Homeland Security
By Larry d. Wright
Just a few years ago our land was attach by terrorist. Until then the term homeland security had no meaning whatsoever. But all that changed on September 11, 2001. The devastation that we saw when two jet airliners brought down the twin towers in New York City and another plane crashed into the Pentagon killing thousands of people brought the concept of homeland security to the forefront.
Not only is our homeland under the threat of a vicious enemy also our homes are under attack as well. The most powerful resource we have to protect our homeland and our homes is PRAYER! We need men and women to meet the challenge with prayer.
What makes an ordinary obscure person a powerful weapon in the hands of God? Prayer!
Prayer is coming into the presence of God; it is entering the throne room of the KING of kings and LORD of lords; it is communicating with the creator of the world; it is bringing our questions to the one who has the answers; it is connecting our lives with the ALL knowing, ALL present and ALL powerful KING of kings. Prayer is coming near to God.
Charles Spurgeon said, "Prayers are the believer’s weapons of war. When the battle is too hard for us, we call in our great ally, who, as it were lies in ambush until faith gives the signal by crying out, ARISE oh LORD!"
Prayer can do anything that God can do because prayer involves God in the problems of man. Prayer literally unleashes the power of God. It is the slender nerve attached to the muscles of an omnipotent God.
Elijah was a man, a man passionate in prayer. He prayed the word of God into natural reality because he prayed with faith. Elijah impacted a nation through prayer because God honors this kind of praying.
Other Men Who Prayed Specifically
Job prayed for the purity of his kids. (Job 1:1-5) He prayed, “Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.”
Abraham prayed for the future spouse of his kids. In Genesis chapter 24 we see Abraham, who at the time was a very old man, praying for God to provided a godly wife for his son. A beautiful love story resulted.
Jacob prayed for God to Bless the Future of his children. Genesis 48 records the story of an aging Jacob gathering his son Joseph and His two grandsons Ephraim and Manasseh so he could pray and bless them. “May God, the God before whom my grandfather Abraham and my father, Isaac, walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life, and the angel who has kept me from harm – may he bless these boys. May they preserve my name and the names of my grandfather Abraham and my father Isaac. And may they become a mighty nation.” (15-16)
David prayed that his son’s desire would be to obey God. David prayed for His son Solomon the following prayer: “Give my son Solomon the wholehearted desire to obey all your commands, decrees and principles, and to build this Temple, for which I have made all these preparations.”(1 Chronicles 29:19)We need to pray that our children will have a strong and consuming desire to obey ALL the commands of God.
We have become way too comfortable and assume too much! May we regain the desire for availing, fervent prayer! May we follow the instructions of Jesus and pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Earnest prayer moves God out of heaven and into earth! Biblical prayer secures our homeland.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Monday, June 2, 2008
Pseudo Spirituality
Pseudo Spirituality
By Larry d. Wright
In an issue of Newsweek magazine several studies claimed that America is a spiritual nation. One example cited in the survey claims that 64% of Americans say that they pray every day. Sociologist Alan Wolfe of Boston College suggests that the current spiritual searching is really about the empowerment of the self: “Rather than being about a god who commands you, it’s about finding a religion that empowers you.”
Albert Mohler weighs in on the point by saying, “The impression left by the total package is of a nation that increasingly embraces soft and self-centered forms of spirituality even as it rejects more demanding forms of belief…they see spirituality as a means of self-development…they want to get in touch with the universe and with their inner selves, but are not particularly concerned to know what the Creator would demand of them.” (www.crosswalk.com)
A Christianity Today poll found that half of all Americans believe in extrasensory perception. One of every four professing Christians believes in clairvoyance, and almost half in psychic healing. 25% believe the movement of the stars governs the affairs of men and women.
Browse any bookstore and you will find titles such as “New Age Spirituality”; “Do It Yourself Religion”; “The Higher Path”; “Self-Esteem and Enlightenment.” What might initially have appeared as simply a new trend has become a more dominant cultural shift that some call ‘postmodern spirituality.’ This new spirituality is reflected in countless popular books and through the philosophies of those who tend to draw upon an eastern worldview and esoteric mysticism. Spirituality without Jesus sells; but is it real? Is God simply a higher dimension reached by an inner journey to the soul? Is it true that “the more you love yourself, the greater your connection with God, the Spirit, Divine Source, or whatever you call God?” Can there be true spirituality without Jesus?
