Why America Needs Revival

Everybody Greg Laurie here. You're listening to the Greg Laurie podcast and my objective is to deliver hopefully compelling practical insights and faith culture and current events. From a biblical perspective to find out more about our ministry.

Just go to our website harvest.org so thanks for joining me for this podcast go back in the beginning of the new millennium, there was a buoyant optimism among Americans about the future a 28% of Americans said they were dissatisfied with the way things work in 69% were very satisfied. There was your 2000. Fast forward to today recent poll reveals that 90% of Americans are dissatisfied with our situation. Wall Street Journal did a poll that revealed that 73% of Americans believe the US is in the state of decline. This is interesting because we have this moral breakdown in our country and yet we have this belief in God.

This is the amazing contradiction of America.

For instance, the latest polls reveal what we've always known 94% of Americans believe in God, 84% of Americans believe that Jesus is God. 66% of Americans think they made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ. 31% of Americans describe themselves as born-again, more than three quarters of Americans believe that the Bible is a word of God, so that sounds good right so what is going on with our culture because in another poll revealed that 69% of Americans believe that there is no such thing as absolute truth. How is it that almost 70% of Americans can say there's no such thing as absolute truth. While at the same time, the same amount of Americans say that the Bible is the word of God Houston we have a problem what's going on here.

This is why we see what we see today. I think many of the social ills in our country can be directly traced to the breakdown of the American family know there was a day when children being born out of wedlock with the exception not the rule. Read recent stat that said more children are born out of wedlock.

Now that are born in a family with a husband and wife of the whole American families being redefined. It's been challenged every single day people are seen living together. It's the same as being married or a homosexual relationship as long as it's loving and nurturing.

That's the same as a man and a woman together in this great experiment that were engaging in right now is a country is already producing a lot of problems you know most of the studies reveal that the problems of developing a young person's life go back to a broken family and specifically to the absence of a father lesson that these stats 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes.

90% of all homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes 71% of high school dropout from fatherless homes 85% of all use sitting in prisons today are from fatherless home.

The breakdown of the family that God established it's been said that a family can survive without a nation but a nation cannot survive without the family, so we've sown the wind as the Bible says now are reaping the whirlwind.

So we have two options. We have judgments or revival now what do we mean when we say revival. This is very important because we throw this word around a lot. For some people. When you say revival you might envision a bunch of people in the church there hot sweaty then there screaming and yelling and there might even be a few snakes being passed around Tuesday for others and for others, they might just be assigned out of the local church that says revival meetings this week only started seven ends at nine. Now you may be having outstanding meetings and you can call them revival meetings of the one, but they're not in the strictest sense of the term true revival.

So what is revival what we mean when we say we need a revival.

CH Spurgeon defined revival as follows quote is to live again to receive a get a life which is almost expired to rekindle into a flame. The vital spark which was nearly extinguished" is to come back to life again another set revival is a time when heaven draws closer to work. Is he revival is for the church only say revival will really say that God's people need to get back to living the Christian life as it was meant to be lived and if we are revived. Will that impact our country so revival starts in the church and revival starts with you. Revival is only for the believer again to quote Spurgeon to be revived is a blessing which can only be enjoyed by those who have some degree of life, those with no spiritual life or not cannot be in the strictest sense of the term subjects of revival are true revival is to be looked for in the Church of God so the church as a whole needs revival, but harvest Christian Fellowship needs revival.

Let's personalize it. You need revival and I need revival what is revival, one person defined it as follows revival is a beginning of new obedience to God. So let's look at you and look at myself for a moment and ask the question how my doing right now spiritually was there a time when my feet was stronger than it is today. Maybe a time where I just love the word of God love to open it every day and read what it had to say. I couldn't wait to hear the word of God taught I just filled my heart and mind with God's word all day long all night long. Is it still that way, prayer maybe permit something that you love to do, you found yourself praying throughout the day you wake up in the middle of the night and you would be praying prayer to you was second nature was like breathing, is it still that way today, being a part of the church and out.

