Revive Us - Part 2 of 2

The Baptist Bible Hour now comes to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. O for a thousand tongues to sing, my great Redeemer's praise! Thou the wisdom of my God and King, thou triumphs of his grace!

This is LeSaire Bradley, Jr. inviting you to stay tuned for another message of God's sovereign grace. Savior, visit thy plantation. Grant us, Lord, a gracious reign. All will come to desolation, unless thou return again. Lord, revive us! Lord, revive us! All our health must come from thee! He no longer at the distance, shine upon us from on high.

Lest for want of thine assistance, every plan should group and die. Lord, revive us! Lord, revive us! All our health must come from thee! Dearest Savior, hasten hither, thou canst make him bloom again. O, permit them not to wither, let not all our hopes be vain. Lord, revive us! Lord, revive us! All our health must come from thee! I want to thank each of you who have taken time to write and let us know that you have listened to the broadcasts. I'm sure there are many of you that listen that never have written. Take time, if you will, to get a letter in the mail to us and just let us know how the Lord has used the messages in your life.

And certainly we appreciate it when there is support. This is a listener-supported program, so if you can help us at this time, we'll be very grateful for that. Our address is the Baptist Bible Hour, Box 17037, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. Today we continue the message entitled, Revive Us Again. The text is Psalm 85, verse 6. Wilt thou not revive us again, that thy people may rejoice in thee? O, how that should be our prayer, that even in this day, as we face many challenges, that there would be a real revival sent down from above to the glory of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I will come upon the floor of the Lord, who is worthy to be saved. Where shall I be saved?

Shall I be saved from my enemies? The Lord liveth, and blessed be my rock. Let the God of my salvation be exalted. Who is God except the Lord? Who is God except the Lord? Who am I? He is my God.

Who am I? He is my God. In the higher place He is. The Lord liveth, and blessed be my rock. Let the God of my salvation be exalted. So will I be next to thee, and sing praises to thy name. Be exalted, Lord, in thy mighty power. The Lord liveth, and blessed be my rock. Let the God of my salvation be exalted. Then in verse 4, we learn that it should be a prayer for change. Turn us, O God of our salvation, and cause thine anger toward us to cease.

Turn us. That's talking about a change. Lord, we've been going in the wrong direction, or we veered off the path. It may have been like Christian in Pilgrim's Progress when he looked over at By-Path Meadow, and it appeared to him to be an easier route. But he soon found that he was leaving the path of righteousness. He was leaving the way.

He had to come back in repentance. How many times you look at another course of action and say, I think this will be a little easier than trying to live this dedicated, consecrated, Christian life. And so when you've wandered, when you've drifted off course, and you're traveling in By-Path Meadow, you need to come back.

And so the psalmist says, Turn us, O God. The desire for the right kind of change. The wrong change obviously can be detrimental.

Change for the sake of change can be destructive. So many across the land today have watered down the message. To the point that some popular ministers have even said, We don't like to talk about sin.

That's too negative. Friends, you can't preach the gospel without talking about sin. The reason men need salvation is they're sinners.

The reason Jesus died at Calvary was to put away sin. So the message has watered down. Many times the programs and the musical arrangements and all that's done to attract people is an effort to work up a revival. A true revival cannot be worked up.

It cannot be planned and arranged. It must be sent down by divine grace. So let us pray, turn us, O God, having a desire for the right kind of change. And then furthermore, it must be a prayer of importunity. It must be a prayer that is continuous.

It goes on and on in spite of the discouragements, in spite of the setbacks, in spite of the moments when you feel to be terribly cold and empty yourself, you don't give up. Isaiah chapter 62 verse 6, I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night. Ye that make mention of the Lord keep not silence, get this, and give him no rest till he establish, till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.

That's a rather amazing declaration, is it not? The Lord says, I have put watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem. I put them there that they might never hold their peace, that they will sound an alarm when an alarm needs to be sounded.

They're going to be there day and night, not just at certain intervals. Now, you that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence. That's not just talking about those that are called to preach publicly, but every one of you as a Christian can pray, Lord guide me that I may speak to others about my Savior Jesus Christ. Keep not silence. So often one keeps silence because, well, they're afraid they're going to be criticized, they're afraid somebody will think they're a religious fanatic, but he says keep not silence.

And then give him no rest, talking about calling on God, talking about prayer, give him no rest till he establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth. That makes us think of the parable Jesus gave about the widow that comes to the unjust judge and says, sir, avenge me my adversary. Man did not fear God nor regard this woman. He did not care about her problem, he had no compassion, he had no interest in helping her, but this woman was there. When he would come to the courthouse in the morning, she was there, sir, avenge me my adversary, avenge me my adversary, and he passed her by. When he left for lunch, she was there, avenge me my adversary. When he went home at night, the last thing he heard was this woman saying, sir, avenge me my adversary. When he came back the next day, he heard it again, sir, avenge me my adversary, avenge me my adversary. All through the day, any time he was within her hearing, that was her request.

And it went on and on and on and on and on. And he finally said, I'm tired of hearing from this woman, I'm going to grant a request to get rid of her. He might say, well that's a strange lesson that Jesus would give us about prayer, but here's the point.

