In the 2005 film and 1988 comic, V for Vendetta; you see society make a sudden and drastic change. The thing that caused this change wasn’t words; but action from one particular individual? What can the church learn from this to help them see revival? Join us to find out.
In Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta, both the movie and comic, you see the main character, “V,” spark a change in society. What’s interesting is that V’s message for change wasn’t new. People had spoken many of the same things time after time. So what was it about him that sparked the change? I propose that the change was caused by the fact that he used more than words; he had action behind his words. When the people saw what could be done and how things could be, they made a move.
Christians across the world are crying out for a change in society. They are praying and speaking about this thing called “Revival.” They want to see people worldwide come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, experience true freedom from the curse of sin, and walk in healing. There have been various historical moments where we’ve seen sparks of revival, but unfortunately, those sparks died out.
So what’s the key to seeing revival happen and live on? I believe an essential key to revival is what we see in V for Vendetta, action. We have to do more than give lips ervice. So often, when people think of revival, they think of a series of services with firey messages preached by some out-of-town preacher. That’s not revival; that’s a guest speaker and a special event your church is putting on. Revival is where people’s hearts are changed. But it takes more than just us saying words. YES, the Holy Spirit uses us to speak the words, and He draws man to repentance. But there’s more to it. So often, it is our actions that God uses to draw people to salvation; often, it’s our actions that the enemy uses to create a stumbling block for people to know Jesus.
So today, I’m presenting three things that will help us see revival sooner than later.
Love Each Other
Jesus teaches us that one of the key ways people will know that we are His is by our love for each other (John 13:35). We have to show love and care for each other. One common reason people give for not believing in Jesus and having a general dislike for Christianity as a whole is how they see Christians treating other Christians. We are putting a needless block between the people and the Gospel by our actions. We need to change how we talk about others in our church and in other denominations. We must lay down a mindset of “spiritual superiority” that some carry because of their denominational ties. Some walk with a “spiritual superiority” complex because they lack a tie to a denomination. Yes, there may be some non-salvific differences between the different denominations, but beating each other down for those things does nothing for the kingdom. Instead, we must recognize that we are all individuals saved by grace, operating under one banner; Jesus Christ. When we start loving each other and caring for each other the way Christ commands, the world will begin to see the true love and grace of Christ.
Love Your Neighbor
Jesus teaches that we must love our neighbor as we love ourselves (Mark 12:30-31). The trick is that our neighbor is not just the people we like. Our neighbor is also the people who we may not like. Our neighbor is also the person who doesn’t look like you or speak like you. For example, in Luke 10:25-37, Jesus gives the parable of “The Good Samaritan.” In this parable, a man is injured and desperately needs help. However, the person who helps him is not from his community but a Samaritan. In this culture, he should have no association with the Samaritan; yet this man is more a neighbor to him than his own. We must start treating people whom (church) culture says we shouldn’t be hanging out with or doing life with, with love and respect. We aren’t talking about making compromises on the word of God. We are talking about living out the biblical standard of loving people where they are—showing them Jesus’ love and grace authentically and tangibly.
Have Active Faith
The final key to seeing revival happen sooner than later is being active in our faith. Yes, the previous two keys are part of being active in our faith, but I’m taking things a step forward. Unfortunately, far too many believe that being active in their faith means standing on a corner and yelling at people that they are going to hell. Or they believe sharing their faith is having a cute bumper sticker on their car or wearing a small cross around their neck. It’s not. Being active in our faith is taking time to pray with people. Laying hands on them and saying, “Let’s pray over this situation and believe in Jesus for this miracle.” Being active in our faith means being in our community, doing life with folks, and helping them when we can. Being active in our faith means taking the time to be present and serve in our local church. Jame says it this way…
“faith apart from works is useless?” – James 2:20 (English Standard Version | ESV)
James 2:20 (English Standard Version | ESV)
If all you have is lip service to your faith and there’s no action, no outgrowth to it, is it really faith? Or is it just words?
So our challenge to you is to examine yourself. Look at these three points and ask yourself, “Have I allowed these things to fall to the wayside? If so, what do I need to do to get back on track so I can better represent Christ? What do I need to do to see true, supernatural, biblical revival?”