REVIVALTALK

  Acts 2:2 – “And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.”              There is a fresh new wind from heaven blowing on the Body of Christ today. This wind is the wind of revival. After Jesus ascended to heaven there were 120 who gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem.    They were praying and waiting on the promise of the Father.    Jesus had instructed the disciples in Luke 24:49, “ Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem   until you are endued with power from on high.”              Throughout the Bible wind is figuratively used to represent the Holy Spirit. In John 3:8 Jesus used the wind to describe the Holy Spirit, “ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it com...

  Exodus 12:19 – “For seven days no leaven shall be found in your houses…” Several years ago I met this gentlemen who lived alone.  He had been married, but had lost his wife to illness.  He was blessed with several sisters who loved and cared for him.  They would come and clean his house each week, but several times a year they would come and give the house a good spring-cleaning.             What is spring-cleaning?  It is cleaning the house from top to bottom.  It usually occurs when the season changes and the weather gets warmer.  One thought is that it originated with the Jewish people when they would give their homes a thorough cleaning leading up to Passover.   In the days before Passover the family will clean the house and remove any leaven (a substance like yeast or baking powder).  In Exodus chapters 12 and 13 Moses instructed the peo...

Galatians 6:14 - “But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”              The cross stands today as a symbol of victory.    It represents victory over sin, victory over death, and ultimate victory for the believer through the Lord Jesus Christ.    When Christ suffered on the cross, He did so for humanities sin.    He died so that we can live a life of victory and freedom.              In  John 10:10  we learn that “Christ came that we might have life, and have it more abundantly.”    What does it mean to experience abundant life?    The Amplified Bible reads,  “ I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows).”        ...

Thursday night of the Lord’s Passion Week is filled with different events.  Jesus shares the Passover Seder meal with His twelve disciples in an Upper Room in Jerusalem. The Christian world refers to this day as Maundy or Holy Thursday.  It is the time set aside on the Christian calendar to commemorate the Lord’s last Supper.             It was during this supper that He instituted Holy Communion or as it is called in some churches, “The Lord’s Supper.”  At the Passover meal we learn that He broke the bread, distributed it to His disciples, and said, “This represents My body which will be broken for you.”  He then took up the cup and told them, “This cup represents my blood that will be shed so that a new covenant will be instituted.  Christian’s today celebrate Holy Communion and commemorate the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord.           ...

  L uke 22:1-6  –  “ Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called Passover. And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might kill Him, for they feared the people. Then Satan entered Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was numbered among the twelve. So he went his way and conferred with the chief priests and captains, how he might betray Him to them. And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. So he promised and sought opportunity to betray Him to them in the absence of the multitude.”              The events of this passage of Scripture took place on Wednesday of the Passion Week of our Lord.  In these verses, we learn that Judas conferred with the chief priests and officials to betray the Lord for money.  Verse six reveals that Judas “sought opportunity to betray Him.”             Judas looked for an opportunity to betray...

  Luke 21:1-4; Mark 12:41          One of the most fascinating studies in the Word of God is the study of what transpired on each day of our Lord’s passion week.  On Sunday He rode into Jerusalem on a lowly donkey to exuberant praise.  On Monday He cleansed the Temple and overturned the tables of those who were exchanging money and selling doves.           On Tuesday, the next day, He is again in the temple.  In Mark’s Gospel we learn that Jesus sat near the offering box and He observed how the crowd tossed money in for the collection.  We learn that those who were rich gave large gifts.  In verse 42 from the Message Bible we learn, “One poor widow came up and put in two small coins – a measly two cents.”            In verse 43 this became a teachable moment.  “Jesus called His disciples over and said, ‘The truth is that this poor widow gave more to the ...

  Jesus Passion Week – Monday Matthew 21:12-16       On Monday of His passion week, Jesus entered into the Temple at Jerusalem.  The Jewish Temple was very important in the life of the Jewish believer.  It was the center of their worship.  The Jewish male was required to come to the Temple at least three times a year to worship, offer sacrifices, and to celebrate the different feasts the Lord had given to them in the Law of Moses.      This event is recorded in three of the four Gospels.  We learn that He overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the seats of those who sold doves.  The outer court of the Temple had become a place of merchandising.  The merchants were profiting from God’s people at the expense of their worship.       Notice Jesus words, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’”  The reference to “den of thieves,” has to d...

  Psalms 85:4-7 – “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 believe we have reached a place in our culture where we need to pray, “Show us Your mercy, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.” We have been in a season of warfare. The enemy has attacked our bodies, our minds, our finances, our emotions, and our families.  The Apostle Paul writes concerning this warfare in Ephesians 6:10-13 says, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the dark...

In the city of Chicago one cold night many years ago, a blizzard was blowing in. Young Tom was on the corner trying to sell newspapers. It was so cold, the people were hurrying past him to their warm, cozy homes, so he was not selling very many. After a while Tom went up to a policeman and said, “Mister, you wouldn’t happen to know where a boy who doesn’t have a home could find a warm place to sleep tonight, would you? I sleep in a box around the corner in the alley, and it sure does get cold in there at night! Be nice to have a warm place to sleep tonight!”   The policeman looked down at the boy and said, “Son, you go down the street to that big white house and knock on the door, and when they answer, say ‘ John 3:16 .’  ”  So that’s what Tom did; he walked down the street to the big white house and knocked on the door.  Finally, a lady answered, and when she did, Tom said, “ John 3:16 ,” and she said, “Come on in, son.” She took him inside and led him to a war...

  Isaiah 61:3  –  “To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.” As a believer you have an unseen enemy.    You are engaged in a spiritual conflict.    The enemy will attack your mind, your will, and your physical body.    This enemy comes against you to keep you from growing in your walk and relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.                In II Corinthians 11:3 the Apostle Paul reveals that the enemy corrupts the minds of individuals.    He hates “Christ in you.”    When you invited the Lord into your heart you became a new creation in Christ Jesus.    The Bible teaches in Colossians 1:13, “He has delivered us from  the  power ...