Revivals in the Old Testament Part 1: Gilgal - Aired Sun. Sept. 4th, 2011

REVIVALS  - Starting in the The Old Testament - (and more recent examples) – Part 1: Gilgal  - by Rev. Don Crisp

Don Crisp started with the Scripture:  Joshua 4: 19-24, which is about when Joshua was told to take twelve stones out of the Jordan, as they crossed the river to set up camp in safety at Gilgal. He made a monument with those twelve stones, “Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ ²² then you shall let your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land’; ²³ for the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, ²⁴ that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”

It’s important to note that ‘Gilgal’ not ‘Jerusalem’ was ‘home base’ for the Israelites.

It’s also important to note that when we go astray, we need to return to ‘home base’…..  Gilgal.

God speaks to His people in Zechariah 1:3 when He says: “Return to Me declares the Lord Almighty and I will return to you.”   

In other words: Come back to Me and I’ll come back to you. That’s the Message and will be the theme throughout this series on Revivals.

Don speaks about the ‘Great Awakening’ Revival that began in Germany in 1734, and the Revivals that took place throughout the US, including details of the “Great Revival” during the late Fall of 1863 through the Spring and Summer of 1864, during the Civil War.

According to Confederate Chaplain J. William Jones, it is estimated that over 100,000 Confederate and somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 Union troops accepted Christ during the Civil War—representing roughly ten percent of the men that were engaged.

Another great Revival occurred in 1904, when a young ministerial student named Evan Roberts, began to feel that God was sending an urgent message that He was going to pour out a mighty spirit of revival on Wales.

In his home church, Evan Roberts began preaching with a simple 4 point message that he was convinced could help God bring revival:

1. Confess all known sin to God
2. Deal with and get rid of any “doubtful” area of your life
3. Be ready to obey the Holy Spirit instantly
4. Confess Christ publicly

It was the beginning of one of the greatest movements of God in all history. Over the course of the next year and a half, over 1,000,000 people were led to saving faith in Jesus, through the nation of Wales.

The revival eventually made its way across the Atlantic and swept through parts of New York and New Jersey. There was even a daily column in the New York Times called “Today’s Converts” that listed those who were being saved.

Times seem to have totally changed and we have to admit that our world is nothing like that of 1904.

Did you know that in North America, yes, in Canada, pastors, for most part, are not dealing with Revival in their Churches, but rather:

·         indifference

·         apathy

·         tradition

Eight out of ten Americans consider themselves Christians, Gallup said, yet only about half of them could identify the person who gave the Sermon on the Mount, and fewer still could recall five of the Ten Commandments. Only two in ten said they would be willing to suffer for their faith.
(Source: Erwin Lutzer, Pastor to Pastor, p. 76.)

Thomas Trask gives us these statistics

from his book, The Choice:

10% of church members cannot be found
20% of church members never attend church
25% admit that they never pray
35% admit that they do not read their Bibles
40% admit that they never contribute to the church a tithe or an offering
60% never give to missions
70% never assume responsibility within the church
85% never invite anyone to church
95 % have never won anyone to Christ

Yet:

Did you know that there is Revival happening all over the world right now.

Did you know that there are some 20,000 people converting to Jesus Christ every day in China?

Did you know that there are some 32,000 people in Africa converting to Jesus Christ every day?

In this broadcast, Don includes many powerful examples of Revivals through history, and states that it’s time for all of us in North America to return …to Gilgal… (where they stacked 12 stones as a Memorial so that all Israel would remember the miracle).

We must return to our Gilgal –we must return home. It’s time to rebuild, to start over again. It’s time for God’s people to rebuild their lives …by returning to God.

Return to Me declares the Lord Almighty …and I will return to you.  - Zechariah 1:3

To listen to the full broadcast, with much greater detail, go to:

http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/4461/good_news_642_sept04.mp3