Sun. 29/6/2014
Quarter’s Theme:REVIVAL IN THE CHURCH
Unit 1 Theme: The Necessity Of Revival (Lessons 1-6)
RESPONSIBILITY MONTHS
29/6/2014 LESSON 5
PREPARING FOR REVIVAL
Suggested Hymns: G.H.B. 158, 159
Devotional Reading: PS. 34:11-18
Topic For Adults
WHAT IS REVIVAL
Topic For Youths
YOU NEED THE SPIRIT REVIVAL
Scripture Lesson
JOEL 2:12-14, 15, 16-18
Memory Verse: Now, therefore says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping and with mourning”. (Joel 2:12) NKJV
DAILY BIBLE READING
Sun. 29/6/2014
Tear Down Old Altar, Build New
Judg. 6:25-31
An altar is a place where sacrifices are offered or incense is burned in worship. An altar is raised to a particular deity. The Israelites had forsaken the altar raised to Jehovah, and had built an altar to Baal, to whom they offered their sacrifices. For God to come down and deliver them, the altar to Baal had to be pulled down and in its place, a new altar had to be raised to Jehovah. Today deity to whom we offer sacrifice is whoever or whatever takes the first place in our lives – to whom we devote most of our energy, time, money and love. To experience revival, whoever or whatever has sat on the throne of our lives has to be deposed and we have to enthrone God in its place.
Point of Emphasis: Overthrow whoever or whatever has occupied God’s place in your life, give God His rightful place.
Prayer Point: Father, we enthrone You, come and take Your rightful place in our lives and among us.
BACKGROUND
Revival is the groaning of a burdened heart for God as a true heart searching for
anyone engaged in the work of soul-winning and staying close to the heart of
the Shepherd. God wants to revive you and make you a secret agent of revival and to go around spreading it. We need turning back to God. When the Church comes back to God, the world comes back!
Revival is a sovereign work of God, the heavenly Father in manifesting His glory here on earth. It consists of a powerful intensification by Jesus through the Holy Spirit’s activities of convicting, converting, regenerating and sanctifying large numbers of people for the Master’s work.
NOTES ON THE TEXT
I. RETURN TO GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART – JOEL 2:12-14
Revival begins in the heart and operates through the entire life. God operates through His people to bring revival and use them as ‘agents of revival’. Before someone’s heart is changed, three conditions must happen which include: (1) getting into the light (heart-searching), (2) acknowledging what the light in 1 above reveals (repentance) and (3) walking in the light (obedience). Acts 3:19-20 admonished us to repent and turn again that our sins may be blotted out. This process starts from a genuine, repentant heart. Man started running from God since his fall in the Garden of Eden and it was difficult for man to give God his whole heart, a reconciliation has been initiated by Jesus Christ to reconcile man back to God through genuine repentance which starts from the heart. It means therefore, that before a genuine revival can occur, we must return fully to God with our whole heart.
II. RETURN WITH FASTING AND PRAYER – JOEL 2:15
We need power to face the battles of revival and that is why the word of God states in 1 Thess. 1:5 – ‘our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction.’ Therefore, we need fasting and prayers to combat the forces against revival. We need to wait upon God and pray fervently to achieve our aim which is soul-winning. There is the need to humble our souls with fasting and prayer (Ps. 35:13). With prayer and fasting you commit things to the Lord. Mark 9:29 says ‘this kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting’. Prayer has force ‘to do’ while fasting oils and helps fast track the process. Thank God there is something which makes for spiritual that is more scientific than anything man has accomplished to date and which accomplishes wonders for our spiritual welfare in a very short time and this is fasting and prayer! Without prayer and fasting, every Christian will more or less mark time and fail in their purpose. Fasting and prayer makes it easier to delight ourselves in the Lord – Ps. 37:4 puts it this way – delight thyself in the Lord and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. If we must experience revival, we must fast and pray to bring it down.
III. RETURN WITH HOLINESS AND SEPARATION JOEL 2:16-18
People who are called to God’s service must be separated and live a holy life. There is a standard of holiness and righteousness set by God. To separate means to set apart, disconnect or dissociate.
Holiness is separation from the world and not a list of ‘to do’ and ‘not to dos’. II Cor. 7:17-18 admonished Christians to come out from among them and be separate. Holiness is no less than separation from the world. Whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God – Jam. 4:4. Holiness is separation from unclean-liness. Your effectiveness as a Christian hangs on your concept of what holiness and separation mean.
There cannot be revival without holiness and separation. These two elements prepare us for the visitation of God in revival because God cannot be at home with vessels that are filthy and worldly. Be ye holy, you that bears the vessels of God. Let us prepare ourselves for revival through holiness and separation.
CONCLUSION
Revival will not just happen, it has to be prepared for! When God was to appear to the Israelites in Exodus 19, He requested that the people should be clean, holy and separated. If we are ready to pay the price for revival as considered in today’s lesson, we shall experience revival.
QUESTIONS
1. What are the three conditions that are involved before someone’s heart is changed?
2. What must occur before a genuine revival can take place?
3. How do fasting and prayer enhance believers to delight themselves in the Lord (Ps. 37:4)?
4. Why should believers separate themselves from the world?
5. If we are to experience true revival, what should we do first?
French
DIMANCHE 29/06/2014
RENVERSE LE VIEIL AUTEL, CONSTRUIS-EN UN NOUVEAU
JU. 6 :25-31
Un autel est le lieu où les sacrifices sont offerts ou l’encens brûlé en adoration. Un autel est élevé pour une divinité quelconque. Les Israelites avaient abandonné l’autel qu’ils avaient élevé pour Jehova et avaient bâti un autre pour Baal à qui ils offraient leurs sacrifices. L’autel a dû être renversé pour que Dieu descende et les délivre et à sa place un nouvel autel fut élevé pour Jehova. De nos jours, la divinité à qui nous offrons des sacrifices est quoi qu’ou quiconque occupe la première place dans notre vie, ce à quoi nous dévouons la majeure partie de notre énergie, temps, argent et affection. Pour faire l’expérience du réveil, quoi qu’ou quiconque est assis sur le trône de notre vie doit être détrôné et nous devons introniser Dieu à sa place.
Point essentiel : Détrône quoi qu’ou quiconque a occupé la place de Dieu dans notre vie, accorde à Dieu la place qui lui convient de droit.
Axe de prière : Père, nous t’intronisons, viens prendre ta place de droit dans notre vie et parmi nous.