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January 1, 2006 AM Service
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Revive Us Again
Jerry W. Carmichael
Church Office:(615)859-4781
Email
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Habakkuk 3:2
"O Lord, I have heard the speech, and was afraid: O Lord,
revive your work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make
known; in wrath remember mercy."
Psalms 85:6
"Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in
You?"
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| Introduction: |
1. As you are well aware at this time of year many make new years resolutions,
the majority of which will fall by the wayside within six weeks.
2. Many Christians will make resolutions to be more faithful, more spiritual--read,
study, pray & meditate, to participate more, more attentive, more of a leader
than a follower, more of a director than an anchor.
3. But it will not work, because resolutions come and go and what is really needed
is revival.
a) Appears 20 times mostly in the Psalms,
b) Never in the N.T.
4. Revival has at least three meanings:
a) To give life, Job 33:4 "The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the
Almighty has given me life."
b) To keep a living thing alive
c) To restore a dead thing to life.
5. In our text: Judah is dead spiritually, and Habakkuk prays that God would
"revive" them to life.
6. All Christians go through dry valleys, periods in which their lives are dull
and weak.
7. Perhaps we can all remember how convicted we were when we became
Christians.
A) The desire to follow Christ
B) The desire to refrain from sin
C) The desire to worship from the heart
D) The desire to do good
8. If we are to bear fruit upward, sometimes we need to take our roots
downward, to re-establish our faith and commitment in the Lord Jesus.
9. Some actions and attitudes which we need to revive from time to time.
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| OUTLINE: |
I. Penitrable Hearts:
A. Acts 2:36-37 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God
has made Him both Lord and Christ-- this Jesus whom you crucified." Now
when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter
and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"
B. Acts 16:13-14 And on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a
riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer;
and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled.
And a certain woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of
purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened
her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.
C. Some people have closed hearts, hard hearts, dull hearts, and calloused
hearts.
D. We need open and pierced hearts-pricked consciences. Ezek. 36:26-27
"Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;
and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart
of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My
statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances."
E. We will never be able to win those around us until we "get right inside"
with God ourselves.
II. Personal Godliness
A. We urgently need a revival of personal godliness.
1) Godliness means "to be devout," One's Godward attitude, motivates one to
do that which is well-pleasing to God.
2) Titus 2:11-14 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all
men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live
sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed
hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ
Jesus; who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every
lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession,
zealous for good deeds.
3) We need a sense of holiness in our lives 1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen
race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession,
that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of
darkness into His marvelous light;
4) We need to be people of devotion to the Bible and to prayer.
5) Brethren, we must each one live unto God if we expect to see the pleasure
of the Lord prospering in our hands. Sanctified men are the salt of society
and the Saviors of the race.
B. Saints draw close to God in Bible study and prayer.
C. We more Elijahs by whose faith the windows of heavens should be shut or
opened!
D. Daily Bible Reading Calendars for 2006:
III. Biblical Truth
A. We need a revival of Biblical truth. John 8:31-32 Jesus therefore was saying
to those Jews who had believed Him, "If you abide in My word, then you are
truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make
you free."
B. 3 John 4 I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the
truth.
C. 1 Pet. 1:22-23 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for
a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable,
that is, through the living and abiding word of God.
D. 2 Tim. 3:16-17 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for
reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God
may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
E. In recent years there have been many attacks on the church of our Lord.
1) People have questioned every teaching about the church, the gospel,
and the plan of salvation.
2) We need Bible for all we believe and all we practice. Nothing else will do.
F. Swallow the book:
IV. Faith at Home
A. Our homes need to be the place where God and godliness reigns.
B. Deut. 6:5-7 "And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and
with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am
commanding you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall teach them
diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and
when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up."
C. Eph. 6:4 And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger; but bring them
up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
V. Fruit Bearing
A. We need saints with minds trained by much time with God in solitude.
B. John 15:8-10 "By this is My Father glorified, that you bear much fruit,
and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also
loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in
My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love."
PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT:
VI. Revive the "HERE AM I, SEND ME!"ISAIAH 6:1-9 attitude!
A. "A mule can't pull while kicking, a fact I'll merely mention. And a mule can't
kick while pulling, which is my chief contention!"
B. In the body of Christ, those who do the most kicking usually do the least
pulling.
C. Those who are the best workers in the church, rarely find time or occasion
for kicking.
D. One of the measures of a growing church is the willingness of members to
volunteer.
E. In the growing stages of a church you see a high level of involvement,
volunteers are easily found, all members have a high level of participation.
F. This comes from understanding the mission of the church, the purpose for
its existence and a desire to help in realizing the goal.
G. Christians start to crystalize when new members no longer understand the
mission and older members start acting as if they have "done their
time" and involvement declines.
H. To correct or avoid this situation, we need to have the attitude of Isaiah
in 6:8 "Here am I send me"
I. There is a process that Isaiah goes through to get from "Let someone
else do it", or, "They are not doing right" or " I am not fit to do
it" to "Here am I send me."
1) He realizes the shear power and majesty of God (1-4).
2) He realizes how small mankind is in the presence of God (5).
3) He realizes that God provides a way of cleansing and purification (6-7).
4) Then, after he is purified, he answers "Here am I send me" (8-9).
J. 1 Cor. 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always
abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in
the Lord.
K. Preach by your hands if you cannot preach by your tongues.
L. When we show godliness, people will want to know more about the tree, that
bears such a crop.
M. 2 Cor. 5:14-15 For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this,
that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, that they
who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and
rose again on their behalf.
N. 2 Cor. 12:15 And I will most gladly spend and be expended for your souls.
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| CONCLUSION: |
1. A better Christian life starts with me.
2. A better church starts with me.
3. A better world starts with me.
4. I can't influence the world until I change me.
5. What will I do to revive my Christian commitment?
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Copyright © 2005-2006 Ivy Point Church of Christ All rights reserved.
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