Jesus wants to A.W.A.K.E His church

Revelation 3:1-2 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.

Brief Review

In yesterday's post we began considering Jesus' letter to the church at Sardis.  Jesus' words to the church is that she had the reputation of being alive, but was in actuality dead.  We explored Jesus' three letters to the churches at Ephesus, Pergamum and Thyatira as representing the successive downward spiral that a Christian or church can experience when slipping into a spiritual slumber, namely coldness of love, compromise and conformity.  We then concluded by noting a little bit about what exactly a revival is.  In today's post we want to consider more about what revival is and Jesus' prescription to A.W.A.K.E His church from her slumber. 

Revival leaders of the past help us understand what revival is

Jesus words to the church at Sardis was a message to a church in need of revival.  As I noted yesterday, I am fearful that many of us living today would not even begin to know how to define a revival, which is but proof of how much in need we are of one.  To get us off the runway and into the air, let me list some thoughts on revival by Godly leaders whom have demonstrated fidelity to the scripture and whose ministries have been used by God to spark revival.

1. Elmer Towns was for years Dean of the School of religion at Liberty University.  He writes: "An evangelical revival is an extraordinary work of God in which Christians repent of their sins as they become intensely aware of His presence in their midst, and they manifest a positive response to God, resulting in both a deepening of their individual and corporate experience with God, and an increased concern to win others to Christ."1

2. Leonard Ravenhill, one of the greatest writers on the subject of revival, notes: "Our request concerning revival must be that God be glorified ; afterwards, not before, will come our request for sinners to be saved and a believing that the heavens will be rent. God's conditions will be met."2   

3. Steven Olford, famed Baptist Pastor of times past, writes the following about revival: "Revival is that strange and Sovereign work of God in in which He visits His own people, restoring, reanimating and releasing them into the fullness of His blessing. Such a Divine intervention will issue in evangelism though, in the first instance, it is a work of God in the church and amongst individual believers. Once we understand the nature of heaven sent revival, we shall be able to think, pray and speak intelligently of such times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord (Acts 3:19)." 3

4. Martin Lloyd Jones, one of the premier preachers of the 20th century, writes on the cost of revival: "May He (God) so reveal His own glory and holiness to us. May He reveal unto us our utter impotence and hopelessness. May we see these things in such a way that we shall cease from men and look only unto the living God. And then there is no question but that He will hear us and He will manifest His glory and power."4

How Jesus wants to A.W.A.K.E His church
As you read Jesus' letter to the church at Sardis, you can use the acrostic A.W.A.K.E to describe what it takes to be a revived people of God for His glory.

Almighty Holy Spirit.  Revelation 3:1
Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would be sent in His name by the Father.   The "seven spirits" mentioned is in reference to the seven-fold nature of the Holy Spirit, described in Isaiah 11:2 and mentioned in Revelation 1:4 and 4:5. In order for revival to take place, the Sovereign God in the Person of the Spirit must come down and blow fresh wind into the sails of faith.  Lest we hoist the sails of faith up into the air on the mast of prayer, no revival will occur.  Revival is undoubtedly a Sovereign work of God.  The remaining elements of Jesus' prescription of revival has to do with the believer.

Work on Neglected Areas. Revelation 3:1b-2  
We read in Revelation 3:1b-2 "Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God." The word translated "awake" comes from the root word meaning “rise from the dead”.  This was a deadening sleep that Sardis and all slumbering churches or Christians need to awake.  It starts with an attitude of confession before God that we have been neglecting what we know we ought to do.  That confession must quickly be followed by taking care of those areas that are about to die. Often we neglect Bible reading, prayer, witnessing, giving, love.  Whatever we know to do, and yet fail to do, to us it is sin. (James 4:17)

Apply what you know. Revelation 3:3
Revelation 3:3 reads: "So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it." Often as Christians we cry out to God for more light.  The problem is that we are not living out the current light we already have.  Application of truth involves the mind (remember), the heart (received, heard) and the hands (keep it).  Once we have walked out the current level of understanding, only then will God grant us further light and great opportunities for Him. (compare Matthew 25:21; Luke 19:17) 

Keep a repentant mindset. Revelation 3:3b-4
Jesus then says in Revelation 3:3-4 "...and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you." Repentance means I have turned away from my sin and have run into the arms of Jesus.  Repentance is the twin of faith.  Just as we are to exercise growing faith in the Lord, so too with repentance.  We should ever be cultivating a growing hatred of sin, so as to ever run into the arms of Jesus.  Then finally...

