In this age of great apostasy the one thing the church needs above all else is revival. However while the Bible speaks lot about end-time apostasy ("When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth" Luke 18:8), what does it say, if anything, about end-time revival. Unfortunately, after the word Anointing, the word Revival is perhaps the second most overused, misunderstood, misinterpreted word used in the Christian world . The Dictionary gives us the precise meaning of the word. REVIVAL - To restore from a depressed, inactive, or unused state. A restoration of force or validity
What Revival is NOT.. Revival is not, as I have heard it amusingly, but accurately, phrased getting your whoop-de-doos' down at the altar. This is not revival. Revival is not a planned evangelical meeting scheduled for the spring or fall. (Valuable, but not revival). Revival is not what has been happening at Toronto, Brownsville, The Alpha Course etc where “people crawling on the floor, howling like wolves, barking like dogs, roaring like lions, going through bodily contortions impossible without the aid of some spiritual power, unable to speak or even remember their names when they try to give a testimony, and worse. Many of those being baptized at Pensacola seem to lose consciousness or shake so violently that they must be carried out of the baptismal tank lest they drown. Others flail about so wildly as to require several men to handle them. Such manifestations were also found in past "revivals" among the Shakers, the Mormons and many other cults. That such things could now be widely accepted as evidence of the Holy Spirit only testifies to the extent of the delusion that is already permeating the Messianic Community!” (Website of Congregation Shema Yisrael)
What Revival Is.. Revival begins with a burden for the Word of the Lord and a sorrow for sins. (Revival worship always brings repentance). These words from A.W. Tozer sums it up perfectly "Revival changes the moral climate of a community." See Section on Revival Revival In The End Times? Opinion is pretty sharply divided on the question of revival in the end times, with the vast majority of conservative evangelical Christians falling into the ‘No Revival’ camp, while many others believe that there will be a great move of the Spirit in the last days… (I am referring to serious students of the Bible, not the lunatic, spiritually weird element that flies off at every tangent). On the face of it those that believe that there will be nothing but apostasy in the last days have some pretty solid Scriptural evidence to back them up. (Far more evidence than those who believe that prophecy, miracles and sign gifts no longer exist. See DETAILS). For example Apologetics Press says… “The Bible does not predict a great endtime …but rather the very opposite: increasing evil, times of peril, a huge apostasy of those who profess to be Christians, false teachings, false prophets, deceptive signs and wonders, and a delusion that will even deceive God's own people if or when possible.”
Quoting (among others) the following Biblical verses.. And because lawlessness will increase, the love of many will grow cold. Mat 24:12 For false christs and false prophets will be raised up, and they will show great signs and wonders so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect. Mat 24:24 But know this, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, not loving what is good, traitors, headstrong, having been puffed up, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from these people turn away! 2Ti 3:1-5 For there will be a time when they will not put up with sound doctrine, but according to their own lusts, they will heap up for themselves teachers, tickling their ears, and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to myths. 2Ti 4:3-4 knowing this first: that mockers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts.
2 Peter 3:3
The Website of Congregation Shema Yisrael says this in an article “Rabbi Paul assures us that the Last Days will be characterized by apostasy, not revival. We are not to be deceived into thinking that the apostasy won't come; it must come first, or Messiah simply will not return! Therefore the teaching that there will be a world wide revival in the Last Days, however well intentioned, is biblically untenable. Paul's prediction can only mean that in the Last Days many professing believers will reject the biblical teaching that apostasy is inevitable”.
Jesus warned several times about end time deception saying, for example.. 'See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name saying, I am the Messiah, and will mislead many'" ... "Many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many"... "For false Messiahs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders; so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect" (Mt. 24:4-5, 11, 24).
Paul stressed this as well (Emphasis Added) Let no one deceive you by any means; for that day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is unveiled, the son of perdition 2Thess 2:3
So the position that there will be no end time revival seems to have strong Biblical support, which begs the question of whether there is any more to it than a superficial reading of the text tells us. There seem to be several points to consider.
The End time Apostasy is Already Here. Apologetics Press also says (No, I am not picking on them, just using their words as an example of what much of the Christian world thinks). “We are warned that the deception that is to come will be so difficult to discern, even those who genuinely love the Lord might be deceived”.