I say “No!” New Age Spirituality, or as I call it Pseudo Spirituality, sells so well because people are hungry for meaning and spiritual significance. God has placed an eternal longing in the heart of His creation that can only be satisfied by Him. Still man-made religion is popular because it does not humble sinners or place any demands of holiness upon them.
Many today recognize a whole new level of popularization of Pseudo Spirituality through the influence of Oprah Winfrey. “Oprah Winfrey has risen to a new level of guru. She’s no longer just a successful talk-show host worth $1.4 billion, according to Forbes’ most recent estimate. Over the past year Winfrey has emerged as a spiritual leader for the new millennium.” "She’s a really hip and materialistic Mother Teresa," says Kathryn Lofton, a professor at Reed College in Portland, who has written two papers analyzing the religious aspects of Winfrey. "Oprah has emerged as a symbolic figurehead of spirituality." (USA Today, article by John Jalsevac March 7, 2008)
In her words Oprah said, “The new spirituality is that you are your own best authority as you work to know and love yourself, you discover how to live a more spiritual life. While Christianity is a valid way to achieve high states of spirituality, it must not be considered a unique way, or a correct way."
In considering the cultural trend towards being freed from the old paths in pursuit of new spirituality, we do well to recall George Orwell’s words:
“For two hundred years we had sawed and sawed and sawed at the branch we were sitting on. And in the end, much more suddenly than anyone had foreseen, our efforts were rewarded, and down we came. But unfortunately there had been a little mistake: the thing at the bottom was not a bed of roses after all; it was a cesspool full of barbed wire. . . It appears that amputation of the soul isn’t just a simple surgical job, like having your appendix out. The wound has a tendency to go septic.” (George Orwell , Notes on the Way)
By Larry d. Wright
In an issue of Newsweek magazine several studies claimed that America is a spiritual nation. One example cited in the survey claims that 64% of Americans say that they pray every day. Sociologist Alan Wolfe of Boston College suggests that the current spiritual searching is really about the empowerment of the self: “Rather than being about a god who commands you, it’s about finding a religion that empowers you.”
Albert Mohler weighs in on the point by saying, “The impression left by the total package is of a nation that increasingly embraces soft and self-centered forms of spirituality even as it rejects more demanding forms of belief…they see spirituality as a means of self-development…they want to get in touch with the universe and with their inner selves, but are not particularly concerned to know what the Creator would demand of them.” (www.crosswalk.com)
A Christianity Today poll found that half of all Americans believe in extrasensory perception. One of every four professing Christians believes in clairvoyance, and almost half in psychic healing. 25% believe the movement of the stars governs the affairs of men and women.
Browse any bookstore and you will find titles such as “New Age Spirituality”; “Do It Yourself Religion”; “The Higher Path”; “Self-Esteem and Enlightenment.” What might initially have appeared as simply a new trend has become a more dominant cultural shift that some call ‘postmodern spirituality.’ This new spirituality is reflected in countless popular books and through the philosophies of those who tend to draw upon an eastern worldview and esoteric mysticism. Spirituality without Jesus sells; but is it real? Is God simply a higher dimension reached by an inner journey to the soul? Is it true that “the more you love yourself, the greater your connection with God, the Spirit, Divine Source, or whatever you call God?” Can there be true spirituality without Jesus?
I say “No!” New Age Spirituality, or as I call it Pseudo Spirituality, sells so well because people are hungry for meaning and spiritual significance. God has placed an eternal longing in the heart of His creation that can only be satisfied by Him. Still man-made religion is popular because it does not humble sinners or place any demands of holiness upon them.
Many today recognize a whole new level of popularization of Pseudo Spirituality through the influence of Oprah Winfrey. “Oprah Winfrey has risen to a new level of guru. She’s no longer just a successful talk-show host worth $1.4 billion, according to Forbes’ most recent estimate. Over the past year Winfrey has emerged as a spiritual leader for the new millennium.” "She’s a really hip and materialistic Mother Teresa," says Kathryn Lofton, a professor at Reed College in Portland, who has written two papers analyzing the religious aspects of Winfrey. "Oprah has emerged as a symbolic figurehead of spirituality." (USA Today, article by John Jalsevac March 7, 2008)
In her words Oprah said, “The new spirituality is that you are your own best authority as you work to know and love yourself, you discover how to live a more spiritual life. While Christianity is a valid way to achieve high states of spirituality, it must not be considered a unique way, or a correct way."
