“Revival”

Intro. Over the past few months I, along with others, have been talking about the coming revival.   Today and next Sunday I want to minister on “Revival”.   I pray  your hearts will be stirred to hunger for this extraordinary move of God.  

Text:  Psalms 85:6, “Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?”

Revive=to return to consciousness or life : become active or flourishing again: 1 : to restore to consciousness or life. 2 : to restore from a depressed, inactive, or unused state : bring back. 3 : to renew in the mind or memory.

Romans 8:18-19,  “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”

 “We are standing on the threshold of global revival” are some words the Spirit spoke into my spirit 4:30 AM at a quaint little hotel in Santa Paula, CA.

I believe there are many within the church that are tired of the uninspired, lifeless meetings that are being replicated across the country that we call having church.  There is being birthed in many a desire for something that gives substance to the time that men are giving on Sunday morning to their God.  Something that will help them have faith in God…faith in themselves…faith in others…faith that they will be able to overcome the obstacles that inevitable come their way every day.     The church is not producing it!   We have ended up with misdirected pursuits…pursuits that are depleting, diluting and destroying the church instead of reviving it.  

History bears out there are people who have made a mark on their generation because of a great move of God but through time they became so caught up in their own organizations.  They ceased to function as an organism that God could work through to bring life and light to a spiritually darkened world.  I pray today that we, the church of this hour that God is raising up, will not allow itself to follow the paths of self-destruction that so many have followed. 

  Note what some are saying “ Revival “ is….  

*Revival is an infusion of new spiritual life imparted by the Holy Spirit to existing parts of Christ’s body.”  Richard Lovelace

*Real revival does not begin with joyous singing. It begins with conviction and repentance on the part of Christians.” Vance Havner

*Revival is not just an emotional touch; it’s a complete takeover!” Nancy Leigh Demoss

*Revival is the visitation of God which brings to life Christians who have been sleeping and restores a deep sense of God’s near presence and holiness. Thence springs a vivid sense of sin and a profound exercise of heart in repentance, praise, and love, with an evangelistic outflow.” J.I. Packer

*Revival is a divinely initiated work in which God’s people pray, repent of their sin, and return to a holy, Spirit-filled, obedient, love-relationship with God.” Henry Blackaby

*“Revival is a renewed conviction of sin and repentance, followed by an intense desire to live in obedience to God. It is giving up one’s will to God in deep humility.” Charles Finney

*In revival, God is not concerned about filling empty churches, He is concerned about filling empty hearts.” Leonard Ravenhill

I.   The Steps To Revival (Process):   Ps. 85:6,Will You not revive us again, That          

     Your people may rejoice in You?” (A Request.)  In this we see the ‘first steps’ for     

     Revival.

    

    Step One – The Need:  The desire itself is the admission of need.  There must be   

    an admission of need to see revival.  In this verse we see that David has looked 

    around and determined they needed something they had experienced in the 

    past…they needed a  ”God to do it again” moment.

  

    I think I can say, without fear of contradiction, that if we look around we see 

    evidence that we need re-viving. We need a God do it again moment!!

  The Evidence…We live in the time of the “Cultural Christian”… someone born into    

  a Christian family, raised going to church, but without any personal relationship with  

 Jesus.  

A main stay for the Christian, and must still be, is knowledge of the Word of God but the “Cultural Christians” rarely if ever reads the Bible.  This has resulted in gross Biblical illiteracy and the un-doing of doctrine plus producing a powerless, purposeless, person who has the title Christian but doesn’t manifest the lifestyle.

Acts 1:8 said “you will receive power after the Holy Ghost has came upon you and you will begin to produce!!!”  My prayer is for God to raise up a generation that sees the need of that power in their live today…a power that will help them storm the gates of hell and take back what the devil has stolen!!

Step Two: Desire, “Will you not re-vive (Latin re=again or again and again) us again (another time; once more)”.

Step Three: The Purpose.….. “that Your people may rejoice (feel or show great joy) in You.

