tag:revivalstudybible.org,2005:/blogs/rsb-blogRSB Blog2023-10-16T09:59:02-05:00Revival Study Biblefalsetag:revivalstudybible.org,2005:Post/66434592021-05-29T08:51:01-05:002023-08-26T21:59:37-05:00David Said In His Heart<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/517825/cde182ad10475c9b666a2d1984c8a24c115f714e/original/screen-shot-2021-05-29-at-8-47-10-am.png/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>I have friends who find it easy to have faith in one area and very difficult to believe and trust God in another. You might think that what they have experienced much of would make them strong to trust for that thing, but negative experiences and especially habitual negative thoughts or even demonic attacks on their thought life makes that and even sometimes things that seem far "easier" in some ways, a real struggle for them time and again. This little reveal about David, the man after God's own heart,at the bottom of page 395 in my <em><strong>Revival Study Bible</strong></em>, shows that none of us are immune from thoughts or stresses that take an otherwise trusting heart, totally given to God, and tempt it to think and speak things that are not consistent with other areas of our faith and trust in the Lord. We all know David was not perfect. We also know that the Lord kept His promises to him every time. I need to continually remind myself of what the Lord has done, both for me and others that I know and know of. <strong><em>I have to check my fears at the door of my prayer closet and remember all the WONDERS that He has done, can still do and fervently WANTS to do in and through us.</em></strong></p>
<p> <br><strong><em>1 Sam 27:1 </em></strong></p>
<p><span class="font_large"><strong>David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish someday by the hand of Saul” </strong></span></p>
<p><br><strong>The thought in David’s heart was false.</strong> He had no grounds for thinking that his anointing would be an empty and meaningless act. On no occasion had the Lord deserted him; he had been placed in perilous positions very often, and each time the Lord delivered him. David could not put his finger on his fear and unbelief. Is this not the same way that we doubt God’s help? Is it not mistrust without a cause? Have we ever had the shadow of a reason to doubt our Father’s goodness? Has He once failed to justify our trust? We have gone through many trials, but never to our detriment. He, who has been with us in six troubles, will not forsake us in the seventh. What we have known of our faithful God proves that He will keep us to the end. Let us not then reason contrary to evidence. <br>Lord, throw down the Jezebel of our unbelief, and let the dogs devour it. (Charles Spurgeon)</p>Revival Study Bibletag:revivalstudybible.org,2005:Post/64692912020-11-03T09:26:33-06:002021-09-24T11:23:35-05:00My Soul Longs, Even Faints For The Courts Of The Lord<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/517825/cb65982555067465c5e6e4229f1a57cfc753d013/original/90665337-2629448480518194-6916768775480016896-n.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p>(This Post was first published as a note on Facebook on March 26, 2020 during the COVID 19 lockdown.)</p>
<p> </p>
<p><span class="font_large">A</span>t times like these we find our lives disrupted and some have time on their hands that tempts them to be irritable, fearful and depressed. Maybe anxious. Maybe even angry. Restless. Yet here we are nonetheless. We have today and that is all God has ever promised. Jesus said "Each day has enough trouble of it's own." How many times did Jesus say “Fear Not!” How many times does the Bible record angels and God Himself speaking those words? Paul said "Perfect love casts out all fear" Do we love God or not? If not, why not? If so, how can we perfect that love which casts out fear? </p>
<p>We can't even know who we really are without doing what it takes to know Him more. We are created in His image and so we can’t know ourselves without knowing Him. How can we be conformed to the image of His son if we have no idea what His Son is like or what He has told us to do and be? We have heard that He loves us and He does. The Bible tells us so. :) But how can we know Him if we don't spend time with him? How can we love Him if we have been avoiding Him? What happened? Did He ask you to do something that you refused to do? Did you stumble and fall and became ashamed to look at Him? Now you have time to talk to Him about it. The world has stopped and you find yourself alone with Him. </p>
<p>As I am here in my office alone, I think about the sudden changes we are all experiencing. Our normal patterns of life have turned on a dime. So, what do we do? Well, what can I do now that I have known I should do more of, but just haven’t made time for because of the "cares of this world." </p>
<p>How can we redeem the down time? Do we hear that still small voice saying "Come away My Beloved?" Is fear drowning out that voice or are you trying to drown it out with the news or Netflix or a good Fantasy Book? None of these things are on the “evil” list, but if you are using them to delay that encounter you know you need to have, then you are hurting Him with your cold shoulder. Put down whatever it is for a moment and Listen again. There it is. That soft whisper. You are loved. His perfect love can fill you up with a trust that will make fear powerless. Faith is really trust, or to entrust. Trust and fear don’t mix well. </p>
<p>Here from page 777 in my Revival Study Bible is something that touched my heart today. </p>
<p>My soul longs, even faints for the courts of the Lord Ps 84:2 </p>
