Revival
Revival-Style Churches vs Typical Churches
Spirit-filled churches are increasingly falling into the trap of becoming a "typical church."
I've given leadership to revival-style churches and ministries for decades. It's grieving how few Spirit-filled churches are truly taking people unapologetically into the depths of surrender to Jesus. Instead, the preference is to grow wide and shallow in the hopes that the seats stay full, the money keeps coming in and the programs are staffed.
Of course, the majority of churches, Charismatic included, aren't pretending to be concerned about revival at all. The pursuit of a wild-fire, other-worldly, supernatural habitation of the Spirit of God never even comes to mind.
The cost is too high. The chances are too slim.
To most, it's not worth it.
The truth is, revival churches don't see dramatic impact, big crowds and overwhelming wonders in the early stages. The wells of revival must be dug. The hours of prayer must be invested. Repentance, consecration and a radical devotion of time must be constant. Few are willing to buy in at this level, and pastors know it.
The preferred church growth method is to create a "healthy, vibrant" atmosphere that's focused on meeting needs and fulfilling expectations. The shock and awe of God's glory is traded for a more naturally familiar environment that's sprinkled with some worship, teaching and fellowship. Nothing too deep, expensive or disruptive.
Of course, not every church has descended into what I'm calling a typical church. And, not every church will have done so on every point. Some are hanging strong in some areas while slipping on others.
And, it should also be said that legitimate revival churches can fail on some points that typical churches are stronger in. However, I do believe the comparison is generally valid.
What follows are some differences between typical churches and revival churches in graphic form. I'll keep adding points as they come. Share one or all, or this entire article.
Let's contend for authentic revival in the cities of the earth!
What are some key differences between typical churches and revival churches?
Listen: Nine ways a revival church is different than a typical church
Revival X is looking for PAVEMENT PEOPLE
Are you part of a NEW WINE ARMY that is DONE with church as usual?
I wrote this several years ago as a traveling preacher. My viewpoint has not changed now that I have planted a new church in Branson, Missouri:
I know I carry a critical message in this end time season. There is a desperate need for awakening and activation, and I desire to be a part of that.However, I have no desire to leave my family and travel to various churches if those churches aren’t ready for the deposit I’m called to leave.
I’m done with nice Sunday services where the people resist the depths, are reluctant to contend and are more interested in getting out on time. I’m done.Pastors, train your people to groan in the Spirit. Turn Sundays into prayer meetings. Blaze the trail toward revival.A quick, one hour sermon just won’t cut it. A little worship and a nice prayer is laughable. Cultivate services where people never want to leave! Where are the revivalists? The intercessors?Church as usual is over and I have no desire to come to your church to preach if you are still trying to build an old wine skin.
Where is my tribe? Where are the burning ones? I’m ready to find those pillars of revival fire and contend together for an outpouring.
FIREBRANDS ARISE!
Church as usual is coming to an end—and prophetic churches must emerge to fill the void.
Among them are people who are bellowing out that they are “DONE with church as usual,” but, for some strange reason, refuse to shift into the new.
The firebrands are few who are truly willing to break out of the old wine skin and enlist as soldiers who are absolutely reliant on the new wine of the Holy Spirit. This is a rare breed, indeed.
“As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house. When all the people of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the Lord on the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”” (2 Chronicles 7:1–3, ESV)
An Old Testament experience with the power of God should cause all of us New Covenant Believers to be troubled. Why isn’t God moving like that in our church?
The supernatural activity of the Holy Spirit today should absolutely blow away the encounters prior to the cross and resurrection of Christ and the Acts 2 awakening. Yet, here we are, struggling to break out of typical, familiar, comfortable and tired church life.
PAVEMENT PEOPLE
For decades, I’ve been looking for pavement people. Hungry, desperate Christians who are no longer looking for personal comfort in their church experience, but rather are ready to pay whatever price is necessary to see God manifest in overwhelming power.
To them, church as usual is dead. The old wineskin will no longer suffice. It can’t. The new wine they are yearning for demands an entire new model and they refuse to live another day bound up in the old.
Pavement people, as we saw in 2 Chronicles 7, weren’t interested in anything but the glory of God. God’s glory filled the house so powerfully that nobody could enter. That didn’t stop these fiery zealots. They hit the pavement and declared the goodness of God.
