The barrier to revival for God’s people is sin. The confession of our sins and the turning from wickedness is a trigger to revival. The Bible is plain that when we cover or attempt to hold on to our sins we will not prosper (Proverbs 18:3).
I read where D.L. Moody in a meeting said, “If you want revival then let every Christian come forward, kneel and confess his sin!” One man replied, “I can’t remember my sins.” Moody said, “Then guess at them.” Moody remarked it was funny that he guessed them on the very first try.
Revival is an attempt to draw close to our God. That effort always causes the believer to see God’s holiness and his own sinfulness. As we pray for revival we are made keenly aware of the sins that stand between us and God.
The song writer sent it this way: “Nothing between my soul and the Savior, Naught of this world’s delusive dream: I have renounced all sinful pleasure, Jesus is mine, there’s nothing between.” One of my favorite well-worn scriptural passages is I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” In the great revivals when God moved in men’s hearts, bars closed, crime decreased, divorce diminished, and business dealings took on an honest tone.
It is impossible to hide the fact that we are all sinners. God knows, others know, and we are aware of our own personal condition. Proverbs 15:3 states that, “the eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.” How hungry are we to know the blessings of God on our lives? Hungry enough to confess and forsake every known sin? That alone is a giant step toward revival.
Comments are closed.