End Times and the Will of God
“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
This familiar verse of scripture has helped to bring in numerous revivals throughout history. The meaning is clear, and its results cannot be questioned. The course of this verse begins with carnal believers repenting before God. After repenting, there must be a humbling of attitudes before God and finally a turning away from personal sins. An outward lifestyle of holiness before the world must accompany inward holiness before our Lord. God’s answer is to first forgive the sins of His people. Then He can begin the healing of the land - their physical ground first (vs.13) and then their nation.
Revival does not begin when sinners desire to know God. Revival begins with us as believers, turning to or returning to the Holy Spirit. Realizing that we need God’s power more than our own. This power is then used to win souls by spreading the gospel, by word and deed, preaching salvation and miracles, laying hands on the sick to recover. As sinners are then saved and disciples created, the healing of the land begins to take place. The new converts and disciples affect and change the existing political powers. Our highest desire and priority as Christians should be the fulfilling of the great commission. Our love for winning others is also God’s first love. Jesus did not come to first heal the land, although He will one day at His second coming. But He did come to seek and save those who were lost (Luke 19:10). God’s so love gave His only begotten Son for the giving of everlasting life to those who believe in Him. Then healing of the land, individual nations, may or may not take place. God’s plan again: first believers returning to God through repentance, second the spreading of the gospel, then a change in the nation.
Bible Examples of Revival:
Jonah and Nineveh
In Jonah’s day, repentance in the prophet’s heart was needed first. Even with God’s command to go to Nineveh, Jonah ran in the wrong direction. He did not want Nineveh to repent, and he did not want to be the one to take the gospel to them. He knew they would repent but did not want them to (4:2). Then Jonah began to reap what he had sown. A series of terrible situations brought the prophet into the belly of a whale. Jonah then humbled himself, sought God’s face, and turned from his wicked ways. God heard him, forgave him of his sins and deposited him in Nineveh to preach the gospel.
Jonah was not there to change their land first, but to win souls. But a change in Nineveh occurred as Jonah could never have imagined. The entire city repented before God in sackcloth and ashes. Judgment against Nineveh was halted. Repentant hearts brought revival, and revival brought change to their city (3:10).
Paul and Ephesus
In Acts chapters eighteen and nineteen, Paul heard from the Holy Spirit and went to Ephesus. Upon arriving, he found an unusually strong spiritual hunger among the Jews and Gentiles in this universally known heathen city. Sexual orgies went on all day and night in the temple of Diana and silver statues were sold by the millions to visitors to remind them of their time of sensual satisfaction in Ephesus. But when Paul arrived, God worked supernaturally through him to win souls by preaching and performing mighty signs and wonders. After three years, the city was almost unrecognizable. The worship of Diana had mostly changed to the worship of the true and living God. Also, the sale of silver statues of Diana hardly existed. A city with no churches ended up with the largest church in the known world numbering hundreds of thousands. Its pastors included Paul, Timothy, Apollos and John. This one church began six others which made up the seven churches of Asia in Revelation chapters two and three. First came the winning of hungry souls, then a change in the land, the city, and government of Ephesus.
The Course of Revival
Revival does not begin with a change in government, then the winning of souls. Change in governments, the healing of the land, begins with the healing of believer’s hearts, then the winning of souls. In fact, revival can come, and has come in history, without a change in a city or government. Today, revivals in many nations are increasing in results and power, while the nation itself continues to go down under the control of dictators and socialism. Revival comes with repentance of believers who then go out to win the souls of hungry sinners. Every soul won is eternal. But, even if a nation changes, it is only temporary. The only eternal nation on earth is Israel and the only eternal city is Jerusalem. Both Israel and Jerusalem were here before recorded history (Abraham met Melchizedek, king of Salem [Jerusalem] in Genesis 14). And both will exist forever. Jerusalem went down into destruction after Jesus’ ascension and lost its power and prestige while revival was happening and increasing in Gentile countries. Jerusalem reappeared as God’s chosen city over two thousand years later and will remain the home for God’s people - Israel. They will never leave their land again. It will one day enthrone God’s eternal world leader, Jesus. Every other nation will cease to exist, including our own, the United States.
