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Why Revival Still Tarries INTERNET BOOK SAMPLE |
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FOREWORD
Chad Taylor is a burning fiery lamp in the wilderness of today’s religious systems. He’s a prophetic voice, awakening the hearts of men and women into passion and zeal for the lost. The heartbeat of a revivalist echoes throughout the pages of this book as he challenges all of us with a fervent call to prophetic evangelism! He ardently urges the church to invade the marketplace with signs and wonders following. Evoking memories of Leonard Ravenhill, he cuts through tradition, stirring an unquenchable fire for the harvest. If you don’t have a heart for evangelizing the lost, you will when you finish this book! Jill Austin |
TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 JEREMIAH: THE HEART
OF THE PROPHET |
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Jeremiah: The Heart of the Prophet A PROPHET TO A GENERATION “My eyes fail because of tears, My spirit is greatly troubled; My heart is poured out on the earth, because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, when little ones and infants faint in the streets of the city” (Lamentations 2:11). In a time of national calamity and moral collapse there was a heart that burned with this fire of repentance and righteousness. In the midst of riot and rampage through Israel’s streets, stood one lone prophet with the message of the hour mixed with tears. Like Ramah, he refused to be comforted. Like his Lord, he could not ignore the plight of his people. He witnessed and pleaded on the corner of every street and hedge of Jerusalem for their lives and their liberties, to truly return to the Lord. Echoing through the alleys and lanes of the city it could be heard: “Arise! Cry aloud in the night! At the beginning of the night watches, pour out your heart like water before the presence of the Lord! Lift up your hands to Him, for the life of your young children who faint because of hunger at the top of every street” (Lamentations 2:19). Jeremiah was no stranger to his nation’s sin and pain. He did not observe from a terraced temple treasury at the passing of the publican and prostitute who paraded through the streets of Jerusalem. He did not stand as high priest and judge to the agony and cry of Zion’s children, but to the contrary - he walked with them, he pleaded with them, he wept with them! Like his Messiah, he was no stranger to their desperation; he stood with them at the threshold of their judgment and cried, “Call upon Me and come pray to Me! And I will listen to you! And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:12, 13). Judgment never falls without the tears of the prophet falling first. “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it” (Luke 19:41). Jesus over Jerusalem Yet today in modern-day clergy, hidden behind insulated church walls, one can easily stand afar off and preach of their plight, but never fight the good fight. Sleep unaware through the night, never shining His glorious light. It’s easier to preach of their demise, than to look them in the eyes. It is less toil to walk by on the other side, than to bind up their wounds with oil and wine. God is looking for prophets who will weep with those who weep, leave the ninety-nine for even one lost sheep. That will open the prison doors and set the captives free. The Lord is imploring in this dark hour, “Who will follow Me?” PROPHETS ARE BORN NOT MADE From the womb the stirring was heard, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you, I have appointed you a prophet to the nations” (Jeremiah 1:4). In the bowels of the earth before the foundations of the world an election and a calling was birthed. It was not by mere whim or human standard that Jeremiah was ordained a prophet to the nations. Hear his reply! “But, ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, because I am a youth” In his spiritual infancy Jeremiah fled the holy calling. In his natural age he deemed himself unfit. But in God’s sovereignty he was “prophet to the nations.” But with no small cost did Jeremiah don this mantle! No, but with life and honor, tears and blood did he bear it! In peril and in prison did it accompany him! He was called by God to stand in the streets and weep as a nation faltered; to bear their wounds and weep their tears. In his own words he confesses, “I am a man who has seen affliction” (Lamentations 3:1). Not unlike his Master and Lord, “smitten of God and afflicted” (Isaiah 53:4). If we desire to speak as these prophets spoke, if we aspire to live as these prophets and Prophet lived, then we must enter into the melee of human despair and give them the river of life freely! To step into the masses and declare with Peter, “Repent and be saved!” We can’t stand afar off in some upper room writing and wrangling; we must step out of the boat of human effort and enter into the supernatural realm of His glory. You see, His power FOLLOWED them as they went, “Confirming the Word with signs following…” (Mark 16:20). The Lord is still looking for those whom He can follow. NO POWER WITHOUT PASSION “To whom also he showed Himself alive after HIS PASSION