Revived for Joy Deuteronomy 6 Introduction: Life Action is scheduled to be at Heritage on Sunday, Jan 21 st to Sunday the 28 th. You ll get a schedule this week in the Weekly E-mail. Life Action seeks revival by creating an environment conducive to producing authentic Christians. This isn t something you or I can do. But God can and does do it. Revival isn t something we can schedule or create. It s not a week-long scheduled event. Revival is a sovereign work of God. It normally begins when the Holy Spirit animates the preaching of the Bible, giving us a view of God s holiness and our sinfulness. Convicted about the gap, Christians humble themselves before God, repent of sin and return to loving Jesus first and foremost. The word revival is an Old and New Testament concept. OT - Revive = chayah - "to live," "cause to live," used of restoration to life or well-being. It s also used of preservation. NT "Revive" = anazao - "to live again" (Romans 7:9; 14:9, the King James Version "Christ both died, and rose, and revived. 2 Timothy 1:6 fan into flame the gift of God We find a picture of revival in Deuteronomy 6. First: The General Command 4-5 I define revival as: a sovereign work of God in which the Holy Spirit restores God s honor by reanimating the church s love for Jesus to its appropriate primacy and vigor. Falling in love with Jesus all over again First = primacy - Hear, O Israel: the Lord your God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God Foremost = vigor = with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 1
Second: The Rationale 3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the LORD, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey. God has created us and designed us to work best on his operating system: Scripture. (To use another metaphor) - The best ground to grow your life is the Bible. a) God created us for his glory Isaiah 43:7 - everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. b) He is most glorified by our joy It is a Christian duty, as you know, for everyone to be as happy as he can C.S. Lewis We have a tendency to think that God s glory and our joy are antithetical but they are not. The exhibition of God s glory and the deepest joy of human souls are one thing. Jonathan Edwards Or, we wonder how to glorify God. What does it mean when the Pastor says, Glorify God. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him -John Piper Glorifying God means recognizing that God is our greatest good and that obeying him is in our best interests. c) God is our good Knowing, loving and obeying God are in our best interests. ILL Anyone can nail a hammer with a shoe but it isn t best. People choose to live a lot of differing ways but best is knowing, loving and obeying God. Only God can do for us what only God can do for us vs 20-25 - When your son asks you in time to come, What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the LORD our God has commanded you? 21 then you shall say to 2
your son, We were Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt. And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. 22 And the LORD showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes. 23 And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. 24 And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. 25 And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the LORD our God, as he has commanded us. Third: The Specific Commands 1-2 & 7-25 a) Do what God says 1 Now this is the commandment the statutes and the rules [a] that the LORDyour God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it 17-18 - You shall diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and his testimonies and his statutes, which he has commanded you. 18 And you shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may go well with you, and that you may go in and take possession of the good land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers b) This is what it means to fear God 2 that you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son's son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, If we think about it, we are motivated by what we fear. A student fears failure in class or life and studies to pass exams and classes A child fears displeasing parents and obeys An employee fears unemployment and its consequences and works hard A husband or wife fears being unloved and loves their spouse These are not negative fears. The Bible mentions two specific types of fear. The first type is beneficial and is to be encouraged. The second type is a detriment and is to be overcome. The first type of fear is fear of the Lord. This type of fear does not necessarily mean to be afraid of something. Rather, it is a reverential awe of God; a reverence for His power and glory. However, it is also a proper respect for His wrath and anger. In other words, the fear of the Lord is a total acknowledgement of all that God is, which comes through knowing Him and His attributes. Fear of the Lord brings with it many blessings and benefits. It is the beginning of wisdom and leads to good understanding (Psalm 111:10). Only fools despise wisdom and discipline (Proverbs 1:7). The fear of the Lord leads to life, rest, peace, and contentment (Proverbs 19:23). It is the fountain and life (Proverbs 14:27) and provides a security and a place of safety for us (Proverbs 14:26). 3
1 John 4:18 - There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love Isaiah 41:10 - Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Matthew 10:31 - So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Psalm 56:11 - In God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Once we have learned to put our trust in God, we will no longer be afraid of the things that come against us. We will be like the psalmist who said with confidence Psalm 5:11 - let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Much of life comes down to what you fear. Fearing God brings peace, joy, contentment and fullness. Fearing anything else depreciates your soul. We are talking about God s specific commands 1) Do what God says 2) Fear God 3) Don t forget the Lord 10-12 And when the LORD your God brings you into the land that he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give you with great and good cities that you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, and cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant and when you eat and are full, 12 then take care lest you forget the LORD, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 It is the LORD your God you shall fear. Him you shall serve and by his name you shall swear. 14 You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you 15 for the LORD your God in your midst is a jealous God What happens is that the world is ever-present in our faces. It is very easy to fear the world to obey its rules, follow its values and to forget God and what he has commanded us. Revival revives our love for God to its appropriate primacy and vigor. It reminds us that God is God, that we are his and that God alone can do what only God can do for us. In turn, we repent of loving and fearing the world and return to loving and fearing God. 4
This glorifies God and gives us joy. This can be hard to do from Sunday to Sunday Mark 4:14-20 - The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. 16 And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. 17 And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. 18 And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, 19 but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 20 But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold. How does Satan steal the word from us? a) It doesn t have time to take root 17 b) The cares of the world distract us from it 18-19 Life Action will create a Sunday-Sunday environment for revival by providing concentrated, sustained time in God s word that minimizes distractions and gives Scripture the opportunity to take root in our lives. All of us face these distractions and you ll talk about it in CGs. Conclusion: Only as we know and obey the Bible are we loving Jesus. Only as we love Jesus are we whole people. The challenge this week and the next is the same. Everyone invests concentrated time in preparing your taxes, planning vacations, establishing your 18 calendar, etc. Take one week this January to maximize your potential for godliness. Response Song: The Solid Rock 5
Community Groups: 1 How would you define revival? 2 - Talk about the two aspects of the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:4-5 a) Primacy Speaks to the direction of our love toward God b) Vigor Speaks to the passion of our love heart, soul and might. 3 - Why should we love God first and foremost? a) He is worthy b) He knows best how we work c) It is in our best interest 4 - What does this mean? God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him? 5 - How does our dissatisfaction with God dishonor him? 6 - What are bad fears and good fears? 7 - How is fearing God a good thing? 8 - How is fearing people, life, etc., a bad thing? 9 - Why is it so easy to forget God? 10 - What distractions keep Scripture from taking root in your life? 11 - How can you minimize those distractions? 12 - How can you create an ongoing environment to encounter God in his word? CG Leader, please encourage your CG to attend Life Action on Both services Sunday the 21 st @ 9:30am & 6:30pm Monday-Thursday @ 6:30pm (Friday there are no services), Saturday @ 9-11 Sunday the 28 th @ 9:30 and 6:30pm. 6