In considering the cultural trend towards being freed from the old paths in pursuit of new spirituality, we do well to recall George Orwell’s words:
“For two hundred years we had sawed and sawed and sawed at the branch we were sitting on. And in the end, much more suddenly than anyone had foreseen, our efforts were rewarded, and down we came. But unfortunately there had been a little mistake: the thing at the bottom was not a bed of roses after all; it was a cesspool full of barbed wire. . . It appears that amputation of the soul isn’t just a simple surgical job, like having your appendix out. The wound has a tendency to go septic.” (George Orwell , Notes on the Way)
Monday, April 28, 2008
The Mission Bridge
The Mission Bridge
By Larry d. Wright
Are you ready for a real surprise? The words mission, missions, missionary or my favorite word missional are not found in the Bible. The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance goes from missed to mist and the word mission is conspicuously absent. I find that fact surprising but it doesn’t trouble me.
I believe there is a clear reason why the word missions is not found in the Bible. The Bible is not a book about systematic theology but a journal of the theology of missions in action. The Bible is the record of God in action accomplishing salvation for all mankind. Actually, the Bible ascribes only one intention to God: to redeem and restore mankind. We capture that intention with the word missions.
If you want to know what beats in the heart of God, it is missions. I love what one person said, “God had only one Son, and He made Him a missionary.” Jesus Himself said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) The last command from His lips expressed the desire of His heart. The first two letters of gospel spell “Go!”
If you want to know the hope of mankind, it is missions. Without the gospel, man is helpless and hopeless.
The story is told of an agnostic professor who visited the Fiji Islands. The professor remarked to an elderly chief, “You are a great leader, but it is a pity you have been victimized by those Christian missionaries. No one believes the Bible anymore. People are tired of the story of Christ dying on cross for the sins of mankind. We know better now. I am sorry you were manipulated to accept their story.”
The old chief’s eyes flashed with passion as he answered, “See that great rock over there? On it we smashed the heads of our victims. Notice the furnace next to it? In that oven we used to roast the bodies of our victims. If it wasn’t for the love of those missionaries and the message they brought that changed us from cannibals to Christians, you would our next supper.”
If you want to know the health of the church, it is missions. The orders of our Commander-n-Chief make our mission clear: "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” There is an important premise we should never forget: Christ alone can save the world, but Christ cannot save the world alone. He has chosen to use us.
First Baptist Church has no reason to exist apart from the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. His command gave birth to our existence. It defines our reason to exist and clarifies our mission. Simply, the mission of the church is missions.
When God loved, He loved the world. When the Father gave His Son, He gave His Son for the world. When the Son died, He died for the world. God’s vision is the world. Our mission is to build a bridge from Florence, Alabama to reach the world.
There is a bridge across Panther Creek in Western Kentucky built by the United States government. It was a source of pride and a symbol of recovery. Today the bridge looks as new as the day in which it was built because it bares only the weight of itself. There is no road leading to it or from it.
I suggest that a bridge that does not carry traffic is not a bridge. It is a structure with no appropriate name. And a church that is not missional is group of people but not a church.
Coca-Cola has a motto that is posted in the company headquarters that explains their incredible success. It reads: THINK GLOBALLY, BUT ACT LOCALLY. Long before Coca-Cola was a dream, Jesus said, “Begin in Florence and don’t stop until you have reached the end of the earth.” That is the Mission Bridge.
By Larry d. Wright
Are you ready for a real surprise? The words mission, missions, missionary or my favorite word missional are not found in the Bible. The Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance goes from missed to mist and the word mission is conspicuously absent. I find that fact surprising but it doesn’t trouble me.
I believe there is a clear reason why the word missions is not found in the Bible. The Bible is not a book about systematic theology but a journal of the theology of missions in action. The Bible is the record of God in action accomplishing salvation for all mankind. Actually, the Bible ascribes only one intention to God: to redeem and restore mankind. We capture that intention with the word missions.
If you want to know what beats in the heart of God, it is missions. I love what one person said, “God had only one Son, and He made Him a missionary.” Jesus Himself said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45) The last command from His lips expressed the desire of His heart. The first two letters of gospel spell “Go!”