by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). The word passion comes from the Greek word: pascho (pas'-kho), which means, to experience a sensation or impression (usually painful): KJV - to feel, passion, or to suffer, vex. Jesus did not walk in divine power without passion. Without suffering. Without paying the price of pain as He held an orphaned child, or healed a dying leper, or defended and forgave the prostitute. He suffered with them! He walked with them every day! He felt their pain! He stood in their midst. He was found with the unlovely and those deemed misfit. My friends! This divine power does not come without passion! Nor will it ever without His compassion! If we are to see His miracles we must first feel His heart! We must first be broken with the weight of His love before we can be equipped with the power of His glory! O Lord give your passion! We must leap from the safe shores of church, into the deep waters of the world, and take in a great catch! He’s calling to us from the storm, “Don’t be afraid, it is I!” He’s calling us from the highways and hedges, “Compel them to come in!” He’s calling us from the nations and poverty-stricken places, “The heathen is for your inheritance!” The Lord of the Harvest is crying to the church and those who stand idle, “Will you work in My fields?” Jeremiah knew their pain firsthand. He sat with them every day. He pleaded and begged for their repentance. He comprehended that there was no power without passion. He knew the secret of His Father’s heart: “The Lord’s loving kindnesses indeed never cease. His compassions never fail” (Lamentations 3:22). Jesus was moved with compassion when He saw the multitudes. And from it He “healed every kind of disease and every kind of sickness” (Matthew 9: 35, 36). It is His compassion that will release miracles, signs and wonders. And it is apathy and indifference that will obstruct and hinder the river of His love through earthen vessels. We expect power without passion! Miracles without compassion! God forbid we live our lives without the infallible proofs of His resurrection bearing witness upon our ministry. Having the power to affect a world all around us desperate and lost in darkness. God forbid we are silent as the world is screaming for His love captured in human hearts refusing to be released. THE HEART OF THE PROPHET “My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart! My heart is pounding in me; I can not be silent, because you have heard O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war” (Jeremiah 4:19). Certainly from this generation is springing up an army of prophets and prophetesses. A vanguard of youths who hear the beat of His heart and march to its rhythm. An army that has heard in the closets of prayer the sound of the trumpet rousing the warriors, and the alarm of war. A troop of youths who have counted the cost of discipleship and have plunged into the deep and cast their nets on the other side of religion, LIBERTY! Certainly a chosen generation is taking center stage as the curtain of destiny is parting. A royal priesthood, which wears the garments of praise and humility. A peculiar people indeed who march into the land! For such will carry His glory into the nations. And such will declare His heart to the masses. Like Job they will exclaim, “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ears, BUT NOW MY EYE SEES YOU” (Job 42:5). This is a generation that not only has heard of Him and His power and majesty, but one that will experience His power and majesty. They will see with their eyes the demonstration if His love and glory poured out on a dry and thirsty land. The Lord would say, “MAKE WAY! MAKE WAY FOR MY YOUNG ONES! THEY WILL LEAD YOU INTO THE PROMISED LAND! THEY WILL LEAD YOU INTO THE FRUITFUL STAND! FOR THIS IS A GENERATION THAT FINALLY UNDERSTANDS THE DIVINE STRATEGY OF MY UNFOLDING PLAN! TO POSSESS THE LAND! TO POSSESS THE LAND!” This will be a people who touch, not just talk. Like their predecessors Jeremiah and Ezekiel, they will stand in the city gates and prophesy: “Return, backsliding Israel, says the Lord; I will not cause My anger to fall upon you, for I am merciful, says the Lord. Only acknowledge your iniquity that you have transgressed against the Lord” (Jeremiah 3: 12, 13). They will not be a foreigner, but a friend to their nation, their city, and their land. They will stand in the gap, that God would not destroy it. God give us prophets who are not afraid to walk in the streets with a “Thus say the Lord.” Those who are not afraid to touch and hold and heal the wounds of a generation. Make them like their Master who sat and ate with the publican and the tax collector despite the ridicule of His peers. Give them a courage that transcends religious tradition that creates a chasm between the world instead of a bridge. Tradition that creates distance instead of desire for a lost and degenerate world. God give us heaven-breathed, passion-born and love-inspired prophets who invade every modern-day Samaria with Your power and eternal weight of glory! Illuminating the poverty of sin with the power of Christ’s liberty! Breaking the chains of humanity with the promise of salvation’s immortality! GOD GIVE US PROPHETS!
