Revival Or Judgment?
Prayer Is A Deciding Factor
By Kenneth Korol
In Ezekiel 22:30-31 we read of God looking in vain for an intercessor, but because He found none, His wrath was poured out in just judgment against the nation of Israel because of her sinful rebellion against God:
“I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. Therefore have I poured out Mine indignation upon them….”
From the above warning we are made to understand that prayer is not optional but an absolute necessity. Prayer must have first priority in our lives. Prayer is the one power on earth that can influence Heaven.
John Wesley, founder of Methodism, commenting on the three words found in Philippians 4:6, “Everything by prayer,” said: “I am persuaded that God does everything by prayer and nothing without it.” D. L. Moody said, “Every work of God can be traced to some kneeling form.”
Through prayer we become co-workers with the Lord God Almighty. Our prayers bring into fulfillment God’s purposes for His people. We have an example of this in Daniel 9:1-3. Daniel discovered from reading the book of the prophet Jeremiah (25:11) that the time of the desolation of Jerusalem at the hand of the Babylonians would last 70 years. He realized that this time was soon coming to an end.
In verse 3 we read, “And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes.” The fact that God had spoken was no indication to Daniel that he should not pray, but he gave himself to praying into fulfillment what God had promised.
If we want God to fulfill what He has promised us there are certain conditions we are to fulfill and one of these is to pray. In Zechariah 10:1 we read, “Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain….” This is the time of the latter rain when God is fulfilling His promise in pouring out His Spirit upon all flesh according to His promise in Joel 2:28: “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh…”. Many different churches and denominations are experiencing the fulfillment of this promise in these days but in order for this promise to be completely fulfilled, God’s people are to pray for it to continue to happen.
Revival Must Be Prayed Down!
Revival does not just fall from Heaven. It must be prayed down. R. A. Torrey said, “I have a theory, and I believe it to be true, that there is not a church, chapel or mission on earth where you cannot have a revival, provided there is a nucleus of faithful people who will hold on to God until it comes.”
Charles G. Finney said, “A revival is no more a miracle than a crop of wheat is. In any community, a revival can be secured from Heaven when heroic souls enter into the conflict determined to win or die, or if needs be, to win and die.”
Finney also said, “There are two kinds of means necessary to promote a revival: the one to influence men, the other to influence God. Prayer is an essential link in the chain of causes that lead to a revival as much so as truth is. Some have zealously used the first means – truth – to convert men and laid very little stress on prayer. They have preached and talked and distributed tracts with great zeal, and then wondered why there were no results. They forgot to use the other branch of the means – effectual prayer. They overlooked that the Spirit is given only in answer to prayer.”
Revival has never come anywhere, be it in the Third World, Europe or North America, without fervent prayer. God is ready and longing to send revival anywhere in the world no matter how hard the place may be. His Word declares, “Call unto Me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not” (Jer. 33:3).
A wonderful example of prayer resulting in revival is from the Hebrides in Scotland. Two elderly women began nightly prayer times. They agreed together to pray for God to send revival to their community. They had become concerned because of the ungodliness and lack of commitment to spiritual things round about them. Night after night they interceded before God. After some months, unknown to them, several godly young men began to meet three nights a week and waited upon God until four and five o’clock in the morning – until a powerful revival followed that transformed that area of the world. Yes, prayer does make a difference! If God’s Word as found in 2Chron. 7:14 is practiced we also will get such results as the Hebredes experienced:
“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.”
Before we can pray effectively there must be true acknowledgment and confession of sin. True repentance must follow. True repentance is like going down one road , for example the road of self-will and selfishness, then stopping, turning around and going the opposite direction. This therefore means forsaking any known sin, bad habit, practice or attitude that dishonors God. In Psalm 66:18 we read, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me”; in John 14:30, Jesus said,– “…for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in Me.” Satan had no power over Christ because he had no foothold of sin in Him, for Christ was without sin.
We, because we have had our sins washed away with the precious blood of Jesus and therefore subsequently clothed with the righteousness of Christ, should with deep humility, have the same testimony – “The prince of this world hath nothing in me.”