If you want to know the hope of mankind, it is missions. Without the gospel, man is helpless and hopeless.
The story is told of an agnostic professor who visited the Fiji Islands. The professor remarked to an elderly chief, “You are a great leader, but it is a pity you have been victimized by those Christian missionaries. No one believes the Bible anymore. People are tired of the story of Christ dying on cross for the sins of mankind. We know better now. I am sorry you were manipulated to accept their story.”
The old chief’s eyes flashed with passion as he answered, “See that great rock over there? On it we smashed the heads of our victims. Notice the furnace next to it? In that oven we used to roast the bodies of our victims. If it wasn’t for the love of those missionaries and the message they brought that changed us from cannibals to Christians, you would our next supper.”
If you want to know the health of the church, it is missions. The orders of our Commander-n-Chief make our mission clear: "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” There is an important premise we should never forget: Christ alone can save the world, but Christ cannot save the world alone. He has chosen to use us.
First Baptist Church has no reason to exist apart from the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. His command gave birth to our existence. It defines our reason to exist and clarifies our mission. Simply, the mission of the church is missions.
When God loved, He loved the world. When the Father gave His Son, He gave His Son for the world. When the Son died, He died for the world. God’s vision is the world. Our mission is to build a bridge from Florence, Alabama to reach the world.
There is a bridge across Panther Creek in Western Kentucky built by the United States government. It was a source of pride and a symbol of recovery. Today the bridge looks as new as the day in which it was built because it bares only the weight of itself. There is no road leading to it or from it.
I suggest that a bridge that does not carry traffic is not a bridge. It is a structure with no appropriate name. And a church that is not missional is group of people but not a church.
Coca-Cola has a motto that is posted in the company headquarters that explains their incredible success. It reads: THINK GLOBALLY, BUT ACT LOCALLY. Long before Coca-Cola was a dream, Jesus said, “Begin in Florence and don’t stop until you have reached the end of the earth.” That is the Mission Bridge.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
The Fire of the Lord
The Fire of the Lord
By Larry d. Wright
“Then the fire of the LORD fell…”
In one of His most controversial statements Jesus said, “I have come to bring fire on the earth.” There are times in the Scripture in which fire is a symbol of judgment but in the vast majority of references fire is used to illustrate God’s divine presence. The context of His words makes it clear that this is the meaning behind His words, “I have come to bring fire.”
In this unusual statement of Jesus the fire He is speaking of is not literal fire but a spiritual symbol. He is speaking of the burning, exciting, dynamic presence of God in the lives of people. The fire that illuminates His dazzling presence, generates unlimited power, burns away the dross and impurities and attracts people to Him. That is the Fire of God.
In the scriptures, God sometimes revealed Himself through a physical representation; this is called a theophany. Fire is the most common theophany. There are several definitive statements about God in the Bible: God is Holy; God is Light; God is Love; God is Spirit. Fire is used as a symbol of God. God is not fire–He is like fire–and the Scriptures use it to symbolize His awesome presence.
When God appeared to Moses He spoke out of the flame of a burning bush. Later, on Mt. Sinai, God appeared to all the Israelites as a fire on the mountain. Exodus 24:17 says, “To the Israelites, the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire.” What a sight that must have been!
There is something awesome and scary about fire, no wonder God chose to use fires as a theophany. Later, when Moses built the Tabernacle, they made the first sacrifice in the Holy of Holies. God again revealed Himself by fire. Leviticus 9:24 says, “Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering ... And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell face-down.”
On Mt Carmel the prophet Elijah prayed “Then the fire of God fell” consuming the sacrifice and licking up the water in the trenches around the altar. The people fell on their faces and declared, “The Lord He is God!”
When God’s fire comes to the hearts of men and women their spirits are freed from the awful bondage of idolatry. When God’s fire comes, the enemy will be destroyed. That is why we should pray, “O, Lord ---send the fire. Your fire. Send your consuming, changing, restoring, victorious fire!”
We sing about the Fire of God in many of our hymns. I love to sing, "Lord, as of old at Pentecost thou didst thy power display, with cleansing, purifying flame, descend on us today. Lord, send the old time power, the Pentecostal power! Thy floodgates of blessings on us thor open wide! Lord, send the old time power, the Pentcostal power, that sinners be converted and thy name glorified!" There is a song I have known for years that says, “Oh, Lord, you’re beautiful. Your face is all I seek. For when your eyes are on this child, your grace abounds to me. O Lord, please light the fire, which once burned bright and clear, replace the lamp of my first love, that burned with holy fear.”
