

In 1734, shaken from their spiritual slumber, congregations across New England experienced the presence of God in what has been called the “Great Awakening.” So many souls were converted that some thought the millennial reign of Christ was at hand! The moral impact of this divine visitation laid the foundations for the formation of our system of government.

In 1790, spearheaded by a host of dedicated circuit riders, revival spread across the colonies and the wild frontier in what has been called the “Second Great Awakening.” Believers lay prostrate in repentance, and tent meetings were filled for weeks at a time. Society was revitalized as the revival spawned social reform and the modern missions movement.

In 1857, preoccupied with growing wealth, hearts had grown spiritually cold. After a stock market crash, prayer meetings sprang up across the Eastern Seaboard and the frontier in what has been called the “Great prayer revival”, and as far west as California. God was on the move once again and asnmany as 50,000 people a week were being converted.

More recently, by the turn of the century, in 1904 and 1905, the influence of Christianity began to wane. Evolutionary theory and liberal theology undermined the faith of many. Revival was much needed among this new generation. First in Wales, then in many cities in America, God again sent “fire from heaven.” Revival fires spread from Topeka Kansas to Los Angeles and then throughout the United States and the world. People once again were experiencing a mighty move of God’s Spirit. It was from this revival that today’s Pentecostal Church was birthed. In 1914, out of the Pentecostal Movement, the Assemblies of God was birthed. I also believe that also Christian Assembly would be able to trace its roots to this revival at the turn of the century.

Throughout modern history we see that there were seasons and times in which God brought revival to His people. So the question is when will America experience another mighty move of God’s Spirit once again? More than ten decades have passed since the last great revival, and the glory is dimming. We desperately need a new work of God in America again. We desperately need God to pour out His spirit afresh and anew once again. We need God to move our hearts and stir our lives once again. I believe that we will experience revival again. I believe that it will begin right here in New England. If it’s going to happen in New England, then it must begin right here with you and me.

What is “revival”? What do we mean by when I say “revival”? Revival is more than a series of exciting meetings scheduled with an evangelist. It is more than loud singing and preaching. The term “revival” simply means “life again.” Pat Robertson states that revivals are, “unique and precious days in history when individuals and nations return to God from apathy, apostasy, and idolatry.” Webster definition of “revival” is: To restore from a depressed, inactive, or unused state. A restoration of force or validity. To me, Revival is simply a sovereign move of God Spirit upon God’s people that results in personal and corporate humiliation, forgiveness, restoration, and renewal. It is a time when God calls His people to humble themselves, pray, seek His face and turn from their wicked ways. It is a time when God supernaturally visits His people afresh and anew. It is a time for healing, restoration, renewal, and spiritual change. It is a time in which we regain our spiritual fervor for Christ and His work. We must consider our need for revival if we are going to experience it at all.

The question is not whether or not God wants to bring revival to our hearts and lives. The question is do we want revival? Consider our need for personal and corporate revival. Consider our need to repent and turn from our wicked ways. Then, let us pray that God would send revival. Let us humble ourselves to receive what He has for us through fasting. I believe that if we do the things that God is telling us to do, we would see God do great and mighty things. Do you want revival? The choice is yours.