Literally nothing else mattered. They didn’t demand a certain order of service. They couldn’t care less about comfortable seats. They weren’t looking for friends or position or promotion. Air conditioning, greeters, programs, child care, predictable services and most everything else does not matter to these end-time, new wine warriors.
They want God.
A NEW WINE CHURCH EXPERIENCE
Pavement people have no patience for church experiences that aren’t fueled by deep, continual intercession. The glory of God has no comparison. The pursuit of wide-spread revival is the goal that causes them to burn white hot. Their devotion results in many sleepless nights as they weep over their city and cry out for the Holy Spirit to move.
When intercession and glory become the driving pursuits of people craving the wildfire of the Spirit of God, very little else becomes necessary in the church experience. In fact, they are so sensitive to the mission that they refuse to embrace anything that threatens the primary purposes of the new wine church.
As an example, at Revival X in Branson, Missouri, we are intentionally staying laser focused. This means we currently have no need to implement many things that are expected in old wine skin churches.
Live worship, children’s ministry, youth ministry, small groups, etc. aren’t currently important in the church plant. What is? Prayer. Intercession. Glory. Fire. Equipping. Deliverance.
Will we implement some of this in time? Possibly. Probably. Eventually. It must be done with great care so as not to distract from the primary purpose of the church. Additions will only come as they reinforce, support and give strength to intercession and revival.
The call is for all to pray as wild men and women, consumed with the fire of the Holy Spirit, allowing dreams, visions and a strong prophetic spirit to emerge. We must be trained in the fire, by the Fire, the Holy Spirit.
CHALLENGE
If you are “done with church as usual,” then get risky. Get out of the boat. Quit expecting “needs” of old to be met. Break out of old patterns and systems.
Don’t expect the new wine church to look anything like the old. The programs and purposes are going to shift dramatically. You will have to go deep in the Spirit, deep in intercession and develop a radically consecrated, holy, on-fire life of surrender. Literally nothing else will matter in comparison with your pursuit of God and revival.
A key reason pastors don’t steer their churches in this direction of Spirit-driven, prayer-fueled, revival-focused and risky ministry is they know few will respond positively.
What would happen if your pastor suddenly cancelled everything they do except for prayer and equipping?
What if they eliminated live worship and let the worship team get renewed in prayer for a year?
What would you do if there was no longer children’s ministry or youth ministry?
What about eliminating programs and ministries that you feel are extremely important?
How would you handle the shift? Would you take on your call to pray without ceasing? Would you go deep? Would you become the revivalist you were born to be?
Or would you complain, gossip, get frustrated, question leadership and look for a new, comfortable, old wine skin church?
I pray you’d accept nothing but the new wine. You’d be part of a very rare, special, end-time, remnant army that the world is waiting for.
How to launch a city-wide revival in your region
HOW CAN WE LAUNCH CITY-WIDE REVIVAL?
What follows is a step-by-step process to starting revival in your city.
The cost is great and those who are willing to pay that price are few. While many are willing to enjoy the fire, it’s a rare breed who are ready to ignite the flame.
From my book 20 Elements of Revival, based on Acts 2:
ELEMENT ONE: AGREEMENT
We must be radically locked in to the mission and running with love and passion with others on the team.
Schisms, gossip or a casual commitment are not an option in this first step. The call is to the upper room of radical intercession as we contend together for an outpouring.
Acts 2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
Joel 2:5-9 (ESV) 5 As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. 6 Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale. 7 Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths. 8 They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted.
ELEMENT TWO: RADICAL DEVOTION OF TIME
As God develops city churches across the planet it will become normal for believers to be together most every day.
This is not for fellowship alone, but rather for strategic planning, prayer, warfare and other works of Kingdom advance.
I find it amazing that Churches are eliminating services in response to a very demanding American lifestyle.
If we are to experience revival, we must fight that spirit and once again, as in the previous generation, be in the Church every time the doors are open- and the doors should be open night and day!
Acts 2:1 (NKJV) When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
ELEMENT THREE: EXTREME SPIRIT-FILLED ATMOSPHERE
This is not a seeker sensitive movement, but rather a believer driven ministry of extreme Holy Spirit activity in the HOUSE OF PRAYER.