Ummm! Time to wake up? While I suppose that it possible that the apostasy can get worse, I fail to see how it can get much worse. Christianity is at an all time low … scraping the bottom of the barrel as it were. See Good For Nothing Christianity, Grab a Hose and Which Jesus The time is here when “Christians are not putting up with sound doctrine but are according to their own lusts, heaping up for themselves teachers, tickling their ears. (2Ti 4:3 ). Most have turned away from the faith, which was once for all delivered to the saints. It wasn’t bad enough many people were taught that whether we were saved or not was decided in the dim beginning of time and that we have little choice in the matter. That popular preachers preached that no matter what we did and how we lived we would stay saved, a doctrine that led (and presently leads) many to their destruction. It wasn’t bad enough that egomaniacs like Joseph Smith (Mormonism) and deluded people like Charles T. Russell (founder of the Jehovah's Witnesses), Mary Baker Eddy (founder of Christian Science), Charles Fillmore (Unity) each came up with their own brand of religion (thinly disguised as Christianity) and led countless sheep to their doom. It wasn’t bad enough that the leading Christian television station (TBN) harbors heretics and false prophets by the score while commanding a huge following around the world. It wasn’t bad enough that the charismatic movement eventually led to excesses like the Toronto Blessing where people imagine that the more bizarre the behavior, the more ‘filled with the Holy Spirit’ one is. Calling Pentecostal fervor blended with supernatural manifestations and occult activity… Christianity. It wasn’t bad enough that the likes of Nicky Gumbel picked up on this monstrosity, started the Alpha Course and spread it around the world. It wasn’t bad enough that men like Franklin Hall and William Branham gave birth to the Latter Rain/Kingdom Now movement. That men like men such as Rick Joyner, Paul Cain, Bob Jones John Paul Jackson, Marc Dupont, Francis Frangipane and countless others who have now followed their lead … ran with the ridiculous belief that before Jesus can return, the Church must establish the Kingdom of God on earth by taking control over every aspect of life through the establishment of a theocratic government.
No all this was not bad enough.. So Satan took a look around and realized that there were still too many doctrinally solid Christians around, many of them in mainline denomination. It didn’t take him long to figure out that many of these Christians would easily fall prey to one ‘of their own’. Enter Rick Warren, with his dubious doctrine, shocking associations and extra Biblical ideas he has deftly dealt a few more dents to an already very battered building. In a stroke of genius Satan decided he would teach Christians how to ‘Grow their Churches’ which gave rise to organizations like Willow Creek Association (WCA). Unsuspecting churches that frequently use Willow Creek resources, seminars and attend their conferences have not bothered to investigate why Willow Creek directly or indirectly validates people who openly promote Eastern mysticism, humanistic psychology, and radical ecumenism..
Then in a sickening return to the rock from which we came, too many have been convinced that the Roman Catholic church is simply another branch of Christianity and has put out the Olive branch, with many evangelicals, like Robert Schuller, openly proclaiming that it is time to go to the pope and ask what we have to do to “come home”. Additionally the Emerging church has adopted numerous mystical practices which are either a direct legacy of Roman Catholic mysticism or are a deceptive derivative of it. If we take all of the above and couple it with the New Age and Rock Music infiltration of the church you are forced to the appalling conclusion that we don’t have much left. We are as dumb and as dead and as damned as we were when we started out. (Please note that the above references to Satan are largely metaphoric. I have always wondered whether Satan gets far more credit than he is due, Humans being quite capable of making a perfect mess of things all by themselves, with amazing regularity (clockwork precision actually) with or without help from him. The last days apostasy spoken of in many places in Scripture isn’t coming at some vague point in time in the future …. It’s already here. And the tragedy of the matter is that all of these people have no idea how dumb and dead and damned they are. They trip off merrily to their churches, listening to the latest fad on tape by the latest hot shot preacher, attending yet another in a long line of conferences, and retiring to their inner sanctums to ‘get in touch with the Divine’. Jacob Prasch says it well.” “There is no easy way to stop the decline of Christianity in the Western world. It has gone too far for too long. We have been sold down the river by our leaders. All the programs and hype and gimmicks in the world will not being a harvest of souls. That takes rain. But the rain has stopped. Why? Partly because of the sin of society, but mostly because of the sin of the Church. And until there is repentance in the Church, there is not going to be a repentance in the world. Why has the rain stopped? It is not primarily the fault of pornographers or pimps or prostitutes or drug dealers or homosexuals or abortionists. It is primarily my fault, because I know the truth and I have the message that can make the difference. It is our fault, because the church in the West is Laodicea (Rev 3:17). Because we are trusting in this life and this world more than we are trusting in Jesus. It is not raining because of my sin and your sin”.
