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"Love your neighbour as yourself" (Mt 22:39)
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A son was dragging his father to an old age home. When they reached a bridge the father started crying uncontrollably. When the son asked why, the father answered, "Several years back I dragged my father exactly like this over this bridge!" Ours is an inconsiderate society.
Arguments and fights have become the birthright of Christians. We are not concerned about the health of our brothers and sisters, the problems of our colleagues, the financial needs of God's servants and the needy. We justify ourselves saying, "I am alright with God."
When the self-righteous lawyer asked Jesus which was the greatest commandment in the Law, Jesus replied, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart…soul…mind." As far as the questioner was concerned the answer was complete. Not so with Jesus. He went on to say, "And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbour as yourself" (Mt 22:35-39). The religious Pharisees of that day forgot their duty to man in their zeal to fulfil their duty to God. Walking in love with one another is the other side of offering sacrifices to God (Eph 4:3-12).
Vertical relationship with God is not acceptable if the horizontal relationship with people is not alright. It is contradictory for a worshipping tongue to go wrecking someone with malicious words (Js 3:9). "He who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?" John restates the answer Jesus gave the lawyer, "He who loves God must love his brother also" (1 Jn 4:20,21).
Here lies the reason why Jesus insisted on "first" reconciling with an offended brother before offering gifts to God (Mt 5:23,24). Reconciliation involves humility and self-denial. It is difficult. America's great revivalist Charles Finney (1792-1875) always emphasized reconciliation with man.
Only a very few of his converts went astray. One more hour of praise can become an easy substitute for going the second mile. But such worship is void of fragrance. God loathes it. Respect for man is the other side of fear of God (Lk 18:2,4). Think of a coin without imprint on any one side!
The Gospel is the Message of the Cross. The vertical staff of the Cross speaks of man's relationship with God, and the horizontal that with fellowmen. Have we experienced the full blessing of the Cross?
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"Your Kingdom come,
for Yours is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever" (Mt 6:10,13)
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God is not interested to pour out His Spirit on His people just to excite them or make them feel good. No! He is interested in the "world!" He sent His Son to die for the world. He sent His Spirit to convict the world of sin and woo sinners to the Saviour. He anointed the 120 disciples on the Day of Pentecost that they might be His witnesses throughout the whole world.
Evan Roberts (1878-1951) of Welsh Revival prayed, "Lord, bend the Church and bless the world!" Most of the revivals of the past have given birth to great missionary and evangelistic movements. But there are also stories of revivals which died out too soon, one of the main causes being the failure of the leaders to channelise the revival blessings into aggressive evangelism and soulwinning.
The theme of the discourses of the risen Christ with His disciples before Pentecost was the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). When the disciples mistook the mind of Jesus and asked Him, "Lord, will You at this time restore the Kingdom of Israel?" (v 6), He explained to them that He was talking about the spiritual Kingdom that would be established in the hearts of men and women through the preaching of the Gospel all over the world beginning with Jerusalem (vv 7,8). The Great Commission, as it is called, was given just before Ascension. He commanded them to GO! To all the nations! Throughout the whole World! To preach the Gospel! To reach every creature! To teach all the Truths! In His authority! As His witnesses! In the power of the Holy Spirit! With His presence with them always! (Mt 28:18-20; Mk 16:15-18; Lk 24:47-49; Acts 1:8). Revival is not an end in itself. It's a means to an end, the end being evangelism.
David prayed, "Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with Your enthusiastic Spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways and sinners shall be converted to You" (Psa 51:12,13). It is necessary that we understand why we pray for revival. Revival is not evangelism, but revival begets evangelism.
We are living in a time in Church history when revival is not a luxury but a necessity. Revival delays because prayer decays. Let's repair the broken altar of our prayer life so that the fire of God may again fall on us. Then every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that Christ is Lord! (1 Ki 18:38,39).