The unusual manifestations of the presence of God will be expected when he comes as he is and does what he wants! To tone down the atmosphere is to, in effect, ask the Holy Spirit to settle down and give us control of the environment.
Acts 2:2-3 (NKJV) 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.
ELEMENT FOUR: EVERYONE IS FILLED
This is a clear indicator of God’s desired function and atmosphere for his church. It is a Holy Spirit driven entity and the model based on this chapter in Acts shows that every person was filled. The baptism of power should not be deemphasized, but rather it must be a primary focus.
Acts 2:4 (NKJV) And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
ELEMENT FIVE: INTERNATIONAL FOCUS
The focus of participating in an international outpouring of the Spirit of God will keep us broken, bold and intentionally filled and refilled with power.
To be presented with an international responsibility simply demands that we discover the power of lengthy, persistent prayer. Revival launching here will be felt internationally!
Acts 2:5 (NKJV) And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.
ELEMENT SIX: IT WILL BE MESSY AND CULTURALLY BIZARRE
As we take everything that has preceded this point in ministry–all of the fire and agreement and prophetically established plans of action–we can expect people to look at us with wild confusion.
When it goes public, it will be a strange and unique invasion into their world.
Acts 2:6 (NKJV) And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.
ELEMENT SEVEN: A DECLARATION OF GOD’S WORKS
As we are consumed with the Holy Spirit, declarations of God’s goodness, his power and his works will bellow from deep within us night and day. This will come not from intellectual knowledge but rather from revelation experience of his infused power.
You’ll notice that up until this point in the establishment of the first Church that there has been no mention of the ministries that we identify with the local Church experience. No teaching, no evangelism, no Sunday school, no small groups. It hasn’t been time for them. It has been premature.
Remember, the development of a Church must be established on the presence of the Holy Spirit, prayer and an intensely prophetic focus. Everyone must be filled, endowed with power and boldness and ready to move out.
I can imagine based on the next element that they were so full of the power and life of the Holy Spirit that they were stumbling and groaning and stuttering and crying out as mad men and women! It wasn’t a teaching environment at this stage, but it was a time of declaration!
Acts 2:11 (NKJV) …we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”
ELEMENT EIGHT: MARVELING AND MOCKING
Do we expect conflict? We should if God is doing strange and wonderful things through us. A message of reformation, power encounters, extreme challenge, opportunities for offense and visibly uncomfortable moves of the Holy Spirit will draw many and repel many.
This is where the rubber meets the road. Do you see now why an attempt at relevancy at this point actually works against the biblical flow of Church development? If what happened in the previous element was as earthshaking as it should have been, then what will be experienced in this element will be a great evidence of being on track. You will start to see people coming to you with extreme excitement on their faces.
These people will be thrilled to have found someone who has the guts to initiate true reformation. The flow of the Holy Spirit will be amazing and people’s lives will be tangibly touched in dramatic ways. However, you must prepare yourself for great resistance–again from both Christians and non-Christians. It will possibly be the very people that you crave affirmation from that will distance themselves from you.
Acts 2:12-13 (NKJV) 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?” 13 Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”
ELEMENT NINE: BOLD PREACHING AND TEACHING
To attempt to start a ministry at this point doesn’t make sense when we understand what Peter was doing. He was using the unique move of God that exploded out of the upper room as an opportunity to explain it and the Kingdom of God to everybody who witnessed it.
So, when ‘revival’ has broken out, and God is showing up in an unusual way, we will have the opportunity to teach and explain all that is happening to those who are listening.
Acts 2:15-16 (NKJV) 15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel.
ELEMENT TEN: PROPHECY, DREAMS AND VISIONS FOR ALL
We are all to prophecy, dream and have visions. An extreme atmosphere of Holy Spirit activity day after day in the city church will result in very easy experiences in the supernatural. Angelic visitations, revelations, declarations and other experiences and encounters will be normal.
I find it interesting that the first sermon that the people heard was one on the ‘extreme supernatural’. Most beginner classes, or pre-believer messages, seem to stay far and wide of any such focus. However, the first Church was birthed supernaturally without apology.
Acts 2:17-18 (NKJV) 17 ‘And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your young men shall see visions, Your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; And they shall prophesy.