Conc.  In my opinion REVIVAL is not something that may happen…it is something that is going to happen.   If you are ready to experience what God has destined us to be part of…if you are willing to take the steps I have shared today…then get ready it is coming and can and will be the beginning of something that God has destined us to be a part of…this is your time.

 


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Identity Crisis

“Identity Crisis”

Note:  The following is a series I am teaching  in Wed.’s Word Studies w/ Pastor.  I pray it will be an encouragement to you as well as a directive.  We are who we are because of who God says we are…we can do what we need to do because God says we can.  Never believe differently.

                                                    *********************************************

“Identity Crisis”

I firmly believe that one of the main reasons that many Christians remain in captivity after salvation is because of an Identity Crisis.   A crisis that is brought on due to… # 1 Failure In Realizing Who They Are In Christ # 2 Accepting Who They Are Based Upon What The Word Says.  Hosea 4:6 says,   “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge….” 

It doesn’t matter who or what others say you are… it doesn’t matter what the devil says you are… It is what the Word/God says.  In truth it doesn’t matter what or who God says you are…if you don’t accept it you will continue to fight the same battles you have been fighting for years.

I. Let It Go: The first thing you must do after salvation to be able to go forward is to …..let what was stay what was not what is….just let it go!

You say “but you wouldn’t say that if you knew my past.   I would say what God would say…”What past?”

According to God, the Creator, you don’t have a past…5 2 Cor. 5:17,  “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

II. The Word Defines Us:  God’s Word concerning each of us is irrevocable.

Deuteronomy 4:2 “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take anything from it”

Proverbs 30:6″Add thou not unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be found a liar”.

Revelation 22:18-19, “For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”

III. The Word Says…

*I am complete in Him Who is the Head of all principality and power (Colossians 2:10). “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.”

*I am alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:5). “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),”

*I am free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2). “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

*I am far from oppression, and fear does not come near me (Isaiah 54:14). “In righteousness you shall be established; You shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; And from terror, for it shall not come near you.”

*I am born of God, and the evil one does not touch me (1 John 5:18). “We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.”

*I am holy and without blame before Him in love (Ephesians 1:4; “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,”

What I Have…Because of Him:

*I have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16, “For “who has known the mind of the LORD that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.”

*I have the peace of God that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:6-7, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

*I have the Greater One living in me; greater is He Who is in me than he who is in the world (1 John 4:4).

*I have received the gift of righteousness and reign as a king in life by Jesus Christ (Romans 5:17, “For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.)”

*I have received the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus, the eyes of my understanding being enlightened.  Ephesians 1:15-18, “Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,”

*I have received the power of the Holy Spirit to lay hands on the sick and see them recover, to cast out demons, to speak with new tongues. I have power over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means harm me.  Mark 16:17-18,“And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

*I have put off the old man and have put on the new man, which is renewed in the knowledge after the image of Him Who created me (Colossians 3:9-10, “Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,”


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What Is On The Horizon?

What Is On The Horizon….

“I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!” Lk. 12:49

The Vision…

A few weeks back, while n prayer in the sanctuary at MC, I was shown what is on the horizon for the church.  The hungry church…the praying church…the purified church…the hearing/seeing church.

(A Note of Clarity:  The Church = each born-again child of God who understands and knows that we r who we are because of Jesus’ birth, death, resurrection and ascension.  He is now and will forever be the only way to the Father.)

“I saw a pile of smoldering embers; as I looked closer I could see the white dust, a residue of what had been, proof that in the past a fire had once been there but had lost something to burn and seemingly left nothing but the proof of the past fire.  But then I felt the urgency to look closer, under the proof of the past fire, the dust, I saw some glowing ember, .some very small particles that still had the fire in them.  As I stood gazing at the smoldering embers a wind began to blow across ‘what was’, the dust of the past fire, the dust was blown away, the wind continued to blow upon the small glowing embers and suddenly a fire burst out.  As I stood there the fire began to grow in intensity. As it grew I began to see people start noticing the fire and were drawn to it’s flames.  The higher the flames grew the further away it could be seen and it became like a magnet to those who saw it.  People began to come from far away places…large crowds of people…they came to see and experience the fire.

