Revival and Reform

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“Why is revival so rare? We want the joyous experience of revival without the hardship of denying ourself and taking up our cross.”

Reform. It is often a word associated with politics like immigration reform, police reform and economic reform. However, there is also a spiritual side to the term. When God moves upon an individual, a city or even a church, He calls people to reform. And what happens if people respond to God? Revival!

Through Jeremiah, God spoke to the people of Israel saying, “I have sent to you all my servants the prophets, sending them persistently, saying, ‘Turn now every one of you from his evil way, and amend your deeds…” (Jeremiah 35:15) God was calling the nation to moral and spiritual reform, which reflects repentance, meaning a change of mind and life, that turns toward God and His Word by faith.

If Israel would have humbled themselves and responded positively, revival would have come, but instead, they stubbornly refused and their nation fell.

On the other hand, the Apostle Peter preached to the Jews in Jerusalem two months after Jesus’ death and resurrection. He declared to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:37) And how did they respond? Thousands of Jews in Israel turned to Jesus by faith, changed their ways, then revival came. It swept across Israel, the Roman Empire and to the ends of the earth.

We want revival, but not the reform. We want the spiritual experience without the change. Why? Because that is the hard part. For over 40 years, Jeremiah preached reform with no revival. And prior to Peter’s message, John the Baptist and Jesus labored at reform for three and half years. John’s preaching got him executed through decapitation and Jesus’ preaching got him crucified. And even in the midst of the revival under Peter and the Apostles, believers were brutally killed for their message. But despite that, among the multitudes who did respond, the flames of revival continued burning brightly.

Why is revival so rare? In part, because calling and responding to moral and spiritual reform is resisted. Preachers rarely call for it because it is naturally offensive to their congregations, and people do not heed the message because they want to continue in their ways. They come to realize it is not about giving up drinking, smoking and cussing. It is about a complete reordering of one’s life under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. It means a new set of beliefs, habits and life direction.

And this reordering starts with the individual, but the kind of reform that brings real and lasting revival also affects institutions. There comes a change in the family, in how daily life is handled in the home. There also comes change in the operation of a business, change in the programming of a church, and change in the policies of a government.

God is calling you to amend your ways. He is inviting you to turn in a new direction. He is leading you into doing the hard thing. Why? He wants to save you from His judgement and the consequences of ungodly decisions for yourself and future generations. He also wants to pour out His Spirit within you, bring you into His family and give you an eternal inheritance in a blessed and glorious heavenly kingdom.

A prayer for you. “Lord God, we acknowledge we have resisted your call to reform. We want the experience without the pain of changing our ways. Come Lord, this day, we yield ourselves to you and accept your call to reform. Change us, O God, by your wise and loving hand. Then change our families, businesses, churches and cities. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Longing for Perfect Love

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“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude…" (1 Cor. 13:4-7) This is perfect love! Imagine this kind of love sweeping across the world.

Do you know that once upon a time there was perfect love? No, it is not a fairytale, but it really did exist. It was between the first two human beings, Adam and Eve. Their love also existed in the most beautiful place on earth, the Garden of Eden.

What was their love like? The kind we all hope for. It is described in the Bible this way, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

Can you imagine every husband and wife having this kind of love? Their home and family life would be absolutely amazing. Imagine if this kind of love was present among family members, friends, co-workers, classmates and neighbors? Our world would be totally different.

How come this type of love did not continue after Adam and Eve? Because something happened that changed the course of human history. God created the couple and brought them together as husband and wife, but then they turned away and rejected their Creator. The rebellion caused a separation with God and a moral corruption within them. The love they originally had was still there, but it was altered.

The once perfect love was damaged in two ways. First, God is what made the love between Adam and Eve perfect. It was Him working in and through them toward each other that did it. After their rebellion toward God, they believed they could have that perfect love without Him. But it became the kind of love that puts a husband, wife, child, grandchild, boyfriend or girlfriend above God. Second, the original love between the first couple was pure, but after the rejection of their Maker, love became perverted and replaced by evil. In an example of this, one of Adam and Eve’s children, Cain, took out his anger on his brother by murdering him. In this case, love between family members was replaced with hate.

