How much is it worth to us?
Revival” is a word too often used casually, without thought as to its true meaning and impact. A revival is not something that is conjured up at a routine meeting of the local elders. A revival is not something that usually comes with the arrival of some great or popular preacher. Man creates events; God is at work in revivals. A true revival begins with a conscious turning back to God: back to His ways; back to His Word. Since true revival is a work of the Lord Himself, those involved must be walking in fellowship with Him. As the word “revival” implies, it is a work of renewal, of recovery, of fresh dedication, of divinely inspired effort. Revival is not cheap; it is costly. It is experienced only by those willing to pay the price.
The Book of Malachi describes for us a condition of tremendous spiritual disrepair. Israel was robbing God, without having any awareness of doing so. They were offering on God’s altar—in worship, supposedly—that which was polluted. They were giving the blemished beasts to the Lord for a sacrifice rather than reserving the best for Him. In chapter 3:1-10, the Lord outlines the costly road to recovery. He speaks of three primary issues that must be addressed: the cleansing that leads back to true worship, the exercise of judgment against evil, and the matter of tithes—that which God’s people are willing to give to Him. The Lord requires cleansing and renewal before His presence and power in revival can be freshly enjoyed. He says (v. 18) that when the cleansing and restoring has been accomplished—and only then—Israel will return to the Lord. Only then can His people discern between the righteous and the wicked, between those who truly serve God and those who do not.
The New Testament Malachi
Malachi describes the Laodicea of the Old Testament. The Lord Jesus told Laodicea of its true condition: wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3:17-18). Remember, this was not how the Laodicean church saw itself. Rather, this was their true condition as God discerned it. Then He set before them the cost of revival saying, “I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see” (v. 18).
This process is costly to the flesh. The payment of a high price is required because values of great worth must be reclaimed. For many of us, these values have been lost, and God requires that they be restored. The common idea is that a revival is an occasion when many people are brought together and give at least temporary assent to a message from God. A revival is thought to be a time when many souls are saved or restored to the Lord. Indeed, when this happens, it is a revival. However, God calls for a restoration to Himself before true revival occurs. That is the costly part.
The Lord called on Laodicea to buy fire-refined gold. This speaks of the recovery of the rich virtue of true worship. They also needed to purchase white raiment to cover their nakedness. Nakedness speaks of evil that is exposed to the holy eye of God. It must be covered with the stainless virtue of true righteousness. Eye salve must be applied to restore clarity of vision. Laodicea was a smug church, blind to its true condition. They didn’t know how God saw them. The restoration of clear vision would not reveal a pretty sight, but it would enable them to see as God sees. And that clear vision is what the church must have if there will ever be true revival.
Three costs
The costly road to revival, as outlined for Israel in Malachi 3, is remarkably similar to the costly road to revival as presented to the present-day New Testament Church, and as described for Laodicea. We have already noted that in Malachi 3, the first ten verses outline three great steps to revival. God would not return, as mentioned in verse 18, until the price had first been paid, in three distinct parts.
At the beginning of the chapter, the Lord said that His messenger would prepare the way before Him. He would suddenly come to the Lord’s temple. The temple, of course, is the house of God. It is where He dwells, where His name is honored. It is the place of worship. It had to be cleansed. Therefore, He would come upon it like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. In the day of the Lord’s earthly ministry, He cleansed His father’s temple. That cleansing is found to be repeatedly necessary in Scripture because the Lord will dwell only in the place of holiness and purity. Worship that is tainted with the impure is not acceptable. And it is a principle of Scripture that worship precedes service, and true service is requisite to revival. Christians who are not worshipping in truth and purity, and Christians who are lazy in their service, will never see true restoration.
In verse five, the Lord declares that He will come to Israel for judgment. He will be swift in His action (suggesting that He is energetic in His judgment). Sorcerers, adulterers, false swearers, those that oppress the hireling, those that turn aside the stranger from that which is right, and those that fear not the Lord, shall all be judged with the swift witness of God Himself against that which is evil. The purpose of judgment, again, is to cleanse. It is intended to purify testimony. It is intended to restore the one or ones who are judged. It is a necessary prelude to restoration and revival.
The third step pronounced upon Israel for revival was to bring their tithes into God’s storehouse. By bringing to God that which He deserved, they would prove Him afresh. If they took the first step, giving to the Lord his due, He would prove faithful in return. He would then open the windows of heaven and pour out upon them a blessing so great that there would not be room enough to receive it. When was the last time we saw revival on that magnitude? Has God changed? No, but we must give first to Him that which is His due. Our first thought may be that this exhortation touches our financial resources. It does; but much more. He reminds us in Romans 12 to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God. This is declared to be only our reasonable service. Without such giving, there cannot be real revival.
The matter, then, comes down to the question of whether we are willing to pay the price of true revival. We need to search our own souls carefully, asking ourselves if we really are willing. Are we ready to be judged and purged of sin and wayward habits? Are we ready to be shown afresh the realities of true worship of the Lord? Are we ready, even, to yield our bodies a living sacrifice onto Him, which—again—is only reasonable service? If we are not willing to pay the great and exacting price of revival, we shall not see it. We, in our carnal condition, are ourselves the greatest hindrance of revival. Our motives, our values, our fleshly tendencies…all must be judged in the light of God’s holiness. Personal pride and ecclesiastical arrogance must be judged and swept away. We must be ready to pay the price or revival will not come.