Positioned for Revival — Part 2
By Iverna Tompkins
Transcribed by Jane Vaughn

In part 1 of this message, we turned to Acts 10 to take a closer look at Cornelius - to discover what made him a viable candidate for the Revival that came to him and his family.  The first thing we noted was his Performance.  Let's continue our study from there, observing 4 additional qualities.

2)  Passion

Passion is the antithesis of passivity and the latter is a mammoth problem in the church today.  Too many Christians have the attitude of “whatever will be, will be.”  We lack passion in the pews (sadly, even in some pulpits) and especially in our corporate prayer-life.  We want to do our duty to God and show up for church on Sundays, but if the worship gets too loud or goes on too long, our personal passivity rules and we tune out.  If the preacher goes on too long or talks about sin or tithing, we defer to that passive spirit, and any passion that may have been stirred in the service wanes away.

Passion.  I love The Song of Solomon in the Bible.  It is the primary example for us of passion for our God and King.  Throughout that text, there is passion in every dimension and on every level.  Passion when the Shulamite first meets the King and says, “If You’ll draw me, we will run after You.”  Passion when she is in His presence and says, “When the King is at His table, mmmmm, the fragrance is incredible and my hunger is stirred.”  Passion when she loses Him through disobedience, and subsequently runs through the streets of the cities and every church she can find (Selah!) saying, “I’ve got to find Him!  Oh, I’ve got to find Him!”  Where is that passion today?  Passion that she expresses when she finally finds Him on one occasion and declares, “When I found Him, I would not let Him go.”  That’s the same passion we see in Jacob, wrestling for a blessing from God (Gen. 32:24-30).  It’s the passion we see in other men and women in the Word of God who say, “Oh, we’ve tasted and seen and we are witnesses to the power of God.”

How much do you really care if you have a fresh revelation of God?  How much do you really care?  God watches the condition of our hearts – He is interested in the underlying attitudes behind our doings.  He may even allow us to fall, or fail, until we develop a passion for others to know Him like we know Him in salvation.

God has raised up some marvelous preachers or orators today.  But the absolute truth is the individuals in the pews, who can pick up the same passion, would have just as much on-going revelation in their lives – if they would walk in the same obedience.  Lifestyle obedience to the ways and plans of God – with passion – that is what is going to bring revival.  We need to walk the walk and practice diligently obeying God’s Word.  Notice the immediate action taken in Acts 10, verses 7 and 8:  “As soon as the angel was gone… [Cornelius] sent them off to Joppa.”  It was an immediate act of faith based on what this Gentile heard.

Peter is the one God needed and selected to be His mouthpiece to these Gentiles.  If we look closely, however, Peter was not a great candidate for that assignment.  He was prejudiced and didn’t even realize it.  Having walked with Jesus, Peter had heard Him declare that He had come for the “house of Israel.”  With his whole heart, Peter believed that the message of the Messiah was for the Jews only.  Oh, the subtlety of prejudice!  Christians, for the most part, decry prejudice – so we say.  We must squarely face this reality, Church, for God must shake us free from all types of prejudice.

Take a simple test.  How do you feel when one of your own family members begins to interact with people who are somehow “different” from you?  Not as educated.  Not as monied.  Not the same class, color, or culture.  “Different” is usually suspect, and often causes a measure of panic in the depth of one’s being.

Unfortunately, in addition to the “usual” types of prejudices, we are able to identify prejudiced attitudes from one Christian denomination to another, from one type of worship experience to another.  God has to remove that, or visitors among us are going to sense its presence.  He is working in each one of us to break down the strongholds of prejudice because we must be able to flow together as one Body of Christ.  Unity in the Body of Christ helps to position us for revival.  That unity begins in the heart-attitudes of individuals. 

God selected Peter in Acts 10.  It’s almost as if God invited Peter to go on a picnic, and He brought the meal!  In the vision-dream, down from heaven came a tablecloth filled with all kinds of things Peter had never eaten, or even touched, in his whole life.  He rejected any idea of ever doing so.  Don’t miss a small detail in this vision:  the food was taken back.  Let’s learn that if we continue to reject what God presents to us, there will come a time when He will no longer offer it.

In Acts 10:16, however, we see that the vision was repeated for Peter three times.  Oh, the grace of God!  Peter did not understand the why of the vision, or what God had already ordained to come to pass (the inclusion of Gentiles in the Body of Christ).  He didn’t know that Cornelius had sent his servants to invite him to his home, the house of a Gentile.  We don’t always know what God has in mind for us, either.  We may not know why God has done some things in our lives, or why He’s even blessed us at all.  We don’t have to know every detail until God’s time is at hand, or until it’s time for us to move on what we do know.

