One of the cries from the very heart of many of God's people today is for a true spiritual revival. Even though there are many misconceptions concerning what a real Biblical revival is, still the hungry hearts of many of God's people long to be refreshed at the fountain of a heaven-sent spiritual awakening. Throughout history, since the days of King Josiah, God in His sovereign mercy has seen fit to pour out His Spirit in an unusual way in order to accomplish an unusual work. It seems that the Lord chooses to pour out His Spirit in supernatural ways during the time when the decadence of a culture is at its worst level and therefore at its greatest time of need. History teaches us that true God-sent Biblical revivals have changed whole societies which had lasting effects even to succeeding generations.
The main characteristic of the spiritual revival during the reign of
King Josiah was a return to the Law-Word of God.
Even though God puts a deep longing in the hearts of many of His people
for a true spiritual awakening, true Biblical revival is neither worked
up nor prayed down. True Biblical revival is a sovereign work in society
sent only by the sovereign God to perform a special work in a speedy way
to salvage a culture from a state of social, political and spiritual
ruin. Genuine spiritual revival not only affects the church, but is
intended to change the culture in which the church exists. This is the
intensity of revival that is needed today.
The upcoming Biblical Christ-centered spiritual revival is not going to be a repeat of past historical revivals that continually degenerated into a man-centered, man-controlled, man-exalting, money-making spiritually depleted religious empire, which in turn opposed any subsequent fresh move of God among His people. The moral, spiritual and cultural decay that has pervaded every level of present national life demands more than a historical type spiritual revival limited only to the confines of a religious group, but a spiritual invasion by Almighty God Himself that results in a total cultural reformation worldwide.
The upcoming reformation must first involve a complete overthrow of the present humanistic world order and then a complete restoration according to the revealed will and design of God as stated in the Scriptures which results in the coronation of Jesus Christ upon the throne of His father David (Luke 1:31-33).
True revival is not emotional hype, but the principles of the Word of God put into action according to the divine will and power of the Holy Spirit.
The timing as to when the upcoming reformation will come is determined not by the will of man, but by the omniscient predetermined design of God. The nature of this coming reformation will be such that it will be impossible for man to originate it, so therefore impossible for man to determine its outcome. There will be no establishment of new social organizations or religious denominations, but instead the reverse will occur, resulting in the destruction of all man-centered religious, political and social institutions.
In the coming God-sent Christ-centered reformation the Balaamite spirit of greed will not be present without swift judgment. There will not be any prophets for profit; only our glorified victorious Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ will be exalted in that day (Isa. 2:11, 17). This reformation will result in the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth in its completed form according to the Scriptures.
"Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?"
--The sons of Korah
Psalm 85:6
Our gracious Lord in His mercy sometimes allows us to catch a glimpse of
what He is yet to do in the future, therefore, he chooses to reveal His
plan, while only in part and through a glass darkly, to His servants as
a prophetic promise of things yet to come and a confirmation of His
faithfulness as revealed in His Holy Word. It was my privilege to
experience such a revelation of God's prophetic plans one afternoon on
January 16, 1997. By no means do I claim to fully understand all the
details or ramifications involved in the following seventeen points
which the Holy Ghost so quickly and clearly revealed to my mind and
spirit that day.
Without adding to or trying to explain each individual point of this
revelation of truth, I present them to the reader just like the Spirit
of God so clearly and distinctly revealed them to me. The first words
that overwhelmed me by the Spirit of God that day were: I want to be,
therefore, those four words preceded each of the following seventeen
points of revelation.
I WANT TO BE:
• A part of a body of believers that functions in the true Apostolic
order according to the Book of Acts
• A recipient of an unequaled anointing for these last days
• Alive to see the greatest revelation of the glory and honor of Jesus
Christ since His transfiguration
• A hearer and to accept the greatest liberating explanation of truth
since the days of the writing of the New Testament canon
• A participant of the greatest wave of Glory since the earthly ministry
of our Lord
• A witness to the largest mass of conversions since the 3000 in
response to Peter's sermon on the Day of Pentecost, Acts 2:41
• A member of a church where the preaching, praying and singing are
unequaled in worship and praise since the place was shaken in Acts 4:31
• Present where real Holy Ghost conviction is the strongest since the
preaching of John the Baptist on the banks of the Jordan River
• There when God sends the greatest wave of healing power since the days
when the shadow of Peter passed across the halt and the lame in Acts
5:1
• Involved in the Elijah ministry as a forerunner of the coming of Jesus
Christ that will turn the hearts of the children to the fathers and the
hearts of the fathers to the children
• A worker in the vineyard of the Lord to help rebuild the Tabernacle of
David that is fallen down so that all 12 sons of Jacob may enter the
gates as pictured in Psalm 24
• Alive and well in the day when more wrongs are made right than anytime
in history
• Present to see the climactic fulfillment of all prophetic denunciation
since the days of the prophet Daniel, when Babylon falls to rise no
more
• A part of a church which is outlawed to exist and endures the worst
persecution since the days when John the Revelator was on the Isle of
Patmos, and to be a part of the victorious multitude of Rev. 7:9-17
• Present to experience the thrill at the sight of the greatest
Resurrection of the sleeping saints since the days of our Lord's
passion when the saints arose and entered the city, Matthew 27:51-52
• Alive to see the day when God's law goes forth out of Zion to rule
the nations as with a rod of iron
• Present at the grand finale of all convacations, when Jesus is crowned
King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
"Even so, come, Lord Jesus"
The Apostle John - Rev. 22:20
This experience immediately placed within me a burning desire to see
these things fulfilled in their completion just as Simeon looked, longed
and waited for the consolation of Israel which consummated in the coming
and revelation of Jesus Christ (Luke chapter 2). The climax and grand
finale of God's plan toward man is the revelation and exaltation of His
Son Jesus Christ when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that
He is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).
O Holy Ghost, revival comes from thee:
Send a revival and start the work in me:
Thy Word declares thou wilt supply our needs:
For blessings now, O Lord, I humbly plead.
-- J. Edwin Orr