Revive – to make something strong, healthy, or active again
In reality, revival is needed at all times. If something is not maintained, it will grow weak and begin to break down. This is true with our cars, our homes, our faith, our church, and our nation.
For a nation to experience revival, it has to start in one region. For a region to experience revival, the church needs to seek it. For the church to experience revival – individuals need to seek it.
Where do we get the concept of the fires of revival in the church? The Holy Spirit is seen embodied as a flame (Acts 2) and our God is an all-consuming fire (Deuteronomy 4:24). For a great fire to take off, there first has to be a spark (James 3).
All great revivals have documented that at their beginnings, an individual or small group of individuals whom were found in prayer and fervently seeking after the Holy Spirit. This is where revival must begin – us as individuals seeking earnestly and fervently after the Holy Spirit.
The truth is that we can’t force revival to happen. Revival is a work of the Holy Spirit, the only one who can bring the dead to life, the only one who can be our strength in our weakness, the only one who can bring healing to our sickness, the only one who can bring us out of our bondage into freedom! However, we have an enormous part to play in revival as we, together, are the physical body of Christ here on the earth. Jesus is our head and the Spirit binds us, the various parts of His body, together in unity via our diversity (1 Corinthians 12, Colossians 1).
In Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus calls out seven churches in need of revival. We can learn from their successes, mistakes, and how Jesus calls them to respond in order to allow Him to revive them.
| Church | Good | Bad | Response |
| Ephesus | Do not tolerate wicked people Persevered hardships Haven’t grown weary |
Forsaken their first love | Do the things that you did at first |
| Smyrna | Rich | Afflicted and impoverished About to suffer Imprisoned and persecuted for 10 days |
Be faithful |
| Pergamum | Remain true Remain faithful |
False teachings | Repent |
| Thyatira | Doing more than they did at first in deeds, love, faith, and service Some do not follow the false prophetess |
False prophetess | Hold fast to what they have |
| Sardis | Some have remained clean | Reputation of being alive, but are dead Deeds unfinished |
Wake up! Strengthen what remains |
| Philadelphia | Kept God’s word Not denied His name Endured patiently |
Little strength | Hold fast to what they have |
| Laodicea | Think they are rich Lukewarm, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked |
Be earnest and repent |
How does revival occur?
We:
1. Remember – the essential basics and beginnings of our faith when we first came alive in Christ
2. Repent – change the way that we see and do things in order to cooperate with God
3. Return – to the Lord with all we are and all we have; fully surrendered and earnestly seeking Him