Emphasize Jesus and His word. Revelation 3:4-6
Revival is not an end, but a means to a great end - continual pressing onward and upward in the Lord.  The "garments" of righteousness spoken of here in Revelation is in reference to the credited righteousness of Jesus Christ we receive at salvation (called justification), from whence springs our practical righteousness (sanctification). Seven times in Revelation we find reference to "white robes" given to the saints, and all seven are connected to Christ and His righteousness as being the basis for the believer's practical righteousness. (compare 3:5,18; 4:4; 6:11; 7:9, 13; 19:14). The scriptures once again are alluded to in 3:6 as the source from whence we hear what the "Spirit is saying to the churches."  

True revival begins and ends with God.  As much as revival is conditioned upon the humbling of ourselves, praying, seeking God's face and turning from our wicked ways (2 Chronicles 7:14), yet its source and fruit all stems from the Spirit of God, who ever Proceeds from the Father in the name of the Son.   

Endnotes:

1. Elmer Towns & Douglas Porter. The Ten Greatest Revivals Ever - From Pentecost to the Present. Vine Books. 2000. Page 16

2. Leonard Ravenhill. Revival Praying. Bethany Fellowship. 1979. Page 145

3. Steven Olford. The Heart Cry for Revival. Fleming Revell. 1962. Page 16.

4. Martin Lloyd-Jones. Revival. Crossway Books. 1987. Page 131.

The need for revival

Revelation 3:1-2 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God." 

The city church that looked alive, and yet was dead

The history of the city of Sardis provides the background and insight into what had developed in the church at Sardis.  Commentator Steve Gregg notes: The City of Sardis, the old capitol of Lydia, had become famous for its red dye and woolen goods. Twice in its history it had been conquered-by Cyrus, in 549 b.c., and by Antiochus the Great, in 218 b.c - because of failing to keep adequate watch. It may be with allusion to this historical fact that Jesus exhorted the church to be watchful."1  Able commentator Dr. John Walvoord gives the following insight: The spiritual history of the church was to correspond to the political history of the city. Their works are also declared to be not perfect, literally 'not fulfilled', that is, not achieving the full extend of the will of God."2

When you survey the seven letters of Revelation 2-3, you find that two of them received full commendation from Jesus (Smyrna and Philadelphia); three of them receive a mixture of commendation and censure (Ephesus, Pergamum, Thyatira) and two of them receive only rebuke and no commendation (Sardis, Laodicea). Of the seven, Sardis receives the specific rebuke of being dead and in need of revival.  Thus in today's post, we want to consider the need for revival, and how Jesus wants His church to be a revived church.

What causes Christians and a church to slip into a deadening spiritual slumber?

To begin, John MacArthur gives this insight into the corpse-like state of Sardis: "What are the danger signs that a church is dying? A church is in danger of dying when it is content to rest on its past laurels, when it is more concerned with liturgical forms than spiritual reality, when it focuses on curing social ills rather than changing people's hearts through the preaching of the life-changing gospel of Jesus Christ, when it is more concerned with material than spiritual things, when it is more concerned with what men think than with what God said..."  After citing some further striking characteristics, MacArthur concludes with this observation: No matter what its attendance, no matter how impressive its buildings, no matter what its status in the community, such a church, having denied the only source of spiritual life, is dead."3  

Ouch! But true. Whenever you survey the prior churches written to by John in Revelation 2 (with the exception of Smyrna), you could observe them representing the following stages or steps that leads a Christian or church into a state of spiritual slumber:

1. Coldness in love Revelation 2:1-7

Just like the church at Ephesus, a church or a Christian can be practicing the truth, having the form or mold of Christian practice, and yet be devoid of Christ-filled passion. Love for God and other believers is the beach head that protects the Christian faith from the corrosive effects of the sea of the world. (please compare 1 John 2:15-17; 4:18) 

2. Compromise. Revelation 2:12-17

When love has grown cold, apathy fills in its place.  As we witness in the letter to Pergamum, compromise with the world is comprised of three elements: apathy, blindness and carelessness.  The coldness of love and compromising stages can be gradual and almost imperceptible to the individual Christian or non-vigilant church.