(If there is any consolation in this very dark time it is that God has reserved a remnant which have not bowed the knee to Baal… ) Which bring me to one of two questions I have asked for a long long time.. in such an apostate situation what in the world would be the point of the rise of an Antichrist? To have the whole world (or a great percentage of it) bow down before him? Why? Most of the world, both Christian and otherwise, is already prostate before one or another antichrist … Satan already has the upper hand in both the secular world and in the churches. While it probably true that a great and powerful world leader whose claims that he is God incarnate will be accepted and who, with the willing participation of most of the world, will usher is a time of unprecedented worldwide deception. However considering that the worldwide deception is already pretty firmly entrenched I fail to see how it will make things much worse, except, perhaps, to draw an unmistakable line in the sand. Unless I am missing something crucial in this scenario, there seems to be little need for an antichrist (from Satan’s perspective). He already has almost all of it in the palm of his hand. However if there is a huge move of God in the beginning of the end and many are turned to (or back to) faith in Jesus Christ and return to the basics in Scripture, THEN I can see why the rise of the antichrist would be necessary. With huge numbers of people turning to God. Satan would have to counter this and what better way than by raising up his own charismatic leader, possibly with great signs and wonders to draw those people back into deception.. However all the human reasoning in the world is fruitless... so back to the crux of the matter… and the second question that has troubled me for a while now...
What Does The Bible Say About an End Time Revival Many of those who do believe that there will be a move of God in the last days refer to the words of the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my Spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh. Joel 2:28-31. (Visions and dreams were God's customary ways of giving special revelations to people in Old Testament times. See Numbers 12:6).
This prophecy was quoted by Peter on the day of Pentecost, which has caused quite a difference of opinion among Christians. For example David Cloud says: “Peter explained to those gathered before him on the day of Pentecost that the events they were witnessing, the tongues whereby "every man heard them speak in his own language" (Acts 2:6) was prophesied by Joel. There are two parts to the prophecy which Peter cited, the prophesying, and the signs in the heavens. Peter tells us that the prophesying was fulfilled in his own day, at the beginning of the church age. We know from history and from Scripture that the last half of Joel’s prophecy will be fulfilled at the Lord’s coming. The heavenly signs are described in Revelation”
Dr David Reagan of Lamb Lion Ministries takes a diametrically opposing position.. “Because this prophecy was quoted by Peter in his sermon on the Day of Pentecost to explain the phenomenon of tongues (Acts 2:14-21), many have assumed that it was fulfilled on that day. That assumption is erroneous. The context before the passage (verses 18-27) makes it clear that there will be two outpourings of the Spirit (the "early and latter rain") and that the final outpouring will occur after the Jews are re-gathered to their land and re-established as a nation. Also, the context after the passage (verses 31 & 32) indicates clearly that the ultimate fulfillment of the prophecy will occur at the time of the Second Coming”. Also See Understanding Prophecy and Typology
Although Peter said that what the people saw that day was what was spoken of by the prophet Joel, it is quite clear that not everything spoken of by the prophet came to pass on Pentecost. No prophecies were made. The promised awesome displays of celestial phenomena were conspicuous by their absence. There was no blood, fire, or pillars of smoke, The sun did not turn to darkness nor the moon to blood. The day of Pentecost was not the day of the Lord that Joel predicted. Another interpretation of Peter's meaning is that part of what Joel predicted was fulfilled on Pentecost, and the rest awaits fulfillment in the future day of the Lord. This view makes the most sense as the Hebrew idea of prophecy is a pattern that is recapitulated; multiple fulfillments with one ultimate fulfillment - which is how Jewish prophecy was understood. Each of the multiple fulfillments is a type of and teaches something about the ultimate one. On the other hand western ideas of prophecy involve prediction and fulfillment. (DETAILS). The Timing of Joel’s Prophecy is Extremely Important. Both Revelation 6:12 (the 6th seal) and Matthew 24:29 (the events at the end of the Tribulation which immediately precede the Messiah’s return) seem to speak of the same event as Joel did. Both make similar references to the sun being darkened and the moon turning to blood. And I saw when He opened the sixth seal, that there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the whole moon became like blood. Rev 6:12 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give its light; and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth shall mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Mat 24:29-30.
