Continuous Revival: Fortifying Renewal
Read Continuous Revival: Fake Reputation before reading this
After pointing out what I called their false reputation of being alive, listen to Jesus’ exhortation to the church of Sardis: "Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God."
What was Jesus’ exhortation to a dying church? Did He say, revival is a sovereign work of God that He may or may not grant in your day, but pray for it anyhow because you never know, maybe God will give it? No! Jesus said to a dying church, “Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die.” Jesus is pleading with the church of Sardis, like a Father would plead with a son who is addicted to drugs and is on a road to destruction: “Wake up, son. If you keep going down this road, you’re going to die. You can turn it around son, let me help you.”
Yes, the Holy Spirit is the reviver, but by the blood of Jesus, the church has been given access to the throne of grace that we must utilize to receive mercy and grace to strengthen us in our time of need. And how many of you know, we need grace day and night and night and day.
Brothers and sisters, one of the main reasons that Christians don’t experience revival, a heart set on fire by God and for God, is that they don’t recognize their need for it. And from that place of need they don’t cry out to God to give them what He graciously made available through the blood of His Son, namely to behold His glory and lay hold of His grace. The first step to revival, to strengthening what remains that is about to die, is to realize you need revival—that you need to be strengthened. If we have cancer and we don't know it, if the roof of the church is about to collapse, and we don't realize it, we’re in serious trouble.
Revival will not come if you think you don't need it, or worse yet, if you're content to live without it. That's the worst place to be. It's one thing to be deceived into thinking that the roof is ok when it’s not. It's another thing to know it and not care. Revival will not come and remain if you don't recognize that you need renewal day by day.
When do we need revival? We need revival:
If you recognize your need for revival, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing; it’s evidence that a work of grace has already begun in your heart. Strengthen it! If what use to be a fire in you, has become a flicker, don’t lose heart. Fan into flame what remains. Don’t let it die!
After exhorting the church in Sardis to strengthen what remains and is about to die, Jesus said in verse 3: “Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent” What did you receive when you got saved? According to Ephesians 1:3, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the high places. But now, if you had to sum up what you received and heard when you got saved and where on fire for God, what would it be?
Let me suggest to you that what our eyes were open to, what our ears heard, and what set our hearts of fire was hearing and beholding and receiving the glory of God’s grace in the face of Jesus (Eph. 2:8). We received saving grace so that daily we can lay hold of and receive more grace—so that we can grasp God’s sanctifying, satisfying and strengthening glory and grace to live to the praise of His name.
Interestingly, the apostle John opens this letter from Jesus to the seven churches with a benediction of grace and peace from Jesus (Rev. 1:4). He closes the letter, the last book of the Bible, with: “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.” (Rev. 22:21) The Christian life is all of grace. As Paul declared, “I am what I am by the grace of God.” The grace of God in Christ is our motivation, our means, our message, and the mission of our Christian lives.
How do we strengthen what remains? If all we have in our hearts is a flicker, how do we fan the flicker into a white-hot flame? Repent for having taken God’s grace for granted. Resolve by God’s grace that you will grasp it and lay hold of it afresh daily in prayer, in the word, and in community in order to live on mission for Christ and to the praise of His glory and grace.
In your service,
Pastor Marco
After pointing out what I called their false reputation of being alive, listen to Jesus’ exhortation to the church of Sardis: "Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God."
What was Jesus’ exhortation to a dying church? Did He say, revival is a sovereign work of God that He may or may not grant in your day, but pray for it anyhow because you never know, maybe God will give it? No! Jesus said to a dying church, “Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die.” Jesus is pleading with the church of Sardis, like a Father would plead with a son who is addicted to drugs and is on a road to destruction: “Wake up, son. If you keep going down this road, you’re going to die. You can turn it around son, let me help you.”
Yes, the Holy Spirit is the reviver, but by the blood of Jesus, the church has been given access to the throne of grace that we must utilize to receive mercy and grace to strengthen us in our time of need. And how many of you know, we need grace day and night and night and day.
Brothers and sisters, one of the main reasons that Christians don’t experience revival, a heart set on fire by God and for God, is that they don’t recognize their need for it. And from that place of need they don’t cry out to God to give them what He graciously made available through the blood of His Son, namely to behold His glory and lay hold of His grace. The first step to revival, to strengthening what remains that is about to die, is to realize you need revival—that you need to be strengthened. If we have cancer and we don't know it, if the roof of the church is about to collapse, and we don't realize it, we’re in serious trouble.