3. Conformity Revelation 2:18-29

By beginning with coldness of love, and slipping into the mode of compromise, the third stage that leads to spiritual slumber is that of conformity.  The first two stages are more passive in nature and gradual, whereas this stage seems more willful and swift.  By the time a church or Christian reaches this stage, allowance of error (like at Pergamum) quickly goes to approval (like Thyatira did with "Jezebel")

A church that is nearly dead is in need of revival

Jesus words in Revelation 3:2 gives us the central command to the church at Sardis as well as the call to all churches and Christians of every age: "Wake up". The issue over revival is never about the Lord's desire and ability to grant it as it is our lack of desire for it.  A Christian or a church that prefers to operate in ignorance will be a church that fails to experience the refreshing winds of the Spirit's reviving work.  One can note throughout the long history of the church and revivals the common trends that we noted above as signalling the need for revival: coldness of love, compromise and conformity. 

What is revival?

I fear that our generation of Christian people may not even know what revival is, and thus not see the need for it.  We will continue more tomorrow on this vital subject of revival.  I want to leave the reader with this excellent definition of revival from Elmer Towns: "An evangelical revival is an extraordinary work of God in which Christians repent of their sins as they become intensely aware of His presence in their midst, and they manifest a positive response to God, resulting in both a deepening of their individual and corporate experience with God, and an increased concern to win others to Christ."4   

Endnotes:

1. Steve Gregg. Revelation - Four Views: A Parallel Commentary. Nelson. 1997. Page 73

2. John Walvoord. The Revelation of Jesus Christ - A Commentary. Moody. 1966. Page 81

3. John MacArthur. The MacArthur New Testament Commentary - Revelation 1-11. Moody. 1999. Page 112

4. Elmer Towns & Douglas Porter. The Ten Greatest Revivals Ever - From Pentecost to the Present. Vine Books. 2000. Page 16

How the tabernacle points to the actor of salvation: Jesus Christ

Hebrews 10:1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.

Introduction
When the writer of Hebrews speaks about the law being but a "shadow of good things to come", the question to ask is: "what then is the light casting the shadow?" This brings us to the final post in our series on the tabernacle picturing Jesus Christ our salvation.  We have explored in Hebrews 8-9 how Jesus Christ's act and accomplishment was pictured by the tabernacle.  The writer of Hebrews has went to great lengths to argue and unfold by divine inspiration these tremendous truths.  As we come into Hebrews 10:1-25, we discover that the act and accomplishment of salvation cannot be severed from the Actor.  Just as the tabernacle could not be severed from the One who revealed it to Moses, the cross cannot be severed from the Savior.  In today's post we aim to see how the writer of Hebrews unfolds the Actor of salvation as being pointed to by the tabernacle.

1. The tabernacle pointed to the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 10:1-10
The sacrifices of bulls and goats pointed the way to the need for one ultimate sacrifice.  Evidently the Son was in eternity and was awaiting the fullness of time wherein He would enter into history to take on human flesh (i.e incarnation).  By being a sharer in full Deity with the Father and Spirit, the Son could truly say He was the source of salvation, since as Jonah 2:9-10 reminds us, salvation is of the Lord.  However in order for salvation to be paid for, the shedding of blood had to occur.  Furthermore, since a man, Adam, had sinned against God, God's Holy character demanded justice to be poured out on man.  A New Adam was needed who was sinless. (Romans 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:20-22,45) 

Hence Jesus Christ, being fully Divine, assumed a human nature and became also fully man.  Just as the tabernacle in an illustrative way had the Father dwell among the people He came to redeem in a tabernacle of wood and metal, the Son in a real way came to dwell among men in a tabernacle of human flesh. 