If we speak to God about power, He will speak to us about holiness. Before we can have authority with God, we must walk in obedience to His will, in humility , in purity and acknowledging Jesus Christ as the Lord and Master of our lives
Ways in Which We Can Pray
The following are some ways in which we can pray:
1. Let us unite together in prayer. Let the whole church be aware of its responsibility. There is great power in united prayer. In Acts 12:5 we read, “Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.”
We see in the above verse it was not just one individual involved in intercession, when the early church was going through a deep crisis, but the church. If two believers, who are in agreement about what they ask, are a powerful unit in advancing God’s kingdom (Matt. 18:19), then united groups of praying believers who are in agreement can change the whole spiritual condition of a nation.
2. Let us pray specifically and allow the Holy Spirit to guide us in our praying. R. A. Torrey said, “We should be careful about what we ask from God, but once we begin to pray for a thing we should never give up praying for it until we receive it, or until God makes it very clear and definite that it is not His will to grant it.”
3. Binding and loosing is another way in which we should pray. In Matthew 16:19 we read:
“And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosedin heaven.”
This teaching is so important that our Lord repeats it in Matthew 18:18:
“Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
These verses indicate that God expects us to participate in binding and loosing. In Luke 11:20-22 we have the teaching on the strong man:
But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace. But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.
In Ephesians 6:12 we read who the strong man is:
“For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.”(Ampl. Bible)
In 1John 4:4 we read that the one who is greater than the devil is dwelling in us:
“You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”
Satan has his emissaries ruling over nations, districts, towns and cities keeping these places in darkness and bondage these powers need to be bound through prevailing prayer and the people loosed from His chains.
4. Fasting and praying is a powerful spiritual weapon to be used by God’s people in advancing His kingdom. The Bible teaches us that there is room for both private fasting and praying (unseen by others) and that which is public (the leaders calling the whole congregation together for a special time of fasting and seeking God).
5. A good practice for congregations to develop is to pray before and after meetings. Prayer before a meeting creates an atmosphere of faith and expectation. Also, powers of darkness that would hinder the meeting could be bound. Prayer after meetings gives people time to wait upon God and to be prayed for by others.
6. All-night prayer meetings can be a great source of power in the church. These can be held, for example, once or twice a week or once every two weeks or once a month.
7. Early morning prayer meetings can be practiced daily or once or twice a week.
The church in Korea is one of the strongest most dynamic churches in the world. One of the reasons for their strength is their emphasis on prayer. Thousands of congregations through out the nation meet together for daily early morning prayer.
8. A twenty-four hour prayer chain can be established in your church or in your town with different people taking turns in praying until continuous prayer is going up through the day and through the night seven days a week and twenty-four hours of the day. Some can meet together in the church and others may pray in their home at the appointed time they have chosen. The time one devotes in this prayer chain is up to each individual. Some may pray for fifteen minutes, some may pray for a half an hour, others may be able to pray for an hour or longer. This should be coordinated by a prayer leader and special prayer requests given to each one praying
9: Another way to pray is to have prayer walks- walking through your town or your neighborhood and praying for your neighbors and fellow citizens in the areas you are walking in.
10. Being faithful to attend your weekly prayer meeting in your church keeping in mind that this is not Bible study night but prayer meeting night.
11. Every prayer meeting should abound with thanksgiving, praise and worship. We read in Psalm 100:4:
“Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.”
This is the order we should follow, first thanksgiving, thanking God for all He has done for us and provided for us! Then praise, praising Him for who He is, for His endowments and character! Then worship, on our faces before Him in love, awe and adoration of His holiness! Then intercession, standing in the gap for the land, for the people and for individuals.
In the beginning of this article in Esekiel 22:30-31 we read of the great sadness of God’s heart- searching for an intercessor but finding none as a result He had to send judgment:
In a needy, troubled world full of immorality, materialism, false religions and carelessness and where sin is intensifying and tightening its grip on the hearts of ungodly men and women, God is calling us back to the days and nights of prayer, back to the example of Jesus, who spent all night praying. God’s great heart of love longs for the salvation of mankind and He is not willing that any should perish as we read in 2Peter 3:9:
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
But God’s Word also declares in Genesis 6:3:
“Then the Lord said, My Spirit shall not forever dwell and strive with man,..”
Either we will experience revival or the hand of God in judgment! The responsibility is resting on us-God’s church! God again is seeking for intercessors. Are we willing to pay the price, respond to His call and travail and prevail in prayer until revival comes?
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