When Peter gets the word from the vision – when he understands – when revelation is clear – when comprehension has been received – when he says, “Yes, Lord, I get it!” – immediately, there is a knock-knock-knock on the door.  “Peter, there are three men down here looking for you.”  Peter goes down to face the Gentile callers and they explain, “Our master, Cornelius, is a God-fearing man though a Gentile.  And he does this and this and this…” and they list his practices, “…but he had a vision from God and in that vision he was instructed to send for you.”  What would Peter have done a couple hours earlier?  He would have responded, “No way.  It’s against the Law.  Certainly you must know that.  You must have the wrong Peter.  It’s not me your master has sent for.  There must be some mistake.”  But God had prepared Peter.

God set Peter up.  And He has set you up, too.  Everything that has preceded this moment in time is God’s set-up, for each of us.  He has allowed us to go through some things as preparation for times yet to come.  God has set up the Church – for such a time as this – things too wonderful for us to even grasp – yet (Psa.139:6; Job.42:3; Rom.11:33).  All God is looking for is to see how many individuals are walking in the fullness of what they already know.  God has set us up – you, me, every believer.  Learn to accept that with a positive attitude and say, “Lord, what a joy!  What a privilege that You set me up.”  Maybe you prefer the word “prepared.”  God has used every incident, every circumstance, every failing, every victory, every moment of our lives to prepare us for this moment. 

So, performance has brought a passion and then a persistence.

3)  Persistence

When Peter comes to the door and says, “What is it that you want?” the men don’t actually know what to respond.  They don’t know specifically what to say, except they do know what God said.  Friends, it’s okay to pray, to ask, and yet not know everything.  There are times when we know exactly what and how to pray, but there are also times when we are at a total loss as to what it is we need.  That’s the time when we come to Him simply grateful for His invitation to come.  “Lord, I just come to worship. I just come to bow down. And Lord, I want…” and here’s the key word, “MORE!  I have to have more of You!”

It’s like getting used to the water and learning how to swim.  At first, just wading in ankle-deep water was refreshing and fun.  In the last revelation, it was the greatest thing we’d ever known.  “Ooooo!  This is great!  Come on in!”  That was wonderful for a while until we ventured out to a little deeper place, and then only wading became boring.  And someone said, “You need more water.  Greater blessings come in the deeper water.”  More anointing comes through our speakers and leaders, and greater prophetic utterances begin to be spoken as we grow closer and closer to Him.  Pretty soon, we’re in waist deep water and begin to experience some of the elation of that measure of refreshing and buoyancy, as we trust God for more.  We are encouraged to get out far enough where we yield ourselves totally to the river of God and swim along with His current.  I know I can’t go back!  I hate the ankle-deep experience I once loved and found so refreshing.  I have to have more!

What’s the purpose of all this “more?”

4)  Purpose

I think we find the purpose of revival in this lesson of the beginning of the Gentiles finding Jesus.  Cornelius doesn’t know exactly what to ask for; Peter doesn’t know exactly what to give.  We don’t always see God’s purposes with clarity at first.  All we can do as believers is to prepare daily whatever He sets before us, walking in the light we have, applying what we already know, and seeking for more of God through fellowship and study.  We “get ready.”  We prepare for whenever that time comes that God says, “Knock-knock-knock.  I have someone for you to speak to.  It’s time.” 

Here, in Acts 10, we have the ingredients for revival.  We have the man who is living up to the knowledge he has (Cornelius).  We have the one with much superior knowledge and experience (Peter), who never believed the message or ministry should go to the man he has actually come to see.  They both know they have heard and are obeying the direction of God.  That sounds like being a Christian to me.  That sounds like being Spirit led.  “They who are led of the Spirit of God are the sons of God” (Rom. 8:14).  I know what my Father wants because I am His child.  I don’t always know how to get it, or how to give it, but I know the goal.  Peter did too.  The goal was to reveal the Messiah, the Christ, the Jesus, who came that ALL might be saved – so that, “As many as received Him” (John 1:12) could come to know Him.

Peter began to talk about Jesus.  In his sermon in Acts 10 (vv34-43), there was no great reference to their past.  There was no great oratory about “even though thou art a Gentile and I am a Jew.…”  Peter just says, “Well, let me tell you what I do know.  I walked with Him.  Jesus came and healed the sick, blind eyes were opened, He raised the dead, and whatever needed to be accomplished, He did it.  And then He said He was going to leave it all to us!”  Fearful thought!  “And greater things than these shall ye do because I go to the Father” (John 14:12b) – the provision has been made by God Himself.