ELEMENT ELEVEN: PREACHING SALVATION
It is appropriate to hold off on mass evangelism strategies until this point is reached. When the Holy Spirit is moving powerfully, the supernatural is experienced continually, revelation is clearly received and the prophetic flow of God is exploding in and out of us, the message of salvation will then be preached with the necessary power and effectiveness. Many will get saved at this stage of a city church plant.
Acts 2:21 (NKJV) And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved.’
ELEMENT TWELVE: REPENTANCE
Only a powerful move of the Holy Spirit can cause mass repentance in a city church. The result of following the order of the establishment of a church in a city is mass repentance, healing, deliverance and freedom!
This step should flow naturally out of what everybody has experienced thus far. An extreme move of the Holy Spirit simply results in a great fear of God, a craving of holiness and a continually repentant heart. The difference between the lost and those who are flowing in the Spirit of revival will be extreme- more so than black and white.
An unapologetic call to holiness, repentance and hunger for the purity of God will consume the atmosphere. A radical John the Baptist type of call will resound- Repent! The Kingdom of God is at hand!
This is not a seeker sensitive movement at all–but quite the opposite. It’s aggressive, confrontational and prophetic.
The previous preparation of the atmosphere that started picking up speed in verse one of Acts Chapter Two will result in and demand nothing less than a declaration of death to self, the embracing of a bloody cross and the brokenness of a desperate soul as he looks upon the face of Jesus.
Acts 2:38 (NKJV) Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
ELEMENT THIRTEEN: POWER ENCOUNTERS
Salvation will be quickly followed by baptisms in the Holy Spirit. People will encounter God in extraordinary ways.
Acts 2:38 (NKJV) Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
ELEMENT FOURTEEN: GROWTH
Teaching is a necessary part of continual personal and corporate growth. It’s a perpetual need for strategic advance, maturity and equipping. Teaching will enter into a more important role at this stage of church growth.
Now it’s time to teach! Why? There are new soldiers awaiting their instructions. Up until this point, the ‘upper room team’ was made up of maturing and intensely focused people. While there should certainly be an element of training at that stage, it will be very narrowly focused. In the early stages with the upper room team training sessions are more like strategy meetings than traditional teaching services. You teach on what you need to accomplish in the next mission.
It may seem like the supernatural activity of the Holy Spirit is de-emphasized in this phase, but whatever you do, don’t allow this to happen! Not only must this phase result in a school of learning, it must be a school of burning! Gather together the flock and teach them to be fire-breathers! Training in everything from prayer to the prophetic to holiness to who they are in Christ must be continual here.
Acts 2:42 (NKJV) And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
ELEMENT FIFTEEN: FELLOWSHIP
We must avoid the mistake of birthing a city church on relationship instead of mission. Fellowship is a consequence of a Holy Spirit birthed church, not a strategy to build the church. It is a wonderful atmospheric reality as opposed to a foundational support system.
It’s unrealistic to presume a social structure can grow a Church. To attend a conference on small group strategies and then attempt to implement that strategy with the expectation that church growth will suddenly explode is unrealistic. Small groups cannot be a propellant for explosive growth, but they can be a net to catch people who come in as a result of explosive growth.
Acts 2:42 (NKJV) And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
ELEMENT SIXTEEN: PRAYER
Along with teaching and fellowship, prayer is a common daily activity both corporately and personally. At this stage, every believer should be maturing rapidly in disciplined prayer, fellowship and growth in the Word.
Here’s a critical barometer for you. If you have done a good job following God’s original design for the launching of a Church, you will see everybody in prayer all the time.
If you don’t, there has been compromise and impatience somewhere previously in the process.
Again, let me state this very clearly–in the ancient and emerging model of the City Church based on Acts Chapter Two, it will be absolutely normal for literally every person to be involved in ten, twenty or more hours of prayer every week!
If we are filling our seats with people who don’t crave God in prayer, it’s a failed mission.
I find it sadly interesting that a majority of Christians shrink back when the topic of prayer is discussed. I believe we have done a poor job of explaining the idea of salvation to people.
Saved people don’t crave principles, ideas or methods for successful living. They desperately crave encounters with their Lover.
Acts 2:42 (NKJV) And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
ELEMENT SEVENTEEN: FEAR OF GOD
This is a critical barometer for a church. If the church was birthed in fire, and was maintained in fire with an international focus and an extreme mandate to facilitate an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the fear of God will permeate every part of the ministry.