You're not making your request to an unjust judge. You're making your request to your Heavenly Father that loves you, is concerned about every detail of your life. And so he says, this parable is for the purpose that men are always to pray and not to faint. We're talking about being continuous in prayer. This prayer for revival must be continuous.

Give him no rest. You call upon God day and night, day after day, continuously calling upon Him, Lord, revive me. Revive thy church, revive thy kingdom, send revival. Prayer is to be offered. We see then for what God has promised. God had promised that He was going to bless Jerusalem.

He'd already promised that. He promised that He was going to establish her and make her a praise in the earth, but He says pray for it. Now somebody says, if God has already promised to do something, there's no need to pray. No, the best thing you can pray for is what God's promised to do.

Because you know then that your prayer is in harmony with His will. Verse 3 says, thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Here's the promise. Here's what God says He's going to do. I'm going to bless my people. I'm going to bless Jerusalem.

You're going to be a crown of glory in the hands of the Lord. And His blessing is promised to His church. Do we not pray for the Lord to bless the church? Ought we not to pray for it?

Do we not pray when we come here, Lord? Be with us. May your presence be recognized. May it be witnessed.

May it be felt. So we pray for the Lord to bless the church. Well, He already said He would. Matthew chapter 28 verse 20, the Lord says, I'm with you always, even unto the end of the world. So when you read that promise that you fold your arms and say, well I'm not going to pray for the Lord to be with us because He already said He would, so there's no need to pray.

No. He says, I'm not going to be with you, but I want you to be calling on me. I want you to give me no rest, even day and night. I want you to pray. Now, do you believe that God will supply your needs?

He promised to. Philippians chapter 4 verse 19 says, but my God shall supply all your needs. So should you say, I'll never pray about that? God already said He would do it. I don't have to think about it anymore. I don't have to pray about it.

Wait a minute. What do we find in the prayer when Jesus was teaching His disciples to pray? He said, give us this day our daily bread. He taught us to pray for it. Yes, His promise is He will supply our need, but it's pleasing for our Heavenly Father to have us call on Him. We can pray, our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy name.

Give us this day our daily bread. Because God has ordered something, because He has decreed something, because He has purposed something, because He has promised something, it doesn't mean that you don't pray for it. We pray for the gospel to have free course. Second Thessalonians chapter 3 verse 1, finally brethren pray for us that the word of the Lord may have free course. That it may be like a free flowing stream, nothing in its path, no obstacle stopping it, having free course and be glorified. That's what it means to have free course, that it be glorified.

And how is it? Even as it is with you. And it was glorified in this church of Thessalonica because He said, when I preached the gospel unto you, you received it, you received it with joy in the Holy Ghost, with the power of the Holy Spirit. Now He says pray that the gospel will have free course. Do you believe that God is going to use His message? When God sends forth His servants to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, is God going to bless that? Certainly He has promised to do so. We just read from that which is called the Great Commission, that the Lord says, you go therefore making disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, and lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. And so we have that promise. God is going to bless when the gospel is preached in truth. It may not always have the immediate impact we would like to see.

There may be seed sold that will come up at a later time. But we can have confidence that God is going to use His message. But we are to pray, Lord, may the gospel have free course. Pray that it will have free course when it is preached here in this church. Pray that it will have free course when these messages are then heard on the radio. Pray that it will have free course when I go to prisons and speak to people that are needing it desperately.

Pray that it will have free course as these brethren have just gone to India and come back and the Lord is so blessing Elder Guna. Pray that wherever the gospel is preached around the world it will have free course and God will use it to the glory of His name and that there will be many conversions. And then we think about the blessing of revival. First of all, according to this psalm there will be submission to the Lord. Verse 8, I will hear what God will speak, submission to God's word. What a time of blessing.

That's a time of revival. Often when God's word is preached there are those that want no part of it. There are those of course of whom Paul speaks in the Corinthian letter, the Jew that finds the gospel to be a stumbling block, the Gentile who says that it's foolishness I want no part of it.

Certainly there are many in this day that ridicule the gospel of Jesus Christ. To them it is foolishness. But then even there are those that profess to believe in God and believe in His word but when it's preached it falls on deaf ears. There's no reception of it in their heart. There's no change in their conduct.

It has no impact. But when there's a revival it says I will hear what God will speak. John 14 to the 15th verse says if you love me keep my commandments. Somebody may say well I don't like commandments.

That sounds to be legalistic. Listen, Jesus says if you love me you do what I say. You keep my commandments.

In time of revival somebody says what are those commandments? I want to keep them. I want to obey them. I want to serve Him. I want to be submissive. I don't want to be rebellious. I don't want to have a hard heart. I don't want to be indifferent. I want to be full of zeal.

I want to serve Him. And then there's joy. Revival means that there's joy in the Lord. Verse 6, revive us again that thy people may rejoice in thee.

Rejoice. That's one of the things David prayed for in that 51st Psalm. In verse 12 he says restore unto me the joy of thy salvation. Certainly his joy was totally demolished because of his sin. There was no joy. There was no comfort.