This morning, 7/17/18, my spirit was drawn back to that vision and I heard these words…”It will begin with a gentle breeze and will then grow n intensity”.

To the hungry…the thirsty…Pastor or parishioner…get ready the gentle breeze, if it hasn’t’t already started blowing, it is about to begin and then the Wind.

(If this resonates with your spirit…share it with others.)


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Doing Whatever It Takes

“Doing Whatever It Takes”

There is no doubt a great future is ahead for those who follow Christ; seeing people turn to Jesus, national and international revival, signs following those who believe, miraculous interventions (ElShaddai manifestations), those sick healed are but a few of what is possible.  The question is…are we willing to “Do Whatever It Takes” to see these things happen?  I pray the following will give a some insight into what we must do…  

 Phil. 3:13-14, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do,forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.  I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” 

He, the devil, isn’t threatened by your past…but by your future!  He knows the best is yet to be!!   

I. Aims/Goals – ‘I press toward the goal’:    ’if you aim at nothing you will hit it every time.’

Until we can see what we are aiming for the journey there will be impossible to achieve.  

Goals/prizes are the impetus for what we face and have to go through to get to the award day.   

II. Achieving What You Are Aiming For:   Practice….practice….practice!  

a.  “I have not apprehended”.…  None of us have arrived.   We are and will always be in the process of becoming.  

b. ‘forgetting what is behind’.  

1. Forgetting the accomplishments of our past pursuits. 

The end of anything is the beginning, the open door, of something bigger and often better but not often easier.  

2. Forgetting the pains of the past and especially those who inflicted the pain.  

It is hard to forget as long as there is a face to put on the pain.  But we will never move beyond the moment of the pain until we begin the journey of forgetting.

c.. ‘I press (strain) toward (facing forward…refusing to live life looking in a rear view mirror)…’  

In the pursuit of anything of value pressure is an inevitable part of the process but the reward by far out weighs the pressure.  

Conc. What about you?  Is there something you want enough that you are willing to practice…practice…practice…to  go through  “Doing  Whatever It Takes?”

It will not always be easy but it will be possible.  


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Messenger Church strives daily to become a church that promotes Christ, not a religious concept; that promotes relationships, not religion;  that promotes the power of God, not programs.


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Messenger Church


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Opportunities to Connect

The Sunday Experience
Sunday 10am & Prayer at 6:pm
Come Experience the Presence of God through Word, Worship & Community. 
Loving God. Loving People.
 
MC KIDS
Sunday 10:am
Wednesday 7:pm
Kids ages 5-12 years old encounter the love of Jesus in a way that speaks directly to their Heart.
 
Word Studies with Pastor
Wednesday 6:pm
Pastor rhodes breaks down the word of God in a practical and relevant way.
 
MC YOUTH
Wednesday  7:pm
Students from 6th to 12th grade gather together to worship & experience the Presence of God. 
“A Family On Fire”
 

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What are your personal interests? No matter….there is a place for you at MC. There are many ways you can contribute. We are committed to helping you use the gifts God has given you to love God, love people, make disciples and make a difference.

Here are some of the areas MC has for you to be involved in:

  • Worship Team
  • Musician – Adult / Youth / Children
  • Audio/Video Team
  • Ushers/Greeters Team
  • The Journey Childrens Ministry – Teacher, Volunteers
  • Example Ministry – For Children, Youth or Adults
  • 602Ignite Youth Ministry
  • J.A.M. – Teacher/Helper
  • Website Administration
  • Touch Ministry (Outreach Ministry Team)
  • Office & Administration – Volunteer Help – on call
  • Nursery/Toddler Care
  • UnderShepherd Ministry
  • Many other areas
  • 24 HOUR PRAYER MINISTRY
Once you’ve fulfilled any requirements for the ministry you’re interested in, you’ll be free to serve in any of these areas. Why not check us out this Sunday and find out for yourself what a great place MC is to belong and to serve!!

