REVIVAL BEGINS WITH YOU

"For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." (Isaiah 57:15)

During the autumn season, many churches conduct "revival" services.  The intention of many of these services is to win souls to Christ.  While that is a great desire, the focus is on the product of revival instead of the process of revival.  Genuine revival produces fruitful evangelism, but revival itself is about believers coming clean and getting close to Jesus.

For the few saints who understand the nature of revival, there is a growing tendency to shift attention to others.  When you think of revival, whom do you think needs it the most?  Most of the time, we think that "church drop-outs" or compromising church members need revival the most.  We tend to think that someone else needs revival, don't we?

The fact is that revival begins with you.  Revival begins with me.  Instead of pointing the finger at others, let us closely examine our own lives.  Rather than condemning the sins of others, let's get honest and serious about our own sins.

We tend to think that God's blessings are felt most by those who are busy workers in His kingdom.  However, our text teaches us that some of God's greatest blessings are reserved for those who come to Him with a humble and contrite heart.

Humility is a difficult pill for most to swallow.  We don't like to eat humble pie.  Yet humility is a key to revival.  Most professing believers are too proud to acknowledge their sins and even more reluctant to repent of their sins.  It seems that humble pie is most difficult to digest when you must eat it publicly.

Yet the Lord has much to say about genuine humility.  Notice three promises in our text reserved for those who are humble:

First of all, God promises to exalt those who are humble.  Our text states, "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit."  God dwells in a high and holy place WITH those who are contrite and humble.  God exalts the humble.  Jesus promised, "... he that shall humble himself shall be exalted" (Matthew 23:12).

The second promise is linked to the first.  God promises to bless the humble with His presence.  The humble are exalted to be with the Lord.  Many are missing out on the felt presence of God because they refuse to come on God's terms.

Finally, the humble are promised to be revived.   God promises He will "... revive the spirit of the humble, and....revive the heart of the contrite ones."  God brings revival to those who humble themselves.

Instead of waiting on others, God is calling us to experience revival.  Humility may seem like a step down but it is actually an exalting experience that climaxes with a mighty encounter with God.

God has given you the promise of revival.  Do you want to take Him up on His promise or do you prefer continuing to live below your privileges?

Revival begins with you.