There was a time when you love to go to church on Sunday morning and then he would go to a midweek study then he would go to another study you couldn't get enough. You were disappointed when the sermon ended. Now you're watching your clock up to Greg. Don't go long and maybe you skip church last week of the week before because all you're so busy and it's all right with the second. You need revival do you need to come back alive and get back to a place where you were before that you have left. Martyn Lloyd Jones defined revival this way. Revival awakens in our heart and increased awareness of the presence of God. I do love for God a new hatred for sin and a hunger for his work that describe you right now you have a hatred for sin and a hunger for his word also might say we know what Greg I'm actually happy with the way that I am.

I don't think America needs your revival and I don't think that I need revival either well you know what that's her choice. You don't have to be revived.

If you don't want to be.

Leonard Ravenhill said, quote as long as we are content to live without revival. We will," but listen it to be the hard cry of every child of God, for the Lord is sin and awakening to our nation.

Have a good 32 says I've heard all about you, Lord. I'm filled with thought by the amazing things you've done in this time of our deep need revive your work as you did in years go by. Show is your power to save us, and in your anger. I remember your mercy, so he say Lord we want to see it again. All we've heard about the good old days we read about the great awakening we want to see it again. Lord, revive your work ever prayed a prayer like that so many 56 is will you not revive us again two people may rejoice in you. Yes, America has two options judge mental revival.

What concerns me as I study the Scripture and I look at Bible prophecy.

I can't find America the undisputed superpower. At present on the face of the planet. We can find smaller nations like Iran in of course, Israel. Perhaps we can find China and Russia there is no passage that you can see clearly is speaking of American I've spoken with a lot of friends that are experts on this topic and we we've looked at this it in depth in the really is no definitive scripture about America in the last days scenarios. I think one thing is clear where not there as we are now I'm not saying there won't be in America in the last days but it's going to be a different America than it is right now so why is this will let's consider some options number one, it is possible that America could be devastated by a nuclear war is horrific of a scenarios that is you cannot dismiss it. We've always had our classic enemies like a Russian China and others. But now we have rogue nations like North Korea developing nuclear weapons with Iran that is developing and threatens to use that weaponry not only against Israel threatening to wipe her off the face of the earth. They threatened to use those nukes against the United States as well. Then there are nuclear weapons are unaccounted for after the breakup of the Soviet union if one of those weapons are more ended up in the hands of the terrorist group were detonated in a city would make 911 pale in comparison so we can say it would never happen. It could happen. Let's pray it never will. Number two, we simply declined as a world power.

So the reason we made up by an American Bible prophecy as we decline as a world power as we become more secular, systematically, for all practical purposes, eliminating God from our culture and our society. We have the collapse of a country we have perhaps a collapse of our economy. We know this much. The Bible teaches a new superpower is going to emerge in the last days identified as the antichrist and that antichrist is getting up 10 nations in federated behind it could be that the United States is marginalized as a world power or an economic power that we just fall in line with the other nations along with antichrist but I have 1/3 scenario that I tend to prefer the reason we may not find American Bible prophecy is because we have a massive spiritual awakening that spreads across our country so many Americans believe in Jesus Christ, that when the rapture happens.

A good portion of our country is gone and that explains what were not a player play this out for a moment, 66% of Americans claim to be born again right okay let's be conservative and round that up to 50% others approximately 311 million people in America today. So around have that much to say 150 million Americans are Christians, but I think that still implausible. So let's be super conservative and and trim it down and just take one part of that. Let's say that there are 15 million Americans that are actual Christians and followers of Jesus Christ of you.

Here's a question you think it would affect our country.

If in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye 15 million people. People in industry, government, the military, business, agriculture, finance, education, medicine, and communication. Suddenly disappear Hollywood beam would be largely untouched but other industries would be impacted dramatically. You can see why America is not on the last day scenario everybody Greg Laurie here.

Thanks for listening to our podcast in the learn more about harvest ministries. Please subscribe and consider supporting this show. Just go to harvest.org and by the way, if you want to find out how to come into a personal relationship with God.

Go to know God.org that's key NOW GLD.org