Oh, may our PRAYER be heard, “Lord, send your fire! May we sense and know Your burning, exciting, dynamic presence in our lives and among Your people.”
By Larry d. Wright
“Then the fire of the LORD fell…”
In one of His most controversial statements Jesus said, “I have come to bring fire on the earth.” There are times in the Scripture in which fire is a symbol of judgment but in the vast majority of references fire is used to illustrate God’s divine presence. The context of His words makes it clear that this is the meaning behind His words, “I have come to bring fire.”
In this unusual statement of Jesus the fire He is speaking of is not literal fire but a spiritual symbol. He is speaking of the burning, exciting, dynamic presence of God in the lives of people. The fire that illuminates His dazzling presence, generates unlimited power, burns away the dross and impurities and attracts people to Him. That is the Fire of God.
In the scriptures, God sometimes revealed Himself through a physical representation; this is called a theophany. Fire is the most common theophany. There are several definitive statements about God in the Bible: God is Holy; God is Light; God is Love; God is Spirit. Fire is used as a symbol of God. God is not fire–He is like fire–and the Scriptures use it to symbolize His awesome presence.
When God appeared to Moses He spoke out of the flame of a burning bush. Later, on Mt. Sinai, God appeared to all the Israelites as a fire on the mountain. Exodus 24:17 says, “To the Israelites, the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire.” What a sight that must have been!
There is something awesome and scary about fire, no wonder God chose to use fires as a theophany. Later, when Moses built the Tabernacle, they made the first sacrifice in the Holy of Holies. God again revealed Himself by fire. Leviticus 9:24 says, “Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering ... And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell face-down.”
On Mt Carmel the prophet Elijah prayed “Then the fire of God fell” consuming the sacrifice and licking up the water in the trenches around the altar. The people fell on their faces and declared, “The Lord He is God!”
When God’s fire comes to the hearts of men and women their spirits are freed from the awful bondage of idolatry. When God’s fire comes, the enemy will be destroyed. That is why we should pray, “O, Lord ---send the fire. Your fire. Send your consuming, changing, restoring, victorious fire!”
We sing about the Fire of God in many of our hymns. I love to sing, "Lord, as of old at Pentecost thou didst thy power display, with cleansing, purifying flame, descend on us today. Lord, send the old time power, the Pentecostal power! Thy floodgates of blessings on us thor open wide! Lord, send the old time power, the Pentcostal power, that sinners be converted and thy name glorified!" There is a song I have known for years that says, “Oh, Lord, you’re beautiful. Your face is all I seek. For when your eyes are on this child, your grace abounds to me. O Lord, please light the fire, which once burned bright and clear, replace the lamp of my first love, that burned with holy fear.”
Oh, may our PRAYER be heard, “Lord, send your fire! May we sense and know Your burning, exciting, dynamic presence in our lives and among Your people.”
Monday, April 7, 2008
Mission Banquet invitation
To receive your invitation to attend a MISSION BANQUET on Thursday, April 17th @ Florence Golf & Country Club, EMAIL me at ldwright@fbcflorence.com or call 256.764.4921.
The meal is FREE and you will hear a TIME (www.timeministries.com) team from Huntsville, Alabama share about their work around the world.
The meal is FREE and you will hear a TIME (www.timeministries.com) team from Huntsville, Alabama share about their work around the world.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
The Cycle of Life
The Cycle of Life
By Larry d. Wright
The writer of Ecclesiastes poetically states, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.”
On Monday morning while traveling to Gatlinburg I learned that the youngest son of radio comedian Rick Burgess of the “Rick and Bubba Show” sadly died in a tragic accident. On Thursday morning I listened to the co-host of the show Bubba Bussey explain how his youngest son prayed to receive Jesus Christ into his life. One son temporarily lost, another son eternally gained as a brother. Such is the cycle of life.
I arrived in the foothills of the beautiful Smoky Mountains to find them dressed in their bleak winter attire. The last time Debby and I retreated to the mountains it was spring and the hills were alive with life and outfitted in a lush color of green, the hills dotted with beautiful mountain flowers. Such is the cycle of life.