2. The tabernacle points the way to Jesus Christ's humiliation & exaltation. Hebrews 10:11-18
When Jesus the Son incarnated Himself as a man, the humiliation ran from the cradle to the cross.  The ultimate low point of Jesus' mission, crucifixion, also became the beginning of the journey to exaltation following His resurrection from the dead.  The cross proceeded the crown. In His humanity He died for our sins and in His physical resurrection He demonstrated Himself to be God in human flesh.

3. The tabernacle is used to point to Jesus Christ's session in Heaven. Hebrews 10:19-25
Once again the tabernacle fades into the background and the exalted Jesus is in the foreground.  The imagery of the High Priest is used to point us to Jesus Christ, our exalted High Priest who sits in "session" over His church as her King, Prophet and High Priest.  He represents us, just as the lesser priesthood of Aaron did so for Israel in the days of the tabernacle.  The writer of Hebrews makes his point clear and firm: Jesus Christ alone is Superior and second to none in the realm of being the Actor of salvation, the Act of our salvation and the Achiever of our salvation.  

How the tabernacle pictures the accomplishment of salvation

Hebrews 9:11-12 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation;12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. 

Review
For the past couple of days we have been considering how the tabernacle of the Old Testament pictures for us Jesus Christ our salvation.  Yesterday we considered the first picture of how the tabernacle pictures the act of salvation - the cross.  In today's post we turn our attention to Hebrews 9:12-28 to understand how the writer uses the tabernacle in a more contrasting way to point the reader to all that Jesus accomplished.  The Gospels record the six hours of Jesus crucifixion, however God revealed the Book of Acts and 21 New Testament letters, plus Revelation to unfold all that Jesus accomplished! What Hebrews 9:12-28 will do is give us a summary of the key accomplishments of Jesus Christ at both Calvary and the empty tomb.

What Jesus Christ accomplished - Hebrews 9:12-28
1. Eternal Redemption. 9:12-13
The word "redemption" is an umbrella term that describes the entirety of what Jesus came to accomplish.  It speaks of "purchasing from the slavery of sin".  In contrast to the blood of bulls and goats offered at the tabernacle, which pointed to what would be the ulitmate accomplishment redemptive work, Jesus' Christ Himself accomplished the necessary work.  His blood satisfied the demands of wrath and once and for all paid the price of salvation, sufficient for all and applied to all who believe. (1 Timothy 2:4; 4:10; 1 John 2:2; 2 Peter 3:9-10)

2. Cleansing of the Conscience. Hebrews 9:14-15
The cross not only provided redemption for sinners, but also cleansing of the conscience.  
Certain sacrifices in the Old Testament were designed to be a means of restoring fellowship between the worshipper and God.  However there was one thing they could not do: cleanse the conscience.  

3. Adoption. Hebrews 9:16-20
Once a sinner has believed on Jesus and repented of their sins, they are adopted as a son or daughter of God. (Romans 8:16) The wonder of adoption is that the Father treats the child of God in the same manner as the Son, meaning that Jesus in His humanity becomes our elder brother, and we his co-heirs, seated in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 2:5-8)

4. Forgiveness. Hebrews 9:21-22
Truly the child of God is adopted by faith into the family of God.  The relationship between God and the believer is fully functioning.  Legally the saint of God is declared righteous because of the credited righteousness of Jesus Christ.  This one time, declared judicial act is called justification.  Like a white linen robe of the priests who served in the tabernacle, the righteousness of Jesus Christ is placed like a robe over us to cover us before a Holy righteous God so that upon the reception of it by saving faith, the Father declares us righteous or "justified".  