Jerusalem and the Church
“John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” (Acts 1:5-8)
Jesus spoke twice at this moment about the coming of the Holy Spirit and the disciples’ main call to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth. Yet, they interrupted Him after His first mention of the Holy Spirit to ask about their nation and its world importance. “Are you going to make Israel great again?” Jesus brought them back to their main call - winning souls in all nations. He told them to leave Jerusalem and its restoration in the hands of the Father.
Revival began out of Jerusalem and Judaea (Acts 2), went into Samaria (Acts 8), and then into the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 10 and following). Yet, Jerusalem, during rapidly expanding revival, went down and into destruction in 70 AD. It remained that way for over two thousand years. Jerusalem was resurrected in 1948 as the capital of Israel and the home of the Jewish nation. At that time, the end of the Church Age began, and the days of Israel’s return began. These times will overlap until the Church is removed and the days of Israel will fully return.
Our Own National Revival History
The revivals we have seen in our own nation’s history and even before, in Europe, have each seen some national change and some have not. In the United States, we had an outpouring in the early 1900’s beginning in Topeka, Kansas and ending at Azusa Street in Los Angeles. Our nation experienced little change. The Roaring 20’s appeared with a sexual revolution and prohibition was right on its tail. A national depression came in the 1930’s. Then World War Two broke out. A great healing revival came to the United States in the late forties and fifties and a great return to morality began sweeping our country as healing evangelists appeared in tents throughout the countryside and on national television.
But in the 1960’s and early 1970’s political revolt and immorality swept our nation with another sexual revolution. Then the Charismatic Movement came as our nation almost fell apart in the late 60’s. The Charismatic Movement not only saw many millions saved, but also saw many denominational Christians filled with the Holy Spirit and moving in the gifts of the Spirit. This revival was the basis for the Word of Faith Movement at the end of the 1970’s and large, word preaching churches appeared into the 1980’s. Our government was greatly stabilized in the 1980’s under President Ronald Reagan. America again became a world leader, not only in government, but a shift back to morality and understanding of good and evil. But by the 1990’s, into the twenty first century and today, we have seen a rapid degeneration in our foundation of national laws and morality.
No revival in our nation began with a change in government. Almost every revival began in the midst of great problems. Some revivals affected the governing of our nation, others did not.
We Usually Put the Cart Before the Horse
Christian’s today, in the United States, seem to have lost their sense of direction and their spiritual priorities. We want to put conservative leadership back into our city, state, and federal government, but we care little about winning souls. Like the disciples, we don’t want to hear about the reason the Holy Spirit was given. We just want to make America great, again. And that is what most believers are out to do. We are basically trying to do God’s job, expecting Him to do ours. I’m not sure how much I can, or will, change or affect this nation, but I can win souls. I am called and equipped by God to do so. But I am sure if I do not win souls, God will not do it for me. He left that call to His people. The ultimate outcome of all nations is left in God’s hands. He is equipped for it and will do a great job as He removes Satan’s kingdom, all religion, all unbelievers, and the curse on the earth. Then, He will bring in the eternal, global reign of Jesus.
I spoke in a largely attended church not long ago where many members of the congregation were working with local, state, and national representatives to help pass legislation and get good candidates elected and reelected. They spoke proudly about it from the pulpit. Then, when a young staff woman gave an announcement for training and going soulwinning in a desperate part of town, she gave a disappointing report. She said she had asked for this before and only four people came to the event. Helping our nation is good, honorable, and needed. But winning souls is greater, even Biblical, and godly.
Whether you know it or not, soulwinning is easy today. Most people, in our country, know we are in national crisis and are looking for the answers. We have the answers in Jesus our Redeemer. Are we only to tell them to vote for good candidates or is the gospel as real and as powerful as it has ever been?
I know praying for our national leaders is found in the scriptures. I also believe putting concerned parents into the school systems is also important. As well as correctly filling our mayoral positions, governors, state, and national representatives. The Supreme Court and presidential positions are highly important. These things are necessary, in line with the Word of God, and is our moral and civic responsibility as citizens of our great country. But these issues are not the most important. It should be second or third on our list under fulfilling the great commission - seeing people saved then becoming discipled. Souls are eternal. But mayors, governors, and presidents are not. I’m not sure we will care who our president was when we get to heaven or what country we lived in. I am not sure either if there are any crowns in heaven for helping get good candidates into office. But I do read of a soulwinners crown.
