REVIVAL TALK

  Outside the old city walls of Jerusalem in an Arab neighborhood is a place called, “Gordon’s Calvary,” or the “Garden Tomb.” It is surrounded by an Arab Bus Station and on the top of the sight believed to be Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, there is a Muslim cemetery.   Outside the walls of this serene place is all kinds of activity. People are consumed with their everyday life. Like any other city in the world, the   people are trying to survive. When we made our journey to what is believed to be the place where Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the dead, there were several things that captured my attention. There were a number of birds that were singing. There were many signs of life in the garden. I experienced such peace as we spent time in prayer and communion with our guides.    Perhaps those who live in the surrounding neighborhoods only see this place as another tourist stop, but for me it was a place of refuge and rest. It was a place to be still and listen to the voice

Matthew 3:11 – 12 - “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” John the Baptist was a voice crying out in the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord.   His birth was announced by the angel Gabriel to his father Zechariah, who was a priest. His birth was a miracle. His mother, Elizabeth, was an older woman and had been unable to have children. She was the cousin of Mary, the mother of our Lord.   His father had lost his voice because he did not believe the angel’s word. Luke 1:22 says, “But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own” In Luke 1:59-64 his voice is restor

  James 5:16 – “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” To say we live in troublesome times is an understatement.   The Bible defines the days we are living is as “dangerous times” (II Timothy 3:1). When we face perplexing problems, they will only be changed by God’s intervention. When we pray, we are inviting the Sovereign God of creation to intervene in our circumstances. Someone has said, “If you are swept off your feet it is time to get on your knees.” James 5:16 says, “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” How do we pray effective prayers? We pray effective prayers when we pray the Word of God over every circumstance that comes into our lives. We need to meditate and memorize the Scriptures. Psalms 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.” When we are faced with adverse circumstances and don’t know how to pray,

James 5:16 - “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” In this passage the Apostle James reveals it is the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous individual that yields powerful results.  Fervent prayer is passionate, zealous, and intense. It is prayer on fire. James 5:16 from The Amplified Bible reads, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another [your false steps, your offenses], and pray for one another, that you may be healed and restored. The heartfelt and persistent prayer of a righteous man (believer) can accomplish much [when put into action and made effective by God—it is dynamic and can have tremendous power].”  The Amplified Bible defines fervent prayer as dynamic, persistent, and powerful prayer.  There is power in fervent, on fire, passionate prayer. James 5:16 from The Message Bible says, "The prayer of a person living right with God is something po