<p>David Brainerd wrote: I long for God, and conformity to His will, in inward holiness, ten thousand times more than for anything here below.… In the morning, I felt my soul hungering and thirsting after righteousness. In the forenoon, while looking on the sacramental elements, and thinking that Jesus Christ would soon be “set forth crucified before me,” my soul was filled with light and love, so that I was almost in an ecstasy; my body was so weak I could hardly stand. I felt at the same time an exceeding tenderness and most fervent love towards all mankind; so that my soul and all the powers of it seemed, as it were, to melt into softness and sweetness. This love and joy cast out fear, and my soul longed for perfect grace and glory. </p>
<p>God doesn’t want your stuff. He just wants you. That’s all He’s ever wanted. All of you. </p>
<p>David Brainerd (1718–1747): revival intercessor, missionary, U.S.A. </p>
<p>“I love to live on the brink of eternity,” said this radical almost son-in-law of Jonathan Edwards, who published postmortem Brainerd’s journal of sacrificial missionary ministry to the North American Indians, which remains today a classic of Christian revival devotion. Brainerd’s agonized prayers and willingness to die for a people to see the love and power of God come to them in salvation has sourced much inspiration. His short but fragrant life saw real revival. RSB page xx</p>Revival Study Bibletag:revivalstudybible.org,2005:Post/64692872020-11-03T09:13:48-06:002023-12-10T12:05:12-06:00The Hebrides Revival<p> </p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/517825/a33274c4325a30459c77f88df44d0bbaab2a7dc4/original/94129992-2690434914419550-730387655728037888-n.png/!!/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
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<p style="text-align: center;">This was originally posted as a Note on Aprill 22, 2020 on the Revival Study Bible Facebook Page</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><em><strong>The Isle of Lewis Revival </strong></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_regular"><strong><em>Clean hands, pure heart </em></strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_regular">PG 723 Revival Study Bible </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">Ps 24:3–4 “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? And who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his sould to falsehood and has not sworn deceitfully.” </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">For months, they had waited on God. Nothing happened, until one night a young man, Bible in hand began reading from Psalm 24, “Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart.” He shut his Bible. Looking at his companions, he said, “Brethren, it seems to me so much humbug waiting as we are … unless we are rightly related to God. I must ask myself: Are my hands clean? Is my heart pure?” He then began to pray.… At that moment, something happened in the barn. A power was let loose that shook the parish from center to circumference.… God had visited them, and neither they nor the parish could ever be the same again. (The Lewis Revival) </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Duncan Campbell on the 1949 Isle of Lewis Revival. PG 742 Revival Study Bible </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><em><strong>When God Comes Down </strong></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">What do you mean by revival? There are a great many views held by people. We say, “Are you going out to the revival?” or “We’re having a revival crusade.” There is a world of difference between a crusade and special efforts to bring Christ to people. But, dear people, that is not revival. I thank God for every soul brought to Christ through our special seasons of blessing, conferences, and conventions. But in revival, the community suddenly becomes conscious of the presence of God in a matter of hours—not days. Something is happening that draws men and women to the house of God. You find within hours, scores of men and women crying to God for mercy. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">You’ve heard the history of the revival of Jonathan Edwards in America, the Welsh Revival, or the more recent Lewis Revival. That is what happened when God came down. Suddenly men and women all over the town were gripped by the fear of God. How did it happen? One evening an old woman, eighty-four years of age and blind, had a vision. Don’t ask me to explain this vision because I cannot—but strange things happen when God begins to move. This dear old lady saw in the vision the church of our fathers crowded with young people and saw a strange minister in the pulpit. She was so impressed by this revelation she sent for the minister. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">The parish minister was a God-fearing man, a man that longed to see God work. He had tried ever so many things to get youth of the parish interested, but not one single teenager attended the church. So what did this dear old lady say to him? “I’m sure, Mr. McKay, you are longing to see God work. What about calling your office bearers together and suggest to them that you spend two nights a week waiting upon Him? You’ve tried mission; you’ve tried special evangelists. But, Mr. McKay, have you tried God?” (Duncan Campbell) </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><em><strong>Hebrides Revival </strong></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">PG 762 Revival Study Bible </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">Ps 68:35 O God, You are more awesome than Your holy places </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">The difference between successful evangelism and revival is this: In evangelism the twos, the threes, the tens, the twenties, and possibly the hundreds make confessions of Jesus Christ, and at the end of the year you are thankful that half of them are standing. