"Revival" pt. 2

"If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or I sent pestilence among My people; If My People, who are called by My Name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My Face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and forgive their sin, and will heal their land. Now My Eyes shall be open, and My Ears attent unto the prayer that is made in this place. For now have I chosen and sanctified this House, that My Name may be there forever: and My Eyes and My Heart shall be there perpetually.

2 Chr 7:13-16

"what's in your crosshairs?

I've been told, that when military snipers are trained, that they are taught, how to compensate for conditions of long distance shooting. Sometimes, having a target in their scopes crosshairs, isn't a guarantee that they are going to hit their mark. Sometimes, conditions distort our focus. As I have shared previously, our faith is to be focused on the Finished Work of the Cross. It is the foundation upon which everything is built on, in our lives,in Him. Keeping the focus of our faith on the Cross, gives the Holy Spirit latitude in our lives. The latitude to work in us, and through us. The Holy Spirit ,convicts us of our sin, when we lose focus, lose the clarity of our Faith, when we become distracted.

Over the recent decades, there have been many" blessings, refreshings, revivals”, that were earmarked by “manifestations, signs, and wonders". Scripture tells us that signs and wonders are to follow those who believe (Mk 16: 17-18). The same chapter tells us that the early Church( not just the Apostles), went and preached ,everywhere, and confirming the Word with signs following. Signs, confirming, The Word. Signs ,by definition,are meant to indicate, something. When we are travelling, we follow the signs for direction, distance , speed, all indicating how close we are to our destination. The signs aren't the focus of our trip, the destination is. As believers, we shouldn't have our aim on signs and wonders,otherwise we miss the mark. They are for confirming our destination, The Presence of God. Mark 16:20 tells us that as they went forth and preached, the Lord was working with them, and signs followed.The Preaching of the Word of God is what signs validate, and direct us to, the Person of Jesus Christ, and His Finished Work.

Another sniper technique, I am told, is to aim past the target, to shoot through it, so your shot doesn't fall short. Spiritually, our focus is to be intently on The Cross. And The Cross alone. All other doctrine is a result of this Foundational Truth. We partake in the promises and benefits, afforded us because of His Sacrifice on the Cross. Several years ago, there was a teaching going around, about how the church needs to move past the "elementary teachings about Christ". It was a gross misinterpretation of Hebrews 6:1&2. The focus was on the gifts, and ministry offices, being developed. The aim went beyond , missing the mark.

We should be moving, growing, building our lives on the ”Sure Foundation” of Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. Every building, great and small, is built on a solid foundation, and anchored to it. We never move our Faith past, the Cross, we are anchored to it. Then our lives in Him, and everything in our lives, our callings and gifts, are built straight, strong, and true. When the proper focus is given. We then mature, strengthen our Faith, and relationship with Him. As a marriage relationship grows, children come as a result of the relationship. The children aren’t the focus of the relationship, they are the fruit. The gifts,and ministries, are fruit of proper relationship, a proper foundation built upon. Signs.

The greatest sign, that we should see, is the sign of a repentant heart and a changed life, by the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Gospel preached. In the Scripture, we are told to humble ourselves, seek His Face, not His Hand. Seek His Person, not His gifts or benefits. The word seek is a continual tense verb, seek and keep on seeking, focus and keep on focusing. The Finished work of Christ, is where revival begins,and always points to, the focal point in history. Everything before looked to it ,and for it. Everything since then is built on it. Take aim, keep focused on It, and you will see clearly, "what's in your crosshairs."