Sermon Central
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To Hear, Fear, And Find Him Near
Contributed by Hansel Young on Oct 11, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: personal steps towards revival
To Hear, Fear, And Have Him Near
Why do we need revival? A lady asked Billy Sunday: "Why do you keep having revivals when it doesn’t last?" And Billy Sunday in turn asked her, "Why do you keep taking baths?" Regular revival is necessary to keep a church cleaned up.
A man was hungry for revival in his home church. He sat down and began to write about when the church needs revival. Here are some of his thoughts.
1.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN CHURCH DINNERS ARE BETTER ATTENDED THAN PRAYER MEETINGS.
2. WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE SELDOM THINK THOUGHTS OF ETERNITY.
3. WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE MAKE LITTLE EFFORT TO WITNESS TO THE LOST SINNER.
4.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE HAVE TIME FOR RECREATION AND SPORTS ,BUT NOT FOR BIBLE STUDY AND PRAYER.
5.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN OUR CHRISTIANITY IS JOYLESS AND DRY.
6.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN OUR HEARTS OUR ARE COLD AND OUR EYES ARE DRY.
7.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE ARE BORED WITH WORSHIP.
8.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN BELIEVERS CAN BE AT ODDS WITH EACH OTHER AND NOT FEEL COMPELLED TO PURSUE RECONCILIATION.
9.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE AREN"T EXERCISING FAITH AND BELIEVING GOD FOR THE IMPOSSIBLE.
10.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN THE FAMILY IS NOT PRAYING TOGETHER.
11.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN PEOPLE HAVE TO BE BEGGED TO GIVE AND TO SERVE IN THE CHURCH.
12.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE KNOW THE TRUTH IN OUR HEADS THAT WE ARE NOT PRACTICING IN OUR LIVES.
13.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE WOULD RATHER MAKE MONEY THAN GIVE MONEY.
14.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN PEOPLE HAVE TO BE ENTERTAINED TO BE DRAWN TO CHURCH.
15.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE ARE UNMOVED BY THE FACT OVER 2.5BILLION PEOPLE IN THE WORLD HAVE NEVER HEARD THE NAME OF JESUS.
16.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN CHURCH SERVICES ARE PREDICTABLE AND BUSSINESS AS USUAL.
17.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE AREN"T SEEING REGULAR EVIDENCE OF THE SUPERNATURAL POWER OF GOD.
18.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE ARE MORE CONCERNED ABOUT OUR CHILDREN’S EDUCATION AND THEIR ATHLETIC ACTIVITIES THAN ABOUT THE CONDITION OF THEIR SOULS.
19.WE NEED REVIVAL WHEN WE DON"T LONG FOR THE FELLOWSHIP OF GOD"S PEOPLE.
That’s when we need revival. Do we need revival in the Beaver Valley Church? I believe we do. My heart cries out with the Psalmist, “Lord will you not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee?”
But God says, “Listen, if you want revival then there are some things you are going to have to do. You are going to have to hear, your going to have to fear, you must be of good cheer and last you must have Me near.” Now let’s take those a little slower. Do we want revival? Then first of all:
We need to hear. Read verse 8 with me again. “I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.”
This word “hear” in the original Hebrew, was the word Shama. Shama means to hear intelligently; to give attention and obedience. This isn’t selective hearing. This isn’t listening to the truth and having it pass through one ear and out the other. Shama is hearing and obeying.
Another translation says, “I will give ear to the voice of the Lord.” This is a deliberate decision. For you married men maybe this illustration will help.
There are times in the home, my wife will be talking to me. I’m busy something, perhaps something I think is very important. On the other hand, she is bringing something to me that she considers very important. She expects my attention. I may be nodding my head and saying uh huh uh huh, but she realizes that I am not really listening. “Are you listening to me,” she asks. “I’m sorry, I wasn’t listening.” “I need you to listen,” she tells me. “All right,” I say.
Now, I give an ear, I listen up to what my wife has to tell me. I have my thoughts tuned to what she is telling me. To my best ability, I now need to take action based on what she’s telling me.
If we men will do this for our wives, how much more should we give an ear to our Heavenly Father. He knows the beginning and the end of our lives. He knows the purpose for which we were created. He knows what is harmful for us and what is beneficial. When He speaks to us. It is for our good. That’s why we need to hear intelligently, giving attention and obedience.
May 31, 1889, a lone horseman came galloping through a Pennsylvania town. “The dam is about to break,” he shouted. “Abandon home, head for higher ground, the dam is about to break. Townspeople came to their doors and to their windows. Some scoffed. “We’ve heard that all before,” they sneered. “It’s just another scare in the middle of my busy workday.” The lone rider continued on his way. “The dam is about to break, flee for higher ground.” Busy townspeople shook their heads and ignored him. He finally rode out of town, on his way to higher ground. Within forty minutes an awful roar could be heard in the distance. A wall of water 60 feet high, carrying entire trains, bridges, and factories, was speeding for town at 40 miles an hour. Some individuals already in their homes scrambled for their attics. Some of those homes collapsed drowning their owners. Workman in the streets were caught in the open with no where to go. Many were crushed by the debris. Because they payed no attention, 2,200 people payed the penalty with their lives.