There was no peace. And until sin is confronted, until it's confessed, until it's forsaken there will be no joy. But his prayer was restore unto me the joy of thy salvation and uphold me by thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways and sinners shall be converted unto thee. When I've been revived, when my joy has been restored, then I'm going to teach transgressors thy ways. When your heart's been stirred, when you have a zeal that is empowered and fired by the Holy Spirit of God, you desire to teach others. Not in an arrogant, brash way, but with holy boldness to speak to others the good news of the Gospel and the truths of His Word. Oh how wonderful then when the truth is proclaimed to see those who have an open heart not resisting something because they say well this just doesn't work for me or I'm not comfortable with that.

No, their prayer is Lord I want to hear what you have to say. Do a little self-examination. Think about those scales that have got one piece that goes out this way and one that goes out the other. And there can be a weight put on one side of that in order to weigh whatever is put on the other. Let's think about those scales as might be applied in your life. Think about what will be on one side when you think about your complaints, your complaints. Here are the scales that's weighted down with complaints. So many things that you're unhappy about. So many things you don't like, so many things that you criticize. What about your worries adding them on top of your complaints?

What about your pursuits that don't honor God? Now can you outweigh that on the other side? What about your joy? What about your thanksgiving? Can you get this other side even off the table?

Can you get it to move? Can you say by the grace of God my joy, my praise to God, my spirit of thanksgiving outweighs all that. I may have my moments of doubt. I may have my moments when I've complained and I have to ask God to forgive me. But I can truly say my joy outweighs it all. I rejoice always in the Lord as I'm admonishing to do in Philippians 4. Rejoice always in the Lord. And again it says, I say rejoice, rejoice, rejoice that God is sovereign.

Aren't you glad to know that? That no matter what turmoil, what chaos, what violence, what evil, what terrible wickedness there may be upon this earth, God is still on the throne. He's working his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth and none can stay his hand or say unto him what doest thou?

And you can say my times are in his hands. That ought to make us filled with joy every day that we live. You can rejoice that he is a God of love.

Yes, he is a God of holiness and therefore he hates sin. But he's a God of love and mercy and that mercy was displayed at the cross. When he gave his son Jesus Christ to die for guilty sinners and if you today have come to faith in Jesus Christ and believe that he has saved your soul, oh what joy that ought to bring you. To know that no matter how rugged the path is here in life, no matter how great the difficulties, how severe the disappointments, there's a better day awaiting you when at last you reach the end of the journey and cross the river to go home to be with the Lord and sing his praise and triumph forever.

There's reason to rejoice. When your heart is revived, when your spirit is lifted up, there is joy rejoicing in our God. Then when there is revival, there will be abundant blessings. Verse 12, Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good and our land shall yield her increase.

Christians filled with holy zeal, love abounding, unity and joy, inquirers coming with a desire to hear the gospel and conversions being witnessed. Oh how we long for such outpourings of the Spirit of God upon us that there might be a true awakening, a revival in our time. And then verse 13, there will be the blessing of his special guidance. Righteousness shall go before him and he shall set us in the way of his steps.

Isn't that good? Divine guidance. He will set us in the way of his steps. Let us pray. Lord revive us. Lord restore those who are careless and cold. Revive us all. Revive the elders. Revive the deacons. Revive every member of the church. Revive the church that it might be alive, full of zeal, that the presence of the Holy Spirit of God will be present and the name of Jesus Christ will be exalted.

The hymn writer worded it like this. Revive thy work O Lord, thy mighty arm make bare. Speak with the voice that wakes the dead and make thy people hear. Revive thy work O Lord.

Disturb this sleep of death. Quicken the smoldering embers now by thy almighty breath. Revive thy work O Lord.

Create soul thirst for thee and hungering for the bread of life, O may our spirits be. Revive thy work O Lord. Exalt thy precious name and by the Holy Ghost our love for thee and thine in flame. Revive thy work O Lord.

Give Pentecostal showers. The glory shall be all thine own. The blessing, Lord, be ours. Hallelujah! Praise Jehovah from the heavens! Praise His name! Praise Jehovah in the highest! All His angels praise proclaim! All their souls together praise Him.

Sun and moon and stars on high. Praise Him, O He of the heavens and He floods above the sky. Let them praise His gift, Jehovah, for His name alone is thine. And His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted far above the earth and sky. As the hymn writer has described a desire to be revived and the text we've taken from Psalm 85 speaks to that issue, will thou not revive us again? May that indeed be our diligent prayer that God may pour out a special blessing upon His people all over the land to the glory of His name.

I hope that you will write us and until next week at the same time, may the Lord richly bless you all. Ale and snow and vapour, stormy winds that hear Him call. Let them praise His gift, Jehovah, for His name alone is high. And His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted far above the earth and sky.

All ye fruitful trees and cedars, all ye hills and mountains high, creeping things and beasts and cattle, birds that in the heavens fly. The Baptist Bible Hour has come to you under the direction of Elder LeSaire Bradley, Jr. Address all mail to the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. That's the Baptist Bible Hour, Cincinnati, Ohio 45217. And children small, let them praise His gift, Jehovah, for His name alone is high. And His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted, and His glory is exalted far above the earth and sky.