In other words, Joel 2 does not place the last days outpouring of God’s Spirit until just before the 6th seal, at or near the end of the Tribulation, just before the coming of the Messiah. That there is a Latter Rain is without a doubt. The Acts 2 outpouring of the Holy Spirit was the "early rain" but the "latter rain" outpouring of the Holy Spirit will occur at the end-times.
What Exactly Is The Latter Rain? “In ancient Palestine, the yearly seasons included these early or former and the later or latter rains as part of the rainy season from about October to March-April. The grain crops were therefore planted to grow in the rainy season. The former, or early rains came during Fall or Autumn, in October-November, and from these rains came the first harvests of early spring when the farmers were able to enjoy the first fruits of their crops. These early rains were important because they helped to germinate the seed which had already been sown. The latter rains came during spring, between February and March-April, and from these normally heavier rains the main crop harvests were gathered. These later rains therefore ensured that the crops both the grain crops each year as well as the usual annual summer crops and fruits would fully mature for harvest”. (Hubert Krause. The Former and The Latter Rain)
What Then is The Purpose of The Latter Rains? Since it is clear that the Latter Rains in Israel served to bring the crop to maturity.. It is not too much to apply the same principle to the spiritual Latter Rains. These latter spring rains will bring the crop to maturity, will take place just prior to the return of Jesus Christ. In the word of Hubert Krause “Just as the Word of God always fulfills His purpose, I’m sure that we understand, and the Day of Pentecost in 30 AD so illustrates, that God never gives of His Spirit purposelessly; rather, He pours it out powerfully to fulfill His great Plan. What then is this future outpouring of the Spirit of God that is depicted by these latter rains? And just as these spring rains are unleashed more abundantly upon the land of Palestine than the earlier autumnal rains, can we expect an even greater work of the Spirit in and through the first fruits of God prior to and during the period of the tribulation and the Day of the Lord immediately preceding Christ’s return—a work that continues on into the Millennium and accelerates as the righteousness of God fills the earth? Let’s recall some prophetic considerations: Did not Jesus Christ tell His disciples that at a time of great persecution and earthly upheavals “this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” (Mt 24:14) ? How significant is it that among the powers of the end-time two witnesses as they prophesy and terrify the entire earth is included the means to shut up the sky to prevent the rain from falling (Rev 11:5-6)—just as God did to punish the rebellious Israelites of old? Is the physical rain held back at precisely the time of a renewed outpouring of the latter spiritual rain upon the saints? Daniel tells us that during a period of desecration of what is holy the final Babylonian power will have cause to vent its fury against the people of God (Dan 11:30), a people who resist the evil of the system because “they know their God” (v 32). This is a time when “those who are wise”—those who really understand who God is—“will instruct many” (v 30). It is a period of purification, of refining (v 35), in preparation for the Kingdom to come. Are many of the saints brought to spiritual maturity through this experience?’
And it is quite likely that, the momentum begun by this latter rain will continue on into the Millennium. Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in Jehovah your God; for he giveth you the former rain in just measure, and he causeth to come down for you the rain, the former rain and the latter rain, in the first month. And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the canker-worm, and the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and shall praise the name of Jehovah your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you; and my people shall never be put to shame. And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am Jehovah your God, and there is none else; and my people shall never be put to shame. [Joel 2:23 -27]
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