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Revival
By Dahni
© 2023, all rights reserved
The Ashbury Revival in Wilmore, KY and its affects on other Churches and Communities
Is this real? Is this a real revival? I have read articles and articles about this and its history. I have seen posts all over social media. I have seen videos about this. Much of this has come from sincere and albeit good-hearted and good-intentioned people, some of whom I personally know. Is this real? I do not know. I am not there and neither am I moved to be. As from one that has studied God’s Word for over 50 years, I can only write two things: my personal observation of published events and what the Bible says.
Of all that I have read and seen about this so called revival, now in its about 10th consecutive day is, what is clearly missing. No one has or is saying anything about God’s Word. There are no scriptures backing up this ‘thing.’ OK, so what does the Bible say?
“For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?”
Hebrews 2:2-4 King James Version
First, the Word of God (the rightly divided word of God), needs to be spoken or taught privately or publicly. See: II Timothy 2:15 “rightly dividing…” With “rightly dividing,” the truth by sheer logic, could possibility be wrongly divided. Here is an example of rightly dividing the truth. It is a prophecy in the Old Testament, about the future coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
“To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God…”
Isaiah 61:2 KJV
Even in English we can see that there are exactly 16 words above: 8 to the left and 8 to the right. Now, let me ask, do you think Jesus Christ “rightly divided” God word? Did he ever speak any or part of this verse from Isaiah? Open your Bibles to the book of Luke and chapter 4.
Jesus Christ had spent 40 days and 40 nights being tempted in the desert. Look what is the first thing he did.
“And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”
Luke 4:16-21
40 days and 40 nights, after which he was hungry and thirsty, but all we read is that the first thing he does is teach God Word. But before that, out of respect for God’s Word, Jesus stands up and he reads the first part of the verse in Isaiah, we read before. Those words “To preach the acceptable year of the Lord…” are just eight (8), words in number. He read them and only those eight words and the scroll was closed and the people, their eyes were “fasted on him,” I would think were waiting for what he had to say next. Then he sat down why, because the custom was if you were going to read from God’s Word you stood up. Then, if you were going to preach (publicly expound the scriptures), or teach, you sat down so that all knew you could be and should be still teaching the truth, but not necessarily from the scriptures, and you would maybe not be telling the truth. This custom was to assure others that you were reading from God’s Word and it was for respect to God and for His Word to stand up while reading. Where does this respect idea come from? What does God think of His own Word and what does He have to say about his Word?
“…for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.”
Psalm 138:2b KJV
Notice this verse does not say God set His word above his name or “above all” His name. He, God, “magnified His Word above all His name!” His name represents all He has ever done, is doing now or shall ever do. God has a great respect for His own Word. So did Jesus Christ. What is so important? Here is another verse I am quite sure most, if not everyone has heard in some manner and with likely, or at least, one changed word. Look at the book of John and in chapter 8:32
And the truth will set you free? Is this what John 8:32 says?
“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
John 8:32 KJV
“Ye” is just the King James language for the pronoun “you.” The next word “shall” is not the word will or maybe, but “shall,” which is the absolute tense or absolutely. It does not then say your truth or my truth, or any other truth, other than, “the truth!” And “the truth” “shall” (again in the absolute tense or absolutely), “make” not set you free. What difference does it make? It makes a great deal of difference to God and it should to you, anyone and I. It is a matter of the integrity and accuracy of God’s Word. If we cannot trust Him in every word that — He means what He says, where He says it, when He says it, How He says it and to whom He says it, it makes all the difference as between night and day and between error and truth. And unless it is “the truth,” none can be “made free!”
Perhaps if the doors to a jail cell were opened, the prisoner could be set free. But if they just stayed in their cell with the door opened, they might have been set free, but they are certainly not— “made free!” God not only want’s to set the captives free, He wants to take them out of captivity and prepare them to live free. That’s what being “made free” means! And the only way to be absolutely “made free” is, to absolutely know — “the truth!”
Let us go back to Jesus Christ in Luke 4. Why did he only read half, the first half and the first eight (8), words from Isaiah 61 – “To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord,…,” close the book (scroll), and then say, “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears,” it is very, very simple. Had he read the other 8 (eight), words or the entire verse from Isaiah 61, the whole Bible would fall apart! “The acceptable year of the Lord” was for the day and time in which he spoke. “The day of vengeance of our God,” is sometime in the future. When is this? I do not know, but it is — sometime in the future.
Are there any examples in scripture one could call a revival or a movement of God in culture? Yes! Under the leadership of one man (the Apostle Paul), beginning with about 12 households, Paul taught and disciples taught by the space of about 2 years and three months, to all which dwelt in Asia (Asia Minor), Jews and Gentiles. They heard the Word of God, God’s Magnified and Rightly Divided Word and it was confirmed by signs, miracles, and wonders. Mind you, this was done by word of mouth, face to face – each one reaching one, from house to house and without mass media, mass communication, mass transportation, without the Internet, pre-planned marketing campaign or a major crusade-designed plan in advance, by all the churches!
“And this continued by the space of two years; so that all they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.”
See: Acts 19 What was really the motivation and end result of all of this?
“So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed.”
Acts 19:20
What not only grew, but “mightily grew”? What “prevailed” to the point it got into the entire culture? God’s Word! Was it “magnified”? Yes! Was it “rightly divided”? Yes! Did it “make” people “free”? Yes! Was it confirmed by signs, miracles and wonders? Yes! Don’t take my word for it, just go back and read Acts, chapter 19!
In conclusion, let us read one last time, from Hebrews 2 –
“For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?”
Hebrews 2:2-4 King James Version
A movement of God, a revival, a crusade or whatever it is, begins by first speaking God’s Word “rightly divided“. Why, because is is only “the truth” that can “make you free!” Then, the signs miracles and wonders follow. This is still, the only way to do it!
Now if you want to dispute any of this (Bible quotations), Go for it, but I did not write the the Bible, I am just…
…a witness!
Dahni
Pentecost 