Romans Essentials of Faith - Revival

Good morning, Five Minute Families. We are closing out our series that focuses in on four essential truths found in Romans. We have discussed God’s righteousness, His redemption, His resources available to us as individuals and to us as families, and now we will close this series discussing revival. In Romans we learn about Israel’s rejection of God’s gift and that the Gentiles became grafted into the tree of God’s family. But, we find throughout Romans that God’s heart is still for His people of Israel, and He desires revival in their hearts as well as in the hearts of all believers. Romans 1:16 states, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”You know, special three-day or even week-long revival services used to be a common practice of the church. Whether due to lack of time or money for preparation or the thought that the revival services are outdated, the reality in the 2020s is that many churches never consider holding any type of revival service. God loves revival as we see in Psalm 85:6 “Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?” So, let us ask, what is revival? In the religious sense, it is defined as a reawakening of religious fervor, especially by means of a series of evangelistic meetings often called ‘revivals’. But, if we look to generic definition, we see that revival is an improvement in the condition or strength of something. Yes, evangelism is important, but we must also be renewed in our desire to grow more and more Christ-like. Revival can happen on the individual, family, small group, or corporate/church-wide level. Thus, this is where the family comes in. Just as a planned revival event at church takes work to accomplish, so does revival in the home. Being a Christian is more than just our moment of salvation; it is a moment by moment, day by day choice to grow more Christ-like. Let’s discuss five aspects of revival for a five-minute family.1. So, Five-minute moms and dads, you must come to understand Romans 6, 7, and 8. In a simplistic summation, we are dead to sin, set free from the bondage of sin, and now we must learn how to walk in the Spirit. You need to pray, study, and meditate. And, then, pray, study, and meditate some more. If you don’t know how, ask your pastor and spiritual mentor for a recommendation on a workbook that will teach you the basics. 2. Second, you must spend time planning and organizing your family revival time. What do you want to study, when will you meet together, for how long each day, for how many days? You must continue to pray and prepare about the content you and your family will discuss. 3. Third, make sure you give the family time to prepare since this will be a change in the normal routine. Don’t plan a family revival during tournament season or midterms, but once you have found a time, make sure you let all the family members know the details. And, yes, moms, you may need to be a broken record in reminding everyone. 4. During your family revival time, be sure to carve out some time to discuss your personal testimonies and how you would share what God has done in your home with others in your circles of influence. 5. And, finally, remember to follow through after the revival time with those action points God called you to or revealed as your next steps. Encourage everyone in the family to come together at a church or community event and share how much they enjoyed learning more about God together. In fact, after a family revival time, consider hosting a community one. It can be a few days of revival study with one or two other families in your neighborhood. If you do expand, remember to include all members of your household in the preparations for the next revival. Each family member should be praying, organizing at their age-level, sharing what it upcoming with those invited, practicing stating succinctly what God has done for them, and then follow up with their peers to engage in ongoing learning and discipleship. Remember, just as Billy Graham once said, "Courage is contagious. When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened." If you let God revive you and you stand in His righteousness and redemption, turning to His resources to make a difference, your family will become stronger and stronger every day. Take a stand and trust God to guide you.Thank you so much for joining us today. Be blessed!