If the fire and the fear is absent it may be necessary to cancel programs, eliminate special events and call the body together nightly for intense intercession and pressing into God’s presence.
Jesus modeled an expressive and all consuming prayer life. “Vehement cries and tears” were offered to his Father. These days we don’t hear such emotion in our Churches as much as we should. When this type of atmosphere rules Sunday, many people may not come, or maybe they will, but one thing is certain–the job will get done.
Acts 2:43 (NKJV) Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
ELEMENT EIGHTEEN: SIGNS AND WONDERS
Another barometer. Contending with passion, declaring the Word and stepping into impossible missions will result in a regular flow of signs and wonders. Anything less will compromise the mission as the mission will require a continual miraculous flow through everybody involved.
I often hear people ask why we don’t experience signs and wonders to a greater degree here in the United States. After reading this book, I believe the answer becomes much clearer. On a national level, we are still in the very early parts of Acts Chapter Two.
We haven’t arrived to the “signs and wonders” part yet. It’s when we are praying 24/7, unified, together continually, filled with the Holy Spirit, experiencing the manifestation of the presence of God and all of the other important elements of a City Church, we will then experience a regular flow of signs and wonders. Signs and wonders are primarily for the lost–to prove to them that this crazy lifestyle depicted in this book is the way to go! Being with God continually with other zealots is the plan of the ages!
As the power of God explodes out of a people who have paid the price of extreme participation in a missional society, others will have no choice but to look and crave!
Acts 2:43 (NKJV) Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
ELEMENT NINETEEN: EVERYTHING IN COMMON
What started in unity in verse one has resulted in community. An intentional devotion to the city church body will be a mark of a healthy and growing church.
Acts 2:44 (NKJV) Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common…
ELEMENT TWENTY: DAILY PARTICIPATION CORPORATELY
A reformation of participation is needed in the church. If we start a church correctly, with everybody in one accord and in one place, we will continue correctly. We must ensure ministry continues night and day. We will find ourselves, along with our friends and families, so consumed with the mission of Kingdom advance that most everything else will be reprioritized. It will be normal to be together nearly every day or night of the week to pray, to worship, to minister and to participate in the strategic advance of the church. As with revivals of old, people will line up hours in advance just to find a seat for the service. If this is to be the end result of a city church, it must be started this way–together continually experiencing the presence of God and receiving his instruction for Kingdom advance around the world.
Acts 2:46-47 (NKJV) 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
Ancient & emerging: 5 major changes coming to the church
The Coming Church will look nothing like the church we know today. Here are some of the significant changes on the horizon.
Over the last 22+ years of ministry, one of the most difficult challenges I’ve faced has been effectively communicating just what changes are coming to the church.
The current church paradigm is so prevalent and saturating in our culture that people just can’t seem to wrap their minds around the shift that is coming. It seems nonsensical, threatening or just plain bizarre. They wonder how their ministry stream or focus or gift fits in that structure. The reality is that it may not, or it may be radically redefined. The discomfort level will be quite high, and it will take a radical remnant to truly sign up for the reformation—for the revolution of the church.
The disciples of Jesus had an idea of what it would look like in Acts 1, but Jesus radically violated their dreams, plans and comfort zones by leaving—and commissioning them to establish what they hoped Jesus would build!
Acts 1:6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, jwill you at this time krestore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, l“It is not for you to know mtimes or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive npower owhen the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and pyou will be qmy witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and rSamaria, and sto the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, the was lifted up, and ua cloud took him out of their sight.
The Coming Church
This book that I’m currently writing will be addressing some of the spiritual and practical changes that will be coming to the structure and expression of the church. Trust me, it will shock our nation severely. Those who hold on to a structure or a ministry instead of Jesus himself will not be willing to go where God is leading.
I call this the ancient and emerging church. Ancient because it’s rooted in scripture, emerging because the biblical structure has been largely forsaken.
What will this ancient and emerging church look like? Here’s just a small peek into a grand shift in the structure of the church:
- Services will become more like prayer meetings. One of the greatest indictments on the church today is that prayer is not the driving force. Today, people tend to choose churches based on the appeal of the teaching and the worship instead of the fervency of prayer. If the church was a house of teaching, or a house of worship, that would make sense, but it’s not. The church is a house of prayer for all nations. Every person in the church will function as a burning intercessor and the services will be marked by this unified groan of fiery prayer.
