Revival and Reformation, Part 4
God has told us that 2024 will be a year of revival and reformation. We have been looking at these two Kingdom activities and the fact that they are linked to Yahweh’s assignments to Adam and Eve - and therefore all of us - in Genesis 1: multiply His family and govern/manage His earth. Christ recommissioned the church to these assignments in Mark 16:15-20 and Matthew 28:18-20. In the first passage, He told us to preach the gospel in order to see people saved; in the latter, He instructed us to teach His commandments in order to disciple nations.
We have also taught what occurs when we do not prioritize both of these assignments. In the 1970s and 80s, America experienced a powerful revival, yet we lost much ground spiritually in our nation. Why? While the church worked at getting people saved (Mark 16 family mandate), unbelievers worked hard to “disciple” the nation (Matthew 28 mandate). Both groups were successful: we revived, and they reformed. We prepared people for heaven; they shaped a generation's thinking and prepared them to rule here on earth. America is now experiencing the fruit of this: we have an ungodly government, education system, and media, great erosion of the family unit, gross immorality, a loss of purpose as a nation, a lukewarm church, and we could go on. You can see the first three posts here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.
In yesterday’s post, I listed a few comparisons between revival (Mark 16) and reformation (Matthew 28) in order to help us understand the differences. I want to give several more today.
1. The messages are different, as are the methods of delivery. In Mark 16, Jesus told us to “preach the gospel,” which is the good news of Christ’s redemption. In Matthew 28, He told us to “teach” what He “commanded.” The New Testament word for preaching simply means to announce or proclaim a message, whereas teaching means to explain, expound, instruct, etc. We announce the good news; we teach God’s ways, precepts, desires, and the principles of His Kingdom.
2. The goals of Mark and Matthew are also different. The goal of Mark’s commission is saving people; the goal of Matthew’s is saving nations. Mark’s goal is to birth children; Matthew‘s goal is to mature, train, and commission them as Kingdom soldiers, ambassadors, and legislators. Through Mark’s commission, people receive God‘s life and nature; through Matthew’s commission, they are trained to release His life and nature.
The fulfillment of Mark‘s commission brings wholeness to and shapes individuals; the fulfillment of Matthew’s brings wholeness to and shapes cultures, societies, and nations. Mark’s commission is intended to deliver people from demons and sin; Matthew’s is designed to deliver nations from principalities and powers, philosophies, laws, unrighteous systems, humanism, racism, and more.
Mark’s assignment is to heal people of brokenness, diseases, oppression, etc.; Matthew’s will heal nations of poverty, hunger, violence, and other evils. The salvation released through Mark’s message fills individuals with Holy Spirit; Matthew’s teaching is intended to fill the atmospheres of regions and nations with Holy Spirit’s presence and peace. In Mark, Holy Spirit is poured out; in Matthew, the Word and truth are taught. One is an outpouring; the other is an outworking. Through Mark’s commission, personal destinies are awakened and accomplished; through Matthew’s, national destinies are awakened and accomplished.
3. The church’s activities are different in each assignment. In Mark’s, we serve the needs of people, protecting and nurturing God‘s family; in Matthew’s, we serve the purposes of God, accepting risk, sacrifice, and even martyrdom. In revival, we emphasize the provision of Christ; in reformation, we emphasize the principles of Christ. The former focuses on our inheritance and our rights as a joint heir with Christ; the latter focuses on our assignment from Christ, our responsibility as a citizen of His Kingdom.
In order to fulfill Mark’s commission, we gather and are filled, empowered, and anointed by Holy Spirit; to accomplish Matthew’s, we are authorized, commissioned, and sent. In the former, we release power for signs, wonders, and miracles, doing the works of God; in the latter, we dispense truth, doctrine, and information in order to transform systems and laws with the ways of God.
To win the lost (Mark 16), we preach grace and emphasize God’s mercy, compassion, and love; to disciple nations (Matthew 28), we teach God’s Word and emphasize His justice, righteousness, and truth. As God‘s family, our prayers are priestly - petitions, requests, intercession; as the Ekklesia, our prayers are kingly - decrees and declarations. To accomplish Mark 16 and function as God’s family, Christ’s ministry gifts of pastor, evangelist, and teacher are needed; to function as the Ekklesia, Christ’s ministry gifts of apostle, prophet, and teacher are needed.
Pray with me:
Father, we thank You for Your heart to redeem and save. Thank You for the power of the gospel, of the name of Jesus, and of Holy Spirit. Thank You for Your Word, which transforms, instructs, and teaches us Your ways. And we thank You for Your prophetic words informing us that revival will intensify and reformation will begin in 2024.
We will partner with You as instructed. We will preach the gospel of Jesus Christ all over the world. We will baptize those who believe, lay hands on the sick and see them recover, and we will cast out demons. This will produce the revival You speak of. We will also teach Your Word, Your commandments and ways, discipling nations. We will do so with Your authority, as You instructed us in Matthew 28. This will produce the reformation You have spoken of.
We will not be fearful of the shaking that is coming, for it is a cleansing and shaking down of evil, and a restoring of our nation to You. It is like that which You spoke to Jeremiah, a tearing down and uprooting, but also a building and planting. Therefore, we will move forward in faith through anything that comes against us, overcoming it in Your name and authority.
So, Father, we boldly and passionately ask You for this revival and reformation. Let Your power and outpouring be such that they cannot be ignored. Awaken the church, save unbelievers, and transform nations. And all of this we ask for in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that the greatest revival in history has begun, and the greatest season of earth’s transformation has also begun.
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