Note the next verse (Acts 10:44).  As Peter revealed Jesus Christ, freely given to as many as would receive Him, the scripture says, “…the Holy Ghost fell on all who received the Word!”

The purpose of revival is power – an outpouring of the power of the Holy Spirit.

5)  Power

The path to power is the sharing of Jesus!  It is in witnessing to others about the Good News He came to share with all of us.  God’s power cannot be purchased, or obtained with any sort of bribery.  We receive His mighty power in our lives because we have earnestly sought Him.  We receive because we are not seeking the power by itself. 

Remember when Moses was saying “Goodbye” to the Israelites in Deuteronomy – his marvelous farewell sermon?  In Deuteronomy 10, verse 17, Moses says, “For the Lord your God is God of gods, and Lord of lords; a great God, a mighty, and a terrible, which regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward.”  You cannot buy power.  You cannot bribe Him or bargain with Him (as in “Lord, if You do this, I will do that”).  Those days are far behind us.

Because the correct position had been taken by Cornelius and by Peter, the purpose had been revealed in Jesus Christ; the power had been given through the Holy Ghost; the people had been moved into a higher level of revelation and a higher plane of performance than they had ever dreamed possible.  That is revival!

Revival IS going to come because God has declared it.  If we want to be an integral part of His next move of power, let’s carefully consider these 5 points in being positioned for His visitation.  If we ignore what we already know, we will find ourselves on the periphery, the outside, of His next move, simply watching Him move.  We will not enjoy a fresh revelation of God until we perform what He has already revealed to each of us.  Passion grows as we continuously seek for more of God, realizing that nothing else fulfills our deepest needs as well as a personal and intimate relationship with Him.  We would be unable to fully enjoy the depths of revival without this pressing on into greater relationship with Him, for only those who learn how to swim in the deep water experience the fullness of the river.

Here is the challenge for our readers.  Are you ready for the next move of God?  Do you want to be a part of what He is about to do?  If so, personal, self-evaluation of where you presently stand with God is advisable.

Would you admit to failing in step one – performance?  “I’m not doing all I know to do.” 

Now would be a good time to purpose in your own heart to prepare for that coming move of God, by being obedient to do what you know to do.  Follow-through would be a must.

Would you admit to failing in step two – passion?  “I really don’t have a passion for God, the things of God, or for souls to be saved.” 

This deals with your heart-attitude toward God Himself.  It has to do with consistently choosing His ways over your own comforts.  It has to do with trusting Him to lead you, withholding nothing from His rulership in your life.  It is like allowing the natural buoyancy of the water to hold you up rather than relying on whatever you can do for yourself.

Have I missed it in step three – persistence?  “I just don’t persist.  I ask and pray and occasionally go into a prayer line seeking more of God, but I don’t persist, looking for Him to fulfill His promises.” 

As you surrender more and more of your self issues to God, accepting what He has to offer in place of what you can do for yourself, you will find that it becomes easier to come to Him, in faith, believing He truly wants to respond to you. 

Men have a more difficult time pressing into God in this area because they are not naturally given to nagging to get what they want.  They are much more matter-of-fact than that, and too willing to accept the lies of the enemy saying that God doesn’t respond because He doesn’t really care. 

Women, on the other hand, just keep coming back until we get what we want.  We nag by nature.  This is not meant to be funny, but illustrative.  Persistence in seeking God needs to be developed, for it is His good pleasure to bless His children.

Have I failed in step four – purpose?  “I missed the whole purpose of revival.  I thought it was just for my private, spiritual blessing.  I see now that it’s so I would tell the world around me that Jesus came for them.” 

As we grow in the Lord, receiving more of His power in our lives, we are empowered by His Holy Spirit to become witnesses to who He is and all He wants to pour out toward us (Acts 1:8).  It is not a giant, impossible task for us to carry out.  It simply deals with our willingness to tell others around us about His love and goodness and provision for a future with Him.

What about step five – power?  “I’m just too shy to witness.”  Or, “no one wants to hear what I have to say.”

Power.  God has given you “power to be My witnesses” (Acts1:8).  Until you put that to an authentic test by talking about your God, you will not experience His power that equips and enables you to obey this command.

Positioned for Revival.  Doing what we know to do, preparing for the out-pouring of His Spirit, and persisting in our pursuit of God with passion, regardless of what has yet to be revealed to us.  Regardless of what we can see or not see, we just keep on pressing into Him.