- Personal need will give way to personal mission. Today, churches are often more like organic, socially driven hospitals. People tend to use the church as a way to meet their personal needs instead of serving it as a minister of God. This is going to change. Of course, there will still be personal ministry and true needs will be addressed. However, instead of the church functioning as a hospital, it will once again function as a mission-driven military. The mission will take precedence. The saints will be equipped for service, not for personal survival. In this ancient and emerging model, their will be MASH units that will take very good care of the wounded with the primary purpose of getting the soldier back into battle. Apostles will again lead with governmental authority and pastors will be seen as the main leader less and less as they focus more on shepherding and less on primary leadership.
- Teaching will be minimized while instruction is emphasized. Teaching is mostly for personal edification while instruction is mostly for corporate assignments. Today, most churches focus on teaching principles of scripture, providing truths that will help Believers navigate through their lives and giving nuggets of biblical info. While there will still be important Bible teaching, apostolic instruction will emerge as a necessary new ministry. There is enough Bible teaching online, on CD’s, in books and on video to turn every one of us into personal spiritual giants. We need to take it upon ourselves to grow. What is lacking, however, is apostolic leaders, military commanders, who give instruction, assignments, to a ready army. Teaching is personal growth based while instruction is a call to corporate action for the sake of mission fulfillment. An example of apostolic instruction is this: The apostolic leader gives a corporate assignment for everybody in the church to fast for a week and then show up together to prayer walk through the city streets. It’s a corporate call to action vs. biblical study. It’s mission focused vs. personal growth focused. Personal growth will be largely our responsibility between services so we can be ready to respond to the corporate instruction where we will receive our assignments.
- We will gather together most days of the week. The 24/7 church will again emerge as the church drives culture instead of reacting to culture. Cares of life will lose their power as we simplify our lives and put corporate prayer and mission ahead of most everything else. This may be the most challenging change for Christians. Today, Sundays are the days to set aside for corporate worship while we give precedence to our ‘normal lives’. In The Coming Church, the very reason we live will be to pray on fire together every day, receive apostolic assignments and then move out into our lives as Kingdom ambassadors. It wouldn’t be surprising if a tithe of our time is what became the standard. Two to three hours a day, whether it’s in the morning, afternoon or evening, or even in the late night hours, will be given by every Believer to praying on site together with others, ministering, and giving ourselves to intercession fueled Kingdom ministry. Of course, much of what we have been giving ourselves to will have to be eliminated so we have the time necessary to devote.
- Worship will be supernaturally driven. There is a new sound coming to worship, and it’s not simply a new style. There is a supernatural, otherworldly groan of intercessory worship that will explode out of the entire body as a new breed of trembling worship leaders lead the way into the shock and awe of the glory of God. We will no longer simply sit in a pew or stand with a raised hand while a familiar worship song is sung. The prophetic, groaning sounds of Holy Spirit facilitated worship will make it normal to shake and fall to our faces as we cry Holy! The natural, logical sing-a-longs will be no more. We will have a hard time standing as God’s Shekinah and Kabod glory resides in his church. Worship teams will practice less and pray in the Spirit with tears in their eyes more.
Of course, this is an extremely limited glance into the many, many changes that are coming. I wanted to share this to provoke you to preparation. There is much that you and I enjoy in the church, or that is comfortable to us, that we will have to let go. Again, the coming church will be troubling and shocking, but it will result in the power and life that we have been crying out for.
God is about to answer that cry.
I strongly recommend that you read my book 20 Element of Revival. That book reveals much of the shift that we must embrace right now. If you truly take in all that it has to say, you’ll never participate in the church the same way again.
Revival X Vision of WILDFIRE in Branson
Revival X Vision of WILDFIRE REVIVAL in Branson, Missouri
Revival X in Branson is a NEW CHURCH ON FIRE with a massive vision of extreme Holy Spirit outpouring in the region.
Join us each week as we facilitate a powerful, prophetic atmosphere where the Spirit of God is free to heal, deliver and empower!
Learn more at www.revivalx.tv and www.burton.tv.
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