Talkin' 'bout Revival

I had a discussion with my cousin M tonight. He's a very theologically astute chappie who, like me, is a little left of center when it comes to dealing with church and church people. I prefer to diplomatically say that we've grown up in Christian circles and we've seen, as Judy Collins would sing it, "Both sides now". Tonight, we were discussing the topic of 'revival' and what it meant

Now and then, you here this word bandied around. In Malaysia, invariably because of the huge Pentecostal/Charismatic influence; it is usually taken to mean manifestations of 'signs and wonders'. However, in the past, this was different things to different people.

Was the reformation a revival? When Constantine instituted Christianity as the main religion in the Roman empire; was that a revival? I would argue "Yes"

Now here is the crux. And it is a contentious one. A revival brings about change. Duh, you say. Of course it does. But most Malaysians have a one-dimensional view of a revival. It goes something like this:

1) My faith gets revived
2) My CG is energised
3) My church and other churches get revived
4) My country gets revived

Sorry, folks. It's a tagline. A slogan. It means beans. You may personally feel revived. Great, so does a group of stressed out office professionals after a motivational course. And lets take it one step further, let's say people are streaming into your church and it's filling to the brim. Now, you say, the country is ripe for a revival. Okay, so why are your numbers still a single digit percentage of the population?

It's because in any true revival, no tells you of the nasty pain and problems that follow. During the reformation, we had the 30 year war. Brutal, nasty stuff. People died as a result. Revival in the U.K, puritans were chased to the New World. In most cases, a real revival is not followed by a period of peace or prosperity; but chaos and strife. Why?

Because anything that is truly of God is offensive to the world. The gospel is offensive to the world because it pokes it's eye and thus engenders a spiteful response. And this only happens when it deems the people who are revived to be a threat.

If all I do is claim that a revival is at hand when my fillings turn to gold; then I run the risk of claiming something that is counterfeit as real. How do I know this? Simple - the world will ignore you as a kook. It will continue to regard the church as irrelevant and inconsequential. You will be shunted out of discussions regarding world affairs, the environment, geopolitics, bio-ethics and the like. You are a primitive child to them and they will be happy to leave you alone in your corner messing about with 'signs' of blessings or the coming rapture or whatever.

Because your voice is inconsequential.

You will know a true revival when there is cost. Unbelievable cost. And what follows will not be the light drizzle that dries up as soon as the clods clear and the scorching sun comes out. It's the rain, the water that goes all the way down to the roots of the heart. And it makes it grow.

That is a true revival.