5. Representation. Hebrews 9:23-26
Yet another accomplishment of Jesus Christ is that of representation.  Following His resurrection from the dead and ascension into Heaven, Jesus sat down at the right hand of God.  Much like the priests in the Old Testament, Jesus represents us.  However unlike those priests, who died and had to be replaced, Jesus functions as our Heavenly Melchizedek, forever representing us. (Hebrews 7:24-25)

6. Preservation of salvation. Hebrews 9:27-28
The one final accomplishment mentioned in this glorious chapter is that of the preservation of salvation.  The promise of scripture is that all true believers will endure to the end.  Jesus will never leave nor forsake. (Hebrews 13:5)  Furthermore Romans 5:9 tells us that the child of God is justified by His blood and saved from the wrath of God that will be revealed at His appearing.  The tabernacle points beyond itself to the only One who could guarantee such a list of accomplishments - Jesus Christ.  

How the tabernacle pictures Jesus' act of salvation

Hebrews 9:1  "Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary."  

Hebrews 9:11 "But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation"

Yesterday we considered in general how the Old Testament Tabernacle, the first worship center of ancient Israel, points the way to understanding Jesus the actor, as well as act and accomplishment of salvation.  In today's post we will consider the first way in which the tabernacle of Moses' day pictures Jesus Christ our salvation: namely His activity in providing our redemption.  

The furnishings and general layout of the tabernacle gives us a remarkable prediction of Jesus' act of salvation. 
As you turn to Hebrews 9:1-11, you discover the writer listing out the floor plan and nearly every element associated with Israel's first place of worship - the tabernacle.  To remind the reader, the word "tabernacle" comes from a word which means "meeting place".  For the sake of today's post, we will also refer to some passages in Exodus that list the remaining details of the tabernacle's layout not mentioned in Hebrews.  I promise you that by the end this post, you will see how the tabernacle pictures the act of salvation to be performed by Jesus.

I will first give you a picture of the general layout of the tabernacle that we see from the combined passages of Exodus 27:9-19 and Hebrews 9:1-10, followed by a brief description of what the Bible teaches about that layout:


The tabernacle as a whole is divided into three general areas, consisting of seven main furnishings used by the priesthood.  

1. The Courtyard: the place of sacrifice and consecration
Exodus 27:9-19 mentions the first area -the courtyard, as being 75 feet wide and 150 feet long. The courtyard had one East entryway, wherein was brought the sacrifices to the priests.  After they sacrificed on behalf of the worshipper on the first furnishing - the bronze altar, the priests would proceed to the washing of their hands and feet at the second furnishing - the bronze laver.  

2. The holy place: the place of ministry
The second main area, located in the Western end of the courtyard, was what was called the "outer tabernacle" or tabernacle proper and is mentioned in Hebrews 9:2,6,8-9. The "outer tabernacle" contained two rooms: the "holy place" and the "most holy place".  The "holy place" is included in this second main area of the writer of Hebrew's description of the tabernacle.  It was in that "holy place" where the priests performed their daily ministries and included the furnishings of the golden lampstand, the table of bread and the golden altar of incense.  In order to access this first room of the outer tabernacle, you had to enter into through a veil.  

3. The Holy of Holies - the place of worship
The third area of the Tabernacle, which is located in the just mentioned "outer tabernacle" structure, is what the Bible calls "the holy of holies" (Hebrews 9:3) To access this inner room of the tabernacle proper, a second veil was set up directly behind the altar of incense in the holy place.  Only the High Priest of Israel entered that most sacred spot, once a year, to minister before the two last remaining furnishings which functioned together: the Ark of the Covenant and its lid, called "the mercy seat." 

Many scholars for years have noted how the layout of the seven furnishings correspond to a remarkable shape.  I'm sure as a child you played "connect the dots".  If you drew a line beginning with the ark of the covenant and its lid, the mercy seat, the altar of incense, the bronze laver and the bronze altar of sacrifice; and then drew a second line between the golden lampstand and the table of bread, here is what you would end up with:

God all along had the cross in mind! The precious act of redemption was not the shadowy activity of sacrificing bulls and goats, but rather the reality to which they pointed - Calvary's cross.  As we close, the writer of Hebrews draws this connection between the tabernacle and the act of salvation in Hebrews 9:11 "But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation". 

More tomorrow....