Revival: Who Needs It?”

Psalm 85
The Psalmist answers this question for us. He describes for us…
I. The Nature Of Revival, vss. 1-3, 10-13
II. The Need For Revival, vss. 4-8
III. The Nearness of Revival, vs. 9

Note that in verses 4-8 the Psalmist uses the first person pronoun seven times. Who is it that needs revival?

1. The Unexcited, whose first love has grown cold.

2. The Unmoved, who are no longer stirred by sin, souls, or the Saviour.

3. The Unrepentant, who are unbroken and no longer blush at sin.

4. The Uncommitted, who are at ease in Zion and are saved spiritual slumberers.

5. The Unidentified, who have not obeyed our Lord’s command to be baptized or who have no commitment to His local church.

6. The Unsure, those dealing with doubt.

7. The Unsaved, for whom Jesus died.

WHERE WILL SALVATION TAKE YOU?

Isa. 12:1-3
In this text, there is one word that is used 3 times. That word is salvation. It is one of the most important words in the entire Bible! In fact, it is used 164 times in the Bible. In the Old Testament, the word comes from a Hebrew word which means, "Deliverance and victory." In the New Testament, it comes from a Greek word that means, "Deliverance, preservation, safety."
Salvation is what we receive when we trust Jesus as our Savior! Salvation is the gift of God! Salvation is not a thing that we will receive some day, it is a present possession of every person who has fully trusted the Lord Jesus as their Saviour.

If you take the time to study the doctrine of salvation in the Bible, you will find that salvation is responsible for moving people from the place they are. Salvation always takes you somewhere!
1. It brought Israel out of bondage – Ex. 14:13
2. It brought Jonah out of the whale – Jonah 2:9
3. It brought David out of the pit – Psalms 40:1-3
4. It brought Paul out of a lost condition – 1 Tim. 1:12-15
5. It brings every sinner out of darkness – 1 Pet. 2:9
I would like to take a few minutes to tell you where salvation, if you have it, will take you. Notice four places salvation will take you.

I. John 14:1-3 IT WILL TAKE YOU TO HEAVEN
A. Salvation is the key that opens the door to the kingdom of God.
B. The glories of that city – Rev. 21:4; 21:9-22:6.
C. All believers are going there someday!

II. 2 Cor. 5:17 IT WILL TAKE YOU INTO HOLINESS
A. Salvation will alter your life! No man can receive Jesus and remain the same.
B. One mark of true repentance unto salvation is a drastically changed life – 1 John 2:9; 3:7-10.
C. There will be a difference – Gal. 5:22-23; Matt. 12:33!
D. There will be a desire to serve the Lord – Eph. 2:10; James 2:18.

III. Mark 16:15 IT WILL TAKE YOU INTO THE HARVEST
A. Sharing the Gospel is a mark of genuine salvation – Acts 1:8
B. Jesus never called us to be lazy, He called us to be busy letting our lights shine for Him – Matt. 5:16.
C. Every Christian is a witness! Either for or against Jesus! Which are you?

IV. Heb. 10:25 IT WILL TAKE YOU TO THE HOUSE OF GOD
A. Salvation is always accompanied by a desire to gather with the saints and to worship the Lord.
B. Jesus went to church – Luke 4:16.
C. There will be a desire to praise, worship and serve the Lord!

If your salvation won’t take you to Holiness, the Harvest or the House Of God, it probably won’t take you to Heaven either! Be sure you are trusting jesus for salvation – 2 Pet. 1:10.

A MINISTRY THAT FAILED

Judges 2:1-10

Text Verses “.....and there arose another generation who knew not the Lord.”

Two or three million Jews had crossed Jordan with Joshua. This was a spiritual highlight in the life of every person in that accomplishment.

They had seen God’s power and God’s wonder all throughout the conquest of Canaan. Now 26 years later they are atheistic. What happened?

