YAHWEH'S MOUTHPIECE

A songwriter wrote: 
All over the world, the Spirit is moving 
All over the world, as the prophet said it should be
All over the world, there is a mighty revelation of the glory of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea 

For the next couple of weeks, we’ll be considering the series which I tagged revival burdens. We are in the season where the clouds have gathered and it’s about to rain upon every land. But though God may be ready to release the rain, He’ll usually wait until there are men who are rightly positioned to receive it. These posts should stir our hearts and position us to receive revival in our personal lives and as a people. Only those who are burdened can birth kingdom realities on the earth. For the burden sends your knees a bending, a posture of travail until there is a bringing forth for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth. Maybe the reason we do not see the reality of the things which are settled in heaven is that we do not have burdens and hence cannot travail. If we even attempt to travail without a burden, we will birth nothing. Can you pray that God will burden you with the things that burden Him? Those who made a change in their day are those who were burdened with the things that burdened God. Like the angel said to Mary, the Holy Ghost shall come upon you and the power of the Highest shall overshadow you, may there be a divine impartation and implantation into us that we may birth the desire of Heaven in our day. 

As we look through the scriptures, we find certain people who carried revival burdens. They were burdened by the state of their lives and their lands, and they did birth the reality of revival in their generations. There is one question and petition from a burdened Psalmist. He said, “Wilt thou not revive us again that thy people may rejoice in thee?” (Psalm 85:6). We see the word “again” meaning there had been a history of revival, but the present situation represented a state in which another stream of revival was needed. The Psalmist recognised a need that made Him plead. Wilt thou not revive us again that thy people may rejoice in thee? Will you look upon us and let us alone in our deplorable state? I can perhaps feel the burden on his heart; it’s palpable.

One thing I see is that God waits till we see and come to terms with our need of Him, our need for revival. It’s sad that most of the time, what we see and report of ourselves does not align with what God sees and says about us. Jesus Christ sent letters by the hand of John to the seven churches. Two of those churches had such a report that seems to be the state of many and the church today. The first is the Church in Sardis. Revelation 3:1 “And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.” If we were to judge by the standards we set as a yardstick for measuring a vibrant church today, they would have ticked all the boxes. But yet, Jesus says what I see concerning you is that you are dead. He is saying, I see through the fleshly veil that you use as a covering for your emptiness and lifelessness within. I see through the outward expression and the self-exalting designation you’ve given yourself or have been given and I see what you really are. Can the Lord do a thorough examination of our lives and our assemblies and bring us our true report?

The church of the Laodiceans seemed to be in a worse state. The rebuke of Christ was not only for their lukewarm state but also for the oblivion of their state. “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” Many times, we rejoice over and celebrate the things for which heaven mourns. Jesus entered Jerusalem and wept for it, that beautiful city which they took pride in and said if only you knew. We celebrate achievements, and “feats”, and things which we consider as the move of God’s Spirit, but God says if only you knew that all you had was an earthquake, but I was not in it. We celebrate spiritual achievements, but God says if only you knew my plan and ordination for you, you’ll realise you are nowhere near. The Pharisees missed Jesus even though they were “waiting” for Him because they would not be aligned with God’s perspective. John 9:41 “Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” How that God is passing by us and leaving us to our wretchedness because we fail to see and acknowledge it.

The first thing God will need to do is to realign our sight and bring us to the realisation of our need for Him. Revival is not a word to be treated as trivial. It’s a common term used in our day, but do we really know what it means? We are seeking more numbers, but God says you need more of me. We’re seeking anointing and rank among men, but God says I desire intimacy – love. Revival is the breath (the life) of God coming to dead dry bones again.

The first step to revival is usually repentance. Repentance is when we come to terms with God’s report concerning us and plead for His mercy. Those who will experience a revival must be able to realise and acknowledge their need for God.

Oh Lord, we need you. We acknowledge our cold and lukewarm state, our deadness and the lack of the abundant life of God in us. We acknowledge our wretchedness, miserableness, poverty, blindness and nakedness. We repent for turning from you unto things that do not profit, for forsaking You, the fountain of living water, and hewing for ourselves broken cisterns which cannot hold water. We come humbly and in repentance that you will visit us and cure us of our backsliding. We ask that You breathe upon us so that we may come alive again and live in the fullness of life that is available in You. Like the Psalmist, we come to terms with our need for revival and ask “Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee. We plead that You visit us with Your mercy and show us Your salvation, in Jesus’ name. Amen.