Qualifications of a Prophet A PROPHETIC ERA It’s a common understanding that we are in a prophetic era according to the book of Joel and then later confirmed in the second chapter of Acts. It’s a prophetic people that have the capacity to carry His word into a hostile and violent world and cause it to cry out, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?” What could possibly qualify us for such a monumental task? What could possibly give us the impact we so desperately need to change the course of cities and nations? Must I shout if from the rooftops? Nothing less than the heart of the Father! Look at David for a moment - a king, a psalmist, a slayer of giants, but even more important, a man after God’s own heart! This was the qualification of heaven that made this ruddy shepherd boy king of Israel and prophet of the Most High God. Yet in this present hour, if you read a popular prophetic book, attend a prophetic conference, say a token prayer, then suddenly you’re Moses overlooking rebellious Israel! Yet never taking the heartbreaking, soul-crushing, mind-transforming, reputation-destroying time with the Chief Apostle of our faith, Jesus Christ! We just suddenly take upon ourselves the mantle of Elijah, but never having paid the price of obedience that Elisha paid! Prophets in these days are mass-produced instead of tested and tried. Like an assembly line we produce prophets, never comprehending that they’re not man made, but God made. They’re not created in conferences and prophetic seminars, but rather in the womb - ordained by God Himself. “Before you were born I sanctified you” (Jeremiah 1:5). The only fingerprints that should be on the prophet’s heart are God’s. First you must make the awesome sacrifice of time and dreams, aspirations, even life itself, and sit at the Master’s feet and take on His nature and heart. Then and only then can you take on the responsibility of prophet and teacher of Israel. Let His face be the face that you first see before man’s. Let it be heaven’s opinion that rules your heart and not human persuasion or self-promotion. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians. 2:5). That is the office of the prophet. ONLY ONE KNEW HIS HEART At the table with the twelve eating their last meal together, we find an interesting scenario. In John 13:24, we see Peter asking John to inquire who will betray the Master. “He then lying on Jesus’ breast saith unto Him, Lord, who is it?” (verse 25). In a room full of Jesus’ closest followers, His apostles, only one knew His heart! Astounding! Yet this is no new thing. How many are leaning on His chest and hearing the rhythm of His heartbeat? Feeling His breath on their face, His arm on their shoulder? It’s one thing to be in the same room with the Lord, even in His presence, but who is close enough to whisper in His ear? Close enough to hear what He replies? God is seeking those who don’t just love His presence, but love His heart and His desire. Those who have taken the time to do nothing but hear Him. We can leave wrought-up meetings, clothes disheveled from falling down in the prayer line, yet walk out into the world and make no impact, no difference. We drive the safest route home, like the priest and Levite in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan, we pass by so many desperately in need of the oil and wine we’ve so carelessly received. The true prophet won’t hoard the anointing from one meeting to the next. He or she will become a conduit of Holy love to a dying world. Are you a person after God’s own heart? You can be. John was not preferred above the rest of the disciples; only he took the time to be close to the Master. The same invitation is to all of us, right now, even where you sit. Come now! Lean on His breast and hear His deepest thoughts! Hear the rhythm of His heart! His longing and cry is still, “"What, could you not watch with Me one hour?” In all of our business in life and ministry, let’s not be Martha, but rather Mary, sitting at His feet, listening to the Master’s voice. Let’s be the lovers of the Lord, not just His followers.
THE POWER TO CREATE TRUE UNITY In a world riddled with contempt for life, a hatred for what’s right, reckless in its pursuit of pleasure and strife, there’s another aspect of the prophetic that plays a critical if not defining role in this hour. It’s the power to create unity and true love in the members of the Body of Christ. Let’s look at the discourse in 1Samuel 18:1: “And it came to pass, when he (David) had made an end of speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, AND JONATHAN LOVED HIM AS HIS OWN SOUL.” When the prophet speaks it causes a knitting in the Spirit to take place. It causes a spontaneous increase in love and compassion in the hearts of God’s people for one another. It’s this kind of love that will be the overcoming factor in the days ahead. It was this kind of love that saved David’s life from the wrath of Saul. It’s this kind of love that will be the survival of the church in the perils to come. This is the foremost task of the prophet, or a prophetic people, “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). It’s a call of love, a project of passion. Nothing less will get the job done. “...maketh INCREASE of the body to the edifying if itself in love” (verse14). DAVID AND JONATHAN In 1Samuel 18:4, we find another act of prophetic love unfolding: “And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garment, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle.” There