True Revival and Revitalization
Zeal for the kingdom of God is a noble spirit that should be shared by all believers in Jesus. When history and the Word of God are neglected, however, the schemes of man can prevail in a futile attempt to revitalize languishing Christianity. What should be a matter for prayer, preaching of God’s Word, sacramental faithfulness, and submission to God’s will and ways, becomes a campaign employing practical measures adopted from the world.
The health and strength of the kingdom of God is entirely the will and work of the Spirit of God. For this reason, the church which obsesses on things like leadership development, entertainment excellence, and strategic plans for doing this or that, could not be further from the principles found in the Bible. Stated another way, the spiritual kingdom of God cannot be helped by the carnality of the church.
Even if there was a presumption of using worldly stratagems to attract worldlings into a spiritual reality, it is likely that spiritual reality is, as carnal as the means used to attract them. Proselytes become twice the children of hell.
The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to set God’s people apart from the world. It is the world that uses worldly measures to attract the world into the worldly church. The Spirit is ever in conflict with the flesh. Revival or revitalization must be Spirit and truth. There is simply no substitute.
As long as the church opts to employ men, or today, women of the world to lead the church in the ways of the world, the church will remain worldly, or even degenerate into greater carnality. Full blown perversity does result on occasion, but the devil operates as a messenger of light, so the beliefs and practices to lead the church astray are far more subtle.
The centrality of Christ crucified is the best litmus test. The true Christ can only be known from the written Word of God, so is your church in the Word, exclusively? The car wash at the Bible church is an oxymoron. The water balloon carnival at the Baptist church is not holy water. The lesbian, social activist, speaker at the affirming Methodist church is not in accord with Wesley’s method.
A peculiar people should actually be peculiar. What makes Christians peculiar is their heavenly language and ways, derived from their exposure to the Scriptures. Holiness is the product of the Holy Spirit washing God’s holy nation with holy Writ. A royal priesthood operates in a different manner than mere commoners.
What if revival was not some man-made convention to whip up the emotions of the faithful, but rather, a turning from the foolish carnality in the American church. A spiritual revival or revitalization is a return to true spirituality, that is, a life lived in the Spirit of Christ, empowered by the Spirit, and evidenced by an authentic spirituality. This is a spirituality aligned with the regulative principle of Scripture.
A genuine Christ life is holy. It is marked by the predominance of God’s Word, in a people of prayer, equipped to shine light and reveal truth to everyone they encounter each day. Daily, God’s people must graze on their daily bread. Here is revival, health, and maturation. God works sanctification in those people inclined to His Word. That’s it.
The failure of newfangled movements is legion in number. One can only imagine what would happen if God’s people would turn from their wicked, worldly ways. May God grant grace and repentance to the remnant within the worldly church, to join with those who have no confidence in the fleshly methods of charlatan teachers, games and activities’ coordinators, arts and entertainment specialists, along with those who lead them in the latest corporate leadership schemes.
The alternative to all of this frenzied “other” is Jesus Christ — knowing Him, loving Him, trusting Him, worshiping Him, and witnessing to His revitalization by the Spirit and the Word.
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
August 9, 2021
