Realizing Revival: I Think, Therefore I Am
Matthew 15:17-19
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
17 Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? 18 But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.
revival [rɪˈvaɪvəl]
n
1. the act or an instance of reviving or the state of being revived
2. an instance of returning to life or consciousness; restoration of vigour or vitality
3. a renewed use, acceptance of, or interest in (past customs, styles,beliefs etc.)
Each of these definitions of revival are applicable to our church today. We’ve been praying for revival, preaching for revival, studying for revival, and expecting revival. We are looking for a moving of God’s Spirit that brings a vitality to our body that spurs a renewed interest in the things of God.
For weeks we have been saying that it begins in us as individuals. Last week we looked at the first step in our journey toward Realizing Revival when we recognized that God is Holy and worthy to be praised, along with the necessity to bow down before Him as Isaiah did.
Isaiah said ” 5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
We, like Isaiah, can cry out in the same fashion. According to scripture, sin begins in the heart and mind. Our lips are unclean because our hearts are unclean. We think impure thoughts, therefore we become impure. We are uncharitable in our mind, and we become uncharitable in deed.
To realize revival we must renew our hearts.
Whose Heart Is It?
Genesis 1:26
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
We were created by the design of the Most High God. It wasn’t happenstance, unaided evolution, or coincidence of any kind. We were designed by the willful effort of the Heavenly Father. We were created with a divine purpose, and a pure heart. Indeed, we were created in the very image of God.
It was man’s downfall to willfully turn from God’s providence and become disobedient and that path is a rocky road that ends in destruction. Since the fall of man our hearts have been deceived by the enemy and only by the grace of God can we return to the original purpose.
God has a purpose for us, and it is His purpose. God told Jeremiah:
Jeremiah 1:5
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
And before you were born I consecrated you;
I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
Our lives, our essence, our HEART belongs to God. Whose heart is it? It’s God’s heart and until we turn our hearts back to Him we will not experience revival.
Proverbs 23:7
King James Version (KJV)
7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.
Where Is Your Heart? (v 19)
. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.
We need revival because we take our mind off of the most important person. Our heart (or mind) gets all caught up in things that don’t help our relationship with God.
What’s on your mind? What are the thoughts that occupy your time? Often when we think of impure thoughts our minds go to Matthew 5:8 where Jesus is saying that if you have lustful thoughts about a woman then you have committed adultery. The principal that Christ was teaching was, of course, that what is on our mind is what we do.
What if this principle extends far beyond sins of a sexual nature? What if this principle holds true for all types of sin. If this is this case, then where do we stand before God?
Any sin breaks the covenant relationship with God.
Mark 7:20-23
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
20 And He was saying, “That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornications, thefts, murders, adulteries, 22 deeds of coveting and wickedness, as well as deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride and foolishness. 23 All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man.”
Quite a laundry list Jesus presents there! We might very well have fallen victim to some of these listed here in the course of our journey! Remember, the principle here is that whatever is on our mind (or in our heart) is what we are. Any of these sins are enough to break us away from God, and when that occurs we have a need to be revived!
Most of us tend to think of sin in categories. We can look back over the last week and say “Well I don’t see anything earth-shattering there” and feel pretty good about ourselves. In our minds we have these big sins that are terribly to even contemplate committing, and then we have a second category of sin that doesn’t seem so bad. The little “white-lies” or “victimless crimes” of daily life.
Before you fall prey to this little fallacy consider this;
Matthew 9:3-5
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
3 And some of the scribes said to themselves, “This fellow blasphemes.” 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts? 5 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, and walk’?
Verse 4 says AND JESUS KNOWING THEIR THOUGHTS. . .ponder that one for a moment. You might want to inscribe that one on your eyelids so that you remember it! Jesus knew their very thoughts! Jesus knows OUR very thoughts.
Proverbs 24:9
King James Version (KJV)
9 The thought of foolishness is sin: and the scorner is an abomination to men.
Deuteronomy 15:9
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
9 When the seventh year—the year when payments on debts are canceled—is near, you might be stingy toward poor Israelites and give them nothing. Be careful not to think these worthless thoughts. The poor will complain to the Lord about you, and you will be condemned for your sin.
God will hold us accountable for our thoughts!
So let’s recap for a moment: Our heart is God’s, and we have filled our heart with the evil of the world. When our heart is filled with evil thoughts, then we cannot experience revival.
Thankfully, God loved us so much that He provided an answer, both for the short term temporal existence we have on earth and for the long term of eternity with Him.
How to Fix the Heart
Before we can Realize Revival we have to be “vived” in the first place. In order to receive the blessings of revival we must have answered the call of God’s Spirit on our lives and come to a saving relationship of faith with our Lord. Before we can fix the short term issues, we have to secure the longer vision of an eternity spent with the Father.
The frightening truth is that not every one whose name is on the church rolls is part of God’s family. There are many who have never given themselves totally over to God.
Matthew 7:22-23
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
22 Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’
Many churches are so hungry for new members that it’s so easy to become a member without any real commitment of faith. God wants you to know for certain that you are adopted into the family, born again unto a new nature in Christ.
1 John 5:13
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
This Is Written That You May Know
13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.
Romans 8:16
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
It’s obvious that God wants you to know that you are saved, so if we are to be revived you have to be born again first.
Once you have answered the Spirit’s call to salvation the work of being a Christian begins. It’s a difficult work, and the path has many pitfalls along the route. As we have already taken notice of, the heart (or mind) does some strange things sometimes. So how do we fix the heart here on earth?
We fill our mind with things that are pure, things that are holy. We concentrate on things of God while rejecting the influence of the world.
Colossians 3:1-3
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Put On the New Self
3 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When we take up the cause of Christ we become a new creation, and we put on a new “suit” so to speak. We put on the whole armor of God to defend against the devil. When we set our thoughts deliberately, and with purpose, on things of God, revival will begin to happen.
Hebrews 12:14
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
14 Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.
An intense pursuit of holiness must be a predominant charactersistic of every Christian. We must pursue a lifestyle of holiness (or sanctification) above all else. The wording, “pursue”, is not coincidental. God expects us to chase after holiness.
If we will pursue holiness in our life, then our heart will get right and our thoughts will be pure. If we allow the Holy Spirit to get ahold of us we will begin to hunger and thirst after Christ’s holiness all the days of our life. Seeking holiness is a daily activity, not once a week on Sunday morning.
If we want to Realize Revival, then we must het our hearts right. And we must begin right now.