I. THEY FAILED IN THEIR TEACHING. Vs. 10. .....knew not the Lord.’

A. Parents were commanded by Jewish law to teach their children.

B. Someone failed to carry the message on.

C. What has happened in our society today?

D. If we fail in our teaching we give birth to an atheistic generation.

II. THEY FAILED III THEIR TESTIMONY

“..knew not the works He had done for Israel. vs. 10.

A. A testimony lives as long as it is told.

B. We must restate our doctrinal position over and over.

Restating will keep people stationary and solid.

III. THEY FAILED IN THEIR TECHNIQUES.

The judicial government was new to them and they didn’t hearken to it. They tried to hang on to tradition.

Let it not be said of this ministry 26 years from now — “There arose another generation which knew not the Lord.”

Temple of God

1 Cor 3:16-17 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Meditate on these verses...

How many times do we find our self abusing or worshipping the temple of God. Both of these behaviours are to be rejected!

1. Would we spray paint graffiti or artwork on a place of worship, then why do we tattoo are bodies?

2. Would we start a fire and direct the smoke into a place of worship causing smoke damage? Then why do we damage our bodies with the smoke of cigarettes?

3. Would we project sexual images and profane things on a screed within a place of worship? Then why do we allow these images and words to be projected to our eyes and ears?

4. Would we pour flammable and toxic liquids on the furniture with our place of worship permanently damaging the contents within? Then why do we pour harmful alcoholic beverages into our body?

5. Would we pile up crates of food and let it rot in our place of worship? Why do we stuff our bodies with an excess of food so that in can rot in our inwards causing health and weight issues?

I am sure the list can go on and on. Our bodies are God's temple that He has bought with a price.

1 Corinthians 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

You may say, "I do none of these things." Well let me ask you this, do you worship the temple?

A place "of worship" is not to "be worshipped". We are highly encouraged to maintain and care for the temple of God. However we must be careful not to find ourselves worshipping the temple instead of the God of the temple. Balance is key! Exercise and diet are great! However we must be careful not to forget our spiritual exercise and diet.

We all need to be reminded of these things. Lord help us. Meditate on this...

THE STYLE OF LIGHT

Matt. 5:13-16 (v. 14)

Jesus said: "I AM the light of the world" (John 8:12), Then He said: "Ye are the light of the world" (Matt. 5:14). Since We are the "Light of the world" what "Style" of "Light" are We???

The CHRISTMAS "Lights" Christians...........
1. Used only one time a year.
2. Used only on a special occasion.
3. These are More For Show than anything else.
4. Some Christians come once a year or on Special Occasions.
The FLASHING "Lights" Christians............
1. These are On & Off - On & Off - On & Off.
2. These have No Consistency.
3. These Christians can't be counted on to get the job done.
The FLASHLIGHT "Lights" Christians...........
1. Very useful in Times of Trouble but not all the time.
2. Very Short Life of usefulness.
3. Begin to fade out slowly.
4. These usually must be Hand-Held.
5. These can be Made Brighter if you Shake them but not for long.
The CANDLE "Lights" Christians..............
1. These are Affected by the Wind and may even go out.
2. These are Good Inside in times of storm on the outside.
3. The brighter they burn, the shorter their life of usefulness.
The DIRTY "Lights" Christians...............
1. These have lost their effectiveness.
2. The More the Dirt, the Less the Light.
3. Dirt build-up just because of time.
4. These need to be cleaned from time to time.
The SPOT "Lights" Christians................
1. These Concentrate Only on One Area.
2. These Reach Out Farthest but do not affect a large area.
3. These make the program Look Good.
The FLOOD "Lights" Christians...............
1. These Cover a Wide Area, with usually softer light.
2. These Add Usefulness to the area and program.
The CAUTION "Lights" Christians..............
1. These Warn of Danger and Guide the Traveler on his way.
The REFLECTIVE "Lights" Christians..........
1. These Must Receive their Light from Another Source.
2. Jesus: Sun / We: Moon / Eclipse: World between Sun & Moon.