You Will Know It Is Revival When . . . .

You Will Know It Is Revival When .  .  .  .

You see personal repentance that develops over time into changed lives that are centered on Jesus.

Because my personal experience and academic background are both connected to the history of "revivals," I am quick to notice and observe any report of an authentic, sovereign move of God's Spirit.  There are lots of people asking me about that lately.

I say "authentic" to make clear up front that there are "inauthentic" experiences of religious fervor that are a different thing altogether.  Things like a week of special meetings in a rural church.  Mark Twain tells such a story in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, but I suspect we all have stories of our own.  I am not talking about those come-and-go experiences of emotion.

I am convinced though, that an "inauthentic" experience can remind us that there really can be something that is "authentic."

So with that in mind, let me share a key reflection, born of years of academic study and pastoring real people that is my answer to the question, "So do you think that there is a revival starting to happen?"

You will know it is revival when .  .  .  .  You see personal repentance that develops over time into changed lives that are centered on Jesus.

Currently, as I look around, I see lots of gatherings that are emotionally inspiring - at least to the participants - and flavored with "God-language" of some sort.  Depending on your personal tastes and the nature of the emotions, those can be fine enough, but please don't think of them as an authentic "move-of-God" revival on the order of the Jesus Revolution, Azusa Street, the Welsh Revival, the First Great Awakening, the Moravian Movement or any of the numerous "surprising works of God" that have happened through history across the globe.

Those always begin through prayerful repentance: people recognizing God's holiness and seeing their own brokenness, then turning to the Jesus who was God-in-the-flesh-that-died-and-was raised in order to receive God's own answer to their sin problem.  

Revival is not angry people wanting others to repent.  Or unrepentant people wanting inspiration with the "next new thing."  Or the result of good marketing that draws a crowd of "likes."

It begins with personal repentance.  Then one observes that there are so many people taking steps of personal repentance and turning to Jesus that something is going on that is bigger than human plans and efforts.

I am thankful to see bubblings here and there that look like this.  I'm praying and preaching for more.

CLICK HERE for the most helpful series of eyewitness accounts from the last 3 years that give me hope regarding these first bubblings of authentic revival.  It is a YouTube playlist with five full broadcasts - one hour or more - followed by a number of much briefer clips - usually about 30 seconds - taken from them.

If you would like to learn more and build your own understanding of "authentic revival," let me encourage you to read the posts and links in two of my own earlier blogs:

CLICK HERE for Times of Refreshing: Thoughts on Authentic Revival & the Current "Asbury Awakening" - 2/14/23

CLICK HERE for A Model of Continuous Renewal by Dr Richard Lovelace - Dr Lovelace was my doctoral mentor at Gordon-Conwell Seminary. - 2/14/23

External Religion Won't Cut It - A Reading From EveryDay Gospel by Paul David Tripp

Since January of this year, I've been reading with a group of friends through the entire Bible using the plan in and accompanied by the daily comments of Paul David Tripp's book, Everyday Gospel.  Twice each month we gather for breakfast and ask of each other: "So, what did you underline?"  It's been a great experience, that I want to give you a taste of. 

The reading for October 14 was Mark 12-13.  Portions of Tripp's comments include:

You might not think this indictment of the scribes has anything whatsoever to do with you, but it does.

When Jesus says, “Beware of the scribes,” he is not just warning his listeners to be careful because the scribes are up to no good. He is also warning his followers (and us) not to act like the scribes. Jesus finds the religiosity of the scribes deeply offensive, and we should too. In his condemnation of them, Jesus combines three things that should get our attention and cause us to do some self-examination: religious externalism, pride, and injustice. These things often go together. 

• Religious externalism concerns public displays of spirituality that do not come from the heart. True biblical religion is always about the capture and transformation of the heart. 
• Pride concerns drawing attention to yourself. Prideful actions are those that are motivated by the worship of self and seek the worship of others. Pride is the enemy of the work of God in the heart. 
• Injustice is a lack of compassion for or activity on behalf of those who are suffering or disadvantaged.

Here’s how these things work together. An externally religious person is proud because his religion is about personal accomplishment and not grace. And, because he thinks he has earned his success, he looks down on people who have less than he has, rather than showing them compassion. Externalism produces pride, and pride is the soil in which injustice grows.

Yes, we should be aware of the lifestyle of the scribes. Their public displays are an attractive form of false godliness. They lack a brokenhearted knowledge of sin, fail to celebrate God’s grace, and never give grace where grace is needed.

God will not be satisfied with our daily Bible reading, regular church attendance, or episodic moments of ministry if underneath these things are pride of accomplishment and a cold heart toward those in need. God will not be satisfied with external Christianity if he does not own and rule our hearts. May grace cause us to give ourselves to nothing less than a true Christianity of the heart.

CLICK HERE for an Amazon link to Everyday Gospel by Paul David Tripp.