In my years serving as a pastor I have conducted a funeral and officiated a wedding on the same day. I have walked into one hospital room to comfort a family loosing a member to cancer then moments later walked into another room to experience the joy of a couple who welcomed a new life into their family. Such is the cycle of life.
Actually, while writing this article I was interrupted. I discovered that our family pet cat had died and between these two paragraphs I buried a faithful and funny friend who brought many laughs, joys and moments of happiness into our lives. Today he brought tears. Such is the cycle of life.
So Solomon wrote, “There is…a time to be born and a time to die….a time to mourn and a time to dance…” Obviously, what he did not warn us about is the realistic truth: sometimes the distance between the two is very small. That is what makes life so painful. Sometimes the distance between birth and death, mourning and dancing is excruciatingly short. Such is the cycle of life.
Solomon offers some practical wisdom concerning how to cope with the cycle of life: “He [God] has made everything beautiful in its time. He has placed eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from the beginning.” I am to find beauty and purpose in God’s creations. I am to realize that I am a pilgrim on this planet for a temporary sojourn and my real home is elsewhere. I must accept God’s bigness, the mysteries of life and refuse to play the “What if…” game.
Only then will I value the cycle of life.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
The God of Something New
The God of Something New
By Larry d. Wright
The prophet Isaiah declared: “This is what the LORD says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (43:16-19) [underlining mine for emphasis]
Most everyone agrees today that the modern church is not making an impact on the culture around her. This is true in part because the church has become too much like the world as ancient Israel became like the Canaanites in the occupied land. However, the disagreement is sharp when discussion turns to the solution. Is REVIVAL the answer to what ails the church? I personally feel that many most pastors and church leaders do NOT comprehend the complexity and severity of the current church predicament. They do understand that the church is lethargic and not healthy and believe that something needs to be done. The disease in the church is more serious than most leaders realize. Many think the church is sick with something akin to the flu, having caught the germs because of close contact with the world, and thus what she needs is a good dose of revival to recover.
So, I raise the question, “Is the prescription for the church’s condition REVIVAL?”
I have come to the somewhat controversial conclusion that REVIVAL IS NOT THE ANSWER! Or, I will say more clearly, not the old paradigm of revival we have known in the past. What God plans to do in the future is so new and radical that it would not fit our customary definition of “revival.”
This may seem a like a strange comment to make since I have hoped, prayed and preached for revival for many years. I am a student of the history of revival and a strong proponent for the need of renewal in the church and awakening in the land. Why have I reached this conclusion? I have come to this conclusion because revival, as we know it, is an old wineskin that cannot contain the NEW wine of what God plans to do. What God plans to do is as new and different as the church was NEW compared to the nation of Israel as a people of God. Please understand that I believe that God still desires to do a work in His people, the church, but the work He will do in the future is entirely NEW. Looking BACKWARD to old paradigm revivals certainly can be inspirational, however many sincere leaders look to the past and old patterns of revival as models for instruction. I feel this is a mistake! The fundamental principles of divine activity are changeless, but the outward shape of that activity changes according to a divine blueprint.
Some well-meaning men, who long to see God do a work in the church, are actually preventing God from working because they are promoting and expecting a duplication of something in the PAST. I am convinced that will NOT happen! I personally believe that God has no intentions of reviving the old church but He intends to restructure something new out of the old. “Renewal” means to bring something back to its former condition or state.” The word “revive” means to restore or put back what has been depleted or used.
Isaiah’s words to Israel were, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!” As I studied these words of Isaiah, I discovered that the verb translated as “make” here really means “to turn something into something else.” So the Lord is not saying that He will make rivers in the desert, but that He will turn the desert into rivers. He will transform the desert into something entirely new, namely, rivers.
I believe these words are as appropriate today as when they were first written. We have a problem with the past. We are anchored to the past and there is an ocean side of God that needs to be explored! Why should this surprise us? God has always revealed NEW and exciting ways to know Him. He sent a baby born in a stable not a deliverer like Moses, Samson, Joshua, or Gideon. It doesn’t get in newer than that! Still, because the people of Israel were tied to the past, they fought and rejected that which was new. They could not see God’s NEW way (Jesus) of accomplishing redemption because they were focused on the PAST way: Temple sacrifices, a mighty deliverer like Moses, or prophet like Isaiah.
