Prepare the Way!

“Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts. “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderers’ soap. He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the Lord An offering in righteousness. “Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem Will be pleasant to the Lord, As in the days of old, As in former years. And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness Against sorcerers, Against adulterers, Against perjurers, Against those who exploit wage earners and widows and orphans, And against those who turn away an alien— Because they do not fear Me,” Says the Lord of hosts. “For I am the Lord, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.

Mark 1:1–3 NKJV

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in the Prophets: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, Who will prepare Your way before You.” “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’ ”

We Need Revival

America needs revival.

Our cities and communities need revival.

Our churches need revival.

Our families need revival.

Our hearts need revival.

Almost everyone agrees that we need revival

Are we preparing for the revival that we need?

Christian history reveals that preceding any revival or move of God, someone was preparing the way of the LORD.

How do we “PREPARE” for the Lord to come in glory?

P-R-E-P-A-R-E (Acrostic)

P: PRAYER

2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV

if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

God begins to move toward us in power when we move toward Him in prayer.

Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman: “Revivals are born in prayer. When Wesley prayed, England was revived; when Knox prayed, Scotland was refreshed; when the Sunday school teachers of Tannybrook prayed, eleven thousand young people were added to the church in a year. Whole nights of prayer have always been succeeded by whole days of soulwinning.” [Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman [Quoted in E.M. Bounds on Prayer (New Kensington: Whitaker House, 1997), p. 95]

“All true revivals have been born in prayer. When God’s people become so concerned about the state of religion that they lie on their faces day and night in earnest supplication, the blessings will be sure to fall.” [E.M. Bounds [E.M. Bounds, E.M. Bounds on Prayer (New Kensington: Whitaker House, 1997), p. 98]

R: REPENTANCE

Mark 1:14–15 NKJV

Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”

We must turn from our wicked ways. Unfortunately, many do not understand the wickedness of their ways because the culture has embraced sin as normal and acceptable. We have lost our ability to blush at sin.

We must have an encounter with the living God and return to the standard of His holy Word.

E: ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE

Isaiah 6:1–5 NKJV

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!” And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke. So I said: “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, The Lord of hosts.”

"Time is short. Eternity is long. It is only reasonable that this short life be lived in the light of eternity." --Charles H. Spurgeon

P: PREACHING

1 Corinthians 1:20–21 NKJV

Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.

Romans 1:16 NKJV

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

“The Bible does not ask to be vindicated. Its only demand is that it be proclaimed. It requires no bodyguard of critics or scholars for its protection. It does not come into court with advocates to try its case. The Bible pleads its own case. It will vindicate its divine claims, if it can get preachers to proclaim it.” [Bounds, E. M. Powerful and Prayerful Pulpits, p. 60]

A: ANOINTING

Zechariah 4:6 NKJV

So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts.

Acts 10:38 NKJV

how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.

Acts 1:8 NKJV

But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

The anointing is the power of God’s Spirit working through us to break the devil’s power and to accomplish His supernatural work.

R: REVIVAL

Psalm 85:4–9 NKJV

Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your anger toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your mercy, Lord, And grant us Your salvation. I will hear what God the Lord will speak, For He will speak peace To His people and to His saints; But let them not turn back to folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, That glory may dwell in our land.

“Revival is the miracle that keeps the ship from going down.” —Michael L. Brown

“Don’t get upset when revival comes to get us out of our rut. That’s its purpose.” —Michael L. Brown

“Revival is simply New Testament Christianity, the saints going back to normal.” –Vance Havner

E: EVANGELISM

Matthew 28:18–20 NKJV

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

We must become more intentional and engaged in reaching people with the gospel before it is eternally too late.

When the church gets revived and the lost get saved, we will see a sweeping spiritual awakening that can change our churches, communities, region, and nation.

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