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">But the community remains untouched. The public houses are crowded, the dancing ballrooms are packed. The theatre and picture houses are patronized by hundreds. There is no change in the community! But in revival, when God the Holy Ghost comes, when the winds of heaven blow, suddenly the community becomes God-conscious. A God-realization takes hold of young, middle-aged, and old. So that in the case of the Hebrides revival, seventy-five percent of those saved one night were saved before they came near a meeting! (Duncan Campbell) </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><em><strong>We were Like Those Who Dream </strong></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">PG 811 Revival Study Bible </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">Psalm 126:1–2 When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion,We were like them that dream. Then was our mouth filled with laughter. And our tongue with singing:Then said they among the heathen, The Lord hath done great things for them. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">Duncan Campbell spoke the first night in the Barvas Church. Both his sermon and the service were utterly unremarkable. People left feeling “somewhat deflated,” leaving Campbell and two church officials at the door. One refused to leave. Standing still at the entrance, he began to pray loudly and passionately: “Oh Lord, you are a covenant-keeping God and you have promised revival. You must keep your promise. You dare not fail us, You must not fail us. Your honor is at stake.” As he kept repeating that phrase, the power of the Holy Spirit struck him and he fell to the ground. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">Outside the church, the other man began to read from Psalm 126: When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing. As he finished, he, too, fell under the power of the Spirit. Then Campbell stepped outside. He was amazed to see some 700 people waiting to come in and hear the gospel! He began to preach but only managed a very small part of his sermon; the cries of the penitents for mercy were drowning out his words so loudly he had to stop. (Mark Stibbe, Pastor of Father’s House, Trust Watford, United Kingdom) </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">PG 1236 RSB </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><strong><em>The Hebrides Revival in Scotland (1949–1952) </em></strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">God came with power. During the service, tears and suppressed sobs … showed this was no ordinary occasion—that it was the day of the Lord’s power. When the benediction was pronounced a few retired, but the great majority lingered—stood in fact, as if held in a vice or bound with a chain. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">In a moment, as if struck with a thunderbolt from above, a hundred persons were prostrated on their knees sending forth a wail from hearts bruised, broken, and overwhelmed with horror such as will never be forgotten and the solemnity and awe of which will perhaps never be surpassed until judgment day. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">For hours, these stricken, smitten, bleeding souls remained on their knees, unconscious of everything but their own guilt and danger and need of a Savior, pleading and praying with an intensity and fervor which surpasses all description. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">The meeting fell “as still as a grave,” a fearful stillness. This terrifying silence was suddenly shattered by unearthly cries from different parts of the church; people lay prostrate as the Spirit revealed “terrifying and glorious realities.” </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">One well-educated merchant suddenly saw hell open up before his eyes; an irresistible force seemed to be pushing him head first into the abyss. For a moment, he cried in his heart: “My sins! My sins! I am lost!” and he ran out of the church. Later he said, “Had anyone asked me ‘Where are you going?’ I would have answered, ‘I am going to hell.’ ” </span></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><span class="font_regular">For hours in his room, he cried for mercy until God’s promises came to his mind and he seized them. Heavenly radiance spread over his soul and he arose a Christian. He raced out into the night across town and knocked on his business partner’s door. When he opened it, he called, “I have found Christ and have come to tell you!” They prayed together; three days later his partner was converted.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><strong>Duncan Campbell (1898 - 1972): Bible teacher, revival witness, Presbyterian, Scotland. </strong></p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Campbell was used mightily of God in the Isle of Lewis. He heard God's voice speaking to him while awaiting his turn to speak at a convention; following the leading of the Holy Spirit, he caught a ferry to meet with people who prayed expecting he would come, and he witnessed an awesome visitation of the Lord in this community that affected the whole country. RSB Pg xx (contributor biographies) </p>
<p> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_regular"><strong>Here is a YouTube link for the Video about the Hebrides I shared on April 22, 2020 on the RSB Facebook Page. </strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_regular"><strong>I just checked (on Nov 3, 2020) and the link is working.</strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_regular"><strong>https://youtu.be/ZpX0h9hSscM</strong></span></p>Revival Study Bible