The word I feel the Lord has revealed to me about the REVIVAL of tomorrow, which is in reality something so totally NEW that we will need to come up with a new name, is captured in the following sentences. These “words of revelation” came to me from the Lord over a period of several years.
It will be a process, not a point in time (not an event).
It will be like a dynamo (flowing and continuous), not like dynamite (a powerful explosion).
The focus will not be on manifestations but transformation.
It will happen in the marketplace, not in the church.
It will not cause people to go to church, but cause people to be the Church.
It will not appear to be religious.
Therefore, because of points 4, 5, 6, it will be opposed by most religious leaders.
While people wait for it to happen, it will be happening.
By Larry d. Wright
The prophet Isaiah declared: “This is what the LORD says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (43:16-19) [underlining mine for emphasis]
Most everyone agrees today that the modern church is not making an impact on the culture around her. This is true in part because the church has become too much like the world as ancient Israel became like the Canaanites in the occupied land. However, the disagreement is sharp when discussion turns to the solution. Is REVIVAL the answer to what ails the church? I personally feel that many most pastors and church leaders do NOT comprehend the complexity and severity of the current church predicament. They do understand that the church is lethargic and not healthy and believe that something needs to be done. The disease in the church is more serious than most leaders realize. Many think the church is sick with something akin to the flu, having caught the germs because of close contact with the world, and thus what she needs is a good dose of revival to recover.
So, I raise the question, “Is the prescription for the church’s condition REVIVAL?”
I have come to the somewhat controversial conclusion that REVIVAL IS NOT THE ANSWER! Or, I will say more clearly, not the old paradigm of revival we have known in the past. What God plans to do in the future is so new and radical that it would not fit our customary definition of “revival.”
This may seem a like a strange comment to make since I have hoped, prayed and preached for revival for many years. I am a student of the history of revival and a strong proponent for the need of renewal in the church and awakening in the land. Why have I reached this conclusion? I have come to this conclusion because revival, as we know it, is an old wineskin that cannot contain the NEW wine of what God plans to do. What God plans to do is as new and different as the church was NEW compared to the nation of Israel as a people of God. Please understand that I believe that God still desires to do a work in His people, the church, but the work He will do in the future is entirely NEW. Looking BACKWARD to old paradigm revivals certainly can be inspirational, however many sincere leaders look to the past and old patterns of revival as models for instruction. I feel this is a mistake! The fundamental principles of divine activity are changeless, but the outward shape of that activity changes according to a divine blueprint.
Some well-meaning men, who long to see God do a work in the church, are actually preventing God from working because they are promoting and expecting a duplication of something in the PAST. I am convinced that will NOT happen! I personally believe that God has no intentions of reviving the old church but He intends to restructure something new out of the old. “Renewal” means to bring something back to its former condition or state.” The word “revive” means to restore or put back what has been depleted or used.
Isaiah’s words to Israel were, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing!” As I studied these words of Isaiah, I discovered that the verb translated as “make” here really means “to turn something into something else.” So the Lord is not saying that He will make rivers in the desert, but that He will turn the desert into rivers. He will transform the desert into something entirely new, namely, rivers.
I believe these words are as appropriate today as when they were first written. We have a problem with the past. We are anchored to the past and there is an ocean side of God that needs to be explored! Why should this surprise us? God has always revealed NEW and exciting ways to know Him. He sent a baby born in a stable not a deliverer like Moses, Samson, Joshua, or Gideon. It doesn’t get in newer than that! Still, because the people of Israel were tied to the past, they fought and rejected that which was new. They could not see God’s NEW way (Jesus) of accomplishing redemption because they were focused on the PAST way: Temple sacrifices, a mighty deliverer like Moses, or prophet like Isaiah.
The word I feel the Lord has revealed to me about the REVIVAL of tomorrow, which is in reality something so totally NEW that we will need to come up with a new name, is captured in the following sentences. These “words of revelation” came to me from the Lord over a period of several years.
It will be a process, not a point in time (not an event).
It will be like a dynamo (flowing and continuous), not like dynamite (a powerful explosion).
The focus will not be on manifestations but transformation.
It will happen in the marketplace, not in the church.
It will not cause people to go to church, but cause people to be the Church.
It will not appear to be religious.
Therefore, because of points 4, 5, 6, it will be opposed by most religious leaders.
While people wait for it to happen, it will be happening.
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