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Living In His Presence

Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

 
     I believe stirring within the body of Christ today is a hunger for the presence of God at a level as never before.  Many within the church have grown tired of a religion that is nothing more than performance based.  Many are tired of hearing of life but never experiencing the abundant life that the Word of God promises us can be ours. If you are finding yourself seemingly sitting on the sidelines feeling more like a spectator and not a participator in what God is doing today…then I pray the effect of this word today will stir within in you a desire to pursue the more that God has for you.
 
I.  The Process:  As with all things that come from God there are directions that the Word of God   
   gives us that will bring to light the process that must be adhered to to receive what God has for us.
  To experience His presence we must experience….
 
a. A time of thanksgiving and praise, Ps. 100:4.
b. A time for the penitent to deal with his/her sins in a time of repentance.
c. Sanctification and separation.  I Th. 4:7; Heb. 12:14
d. Prayer, Ps. 141:2
e. A time of Godly sorrow over the condition of, not only fallen man, but also the condition of the hearts of  many within the body of Christ who have willingly laid aside a life of repentance, praise, holiness,  and prayer for the temporal joys of the carnal life.   I Sam. 7:2
 
I believe that once our hunger for God supersedes our hunger for self  we will willingly accept and accomplish these demands of God.  This will be done with a heart of gratitude for His grace that has put our past of sins and failures behind us.  Because of this we can now, with His blessings, step forward into all that He has to offer.  Are you ready?
 
We stand in a unique position, a position of choice if you please. We can keep “Holding On To What Was” or “Step Into What Is”.   It is our individual choice and no one can make it for us.
 
II. Holding On To What Was:  The inability to release what was and step into what is offered has caused many in the Kingdom to miss out on what God has offered.
 
     Note two places in the Word that adds needed gravity to this time of decision.  Matt. 23:37-39 ” O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.   For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. ”  
 
     Lk. 19:44  ” And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.  “
     Israel refusal to except their spiritual need and weakness caused them to miss the greatest opportunity ever accorded man.   
 
     There are, no doubt, many here today who stand on the side of tradition.  You can’t accept change.  You’ve become comfortable as you are for so long until you have accepted that this is the way it should be.  The church world as a whole is infected with this disease.   
 
     It is man made and man orchestrated traditions that keep us bound in denominational warfare, church splits, divisive clicks, and fussing and fighting over isms and schisms that doesn’t even warrant the time of God when He is called on for help.  “ OH HOW THE DEVIL MUST LAUGH AT THE CHURCH WHO PREACHES LOVE AND YET CAN’T LOVE ONE ANOTHER ENOUGH TO GET ALONG. ” 
 
      This very spirit is what caused Israel to miss the greatest visitation of their history.  Look around 
      you friend.  If there are more people lost in your family than found; more people bound that free; 
      most people sick than well……something isn’t working.  And God isn’t broke!!!  
 
III. Stepping Into What Is:    For a brief moment note Isa. 43:19-21, “Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen. This people have I formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise.”
 
     a. A new thing is here…are you ready for it?
     b. It will spring forth…a suddenly will happen.
     c. There are many within the church that will not even know it is happening for has happened.
          Why?  Many are so busy going through the motions of ‘having church’ until they have forgotten 
          the need of ‘being the church’. 
     d. He will make a way in your wilderness…and rivers in your dry places.  This the God who 
         established the laws of nature over-riding those natural laws with a super-natural manifestation 
         for His power.  
     e. Why?  #1. That those who He has formed for Himself will show forth His praise.  #2. Because 
         He cares…He cares about where we are and what we are going through and is willing to do 
         whatever it takes to alter our situation for our good. 
 
 
A Reminder:  “In His presence is fullness of joy!”  Are you hungry for joy…happiness…peace…if so step through veil entry into what He offers.

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