was covenant love and covenant commitment in the hearts of these two young men. They LOVED each other like men of God should. There wasn’t a competitive bone in their bodies; their love was unto death. This kind of love will be the proof of the prophetic and apostolic order that the Lord is establishing in the earth. Love that knows no limits in its giving and sacrifice for one another in the light of God’s presence. It’s this kind of love that will change nations and dethrone principalities and powers. Davids need Jonathans, and Jonathans need Davids; we can’t do it alone. PROPHETIC SACRIFICE Now we see another drama of love playing itself out in John 13. “Jesus rose from supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel, and girded Himself.” This was not the last time the Master would be stripped and left naked because of His love for mankind. Not too long from this place of washing, He would find Himself stripped of His garments again and hung on a cross, but this time the washing would be by His blood. “If I then your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (verse 14). This is the life of the servant of Jesus Christ. It’s one of unselfish giving and pouring out. So we see a picture of the prophet, and a clear portrait of the apostle characterized by selfless love and sacrifice: “...nothing done in strife or vain glory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than themselves. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:1-7). This is the holy standard of love that has been passed down to us through the centuries. No less can affect a world covered in gross darkness, no less can pierce this darkness and translate the perishing into the kingdom of His dear Son. Nothing less than Christ breathed love for one another. It must be our highest mark that we strive for, “the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:14). Church! It’s time to lay down our crowns and our reputations and with Paul cry to the Lord: “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.” Let’s strip off the armor of our own success and lay it at our brother’s feet and enter a prophetic covenant relationship with one another in Christ Jesus. Stripping off the garments of self, and adorning the towel of humility and sacrifice, washing away the sin we see in others with the water of pure love. And by this act the entire world will know that we are who we say we are - Christians (Philippians 4:7). ARE YOU A PROPHET? Are you a prophet? Then you’ll lay down your life for the brethren. You will have no hidden agenda for self. Only Christ. You will never seek your own glory, only His. Your heart will be broken for the lost and dying. Why? Because His is. And as He was in the world, so are you. You will prefer the success of others before your own. You will leap for joy when others cast out your name as evil and separate you from their company for the Lord’s sake. You will not complain, only praise. You will not be a heralder of doom only, but hope - hope in a God who loves the world more than life itself and paid for it with His own. Can you do any less? “Because He laid down His life for us, we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1John 3:16). These are the undeniable marks of a servant of the Most High God; without them you are not what you say you are - a prophet. Once a man said to me, “Chad, I can’t go down to the streets like you do. I’m a prophet, not an evangelist. I’ve led only one person to the Lord all my life.” What a lack of understanding we have of the five-fold ministry! Jesus the Chief Apostle made it His passion to save that which is lost, and said to those He had called into ministry, “As the Father has sent Me, so send I you!” It’s not the evangelist alone who’s commissioned to preach the gospel. It’s every soul who has the substance of Jesus abiding in it. We are all called to be His witnesses. In Acts 1:8 we see a power point of the Christian life: “When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, YOU SHALL RECEIVE POWER TO BE MY WITNESSES.” Power to testify of the resurrection and life of Jesus Christ. This was the consummation of all the apostles taught, “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1Corinthians 15:3, 4). It was for this very same message all were martyred but one. The sure sign of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is not speaking in other tongues; it’s the power to save a soul.
THE FATHER’S HEART The cry of the Father’s heart is the cry for a lost and desperate world. It’s the statement of Peter that best defines the heart of God in this hour. “The Lord is not slack according to His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2Peter 4:9). Now we know what the will of the Lord is for our lives! First, we know what it isn’t! “Not willing that any should perish.” Then we know what it is! “But that all should come to repentance.” How does that happen? “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19, 20). It happens when each of us “comprehends with all the saints, what’s the width and length and depth and height, to KNOW the love of Christ that passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:16-20). When we KNOW the love of the Father for His world, we will finally grasp the magnitude of our calling while on this earth, and work with all abandonment to see it fulfilled. “Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:38).
