“Revival is just the life of the Lord Jesus poured into human hearts.” —Roy Hession “Revival is God accelerating, intensifying, and extending the work of grace that goes on in every Christian’s life.” —J.I. Packer “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” (Mark 9:23) I stood in a church service...
“Revival is a sovereign, sudden, selected, sensational operation of the Spirit of God, descending in the midst of prayer, which produces purity and reaches the perishing.” —Ken Connolly “Prayer has been spoken of as that moment when earth kisses Heaven. This is an expressive way of indicating the precious fellowship we have with our Father...
The first step toward any solution is the RECOGNITION of the problem. Israel’s religious leaders were unaware that the Glory-cloud had not hovered over the Mercy Seat for 400 hundred years. The priests were oblivious to God’s absence. The blind were leading the blind. God’s chosen people had grown accustomed to lifelessness—no divine interruptions or interventions. The Pharisees were so far removed from vital reality that they led the charge to crucify God’s Son. Think about it—it was the Orthodox crowd that most vehemently opposed the only begotten Jesus! Is it possible the same thing is happening now?
Most prayer in the Book of Acts was corporate prayer. The Apostles had two main responsibilities: leading the church in prayer and ministering the Word (Acts 6:4). Serving tables and the like were handed over to Spirit-filled men (deacons) so the shepherds could oversee the prayer ministry in the church. Is it not instructive that shepherding in prayer is mentioned prior to the important task of preaching? This order is not a trivial fact. But what other factors contributed to such powerful prayer?
Institutional churches resort to a manageable god—one who stays in his place. A manageable god patiently overlooks the elevation of man’s tradition over the commandments of God. He never overwhelms with a sense of frightening holiness. Such a docile deity is just as much a fabrication of man’s imagination as Dagon was the fabrication of a man’s hands.
When God sends revival to a congregation of the saints, there is a natural interest in prolonging the good effects of what has happened. One of the most important factors in extending the blessings of the revival is for the church to adopt what could be called “a revival M-O.”