Down through human history until this day, we see daily examples of corrupted love. A man loving his wife through physical abuse. A teacher loving a student with intimacy. Two men loving each other, like a husband and wife. A dad loving his daughter, like he should only love her mother. A boyfriend and girlfriend loving each other in ways only a married couple should.

What kind of love is this? It is a love guided not by God, but human desire. When we love this way, we are doing it through the, “…passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind…” (Ephesians 2:3)

What results from this kind of love? There are moments of bliss, but it ultimately produces sorrow, division, pain and destruction. It also does not bring about the pleasure of God, but rather His anger. For He detests those who perpetuate this kind of fake love.

Can we ever have perfect love again? God has made a way to remedy the problem. He has given us a solution to rid the corruption in our hearts. How can we have peace with God, others and with ourselves? It is only through Jesus, the Son of God. He died and rose again to provide it for us. If we admit how we have failed before God and call upon Him for mercy, He will come and change our hearts, and fill it with heaven’s love.

A prayer for you. “Lord God, we long to have perfect love in our home and family. But we admit we have failed. Our corrupt hearts have torn asunder many of our relationships. We repent and call upon you to change our hearts, wash it clean and fill it with your holy love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

Where Does Your Help Come From?

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“When you need help, where do you go? Choose to follow Christ and place all your trust in Him. He is sufficient for all your needs.”

Since the beginning of time, humans have always needed aid and protection. From needing food, water, shelter, medical attention to refuge from those who seek to do us harm. We typically have found that source of help from two places: within and without. From within, is that inner strength, wisdom and perseverance that is summoned. It is that drive to push us through our hard and difficult times. From without, are those places we go beyond ourselves. We may contact friends, family, our religious community or utilize other resources to give us the aid we need.

Every human for all of history has lived this way, with an exception. The worshippers of the one true God and His beloved Son, have walked differently while dealing with these instinctive needs. Read the words from the book of Psalms in the Bible, which is also ancient Hebrew poetry, “I lift up my eyes to the hills.” (Psalm 121:1)

The writer is referring to the city of Jerusalem, which sat upon an elevated, mountainous, hilly area. It was known as the city of God, where He lived among His chosen people. Consequently, it was always a city that people lifted their eyes up to, rather than looked down upon.

And when a resident of Jerusalem or of Israel was far away, he always knew what direction Jerusalem was. It was something he could see, without seeing. And when he would set his face toward Jerusalem, desire for it grew and inspired hope no matter the circumstances.

Was aide and protection found in a city made by brick and mortar through the hands of mere men? No! A city cannot travel with someone. And it only offers limited help from within. For a city’s edifices have the potential to crumble from an earthquake or be destroyed by an enemy. This is not referring to a city, but rather to the One who dwells within that glorious city. The Psalmist writes, “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” (Ps. 121:2)

When Jesus died and rose again, no longer were people limited to access God only in a single temple, in a single city. For when Christ arose, He made a way for every soul that turns from their sin and trusts in Him by faith, to be a living temple. A temple where God’s Holy Spirit would take up residence and dwell within them. Then as he walks through life, he knows Almighty God lives both in heaven, within his heart and ever-present around him. Therefore, he can lift his eyes toward the heavens, bow humbly on the ground or just walk confidently on his way, knowing that His help comes from his Savior, who made the heavens and the earth.

The Psalmist also stated, “From where does help come?” (Ps. 121:1) He was communicating about the weakness of himself and the things of this world. The aid, support and protection he needs is limited if he relies solely upon himself. He is limited in knowledge, strength and morality due to his own corruption from personal sin. And the same regarding the things of this world; it all is limited and corrupted by sin. So what does a Christian do in good times and bad? He sets his eyes on the one true God. The Christian knows where his true source of protection, wisdom and power comes from. It comes from the living God who resides within him.

When you need help, where do you go? Do you trust in yourself or others? Choose to follow Christ and place all your trust in Him. He is sufficient for all your needs.

A prayer for you. “Lord God, are we looking to other places for our help beside you? Our own knowledge and wisdom? Other people or resources? We confess our negligence in not coming to you first. We repent and turn to you now. We seek you with all our heart. Change us O, God! In Jesus’ name. Amen.”