Preparing for Harvest “The people say, ‘The time is NOT come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built’ ” (Haggai 1:2). In an hour of gross darkness and impending change the popular opinion is one of ease and relaxation. A state of casualness permeates the air and somehow the plea of help that rings in the streets of America is ignored. The casual Christian meanders by the masses oblivious to their eternal plight of doom. Shifting our eyes from their blank faces, the startling images that remind us of a dying crucified Jesus, paying a terrible price for the lives of the ones who are so easily ignored. A landslide opinion says, “Everything’s cool! Church as usual! No need to be alarmed! Everything is OK!” Overlooking the words of Peter, “For the end of all things is at hand, be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer” (1Peter 4:7). We have declared in our casualness, “The time HAS NOT come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built!” What’s the Lord’s reply to His church in this hour? “Consider your ways” (Haggai 1:5). A state of transition grips the church. The old and familiar no longer satisfy people. The hunger of the believer will no longer tolerate the old manna, the old traditions. There’s a cry for the Living Bread! The Bread that comes from heaven! To taste the Water that will eternally quench the spiritual palate! This is the cry from the corridors of church! “MORE! Give us more! More of Your power and love so that I can effectively walk out into the market places of my city and have them exclaim, ‘What must I do to be saved?’ We must have enough of you Lord to pour out to the poor and hungry who stare at us from the street corner. So we can have a place that will take them in and heal their hearts and bind up their wounds and set them free. Give us more of the power of God to cast out demons, heal the sick and raise the dead! Give us more of this power to trample on serpents and scorpions and set our cities and streets free from the hold of darkness and sin! Yes! Give us this! Give us Him and only Him!” The transition that grips the church in this hour is from one of preaching to training. A simple dialogue of revelation is no longer sufficient. We must train them for works of ministry. Equipping instead of entertaining! We must “commit these things to faithful men that they can teach others also.” We must demonstrate to them how to effectively transform their neighborhoods from ghettos to refuges where the children can safely walk. This will demand that we take the price tags off of our services and our conferences, that we accommodate the poor and dying instead of the rich and famous. Only then will we experience a national awakening and the fullness of God’s blessing. The call to leaders in this hour is to prepare the church for harvest. For the church to have the knowledge and ability to save a soul, to lay hands on a sick person and see him healed, to confront a gang member with the gospel message and see him converted. This is the mandate from heaven! “Prepare My people for harvest! Prepare My people for the great catch that’s coming upon the church!” We can’t delay in this heavenly mandate! We must prepare the church for harvest. In the ’70s the church made a grave error; it didn’t accommodate youths and that historical move of God. God is giving the church a second chance to influence an entire generation and its culture. We need to be facilitators of revival. We must “suffer the little children to come unto Him.” The transition is to facilitate His glory and the imminent influx into the Kingdom of God. If we will lift up our eyes we will see a sea of souls beckoning laborers into fields white and heavy with fruit. Swaying in the winds of His Spirit who woos them and draws them to the cross and Christ. We must be ready to receive them! This is the anointing that’s upon us! “To preach good news to the poor, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them who are bound” (Luke 4:18)! This is the year of the favor of the Lord! This is the time to prepare the nets, repair the riggings and boats, and launch out into the deep and take in a great catch! This is the heart of the Father; this is the heart of His Son; this is the heart of His Spirit: “Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature!” We must obey now or forever be accountable for this generation. “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation” (Hebrews 2:3)? If there has ever been a time to “fulfill your ministry,” it’s now. God is rattling the cages of our vision so the gift and calling He’s created in us may soar like it was created to soar. We’re to bear fruit and reproduce. We must earnestly obey the holy calling and election He has given each of us, to reach the uttermost parts of the earth with His power and love. To shift the slipping tide of mankind to the feet of the Father. To convince the prodigal that there’s more abundance in the Father’s house. To persuade the sinner of a Father’s love that knows no bounds or limits to bring them to the knowledge of salvation’s grace. We must compel them to come in so our Father’s house may be filled! We must fulfill our ministries; we must strive for the upward call in Christ Jesus! We must “cast our nets on the other side.” Church! This is the day of salvation! The gang member will renounce his vows to death when he’s shown “life more abundantly.” The prostitute will forsake her trade when she sees Jesus’ face demonstrated in the hearts of His own. The runaway will run to the arms of the church when the heart of the Father is revealed through her. The junkie will throw away his needles when he’s injected with the power of His Spirit and love. The money-hungry businessman will sell all he has and give it to the poor when he’s confronted with a destiny greater than his own. The woman on welfare who has had three abortions will consider her ways and repent when faced with the bloodstained love of Jesus through His bride. This is the hour He’s calling us to live what we believe. To demonstrate not just imitate His power and grace. The call is to all of us. The commission is to every Christian - the call is to you. “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23).
Cry of the Spirit is Harvest So the harvest of hearts sways to the sound of church
bells, The child wanders the streets, with nothing to eat, The orphan and the widow search for a home, The cry of the Spirit is "PREPARE!” SPARE NOT! Lengthen your cords! Stretch out your curtains! Strengthen your stakes! This is the day the Lord has made! Launch out! Go into the fields! Then the orphan and widow will say, The prisoner will exclaim The blind man will shout, The cry of the Spirit is, “PREPARE,
Chad Taylor
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