Revival will not come if you think you don't need it, or worse yet, if you're content to live without it. That's the worst place to be. It's one thing to be deceived into thinking that the roof is ok when it’s not. It's another thing to know it and not care. Revival will not come and remain if you don't recognize that you need renewal day by day.
When do we need revival? We need revival:
- when we do not love Him as we once did.
- when earthly interests and occupations are more important to us than eternal ones
- when we would rather watch TV, read secular books and [waste time on social media] than read the Bible and pray.
- when church dinners are better attended than prayer meetings.
- when concerts draw bigger crowds than prayer meetings.
- when we have little or no desire for prayer
- when we know truth in our heads that we are not practicing in our lives.
- when we make little effort to witness to the lost.
- when we seldom think thoughts of eternity.
- when God's people are more concerned about their jobs and their careers than about the Kingdom of Christ and the salvation of the lost.
- when God's people get together with other believers and the conversation is primarily about [politics], weather, and sports, rather than the Lord.
- when believers can be at odds with each other and not feel compelled to pursue reconciliation.
- when Christian husbands and wives are not praying together.
- when our marriages are co-existing rather than full of the love of Christ.
- when our children are growing up to adopt worldly values, secular philosophies, and ungodly lifestyles.
- when we are more concerned about our children's education and their athletic activities than about the condition of their souls.
- when we tolerate "little" sins of gossip, a critical spirit, and lack of love.
- when our singing is half-hearted and our worship lifeless.
- when our prayers are empty words designed to impress others.
- when our prayers lack fervency.
- when our hearts are cold and our eyes are dry.
- when we aren't seeing regular evidence of the supernatural power of God.
- when we have ceased to weep and mourn and grieve over our own sin and the sin of others.
- when we are content to live with explainable, ordinary Christianity and church services.
- when we are bored with worship.
- when people have to be entertained to be drawn to church.
- when we start fitting into and adapting to the world, rather than calling the world to adapt to God's standards of holiness.
- when we don’t long for the company and fellowship of God's people.
- when people have to be begged to give and to serve in the church.
- when our giving is measured and calculated, rather than extravagant and sacrificial.
- when we aren't seeing lost people drawn to Jesus on a regular basis.
- when we aren't exercising faith and believing God for the impossible.
- when we are more concerned about what others think about us than what God thinks about us.
- when we are unmoved by the fact that 2.5 billion people in this world have never heard the name of Jesus.
- when we are unmoved by the thought of neighbors, business associates, and acquaintances who are lost and without Christ.
- when we are more concerned about lockdowns than we are that hell is always open to received the unsaved.
- when the fire has gone out in our hearts, our marriages, and the church.
- when we are blind to the extent of our need and don't think we need revival.
If you recognize your need for revival, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing; it’s evidence that a work of grace has already begun in your heart. Strengthen it! If what use to be a fire in you, has become a flicker, don’t lose heart. Fan into flame what remains. Don’t let it die!
After exhorting the church in Sardis to strengthen what remains and is about to die, Jesus said in verse 3: “Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent” What did you receive when you got saved? According to Ephesians 1:3, we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the high places. But now, if you had to sum up what you received and heard when you got saved and where on fire for God, what would it be?
Let me suggest to you that what our eyes were open to, what our ears heard, and what set our hearts of fire was hearing and beholding and receiving the glory of God’s grace in the face of Jesus (Eph. 2:8). We received saving grace so that daily we can lay hold of and receive more grace—so that we can grasp God’s sanctifying, satisfying and strengthening glory and grace to live to the praise of His name.
Interestingly, the apostle John opens this letter from Jesus to the seven churches with a benediction of grace and peace from Jesus (Rev. 1:4). He closes the letter, the last book of the Bible, with: “The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.” (Rev. 22:21) The Christian life is all of grace. As Paul declared, “I am what I am by the grace of God.” The grace of God in Christ is our motivation, our means, our message, and the mission of our Christian lives.
How do we strengthen what remains? If all we have in our hearts is a flicker, how do we fan the flicker into a white-hot flame? Repent for having taken God’s grace for granted. Resolve by God’s grace that you will grasp it and lay hold of it afresh daily in prayer, in the word, and in community in order to live on mission for Christ and to the praise of His glory and grace.
In your service,
Pastor Marco